*Have You Heard? * Audiobooks For Your Listening Pleasure* Before You Leap by Keith Houghton

Posted August 23, 2017 by RobbieLea in Book Reviews / 0 Comments

*Have You Heard? * Audiobooks For Your Listening Pleasure* Before You Leap by Keith HoughtonBefore You Leap by Keith Houghton
Published by Brilliance Audio, Thomas & Mercer on November 1st 2016
Genres: Psychological Thriller
Pages: 287
Format: Audiobook
ISBN: 1503938166
ASIN: B01LYB6FRG
Goodreads
four-stars

Peace of mind is all Greg Cole has wanted since the murder of his twin sister, Scarlett.

In his new sun-soaked Florida life, he thought he had found it. But when Scarlett’s killer is released early from prison with a cast-iron alibi, Greg realizes that his past is about to explode into his present, with terrifying consequences.

To expose the truth he must open up old wounds. As a talk therapist, Greg knows all about dark secrets, but when a childhood friendship comes to the fore and the police turn their spotlight on him, the thought of analyzing his own psyche is a disturbing prospect. How far can he trust his own memories?

With his life coming apart at the seams, and his grip on reality beginning to unravel, Greg must face the ghosts of his past if he hopes to prove his innocence and live to see another day.

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#TalkTherapy #Twins #ScottMerriman #FloridaLiving #DarkSecrets @KeithHoughton

My review of Keith Houghton’s novel Before You Leap almost didn’t get written because I came very close to breaking one of my self-imposed rules to always finish listening. Thank goodness my Inner Book Nerd took charge and guilted me into continuing past the opening paragraphs. In fairness to Mr. Houghton and his excellent writing, I have to confess the Prologue took me so much by surprise after reading the book description, I thought I had downloaded the wrong book! Seriously! If you’re tempted by my review to listen to this fast-paced and tangled tale, you can decide for yourself if you think the events of the prologue come at just the right spot in the book or not. There are some very intriguing characters in Before You Leap. One of my favorites — and this is likely based on the narrator’s performance — is a plain-spoken private investigator named O’Malley who appears as if out of nowhere to be a harbinger of all the evil that is about to befall Greg Cole. O’Malley quickly goes from annoying to scary when he poses the question “Did you kill your sister?” to Greg. Listeners will have many opportunities to smile at this slightly befuddled psychotherapist who is a bit odd, but not really psycho. PI O’Malley is suspicious by profession and even more so because of a misconception that Greg has changed his name. To O’Malley this can only mean Greg is hiding something when, in fact, there is a simple and non-sinister explanation. Clueless Greg failed to notice the sign on his office door read Cole Gregory instead of Gregory Cole until he already had established patients. I had to love him a little when he kept the wrong name so his patients wouldn’t be confused. I think that’s about all I want to say about the actual storyline; otherwise, I would probably have to go back and delete most of my review due to spoilers. The plot is very twisted and almost defies belief at times, but Before You Leap is a psychological thriller in the truest form of the genre because it will mess with your mind!

This is my first experience with the narrator, Scott Merriman. His performance is definitely 5 star and his voices for the characters bring them to life in a way that enhances the author’s work.

Listeners who like convoluted tales, with slightly cracked and sometimes broken characters will enjoy Keith Houghton’s work. If you are like me and take pride in your ability to figure things out, this one may defeat you. Even if you do guess who did what to whom, you may not believe it!

four-stars

About Keith Houghton

Who am I ?

Firstly, I’m English (yes, it’s a nationality as well as a language), and I live in a small town in northwest England with my wonderful wife Lynn and our crazy cairn terrier Jake.

I write about contrasts and opposites, like good versus evil and right versus wrong. My good guys are half bad and my bad guys are half good, pushed and pulled both ways along story lines that are split equally between denying truths and embracing lies. In the real world of my imagination, not everything is black and white. Sometimes it’s blood red.

My independently-published GABE QUINN THRILLERS have sold more than ⅓ million Kindle copies worldwide, and my traditionally-published stand-alones NO COMING BACK and BEFORE YOU LEAP are hot on their heels.

For the last three years I’ve been an Amazon-invited author panelist at the London Book Fair, as well as a a guest speaker at various events including the Amazon Academy. Plus, I’ve held inspirational talks at my local college. I actively split infinitives all day long, boldly going where many have gone before. And when I’m not doing everything I can to distract myself from my writing, you can usually find me deconstructing everything I wrote the day before, or eating chocolate, or both.

My favourite band is Marillion (prog-rock) and my favourite author is Larry Niven (sci-fi). I like Italian food, first-person shooter video games, holidaying abroad, and daydreaming. My idea of heaven is sitting under a parasol on a beach in Florida, eating pizza while thinking about shooting zombies.

These days, I am extremely lucky enough to be able to earn a living doing something I love, which is writing, in and around being an in-demand Grandpa. It’s only taken me thirty years of relentless pursuit, 100 rejection slips and a receding hairline to get here. Let’s see how long the journey lasts! ?

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