Books Read: The Liar's Girl by Catherine Ryan Howard

Her first love confessed to five murders. But the truth was so much worse.

Dublin's notorious Canal Killer, Will Hurley, is ten years into his life sentence when the body of a young woman is fished out of the Grand Canal. Though detectives suspect they are dealing with a copycat, they turn to Will for help. He claims he has the information the police need, but will only give it to one person - the girl he was dating when he committed his horrific crimes.

Alison Smith has spent the last decade abroad, putting her shattered life in Ireland far behind her. But when she gets a request from Dublin imploring her to help prevent another senseless murder, she is pulled back to face the past - and the man - she's worked so hard to forget.

Amazon Affiliate Links: Kindle or Paperback

St Patrick's Day Giveaway: Win a copy of The Liar's Girl by Catherine Ryan Howard

Regulars of the blog will no doubt have spotted that I am a huge supporter of Irish Fiction which is partly due to my heritage, was born in Northern Ireland and still have relatives over there but have lived in the UK most of my life, but also because there are so many great Irish writers out there.

In past years I have organised Irish Fiction feature weeks or months to coincide with St. Patrick's Day but this year with a hectic work schedule I simply haven't had the time... but I couldn't let the day pass without doing something.  So I have decided to go a giveaway for a trade paperback copy of The Liar's Girl by Catherine Ryan Howard as I received a review copy from the publisher but I had also pre-ordered the eBook which I will read for review, hopefully later this month.

Her first love confessed to five murders. But the truth was so much worse.

Books Read: Distress Signals by Catherine Ryan Howard

Did she leave, or was she taken? 

The day Adam Dunne's girlfriend, Sarah, fails to return from a Barcelona business trip, his perfect life begins to fall apart. Days later, the arrival of her passport and a note that reads 'I'm sorry - S' sets off real alarm bells. He vows to do whatever it takes to find her. 

Adam is puzzled when he connects Sarah to a cruise ship called the Celebrate - and to a woman, Estelle, who disappeared from the same ship in eerily similar circumstances almost exactly a year before. To get the answers, Adam must confront some difficult truths about his relationship with Sarah. He must do things of which he never thought himself capable. And he must try to outwit a predator who seems to have found the perfect hunting ground...

Amazon links:Kindle or Paperback

Debut Spotlight: Catherine Ryan Howard

Today is publication day for Catherine Ryan Howard's debut thriller Distress Signals so it's my pleasure to be featuring Catherine and her novel on the blog. 

Catherine Ryan Howard was born in Cork, Ireland, in 1982. Prior to writing full-time, Catherine worked as a campsite courier in France and a front desk agent in Walt Disney World, Florida, and most recently was a social media marketer for a major publisher. She is currently studying for a BA in English at Trinity College Dublin.

http://www.DistressSignalsBook.com
http://www.CatherineRyanHoward.com

Twitter: @cathryanhoward
Instagram: @cathryanhoward

            Facebook: catherineryanhoward

Can you tell us a little bit about your debut novel Distress Signals?
When Adam’s girlfriend of ten years, Sarah, fails to return home from a Barcelona business trip, it uncovers some difficult truths about their relationship. Days later, her passport arrives at the home they share in Cork with a note stuck inside that reads ‘I’m sorry – S.’ The note helps Adam trace Sarah to a cruise ship called the Celebrate, and to a man whose wife disappeared from the same ship in eerily similar circumstances almost exactly a year before. The two team up to try to find out what really happened to the women they loved, a search which pits them against a predator who seems to have found the perfect hunting ground because – they’re about to discover – they are, effectively, no police at sea. 

Distress Signals is an interesting title, how did it come about?
I’m glad you think so, because it took us a lot of brainstorming to get there! When I was writing the book, I was calling it alternatively Lost at Sea and Dark Waters. Lost at Sea wasn’t great, because I don’t think it in any way conveys what the book is about, and Dark Waters was too generic. When it went out on submission, my agent and I decided on Adrift, which I really liked (I love a one-word title!) but there’s actually lots of books and a Hollywood movie called that already. After I signed the deal with Corvus we all put our heads together to come up with something that was (a) a killer title, (b) conveyed everything the book was about, not just one element of it and (c) had some element of anxiety, disruption and despair. Distress Signals was the perfect choice – I think!