Ray Flowers was surprised when he was asked to solve a murder ... which hasn't occurred yet.

Lily Spenser is certain that her twin sister will be stabbed to death by a masked man and a tarot card will be left in her hand. Lily's friend who is a clairvoyant has seen it in her dreams.

Ray reluctantly takes it on, especially as he has found several other cases when elderly women were also found with a tarot card in hand. The previous cases stopped over 5 years ago and has just now started up again.

So where has the killer been? Why is he active now? Who is the next target?

For a fairly short read, this mystery is packed with unforgettable characters amid some twists and turns that lead to a surprising ending. I enjoyed how clairvoyance and tarot cards played such an interesting part of the compelling plot. Although 4th in the series, this is easily read as a stand alone. I do recommend reading the series in order and I look forward to see what comes next in Flower's life. There is no cliff hanger ... but just a slight hint as what comes next.

Many thanks to the author / Joffe Books / Books n All Promotions / Netgalley for the digital copy of this most entertaining mystery. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

Thank you NetGalley for the Arc.
Lily who gets worried for her sister's life approaches Ray the ex detective who strives for Criminal Justice. Rose the twin sister of Lily has been said that she would be murdered by a tarot card reader. They believe Elspeth the tarot card reader is never wrong with her predictions. But no one takes them seriously (even Ray ) until an attempt is made on Rose’s life. Soon others at retirement homes gets murdered and a significant tarot card is left at each of the murder scene.

This is could have been better read if the narration would have been more captivating.
However, it was little disappointing as the story had more potential. But it could be a easy read if you want not so gripping mystery.

Lily approaches Ray a private investigator, to solve her twin sisters murder, however the murder hasn't happened yet. Rose has had a tarot card reading which has predicted it. Coming at a time when other elderly women are being murdered in their homes or nursing homes they are right to be concerned.
An interesting read
Thanks to Netgalley and Joffe Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

The Sister’s Twin is the fourth instalment in the Detective Ray Flowers series and somewhat uniquely includes the use of tarot card reading. The prologue begins five years earlier with an unnamed man seemingly coming to his senses after a trip to a psychic fair, seeing the Book of Angels and having his fortune read. Apparently, he had received the Angel of Transformations card which is similar to the Death card in a standard tarot deck. He wasn't even one to believe much in the mumbo jumbo but something had struck him about this reader and these cards in particular. He had even decided before leaving the fair that day to purchase his own Book of Angels deck and a comprehensive guide on how to interpret them. A certainty had come to him that he should act, that those who had wronged him should be punished - by death. And that death was now, simple and clean, a knife plunged deep into the chest while the woman he had chosen to be first lay sleeping. He spread the cards across the bed, reading her past and his own future by the dim light of the risen moon, and then he chose a card for her, folded it once and slipped it into her outstretched hand. Fast forward five years and retired detective Ray Flowers is now casually working at Flowers-Mahoney Security a firm who did not take on private investigations, as a general rule. It was concerned with the installation and maintenance of security systems, and its occasional tendency to re-examine old or unusual cases that the local police had no interest in pursuing was not something the firm advertised. So it was surprising when he was paid a visit by an elderly lady called Lily Spencer, who tells him she wants him to investigate the murder of her twin sister, Rose.

Only it hasn't happened yet and has only been revealed by their friend Elspeth Moore’s reading and Lily is desperate to stop it. Back with the old man, he had now realised he was not lithe enough to continue his vengeance against those who wronged him and has taken on a protege to carry out his wishes for him. Both Lily and Rose reside at Highbury House, a retirement home for ex-performers and Lily knows that Elspeth’s track record with readings is startlingly accurate. She is having nightmares about her sister being stabbed, or strangled, or shot or mowed down and a tarot card being left as a literal calling card based on the victim’s personality; she just can't get these visualisations to cease. Flowers takes on the investigation due to the lack of police interest, but even he must admit that he doesn't believe in psychic abilities, card and palm reading or the supernatural. Despite his scepticism, as he like many others need proof in order to believe, he can't ignore Lily and her deep concern. Then the bodies of elderly woman begin to drop just as predicted, and Ray is stunned. The police take over the case from him and begin looking into who would want seemingly innocent ladies of a certain age dead, and why? This is a riveting and compelling mystery thriller crossed with a police procedural and is one of the most unique books I've read from the genre in a while. It's twisty, dramatic, incredibly tense and so refreshingly different with it involving tarot and fortune-telling. I'm a sceptic, but I must say that it added intensity and an unpredictable quality to the plot which is always a positive and made for great reading. It's a complex, enthralling and fascinating peek into another world I knew little about. Highly recommended.

Captivating murder mystery centered around tarot cards and their predictions when read.
A new set of tarot cards has been invented and illustrated by Alice Weston. Residents in care homes are being murdered, with one of Alice's tarot cards being placed in their hand. We learn from the murderer but don't know his/her identity.
Care home resident Lily Spencer calls in ex DI Ray Flowers when her friend predicts from the cards that her sister Rose is going to be murdered. He then becomes personally involved when she does a tarot reading for him. How should the cards be interpreted and how much trust should we put into a tarot reading? Are they meaningful?
I enjoyed this and look forward to reading more about Ray Flowers.

