Anything can happen behind closed doors…

The gripping new novel from the author of bestseller THE NEXT GIRL. Her Final Hour will have you hooked!

Melissa Sanderson is the perfect wife and mother. She dotes on her daughter, and lives in her dream home in a quiet cul-de-sac in the suburbs.

But looks can be deceiving.

Something is amiss in that house – all the neighbours think so. Some say Melissa is having an affair. Others say she’s been drinking too much.

Then one night, sirens wake up the whole neighbourhood.

Melissa Sanderson is dead.

This book gripped me literally from beginning to end- I read it in 2 sittings. The plot was so detailed and the characters so believable. It is easy to fall in love with the character Gina Harte, I look forward to a 3rd in the series (hopefully)

If you love crime or thrillers or both, get your hands on this book you won't regret it!

I would like to thank Bookouture and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Her Final Hour’, second in the Detective Inspector Gina Harte series written by Carla Kovach, in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Melissa Sanderson lives in an expensive house with husband Darrel and much-loved little daughter Mia, but things aren’t what they appear to be. When Melissa’s body is found battered and strangled Darrel is automatically considered a suspect but he has a foolproof alibi that can’t be broken. At the same time Ellie returns to her home town of Cleevesford to trace the man who raped her in 1993. Her body is found strangled and burnt on a children’s playground but could her murder be connected to that of Melissa?

I enjoyed reading the first novel introducing DI Gina Harte and Carla Kovach’s latest ‘Her Final Hour’ is every bit as good. I like the character of Gina, a tough and resilient police officer who dedicates herself to finding the criminals. The plot is fast-moving, full of suspense, with lots of action and twists and turns to the very end. It’s kept me guessing as the ‘Cleevesford Killer’ could be any of a number of possible suspects. It finishes with a tense and exciting conclusion where Gina’s life is at risk and I was kept on tenterhooks till the very end. This is a brilliant thriller which I’ve loved from page one and didn’t want to end. I do hope there’ll be a third!

This book grabbed me from the beginning. It was full of twists and turns with a surprise ending. I read it in one sitting. Highly recommend.

Melissa knew that her husband, Darrel, was slowly killing her. Married for 6 years, she needed OUT. This, and the fact that she had a lover, Jimmy. Of course, Darrel had his flings. Unfortunately, Melissa was correct - she died that evening - strangulation with a blue cord. When Darrel arrived home from the pub, her heard 2 year old Mia crying... he also found his wife...

Barely back from vacation, DI Gina Harte receives a call from DCI Chris Briggs.(She had broken up with Chris romantically not long ago). This, because she had been abused by her dead husband. Her husband fell down the stairs (with help?).. Closeness with Chris had her not wanting to feel as if she had to divulge this information to him.

At Darrel's home, Gina had noted that little Mia was bruised and had a cut. Once Darrel's brother arrived, she handed Mia to him and his wife.

As the story unfolds, we learn more about Darrel and his misogynistic buddies. (Gina called their wives "Stepford Wives"). Gina attended Melissa's autopsy and saw that parts of the body had been horribly mutilated.
This was maddening. Gina was heading up this investigation; her crew was great, but all were frustrated when leads were few and far between. Also, Gina is accosted twice during the investigation yet she continues on, regardless.

A few twists and turns as the reader is still in the dark as to Melissa's (and another girl, Ellie's) murders.

Can't leave with a spoiler!


The only thing I did not like was that I had not read the first book!! But you can be sure that I will.


Many thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for a great read!

Second book about DI Gina Harte. I was excited when I saw this on NetGalley, after having enjoyed the first book (The Next Girl) earlier this year. This one involves a few interconnected crimes but starts with the murder of a woman in her home. I liked this but not as much as the first book. I'd give it 4 stars and would read more in this series.

I wasn’t sure if I was going to continue reading this at the 30% mark. I felt it was moving slow and I wasn’t as into the story as I had hoped I would be by 30%.
I’m so glad I stayed with it and by 45% I was more than intrigued.
Extensive cast of characters, lots of deceit, twists, lies, cheating, scandals, and one badass female detective.
For those sensitive to the topic of rape, it is part of this book and it is detailed in some sections.
I just flipped over those sections because I don’t like reading those kinds of details.

