Today I’m pleased to be taking part in the blog tour for Running Out Of Road. My review is written with thanks to Tracy Fenton for inviting me on the tour and to the publisher for my copy of the book via Netgalley.

Blurb:

A missing schoolgirl, a middle-aged recluse, an exploited teenager. Lives thrown into chaos and set on collision course. With the police in hot pursuit.

Scarlett is dancing in the school talent show tomorrow. Nana, who Scarlett lives with since Mum died, reckons Scarlett will be on Strictly at this rate. Except Scarlett doesn’t make it home from school. She’s abducted by a man she never imagined she’d see again. A man on the police’s most wanted list. Her dad.

Ron has made a living as a house and pet sitter since quitting his career on the front line in the fire service. He’s currently looking after a place deep in the Derbyshire Peaks. The solitude suits him. And managing animals is so much simpler than coping with other people.

Dylan’s a ‘cuckoo’, dealing drugs on the county line, moving from nest to nest, picking out people who daren’t say no. Keeping his head down, one step ahead of the law. So far. But now everything’s falling apart.

DS Laura O’Neil is running on empty after nights dealing with her teething toddler. But Laura is driving the hunt for Scarlett and knows that every minute counts.

A race against time, played out in the brooding wilderness, the limestone gorges and gritstone edges of the Peak District. Themes of escape and entrapment, of shifting loyalties and new alliances, of violence, fear and love, resilience, kindness and hope.

Review:

I’ve never read anything by Cath Staincliffe before, but after reading Running Out Of Road, this definitely needs to change! It starts with a bang as it means to go on and from the beginning the pace is relentless. I just did not want to stop reading! 

There are three strands in the plot in Running Out Of Road, where the reader is introduced to Scarlett, Dylan and Ron. At first, it is difficult to see how such different characters could be connected but it becomes much clearer as the plot progresses. Staincliffe has created a very different set of circumstances for each one and their stories are very interesting to follow. I warmed to them all in different ways. 

Staincliffe begins the novel with an apology that her use of geography may not be completely accurate. This doesn’t matter. She creates the atmosphere really well, particularly the scenes that take place in remote areas and this drew me into the scenes. I loved being able to picture what was happening as the tension rose and I couldn’t let go. 

Running Out Of Road is available from Amazon.

You can follow the rest of the blog tour here: