February First Monday Crime Review – Remember My Name by Sam Blake @samblakebooks @1stMondayCrime

We’re back and we’re kicking of 2022 with a special Irish panel. Joining us are Jane Casey, Liz Nugent, our very own W.C. Ryan and Sam Blake. Katherine Armstrong (super editor) will be asking the questions on Monday 7th February at 7.30pm GMT over on our Facebook page.

To whet your appetite, I have a review of Remember My Name by Sam Blake. Here’s the blurb.

 

The Blurb

If she’d turned off her phone, instead of listening in, perhaps no one would have died…

When Cressida Howard catches her entrepreneur husband playing away from home, she hires security expert Brioni O’Brien to get the evidence she needs for a speedy and financially rewarding divorce.

But what Brioni uncovers goes beyond simple infidelity. Because Laurence Howard is also in bed with some very dangerous people. Bribery and blackmail are the least of his worries as someone comes after the women in his life – someone who is out to destroy Laurence and his empire, whatever the cost.

And Cressida and her teenage daughter could soon be collateral damage, if she and Brioni don’t act fast.

 

My Review

When Cressida Howard suspects her husband is having an affair, she hires a friend’s sister to do some digging for her. Brioni O’Brien isn’t normally a detective. She works in cyber security so she’s able to snoop digitally. Until she reaches a point when she has to watch in real life. Is Brioni risking her life just as Cressida’s comes under attack?

This is a book that starts off in one direction but ends up in an entirely different and unexpected place. I thought this would be about infidelity but it’s so much more than that. It moves into dodgy deals, hacking and murder in the corporate world. I can tell that Sam Blake has done her research here into cyber snooping and hacking because it’s written with authority and authenticity.

Alongside the madness of events in Dublin, we have Brioni’s life in her family home down by the beach. I love the scenes that are set here as Sam Blake describes the changing weather and atmosphere. It sounds lovely and makes me want to visit Ireland!

It takes a while for things to get going in this book but when they do, the tension ratchets up pretty quickly until everything comes to a head. A tense and intriguing read.

 

If you want to buy Remember My Name then click here or visit your local bookshop.

 

The Author

Sam Blake has been writing fiction since her husband set sail across the Atlantic for eight weeks and she had an idea for a book. Her debut novel, Little Bones, was No 1 in Ireland for four weeks, and was nominated for Irish Crime Novel of the Year. It launched the bestselling Cat Connolly trilogy. Her first standalone psychological thriller, Keep Your Eyes On Me, went straight to No 1 and its follow-up, The Dark Room was an Eason Ireland No 1 for three weeks.

Sam is originally from St. Albans in Hertfordshire but has lived at the foot of the Wicklow mountains for more years than she lived in the UK. She has two teenagers, three cats and lives in a 200-year-old cottage with an occasional poltergeist who moves things at the most inconvenient moments.

Follow her on social @samblakebooks. Visit http://www.samblakebooks.com for news and events and get a bonus free short story in audio & text when you subscribe to her newsletter.