Beginnings by Helen J. Christmas

The Blurb

Beginnings is a romantic thriller set in the criminal underworld of 1970s London. Eleanor Chapman is 16. She has no idea her father is employed in a world of organised crime until the day he is forced to go on the run, leaving her at the mercy of dangerous people.

Her life is spiralling out of control yet on the night she plans to escape, she stumbles across a mysterious prisoner. His name is Jake, a rock musician from Holland and he has a contract on his life.

Their daring escape across London eventually draws them into a place of hiding before Jake’s chilling story begins to unfold. He was the one vital witness to a sinister scene leading up to the death of a British MP and now those responsible want him silenced. As two young people, thrown together by fate they develop intense feelings for each other. It does not take long for Eleanor to realise that she will do anything possible to keep Jake alive.

Their tender love bond keeps you turning the pages as they live on a knife edge, desperate to escape London. Will they outrun the deadly enemies who stalk them? Or are the people at the top more powerful than they think?

Beginnings: Book 1 of the series “Same Face Different Place” a romantic British thriller through the decades.

Genre: Thriller / Romantic Thriller / YA

Publisher: Chichester Publishing

My review:

As you may have noticed, I generally read contemporary romances and romantic comedies so this romantic thriller was a departure from the norm for me and I have to say I really enjoyed it. The story was edgy, at times shocking, gave an intriguing insight into the criminal underworld of London in the 1970s and yet remained a romantic tale of two people desperate to survive their circumstances and be together.

All characters are portrayed well giving clear mental images of what each is like as the story unfolds like a film displayed before you; I willed Eleanor and Jake, the main characters, to find their escape and I recoiled from the particularly nasty villain Theakston (who by the end of the book becomes more complex than he first appears). And I liked the fact that amongst all the drama Eleanor finds support from characters whose warmth and kindness are evident.

The end of the book, for me, felt like a pause in the action, there is a shift in direction, mood and atmosphere, opposed to closure, which left me temporarily content with where the main characters were at, but wanting to know more. This must surely be the mark of a good opening novel to a series. I look forward to reading Visions, the next story in the Same Face Different Place series!

YA guest review by Amelia Thomas:

Beginnings was full of action and insight into a world I previously knew little about. I was interested to learn more about the gangs and violence in London during the 1970s – it was intriguing and at times horrifying. Theakston, the criminal, was a well written nasty character, with horrible ideas about how to hurt or murder people.

I was interested to see how, like today, newspapers could report incidents one way while the “reality” was more dramatic and far reaching. I liked Eleanor and Jake, the main characters. Eleanor, particularly, was strong and determined, I hope she continues to be as the series continues.

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About the author:

Helen J. Christmas lives on the south coast of England with her husband. She has a passion for gripping stories with strong characters. With a love of writing since childhood, she started her own series of books ‘Same Face Different Place’. Her first book ‘Beginnings’ is set in the 1970s: a London thriller entwined with romantic suspense. Helen finished her 2nd book, ‘Visions,’ in 2013: a 1980s psychological thriller set in the counties of London and Kent. Her 3rd book, ‘Pleasures’ was published in 2015 and new for 2017 comes the final instalment ‘Retribution’ in 2 parts.

Writing is something she juggles around her family and social life as well as running a web design company, she and her husband set up from home.

Discover more about Helen J. Christmas and the Same Face Different Place Series here: website | blog | Facebook | Twitter

Helen J. Christmas is also a member of the Chindi Authors group known for celebrating and helping independent authors.

Thank you for the great read Helen!

My reviews are added to Amazon UK and Goodreads x