I've only read one of Sharon Bolton's previous books, but I really enjoyed it. I was intrigued by the short blurb for "Dead Woman Walking" and was excited to begin reading.

Sisters, Jessica and Isabel (aka Bella aka Sister Maria Magdalena) are very close, although Jessica wishes she understood her sister better. Whenever Jessica asks her sister about the past or her choice to become a nun, Bella is quick to end the conversation.

"I left that life behind a long time ago, I have a new family now. A family in god"

For Bella's 40th Birthday, Jessica wants to do something memorable, so she organizes a hot air balloon ride.

But what was supposed to be a one hour balloon ride, a birthday gift from one sister to another, turns into a nightmare....

The passengers are having the time of their lives but then they see something they shouldn't have, the balloon crashes, leaving only one survivor in a fight for her life.

I found the first part of the book really intense and I was definitely absorbed in the story. But after a while, I found things got a bit confusing. There was a long chase, a lot of police procedural stuff, as well as quite a few characters to keep track of. Switching from past to present was interesting, but the chapter headings: 28 years earlier, 22 years earlier, 2 years 8 months earlier, 3 days earlier etc. weren't in order (which I realize was on purpose), so I really had to pay close attention.

There was a lot going on in this novel and most of it was really engaging, but for me it was a bit of information overload. But at no point did I consider stopping. I was quite invested in what was happening and although not everything was entirely plausible, it was still entertaining.

There was even a few laugh out loud moments with the sisters AND the Sisters.

"I'm living in a budget sequel to Sister Act"

So while I was confused at times and it seemed like there was almost too much going on, this was definitely a compelling novel with some interesting plot lines that kept me engaged. There were also some really great twists that I did NOT expect and WOW, I did NOT see that ending coming!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing an advanced readers copy of this book for me to read in exchange for my honest review.

I found this to be a very exciting and suspenseful book by Bolton. I didn't like it as well as her Little Black Lies, but I liked it better than Daisy in Chains.

This one finds a balloon ride ending in tragedy as a gunman opens fire. As it is investigated, the signs point to one of the occupants of the balloon as the killer.

There is one passenger who can't be found, so the investigators try to track her down. This passenger who is the sole survivor from the balloon has witnessed a murder and the killer will do anything to find and eliminate her.

I thought the plot was very fast moving and filled with action. It was a little complicated, but not difficult to follow. There are a few surprises along the way.

Wow, this book was phenomenal! Dead Woman Walking grabs you from page 1. The action never stopped and kept you at the edge of your seat. Thirteen people on a hot air balloon witness a girl being murdered below them. One woman in particular sees the killer's face, but he also sees hers. The hot air balloon crashes and she is the sole survivor. She must now find proof of what she saw before the killer finds her.

The story was so unique and cleverly written. It was unpredictable with twists and turns that you didn't see coming.

I definitely recommend this book and can't wait to read more from this author.

I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for supplying a copy of Sharon Bolton's "Dead Woman Walking " in exchange for an honest review.

One morning just before dawn near the Scottish border Jesse and her sister Isabel are enjoying a hot air balloon ride that Jesse set up to celebrate her sister’s birthday. As the balloon passes over the countryside with the two women and ten other passengers onboard with the pilot Jesse sees something below that she can’t believe is happening. A man is attacking a woman below as the group flies over and when he sees he has witnesses the chase begins.

Before the group above knows it bullets are flying at them as they duck for cover in complete shock from what they’ve just witnessed. Unfortunately one of the bullets takes out their pilot leaving them to fend for themselves as the attacker begins to pursue the balloon. As hard as they try the lack of experience wins in the end when the balloon comes crashing down leaving only one survivor hiding from the assailant.

Dead Woman Walking by Sharon Bolton had a unique format in which the action kicks in right away with the hot air balloon chase but this event is actually the middle of the story involved within the pages. The following events switch back and forth between telling the tale of what led up to the hot air balloon ride and the events that take place in the aftermath of the crash. Perhaps a tad confusing jumping into this format but it quickly worked it’s way to becoming a compelling read.

Along the journey in the story the reader already knows from the explosive beginning who the bad guy is so it’s not a matter of a whodunnit but the why and how things got to where they were in the beginning. The story was well developed and eventually everything is brought around through the expected twists and turns to bring the reader to the conclusion. I think this is one that thriller fans will enjoy that are always yearning for something a bit different from their next read.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

I feel a little bad being a dissenter on a book that has a lot of 5 star reviews and is by an author I generally thoroughly enjoy. The first few chapters of this book were absolutely five star worthy. There is absolutely no time wasted getting started in this story- we receive the back story in snippets after the initial set up. The story is horrifying and fascinating, and the book is well paced. Where I had a problem was that there are a ton of twists in this book, and not one of the reveals was surprising. During the last quarter of the book, when all of the chips fell into place, my reaction as I read each new answer was something along the lines of "Yep. I've known that for half the book." The story at the center of this book was strong enough that it didn't need so many attempts at twists.