Thank you to Joffe Books and NetGalley for ARC.

201 pages

3 stars

I read Ms. Adams' book The Greenaway and liked it very much. However, I did not take ot this book as much. It was too confusing. Perhaps I just wasn't in the mood.

Ray Flowers is visited by an elderly woman who states that she would like to report a murder. Only it hasn't happened yet. Her twin sister Rose lives in a retirement home and Lily is positive someone is going to murder her.

Ray is a firm believer in reality. That is the things he can see. He doesn't hold well with tarot cards and such like. He is skeptical to say the least, but assures Lilly he will look into the case.

Then the killings begin. Someone is targeting elderly women at the home and Ray is determined to find the killer. At the scene of each crime a tarot card if left. What is the meaning of this? Why elderly women? Just who is this murderer?

Ray is a little confused and bemused by the slightly supernatural connections to his case, but he plows on.

I liked the setting of the murders. A retirement home for former performers. I watched a movie once about musical performers in a retirement home and it was wonderful. All that creativeness in one place. How cool is that?

The book is well written. The plotting was a little convoluted. Jane Adams certainly has talent.

I want to thank NetGalley and Joffe Books for forwarding to me a copy of this good book for me to read and review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

Ray Flowers #4

Lily Spencer knows her twin sister is fated to die. And she can't stop envisoning the end. A stranger in the night. A vicious blade. The tarot card he will leave behind. Lily's clairvoyant friend has forseen it all. And her eerie insights are never wrong. A killer is coming to the care home where the sisters live. It's only a question of when and why.

Lily wants Ray Flowers to investigates murder that's not happened, it just showed up in a tarot card reading. Lily and her twin sister reside at Hibury House, a retirement home. Elspeth Moore's tarot reading showed that Rose was in danger. Tarot cards have been left in the hands of several murders. It seems someone has a grudge against elderly women. This is a steady paced read with characters that are believable. It's also an entertaining read. This is not the first book that i've read by the author but it's the first in the Ray Flowers series, but i hope to rectify that sooon.

I would like to thank #NetGalley, #Joffeooks amd the author #JaneAdams for my ARC of #TheSistersTwin

Jane Adams The Sister’s Twin, Joffe Books, London 2021.

Thank you NetGalley for the uncorrected proof copy for review.

I recall reading In the Greenway years ago, and although I was slightly frustrated at times, I was impressed with this well received debut novel. In particular, the mystical aspects of the novel were treated with a light hand, together with a complex story that made sense. I was ready to be impressed again and prepared to accept any minor disappointing features in The Sister's Twin because of my generally positive recall of reading Jane Adams’ first psychological thriller. Unfortunately, I found several jarring elements in The Sister’s Twin and am grappling to find redeeming features.

The novel opens with a prologue in which a man reflects on his success five years previously, regrets his present inability to recapture the past, but assumes that his plans will be carried out. This part of the novel is based in reality – he is a genuine character with real plans. Mystical elements then emerge. While in The Greenway this feature was deftly executed, in this novel it is rather contrived. The man has visited a psychic whose tarot reading leads him to murder. In the present, tarot readings foretell the murders of several elderly people. They have no apparent links, apart from the manner of their deaths and the presence of a tarot card inspired by their personality.

The tarot cards, Book of Angels, have been designed by a woman who has previously led a quiet unassuming life. The cards make her famous because of their artistry, and the unique designs of some cards. Detection of the crimes, while taken over by the police, is initially undertaken by a retired police officer, Ray Flowers of Flowers-Mahoney Security. At the instigation of an elderly woman whose companion’s murder has been predicted through a tarot reading, Flowers begins the investigation.. Ray Flowers has featured in three previous books, and characters from his past play a part in the investigations and solution.

Adams explains the tarot cards, their meanings, and interpretations as well as giving detailed readings so that the reader is drawn into the mystical world presented as a legitimate way to foretell events. This device provides a reader prepared to accept tarot readings as a valid and understandable part of detection every opportunity to accept the ideas as a legitimate part of reality in the story. Although I found the information fascinating, I was unable to suspend disbelief to the extent necessary to accomplish this.

I also found the links between the original perpetrator and his acolytes too tenuous to provide motivation for their engagement with his plan. There needed to be much more detail about the relationships to provide reasons for such involvement.

The encouraging aspects of the novel are the way in which Ray Flowers’ past is reflected upon, portending perhaps a different future; and the story lines given characters from his past that also suggest a move forward. For readers of the three previous novels these constructive storylines for characters they know will be an important part of the series.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

The SIster's Twin by Jane Adams is a heart-pounding thriller inspired by tarot cards. Although it is about the attempted murder of a nursing home resident in the UK, this is not a typical British cozy mystery. The culprit is revealed quite early in the book. The thrill of the plot is in the catching of the culprit, and the revelation of why they wanted to murder to get what they wanted. This book reminded me a lot of the Unsub series by Meg Gardiner, which is my all-time favorite thriller series. There are many similarities in plot, such as a detective trying to solve the case as the action intensifies and the plot thickens. Just like the Unsub series, The Sister's Twin doesn't intend for you, the reader, to solve the mystery; instead, it tells a story about obsession, secrets, and the courage and valor of detectives who want to solve the crime. Overall, this book is an excellent thriller with amusing moments as well, and I highly recommend it for fans of the thriller genre.