All in all I rate this a 3.5 but rounding up to a 4 for rating purposes.
Thank you #Netgalley, the publisher and the author for my free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Took me a little while to get fully into it, but once it got there I couldn't stop. This novel is very well written, and a perfect detective style story. Feels very real and well researched. Would recommend.

I was excited to receive the second instalment of Carla Kovach’s newest series featuring Gina Harte.
Thank you Netgalley.
I was a big fan of the first book and this one didn’t disappoint!
I was hooked from the first chapter, right to the end.
Great book! Great story, and great characters. Can’t wait for her next book?

Another great book from Carla Kovach, I have previously read The Next Girl (which also has the same detective in it) and this book did not disappoint. From the first page I literally couldn't stop turning the pages until I finished it. A fast paced thriller with builds suspense in a way that does not disappoint. I was constantly wondering what the husbands and "Stepford wives" were up to. I will be eagerly awaiting a third crime for DI Gina Harte to solve. Thanks to #Netgalley and #bookouture for the advanced copy. #herfinalhour #carlakovach #goodreads #litsy #nickikendall #tea_sipping_bookworm

This is the first book I have read from this author and I really enjoyed it. Brilliant writing from Carla which makes it a great page turner, full of suspense and left me wanting to read more.

I really got to know Gina Harte and I look forward to reading more about her, in fact, I have added her first book 'The Next Girl' to my Kindle wish list.

I thoroughly recommend this book and I look forward to number three.

I was really excited to see the 2nd book featuring Gina Harte as I loved the first. It didn’t disappoint - although the story was quite familiar! I really like that the readers focus is on the actual story and not the relationships between Harte and Briggs as is often the case. It had me gripped from the start and the pace was perfect. There were a couple of jumpy bits that made my heart speed up and it left me eagerly anticipating book 3. Can’t give it a 5 - as it’s not as good as some I have read this year, but a deserved 4.5 (can’t do half stars)

This was fabulous , I loved the first by Carla but for me this was even better . When Melissa is murdered in her home her husband comes home finds her body and their daughter upstairs distressed , of course he has a rock solid alibi or does he ? There is a list of suspects as long as your arm and they are written into the story so well . The descriptions of the Warwickshire area are fantastic and this has left me dying to read the next in the chapter . Excellent 5 stars from me

Her Final Hour is a gripping suspense. The plot kept me riveted from page one until the conclusion. This is a new author and I loved her writing so much I bought book one in this series. I highly recommend. My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this arc. This is my unbiased review.

Detective Harte returns from a much needed vacation after her last case and doesn't have a moment to spare before she jumps into the next case. Melissa Sanderson, a wife and mother, is found brutally murdered in her own home. Rumors are that she was coming undone. Her drinking was out of control and she may have been having an affair. Detective Harte finds a web of perfect marriages that may not be quite what they seem. Something is off...but does it have anything to do with Melissa's murder? And why does everything keep leading back to the same bar? Another girl goes missing and Detective Harte thinks the cases may be related. She needs to figure out how these girls were targeted and stop the killer before he strikes again.

This is the second book in the series and I really enjoyed it. I thought there was a bit too much focus on Gina Harte's personal problems but, other than that, it was a great read. I recommend this detective series.

I received this book through Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Netgalley.com, to Bookouture, and to Carla Kovach for this opportunity.

The novel starts with a prologue, in 1993, a young girl leaves a pub in the small town of Warwickshire. She's had a bit too much to drink, a kind stranger offers to drive her home. She wakes up hours later in a car park, with no clear memory of what happened, but certain she had been assaulted by the man taking her home.
Fast forward to 2018, and the brutal murder of a young mother in the same small town. DI Gina Harte is back from a long weekend in Mallorca. She has just ended a 5-month affair with her superior DCI Briggs and is struggling to find how to carry on as if nothing had happened. She is immediately thrown into the murder investigation, as SIO (Senior Investigation Officer), and she is keen to show that she can take on the additional responsibility.
This is a good detective story with some bizarre twists. It does keep the reader guessing about who the culprit is until the final pages. Some of the dialogue seemed a bit unnatural, but other than that, it's a good read.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received an ARC of Her Final Hour. I have never read Carla Kovach and I was pleasantly surprised. Her writing style is reminiscent of one of my favorite authors, Lisa Scottoline. I found Her Final Hour fast paced and adrenaline inducing. It was a great read! I look forward to the third book in the series!

