EXCERPT
A New Dawn Rising
A New Dawn Rising
by Michael Joseph
A New Dawn Rising by Michel Joseph is the second in a series. Also available: Death in July (read my blog post) and Searching for Hope.
Description
Haunted by the loss of his wife and young daughter, reclusive ex-cop Sam Carlisle is offered a job working for wealthy businessman Carl Renshaw. An opportunity to move on and make a fresh start. But when Carl is murdered, the police suspect Sam is responsible, forcing him to hunt down the real killer himself.
Only someone doesn't want Sam Carlisle finding out the truth...
Excerpt
He was having trouble keeping his target in sight. Although she was never more than a few yards ahead of him, the sheer number of weekend shoppers meant he regularly lost sight of her. Each time it happened, a feeling of desperation engulfed him. Then, he would catch a glimpse of her yellow jacket once more and emit a sigh of relief. He had been following her for a few minutes now. It was time to make his move.
With a well-practised deftness of foot, he sidestepped a dawdling couple and accelerated his walking pace. Careful not to attract attention to himself, he snaked through gaps in the crowd until he was right behind her. She was oblivious to his presence, gazing nonchalantly into shop windows as she strolled along. He was so close to her now he could almost whisper in her ear.
Suddenly, she slowed down, forcing him to do the same. He craned his neck to look past her. They were coming level with the entrance of a large department store. Was she going inside? He realised not. Like everyone else around them, she had simply been forced to a snail's pace due to the swell of people outside the store. As the crowd began to bunch up, he realised this was his opportunity. A large throng of tightly-packed, slow-moving shoppers, each preoccupied with making their way to their next destination or deep in conversation with their companions.
All in their own little worlds.
An ideal time to strike.
He slid out an arm towards her.
Review
By MartyH
Our reluctant protagonist gets off to a rough start in this story. Left to his own devices Sam Carlisle would be more than happy to continue his self imposed exile from life with a bottle of scotch his preferred choice of company, but the money has run out, so when he's suddenly offered a lucrative, though somewhat questionable, job opportunity he feels he has no choice but to accept. Unfortunately, it quickly becomes obvious truth is in short supply, and Sam's life is soon turned upside down. The story has plenty of interesting characters and twists and turns as Sam quickly finds himself in the thick of a mystery that puts his life, and lives of those around him at risk.
This is an impressive debut novel for Michael Joseph and I enjoyed it from beginning to end. I'm looking forward to seeing new works from this author in the future.
About the Author
Michael Joseph lives with his partner in Coventry, England, and between them they have five children and three grandchildren. His career has been wide and varied, including a short-lived but memorable stint working in a funeral home. After a lifetime of reading books, and with his fortieth birthday fast approaching, he took the plunge and started producing his own fiction. Now he can't imagine not writing.
He published his first mystery thriller, A New Dawn Rising, in 2013. The follow-up, Death in July, was released later the same year. His third novel, Searching for Hope, was released July 2014.
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