I got to Chapter 6 of this book and I was so so confused, I thought it would be one I would enjoy, but I just couldn't tell who was who, what was what, where was where. The tarot cards were confusing. There are so many characters as well that I couldn't keep up. Unfortunately this was a DNF for me.

3.5 stars

I overall really enjoyed this book. It’s fairly fast paced and focused on a group of murders related to Tarot cards. Ray Flowers and other main characters are very easy to get to know and enjoy. The book did not get to emotionally heavy in content which I appreciate since mysteries and thrillers can do that sometimes.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Joffe Books for an advanced reader copy!

Thankyou to NetGalley, Joffe Books and the author, Jane Adams , for the opportunity to read an advanced readers copy of The Sister's Twin in exchange for an honest and unbiased opinion.
Such a good read. Read this book in one sitting.
The storyline was well written and very intriguing.
Well worth a read.

Ray Flowers Book Four.
At Flower's-Mahoney Security.
Lily Spencer turns up and wants Ray to investigate a murder that has showed up on a tarot card reading, but Ray doesn't hold with all this, but is convince to go to the retirement home Highbury House, where she is in resident with her twin sister Rose, Elspeth Moore a clairvoyant to the stars readings are showing that Rose is in danger.
Then things start to happen and the police and Ray are called in, who is responsible for this and why?
as you read on this book keeps you on the edge of your seat in chapters, that I really enjoyed right through.
a well deserved read for all crime readers with lots to entertain you.
Brilliant worthy stars from me

3.5 ⭐️

The premise caught my attention. Several murders with tarot cards left at the hands of the victims. An interesting plot with a very intriguing end. The setting was a retirement home and the main characters are old people who used to work in show business. The mastermind behind the crimes is an old man who held grudges against his victims. But he cannot do the killings anymore. He needs someone to continue his work. It was well written but there was not enough character building and background stories about the villains. The tarot card reading scenes confuses me most of the time that I only take note of what characteristics does the next victim has. I like the old lady with a bat. I liked how brave she was to confront one of the villains and how she was able to help in solving the mystery behind the murders through tarot card reading.

Overall, this was an okay, fun, and light read for me. If you love mystery and crime-solving stories, I would recommend this book to you.

Many thanks to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for allowing me to read and review the arc of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is the fourth book in the Ray Flowers series, but the first one that I've read - and I've now bought the first three. A well paced book with heart. The characters are believable and the plot not very far fetched, some people take a tarot reading as gospel and won't move without the cards telling them what to do - which is silly as they are a possible future, you can always change your habits and change your future.

Loved it - and I'm looking forward to many more in the same vein with Ray's new job.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher I read a free advance review copy of the book. This review is voluntary, honest and my own opinion.

ily Spencer knows her twin is fated to die. And she can’t stop envisioning the end.

A stranger in the night.
A vicious blade.
The tarot card he will leave behind.

Lily’s clairvoyant friend has foreseen it all. And her eerie insights are never wrong.

A killer is coming to the care home where the sisters live. It’s only a question of when. And why.

In desperation, Lily turns to curmudgeonly sleuth Ray Flowers for help.

She may be elderly but she’s anything but defenceless. And she’s not giving up on her sister.

Not without a fight.

This book was a real explosive thriller and one that had me on the edge of my seats. There is nothing better than picking a book up and being immersed into it straight away, This was one of those books, a one sitting read. Thank you for letting me review this book.

4 stars

Tarot cards are being left at the scenes of several murders—the victims? Nice old ladies. This mystery has a fun premise, a unique cast of characters, & I liked the tarot theme.

[What I liked:]

•Elspeth is great! A 78-year-old who can swing a mean cricket bat!

•I loved the setting—a retirement home for former show biz professionals! Creative, & it provided a good set of interesting, charming senior citizens as side characters.

•I liked the approach the story takes to metaphysical ideas—there are skeptical characters & open minded characters. The occult elements aren’t presented as gospel truth, nor are they ridiculed or reduced to stereotypes.


[What I didn’t like as much:]

•Lynn’s character felt a bit inconsistent towards the very end. She just wasn’t as cool & calculating as she had been all through the story, & it wasn’t clear why she changed.

CW: terminal illness, murder

[I received an ARC ebook copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Thank you for the book!]

Thank you Netgalley and Joffe Books for the eARC.
I loved this book, couldn't put it down.
A murderous man is taking revenge on people, particularly on old women in care homes. Ray, an ex-policeman is asked to look into the case by an elderly woman who believes her twin is in danger. He's sceptical but checks out the situation and soon the woman is attacked, but helped by her friend who fights off the attacker with a bat. Soon several people are murdered, every time a Tarot-like card is found on the body.
I really liked Ray and hope there will be a follow up
to this book when he tackles more cases with a slight mystic slant to them. I loved the lady with the bat! Highly recommended!