Book: One Left Behind
Author: Carla Kovach
Pub Day: July 15th 2021
My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
About the Book:
Music and loud voices echo through the woods surrounding her. Wiping her tears, she hears the rustle of leaves close by. Footsteps. She has no time to scream before a hand covers her mouth and her entire world goes black. In a patch of forest on the outskirts of a small town, five teenage school friends prepare to spend a night away from home. Carrying their tents and sleeping bags, they laugh and joke as they make their way into the darkest part of the woods, away from prying eyes. But as the sun rises the following morning, only four are left alive. Devastated, Leah’s friends all swear they didn’t see or hear anything. Her best friend sobs as she recounts what she remembers from that night – dancing, roasting marshmallows, sipping warm cans of beer by the fire – but is it grief, or is she hiding something? What happened to Naomi in the hour that no one can account for? And what troubled past lies behind the perfect manners of the boy who organised the trip, and who is prepared to lie to keep it buried? As the cracks in their stories grow, it’s clear one of them is lying, and one of them is next… Perfect for fans of Angela Marsons, Cara Hunter and Clare Mackintosh, One Left Behind is a thrilling crime novel that will have you hooked from the very first page!
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'One Left Behind' by Carla Kovach.
Read and reviewed via NetGalley for Carla Kovach, Bookouture publishers and Bookouture anonymous
Publication date 15th July 2021.
This is the third book I have read by this author. I have previously read 'Their Silent Graves' which is the seventh book in the 'Detective Gina Harte' series and 'The Broken Ones' which is the eighth book in the 'Detective Gina Harte' series. 'One Left Behind' is the ninth book in the 'Detective Gina Harte' series but can be read as a standalone.
I was originally drawn to this book by its beautiful eye catching cover and its intriguing synopsis and title. The synopsis stated that this book is 'Perfect for fans of Angela Marsons, Cara Hunter and Clare Mackintosh, One Left Behind is a thrilling crime novel that will have you hooked from the very first page!.' I am a huge fan of Angela Marsons so am looking forward to seeing if this lives up to this statement. I am also a huge fan of Carla Kovach and if this is half as good as 'The Broken Ones' or 'Their Silent Graves' it is sure to be an epic read. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Bookouture. I have yet to read a book published by Bookouture that I haven't enjoyed. Hopefully this won't be the first... Watch this space! (Written before I started reading the book).
This novel consists of a prologue, 73 chapters and an epilogue. The chapters are short to medium in length so possible to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!
This book is based in England 🏴 , UK 🇬🇧 . I always enjoy when books are set in the UK as I'm from Wales and have sometimes visited areas mentioned in the book. This makes it easier to picture where the scenes are set at times. I have in fact visited England on many occasions including going there on holiday last and this year so am looking forward to possibly recognising name places.
This book is written in third person perspective and the main protagonist is Detective Gina Harte. The benefits of third person perspective with multiple protagonists are that it let's you see the bigger picture of what's going on and you get to know more characters more, what they are thinking and what they are doing. It feels like you get to see the whole picture and not miss out in anything. .
'One Left Behind' discusses some topics that may trigger some readers or may not be suitable for others. I like to point this out ahead of time in my reviews so you can judge if this book is for you or not. In this book Carla discusses/includes domestic violence.
WELL, WELL, WELL CARLA DOES IT AGAIN!!!! YET ANOTHER EXPLOSIVE PAGE TURNER BY AN EXTREMELY TALENTED AUTHOR!!
This book is another riveting installment in this gripping and addictive series. Filled with vivid descriptions it is easy to get lost in the pages for hours. The cover and synopsis work perfectly with the storyline. This book hit every possible emotion and I loved every part of it.
The storyline was quite unique, very fast paced and filled with suspense, tension, secrets, action and lots red herrings to throw you off the scent. I was completely shocked by who the killer turned out to be and never expected them in the slightest. I always love it when I'm shocked as there's nothing worse than working out the killer and your not even half way through the book yet. I love that several chapters are from the Killer's perspective which gives an excellent insight to how they are feeling and why they are doing what they are.
I love Gina and the fact that she is a strong female role model who has got a history herself makes it even better. I enjoyed meeting all the previous characters along with many new ones who all had their own personalities and were strong Characters. I love the dynamics in Gina's team and the fact they all work so well together. Each of her team has their own unique traits and personalities and I love meeting them in each new storyline that Carla brings out. I am looking forward to meeting them all again when I read more of the fabulous Carla's books.
If you have never read this series I highly recommend starting now. It is always great if you can start at the beginning of a series but the brilliant thing with Carla's books is that it really doesn't matter where you start as they can be read in any order.
CONGRATULATIONS CARLA ON YET ANOTHER EXPLOSIVE INSTALLMENT IN AN EPIC SERIES!!!
Overall a page turning, psychological thriller that will leave you shocked and wanting to read more of this incredible series
Genres covered in this novel include Psychological Fiction, Crime Fiction, Thriller, Police Procedural, Mystery and Psychological Thriller amongst others.
I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as fans of Angela Marsons, Carol Wyer, C. L Taylor, Tess Gerritsen and anyone looking for an addictive and explosive series.
365 pages.
This book is just £1.99 to purchase on kindle via Amazon or free on kindle unlimited which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!
Rated 5 /5 (I LOVED it ) on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon UK and Amazon US and on over 30 Facebook pages plus my blog on Facebook.
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@CarlaKovach @Bookouture @Bookworm1986 @bookworm86
Author Bio
Carla Kovach is a crime and horror author from Worcestershire. Her most popular work, the DI Gina Harte series is published by Bookouture. As well as books, she also writes stage and screenplays
Social Media
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carla_kovach/
Website: https://griffbuck.wordpress.com/
Buy Links
Amazon: https://geni.us/B094JXGTC6cover
Apple: http://ow.ly/YrWh50EJDqZ
Kobo: http://ow.ly/QthD50EJDlx
Google: http://ow.ly/W8Ez50EJDwr Audible:
US: zpr.io/2diGSZPZegZF
https://soundcloud.com/bookouture/one-left-behind-by-carla-kovach-narrated-by-alison-campbell