4.5 stars

What a unique start to a book! Jessica and her sister Isabel, who is a nun, are two of the thirteen people on a hot air balloon excursion. Things go badly awry, and we immediately find ourselves on a wild ride to learn the fate of all aboard. From there the plot thickens considerably as we become immersed in murders, family tragedies, human trafficking, corruption, and memories. I read one review that said the plot was predictable. I was dumbfounded. In my opinion, nothing could be farther from the truth. The plot is as intricate as a spider’s web in true Bolton style, and I could not fathom how all of this was going to come together. One of my favorite threads was the highly complex relationship between Jessica and Isabel, told mostly in flashbacks. Another highlight was the scenes involving the nuns. Sister Hildegard is a jewel. Oh, and the peacocks; I can’t forget them.

Not many authors can come close to Ms. Bolton when it comes to painting a scene. Her imagery is breathtaking, and she deftly transports the reader into the setting with ease. I find the ambience of a Bolton novel generally to be as brilliant and as paramount as any of the characters and the plot. This is one of the major reasons why Ms. Bolton is in my small shrine of very favorite authors.

Be warned, the tale is told within a complicated changing timeline, but by paying close attention to the chapter headings, I didn’t find this to be an issue.

There are a couple of reasons why I didn’t rate this one 5 stars. The main characters, though good, are not as memorable as those in Now You See Me, Little Black Lies, and Daisy in Chains. Furthermore, after the balloon disaster, the pace of the story slows down significantly for a time, but that is for the most part balanced out by the second half of the book, which delivers one shocking twist after another as the threads start to pull together.

I loved the ending.

And I never fail to be impressed by Ms. Bolton’s stellar research skills involving a variety of topics.

Though not my overall favorite Bolton book (that would be Now You See Me), Dead Woman Walking is an outstanding novel well worth the time and attention of every thriller lover. Highly recommended!

I received a free electronic copy of this novel from Netgalley, Sharon Bolton, and Transworld Digital in exchange for an honest review. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me.

New Mexico would like to be the hot air balloon capital of the world. With our steady sunshine and dependable wind patterns rarely a morning begins without someone up there, trying to run the 'box'. I have never feared the idea of ballooning as a recreation until I had finished this novel.

This is a mind-grabbing mystery that keeps you on the edge of your seat until the last page. There is a good deal of back and forth through time and change of focus from antagonists to the good guys, but both are easily followed and you will adore Jessica Lane and Sister Maria Magdalena and may even find a soft spot for Mother Hildegard. Sharon Bolton is an author I will follow.

Jessica has a surprise for her sisters birthday. She is taking her on a hot air balloon ride. Her sister Isabel is a nun and is seldom let out of the convent. On the ride they witness the murder of a young woman. The murderer is determined the 13 passengers won't be able to tell their story. The balloon crashes and Jessica is the only survivor. She doesn't stick around for the police to show up, but goes on the run with the killer hot on her trail.

There are multiple story lines in this book. At first we don't understand why Jessica ran but later we find out why. The book goes back to the past on multiple occasions to explain the characters motivations. The book is action packed, full of twists and turns. It will keep you on the edge of your set. There is a great twist at the end that I didn't see coming. This is my first book by this author and I would definitely read her again. Thank you to net galley for an advanced readers copy.

Another great book by Sharon Bolton. The twists and turns, even making you question who is alive and who is dead, and the detailed, unique characters kept me engaged in the story. The nonlinear narration and changes in POV were also interesting and kept a fairly simple main plot from ever being straightforward or feeling overdone. Highly recommend for fans of British thrillers and dark mysteries.

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I have read most of Sharon Bolton’s stand alone novels and the first in the Lacy Flint series and can tell you that she is wonderful writer. I don’t know if it is fog, the rain, the ancient cities and folklore, or the great literary tradition, but most of my favorite mystery writers are female and from England.

This story starts with a bang—quite literally—and in the lofty and completely vulnerable basket of a balloon floating over the largely deserted countryside of northern England. From then on it is cat and mouse all the way to the surprising conclusion, with several abrupt plot twists along the way. The pacing was taut, the action believable, the characters well drawn. I particularly like the way the Bolton inter-meshed the past and present, often from chapter to chapter, to slowly unveil important plot points and character history. It could have been confusing and detract from the story but in Bolton’s hands I think the structure, which must have been difficult to map out perfectly, only created more tension and made several of the reveals even more surprising. I just never felt that I could trust my judgments about characters and was often proved to be correct in this view.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a well told mystery/thriller. I would also take the time to recommend Ms. Bolton’s other novels. She’s one of the really good mystery writers working today.

