Home
/
Fiction
/
Too Close For Comfort
Too Close For Comfort
Apr 24, 2025 2:10 AM

Author:Niamh O'Connor

Too Close For Comfort

The Vanishing Triangle

A woman's body is found in Ireland's most notorious body dump zone, an area in the Dublin mountains where a number of women disappeared in the past.

Nun's Cross

The victim is from an exclusive gated development in the suburbs - where the prime suspect in the vanishing triangle cases, Derek Carpenter, now lives. It looks like the past is coming back to haunt the present.

But DI Jo Birmingham doesn't believe the case is open and shut. Her husband Dan was part of the original investigation team; is she trying to protect her own fragile domestic peace?

The one person who could help her crack the case, Derek's wife Liz, is so desperate to protect her family that she is going out of her way to thwart all efforts to establish the truth.

Can both women emerge unscathed?

Reviews

The Swedish master of slow-build terror returns...truly skin-clawing tension.

—— Metro

The Swedes seem to be cornering the market in creepy crime fiction, and this chiller will appeal to fans of Stieg Larsson ... A compelling and scary psychological thriller

—— Sunday Mirror

Persson’s sprawling, state-of-the-nation novels use the mechanics of crime fiction to expose the faultlines in Scandinavian society. Linda has all the vitality of Persson’s earlier books; its difficult hero is one of the most distinctive in the field.

—— Barry Forshaw , Financial Times

An immense crime story, and not because of the number of pages, but thanks to the narrative energy and the skill to reflect on society and humanity.

—— Il Sole 24 ORE (Italy)

Leif GW Persson has a very straight style, with no frills, and his novels show a very deep understanding of the world he writes about. The tough realism of his stories is tempered by irony and comic qualities.

—— L’unita’ (Italy)

Persson’s new novel is a true delight to read. As usual, the dialogue is sharp-witted, the prose is bubbling with the authors delight in narrating, and the plot’s not too bad either.

—— Svenska Dagbladet (Sweden)

Leif GW Persson is unique in this genre; as an author he is exceptional. This is grand reading.

—— Borås Tidning (Sweden)

Entertainment paired with realism and high credibility – it can hardly get any better than this.

—— Gefle Dagblad (Sweden)

On page one I was gripped by Bale’s faultless narrative, by the final page I was left in a state of awe at his storytelling skills... The prose is masterful... All in all I have to say that The Catch is an everyman novel with an acute difference, instead of offering forward a potential hero, you are offered characters trying to get away with murder. I loved its intense pace, top notch characterisation and moralistic questioning

—— Crime Squad

A clever tale of unintended consequences... Tom Bale manages to balance the seemingly ordinariness of his characters with their facility for lying and self-deception in such a way that you still can’t help but hope that they survive the nastiness that is heading their way like a runaway train

—— Shots

a tremendous read…well put together and an excellent example of the good writers craft. I can’t say much more because I wouldn’t want to spoil for you when you rush out to buy a copy 4/5

—— Army Rumour Service

This book captures you from the start… then twists and turns in every chapter, taking you on an intriguing roller coaster ride until the end… Great stuff!

—— Mojo Mums

There are some lovely characters, a swift plot, not too many red herrings and lots of action. I think it is well worth investing in.

—— Love Reading

This is a tense, elegant, psychological thriller about an emotional tug-of-war... This tale of self-willing entrapment keeps us guessing to the end... Compelling and memorable.

—— Viv Groskop , Red Magazine

Hooper has constructed a modern fairy tale of a kind, complete with Bluebeard and his castle, and using some of the fictional paraphernalia of Gothic horror and melodrama she delivers a compelling, at times disturbing, but always humorous and readable cautionary tale.

—— Brian McCabe , Herald

The difficulty with a thriller - even if it is literary - is not to fall into cliche and predictability. At the points where it seems as this may happen, Hooper wrong foots the reader without losing any credibility, leading to a very clever ending.

—— bookmunch

This beautifully crafted psychological thriller really got under my skin.

—— A.N. Wilson , Readers Digest

Hooper is a very clever writer. Her prose is uncluttered, but every phrase is packed with meaning.

—— bookoxygen.com

A chilling, compulsive read.

—— Fanny Blake , Woman & Home

New, dark literary thriller...read it for its seductive plot.

—— Tatler

A dark unsettling read which will appeal to fans of the gothic as well as those who enjoy tales of twisted relationships such as Gone Girl.

—— lisabooks.blogspot

Literary thriller The Engagement by Chloe Hooper takes a Fifty-shades style plot about erotic games between estate agent Liesel and business man Alexander to a darker place.

—— Good Housekeeping

Part gothic novel, part thriller, this will keep you guessing until the end.

—— Glamour

Hooper has crafted a terrific tale full of dark corners and dead-ends that leave the reader wondering what to believe. The result is a collision between a psychological thriller and a very dark romance that has something for fans of either genre.

—— Irish Examiner

The Engagement has all the ingredients of a top psychological thriller with the bonus of literary style. I think it could be a huge hit. I hope so. I really want to see the film…

—— Literary Sofa Blog

Beautifully crafted and sleek psychological thriller… The Engagement, by one of Australia’s newest and brightest writers, explores mind control, power games and emotional abuse, so do not expect it to be a romance novel as it is, most definitely, not!

—— Yattar Yattar

An unsettling thriller... A book which deftly explores the power of money and property, romance and sex

—— Marie Claire

A dark, erotic and tense tale

—— Grazia

Plain and lucid, with beautifully accurate word-choice, and plenty of grace-notes that one pauses to appreciate... A highly intelligent, unpredictable, very grown-up, and crazily readable novel

—— Brandon Robshaw , Independent on Sunday

A sleek and sly two-hander, a thriller almost, that sets everything out clearly for the reader and yet remains filled with uncertainty

—— John Self , Guardian

An intense psychological thriller, strewn with enough red herrings to satisfy the most demanding reader

—— Mail on Sunday

Hooper's writing is singularly challenging and confrontational... For those who prefer their erotic literature less Fifty Shades of Grey, more Jane Eyre

—— Daily Telegraph

A fine, literary thriller; cold, at times almost nauseatingly disturbing

—— Alison Flood , Guardian

A fascinating, subtle, really original modern Gothic thriller

—— Rebecca Chance , Daily Record
Comments
Welcome to zzdbook comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Copyright 2023-2025 - www.zzdbook.com All Rights Reserved