{"id":34308,"date":"2025-01-18T06:55:23","date_gmt":"2025-01-18T06:55:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/entertainment\/books\/your-child-next-by-mj-arlidge-and-andy-maslen-bookchattercookiebiscuit\/"},"modified":"2025-01-18T06:55:23","modified_gmt":"2025-01-18T06:55:23","slug":"your-child-next-by-mj-arlidge-and-andy-maslen-bookchattercookiebiscuit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=34308","title":{"rendered":"Your Child Next by MJ Arlidge and Andy Maslen \u2013 Bookchatter@Cookiebiscuit"},"content":{"rendered":"


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IN THE FAKED VIDEO, YOUR DAUGHTER IS DEAD. AND IF YOU DON\u2019T PAY, SHE\u2019LL DIE FOR REAL.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Things have been difficult for Annie since her husband left; her teenage daughter, Isla, has become a ghost of her former self. Annie\u2019s terrified that Isla might hurt herself, and she\u2019ll lose her, too.\u00a0So when Annie receives a video of herself crying at Isla\u2019s funeral, she\u2019s immediately sick to her stomach.<\/em><\/p>\n

#YourChildNext\u00a0X\/Twitter<\/strong>\u00a0@mjarlidge<\/a>\u00a0#andymaslen @orionbooks<\/a><\/em> @Tr4cyF3nt0n<\/em><\/a>\u00a0<\/em>
Instagram<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0@m_j_arlidge<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0<\/a>@andy.maslen<\/a> @thebookdealer<\/a><\/em>\u00a0@orionbooks<\/a><\/em> #CompulsiveReaders<\/em>\u00a0#blogtour<\/em> <\/p>\n

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Confused and horrified, Annie races upstairs to check on Isla, who is perfectly alive and well. The video has been faked. But who sent it and what do they want?<\/em><\/p>\n

One dark truth soon becomes clear:\u00a0Isla will die for real if Annie doesn\u2019t give the sender the money they\u2019re looking for, or if she goes to the police. But Annie\u2019s not sure she has the cash,\u00a0which leaves her with one choice: find the blackmailer and stop them in their tracks.<\/em><\/p>\n

Your Child Next\u00a0is a thrilling and unputdownable novel that asks you how far you\u2019d go to protect the ones you love. Perfect for fans of Harlan Coben and Steve Cavanagh.<\/em><\/p>\n

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My Review<\/strong><\/p>\n

Your Child Next<\/em> never lets up for a second. It races along from one exciting scene to another and then smacks you in the face with even more.<\/p>\n

Our two main protagonists \u2013 Annie and Michael \u2013 don\u2019t know each other. But they are both being blackmailed (directly or in Michael\u2019s case it was his late wife who had been targeted) and asked to hand over \u00a31,000 a month in order to protect their teenage children. If they don\u2019t, the kids will be put in danger. The kids of course, don\u2019t believe any of it, but then they wouldn\u2019t, would they.<\/p>\n

Our two \u2018villains\u2019 are Maya, with her red leather biker\u2019s jacket and lips to match, and her psychopathic partner Ollie. We discover their relationship later on. Mostly, they use others to do their dirty work (Ollie is too unpredictable to be trusted), by threatening them with \u2013 yes you guessed it \u2013 their children\u2019s safety. And it works. What could be worse than turning your parental anxieties against you? Apart from kidnapping your dog \u2013 and yes they\u2019ve done that as well.<\/p>\n

Now personally, I would have gone straight to the police, even if I was warned not to, but no-one ever does in these stories. And if they had, it would have changed everything. Because we love a story where ordinary people take the law into their own hands. <\/p>\n

I believe it\u2019s hard to write \u2018action\u2019 scenes but in Your Child Next<\/em> the author\/s handle it very well without getting bogged down in the realms of confusion as is often the case. Like watching a game of Twister at an alcohol-fuelled party, it can be hard to work out who\u2019s down on the floor and who\u2019s balanced on one arm and a leg before tipping over into the abyss (in the book not the game of Twister). I can definitely see this being made into a TV series, it would be perfect.<\/p>\n

Many thanks to\u00a0@Tr4cyF3nt0n<\/em><\/a>\u00a0for inviting me to be part of\u00a0the #CompulsiveReaders #blogtour and to NetGalley for an ARC.<\/p>\n

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About the Authors<\/strong><\/p>\n

MJ Arlidge\u00a0has worked in television for the last twenty years, specialising in high-end drama production, including prime-time crime serials\u00a0Silent Witness<\/em>,\u00a0Torn<\/em>,\u00a0The Little House<\/em>\u00a0and, most recently, the hit ITV show\u00a0Innocent<\/em>. In 2015 his audio book exclusive\u00a0Six Degrees of Assassination<\/em>\u00a0was a number-one bestseller. His debut thriller,\u00a0Eeny Meeny<\/em>, was the UK\u2019s bestselling crime debut of 2014 and has been followed by ten more\u00a0DI Helen Grace<\/em>\u00a0thrillers \u2013 all Sunday Times bestsellers.<\/p>\n

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Andy Maslen was born in Nottingham, in the UK, home of legendary bowman Robin Hood. Andy once won a medal for archery, although he has never been locked up by the sheriff.\u2029He has worked in a record shop, as a barman, as a door-to-door DIY products salesman and a cook in an Italian restaurant.\u2029 He lives in Wiltshire with his wife, two sons and a whippet named Merlin.<\/p>\n

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