5 stars. Loved it.

What a wild, twisty ride! Thirteen people go up in a hot air balloon and only one survives. But all of those passengers witnessed something that was happening on the ground below them -- a man, murdering a woman? The killer knows that the survivor is out there and won't stop until he finds her.

Great, fast-paced suspense thriller with a bit of a shock midway. I didn't see that one coming! Nonstop action and tension as the pieces of the story come together. There's a bit of back and forth in time in the narrative, but that information is woven into the present day. There are secrets and hints of below the surface detail held tantalizingly close and revealed slowly as the tale plays out. I really enjoyed this one -- love the settings this author uses as a strong feature of each of her books. The characters are mutlidimensional and always complex. Recommend this one and can't wait for her next.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the e-book ARC to review.

I would like to thank NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for my review. A balloon ride for her sister's birthday turns into a tale of terror for Jessica Lane and the twelve other people who did not survive. Floating above the treetops on the Scottish border, they witness the murder of a young woman. The murderer then trains his gun on the balloon and kills their pilot. The passengers unsuccessfully try to regain control of the balloon as the killer stalks them from below. His chase continues after the balloon's final crash when he realizes that one of the passengers survived.

As Jessica runs for her life, Sharon Bolton interjects scenes of Jessica and her sister Bella, now Sister Maria Magdalena, and their relationship from childhood to the present. An incident in Bella's past that involved their brother Ned led Bella to her vocation. Jessica still has not forgiven Bella for abandoning her for the convent. She is now a police officer tracking the import of illegal immigrants used for medical purposes. Their stories are beautifully woven together by the conclusion of the book.

While Bolton keeps the tension high, there are also scenes to delight the reader and ease the tension. Mother Hildegard and Bella's fellow nuns know how to work the truth and confound the police as they assist Jessica. They are quick to offer suggestions, having watched crime shows during their recreation time. It is hard not to fall in love with them.

Sharon Bolton makes it easy for the reader to visualize the action in her story. The fear experienced in her opening balloon ride is palpable and Jessica's flight from her pursuer will leave you breathless. This book will have you on the edge of your seat from the first page to the last.

Dead Woman Walking begins with an unusual and intense hot air balloon ride that moves from a celebration to an unmitigated disaster when an event the passengers observe on the ground turns the balloon and its passengers into a target.

The terrifying opening episode is the best part of the book as far as suspense goes, but there are plenty of twists to come. Typical Bolton to keep the reader uncertain and perhaps a little confused about who/what/why.

This will delight most Bolton fans, but I would prefer to see more books like her Little Black Lies, which remains my favorite.

NetGalley/St. Martin's Press

3 stars--I liked the book.

Sharon Bolton is one of my "always read" authors (oh how I love suspense novels written by British women). I think her plotting gets better all the time, and this book kept me up reading (and worrying!) late at night.

The twists and turns of the plot surprised me at least three times (anyone who's read this probably knows exactly what I'm referring to!), and I genuinely hated and feared the "bad guy" here.

One thing that did bother me a bit was the narrative's attitude toward nuns: they're called "withered" and "wasted femininity," etc. (Note that I read an ARC so maybe this will change in the final version.) I'm not particularly religious, but I'd never call another woman's choices wasting her femininity.

That's a minor quibble, though, in an overall engaging read.

I received this review copy from the publisher on NetGalley. Thanks for the opportunity to read and review; I appreciate it!

A fantastic, thrilling traveling sister read with my Canadian sisters Norma and Brenda!

What could be a better birthday present than a hot air balloon ride? Jessica treats her sister Isabel to an experience of a lifetime! But of course - this special treat ends in tragedy, with most of the balloon party dead and the remaining survivor running for her life. Why won't she go to the police for help? What is she so frightened of?

I had a hard time connecting with this book in the beginning. So much happening from different angles that I kept wondering how or even if it would all come together. Left me confused, and felt like I missed something along the way. Told in different timelines, I occasionally found myself stumbling to keep track. Finally, near the half-way mark, I was supremely confident I had it all figured out. So when the first bomb-shell twist occurred, it just about knocked me off my sofa!!

At that point it's like a run-away train…. don't look away or you’ll miss something huge! Turns out, the book is jammed packed full of curve-balls! And I only managed to figure one of them out! Perhaps losing my touch? No…Sharon Bolton is just that good!! Bravo! So be patient, it is absolutely worth the wait for all the twists and shocking moments!

If twisty thrillers are your cup of tea then you will love this one!!


To find this review along with our Traveling Sister Read Review, please visit the Traveling Sister Read Review section of Brenda and Norma’s fabulous blog:
http://www.twogirlslostinacouleereading.wordpress.com

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Sharon Bolton

Dead Woman Walking was an excellent choice for a Traveling Sister Read. A great one for all of us to use our different detective skills. Timing was a bit off for us on this one and we read at different paces. However we were able to come together at the end and read the heart stopping finish together. What a great discussion that made for the ending. I highly recommend for group reads.