See my review on goodreads.com

I read Book 1 in this series and loved it. I was so excited to get Book 2 and .... it did not disappoint!! I did not want to put this book down until I finished it. Can't wait to read the next one.

Her Final Hour is book 2 featuring DI Gina Harte, thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC.

I’m going to start by saying this book was bloody brilliant, one of the best I have read this year!

I was hooked right from the first page, it’s a shame I have to go to work because I really didn’t want to put it down it was that good. Why can’t I be independently wealthy and sit and read all day, hmmmm, ponders on how this can be achieved.

This book kept my interest the whole time, it was fast paced and the punches kept coming. Gina is getting too close to solving the case so the bad guy is coming after her, will she get away? You will need to read the book to find out as I am not going to give away any spoilers.

This book is gritty and downright scary in places, it feels very real. Carla has really captured the atmosphere well. The whole story just really comes together and man that ending!

I loved this book, it was great, I have absolutely nothing negative at all to say about it, it’s a really brilliant piece of writing. I highly recommend this book, if you don’t read it you will be missing out on a great read. If I could give this more than 5 stars I would.

Book #2 of the DI Gina Harte series. This book can be read as a standalone, but for story continuity it does make sense to read the books in order.

DI Gina Harte has literally just returned from holiday and is thrown straight into the murder enquiry of Melissa Sanderson. Melissa is the perfect wife and mother. Yet someone has come into her house and murdered her while her young daughter was upstairs. It is left to Gina and her team to try and work out what is going on. When another murder happens, Gina then finds herself in danger also.

When I looked back over my review for the first book in the series, The Next Girl, I said ‘What a great way to start a series…’! I wouldn’t have imagined that you could have beaten the first book, but that has just happened! Book #2 was even better!! I loved Gina Harte already, but she has definitely won a permanent place in my heart! She’s certainly a dedicated woman, both in her personal life and leading her team. Gina doesn’t want to give up this case, despite finding herself affected by this case due to her personal history, and I love the way she just won’t give up until they have found the murderer. Gina also has a great relationship with her team and I was willing her to give her personal relationship with Superintendent Briggs a chance!

I particularly liked in this book that Gina’s daughter took a bit of a back seat. Her daughter had quite a prominent role in the first book, and I get that needed to happen to set the story, but I did enjoy this book more as it was mainly just Gina! The topics within this book may not be for everyone though, as it is a hard subject matter involving several sensitive topics such as rape and domestic violence. There is also a lot of violence, particularly towards women, but the author has written it as sensitively as possible and it is obviously all in context with the story.

There were lots of twists and turns within the story with the reveal coming near the end. I didn’t guess what was going on until it actually happened and I could not put it down until I’d finished it!! This book is definitely one that grips you from the first page and doesn’t let up the action until the very end. A nail-biting, spine-tingling thriller of a book and I can’t wait to see what happens in book #3!! Fantastic!!!

I have found a new great series to follow! A well written, intriguing and fast paced read which would keep you on your toes till the last page!

Ellie is drugged and raped in 1993 in the back seat of a car. Years later, she is still searching for her attacker.

Melissa Sanderson, mother of two year old Mia, is found murdered in her own house in 2018.
Her husband has an airtight alibi. Her lover does not.

As detective Gina Harte and her team start investigating, they find that Melissa’s perfect life may not be as it seems. Beneath the beautiful house, a perfect husband and a peachy life, hides a hideous secret. A secret which if revealed, would show the killer’s identity and shed light on Ellie’s rapist.

Thanks to Carla Kovach, Bookouture and the NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy.