My Sunday book review this week is for Toni Pike’s – Dead Dry Heart. This book has all the elements of a captivating read with well developed characters and a rollercoaster ride of lies, betrayal and murder, with the human elements of fear, remorse, and a questioning of truth.

Blurb:

Tyler Thompson is Australia’s young, brilliant and charismatic Prime Minister, riding high on a wave of popularity. But the past has come back to haunt him and there is a shocking secret from his childhood that he will do almost anything to conceal.

The one man who knows what happened twenty-five years ago is back – and he is hellbent on revenge. Tyler’s precious wife and baby have disappeared and their safe return will cost him everything: family, career and freedom.

But even that may not be enough to satisfy his nemesis – and the truth may be more terrible than he could possibly imagine.

A chilling novel about deceit, betrayal and murder, with twists and turns that you will not see coming.

My 5 Star Review

The past begins with Josh, a somewhat of a recluse with a troubled past, who happens to be wandering through the Australian desert and stumbles across a scene where 11 year old Tyler is being abused by his parents while they’re camped out on the beach. Josh is compelled to defend little Tyler and quickly a fight ensues and turns into murder. After Tyler helps Josh bury his parents’ bodies in the sand, Josh leads him through the desert back to a road and sets him free to seek aid, reminding him to ‘stick to the story’ that his parents ran out of gas in their travels and set out to get gas while leaving Tyler with their van. Only slip ups have a way of entering into Tyler’s story when he accidentally reveals the name of the man who guided him to safety, turning the missing persons investigation into a possible murder mystery.

Tyler is forever haunted by that night at the beach, despite his being taken in by a loving adoptive family. As he excels in school and sets his sights on becoming a politician, Josh is safely locked up in jail, but through TV and newspaper clippings he keeps a close eye on Tyler’s life. And not long after Tyler becomes Prime Minister of Australia, Josh is released from jail and plots his revenge against the boy, now man, who he once rescued. The cat and mouse games begin.

Tyler now must fight to keep his secret about ‘that night’ at the beach, protect his family from Josh who is released from jail 25 years later, and figure out a way to save his reputation and his position in government. While the story takes on lots of twists and turns, as Tyler attempts to dodge Josh’s mission to contact him, and then his threats to expose Tyler as an accomplice to his crimes, Tyler fears for his family’s life and his reputation, keeping us gripped throughout and leaving us wondering through every page if everything Tyler worked for will be destroyed and will Tyler be able to stop Josh from kidnapping and threatening to kill his family. A captivating story right from the start!