Dead Woman Walking is a brilliant and compelling story with many layers to the well-crafted plot that caught my attention right away with the opening scene. After reading a bit more into the multiple stories and the two timelines it did leave me confused and frustrated at times as I didn’t know which way to focus my detective skills towards. I had a hard time connecting at first. But that is where Sandra Bolton shines with the cleverness of the story. She is sneaky and holds back some information leaving several clever clues along the way that did leave me with a nagging feeling something is not right here but still not being able to piece anything together.

Sandra Bolton cleverly merges the plots together, leaving clues along the way and springs the twists and turns at the perfect time. She has developed an array of interesting and compelling characters. I loved the nuns who added some fun and humor to the story.

I highly recommend for the cleverest of thriller lovers to challenge their detective skills.

Thank you so to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Sharon Bolton for a copy to read and review

4 stars for an extremely clever story!

DEAD WOMAN WALKING by SHARON BOLTON is an action-packed, intense, compelling, and tension-filled crime thriller novel that grabbed my attention right away with the unique start to this story with a tragic incident involving a hot-air balloon ride.

The action starts off right away and had me using my detective skills quite early on trying to figure out the direction of the story and the motives of the dead woman walking.  I personally like going into all my books blind as I like to try to figure out the direction of the story on my own with little detail as possible. This one had me totally confused so I did have to read the synopsis after a few chapters in which didn’t really help me all that much still leaving me with more questions than answers.  But, I guess that is good though…...  

I all had a little trouble connecting with the story at first and struggled with the multiple narratives and the plot jumping back and forth in time although it did create a constant sense of unease throughout this story though.  

This book was read with a few of my other Traveling Sisters: Sending Kaceey off in the wrong direction, Norma asking questions and finding out that she was heading in the right direction, and leaving Brenda with a nagging feeling something is up here. That's what made this a very interesting reading experience for us and where Sharon Bolton does her magic.

SHARON BOLTON delivers a cleverly and skillfully written story here giving us little information at first and dropping those clues so subtle into the plot and then pulling it all together in a heart-stopping and thrilling ending.

To sum it all up it was a gripping, complex, fast-paced, and an enjoyable read that will keep you guessing with all those twists and turns right to the dramatic ending. Would recommend!!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Sharon Bolton for the opportunity to read a copy of this book for a fair and honest review.

Review can be found on my sister blog:
http://www.twogirlslostinacouleereading.wordpress.com

Copy furnished by Net Galley for the price of a review.

Thirteen souls on an ill-fated hot air balloon ride - only one will live to see the next day.

Watch for a man in a Trilby hat, dark and squat. Hear the screeching peacocks, tails unfurled to display a hundred unblinking eyes. A silent convent, voices of the dead, and a beloved sister turning into a nun. Sanctuary. A band of gypsies, static rather than roving. A yellow house, what is going on in there?

This is my first read by this author, and what did she do? She got me. Pow! Right in the kisser! Twice! For those who delight in solving as they read, the clues are there to be found along with some very clever misdirection.

Another very good story from the Queen Of Creepy, Sharon Bolton. Moments after several members of the public in a hot air balloon witness a violent crime down at ground level, the perpetrator of that crime shoots the balloon out of the sky killing almost all of them. One of two sisters on board survives and is immediately on the run, hiding from the perp while trying to search for some truth behind what has just happened.

Once again, Bolton has penned great characters with lots of depth that you find yourself really caring about and set them in a wonderfully drawn, almost eerie atmosphere of rural England. This was a tense, clever plot delivered at just the right pace and told through two storylines.......one from the here and now and one from the past.......and just where will these stories meet?

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars

Dead Woman Walking is a cleverly crafted thriller, jampacked with twists and turns. Brimming with tension and terror, this book had my heart racing until the very last page!

Jessica Lane surprises her sister Isabel with a hot air balloon ride to celebrate Isabel’s birthday. While enjoying the view, all 14 people on board, witness a horrific event that sets forth a chaotic and terrifying ride that ends in tragedy. Jessica,the lone survivor, is being hunted by a killer. But there’s a lot more to this story than what it seems.

“People’s instincts for self-preservation will nearly always outweigh their social conscience”

As the narrative shifts from past to present, revelations come to light concerning a nefarious crime syndicate, corrupt cops, and dark secrets about Jessica and Isabel’s past. While there are multiple plot lines, all seamlessly converge to expose a horrendous inhumane crimes.

This book kept me guessing--there were so many surprises that I was never quite sure where things were going or how it was going to play out. I especially loved the nuns and peacocks! I could not put this book down! Highly recommend!


I received a copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.