After reading the first book in the Detective Gina Harte series I couldn't wait to see what would be in store for Gina next. Now don't worry if you haven't got around to reading the first book as I think you would probably be fine starting with this one as Gina's backstory is shown to a point. However you may benefit from getting the full character background if you do start at the beginning. So what did I think...

First of all what you will find in this book is a very dark and twisty tale as Gina finds herself right in the middle of things. The prologue to this book made me so curious and then wow those first chapters I don't think Carla Kovach could have ramped up the tension anymore, I was glued to my Kindle!

The great thing about the Detective Gina Harte series is that you get a great balance of Gina's personal life and also the investigation side. Both combining to bring an extra depth to the story as Gina has a darker past than anyone knows. It really makes her not only an engaging character but a great detective too with her strong and tough attitude hiding a few secrets below the surface.

In Her Final Hour the past collides with the present and I really enjoyed seeing the different threads to this story. Now to start with there are a few but stick with it because it was so interesting seeing the characters lives play out leaving you with quite a few suspects. There are plenty of secrets, lies and shocking situations to keep the reader gripped. Carla Kovach writes with ease and was able to pull me in straight away and hold my interest throughout.

The short and snappy chapters were a hit with me and made reading this book so easy. Although I learned my lesson not to start this book in the evening, I was constantly telling myself just one more chapter. Well that clearly didn't work as I ended up finishing it in one go!

Tension filled with some dark and gripping moments!

With thanks to Noelle at Bookouture for my copy via Netgalley.

WOW! This is book two in the DI Harte series, but does read well as a standalone. Back to a brilliant team and a series I am throughally enjoying. Carla knows how to write a belter of a book, I was well and truelly hooked…

Things are about to get personal in Her Final Hour… DI Harte is one determined, powerful and brave woman. I did feel sorry for Natalies character though the poor woman. This story does contain a few twisted, evil, devious and sick male characters… Which I instantly despised. Also a murderer who thinks they’re clever. Very clever. Can DI Harte solve the case?

I lost myself into this case. It is a crafty, cleverly written, fast paced, page turner of a brilliant story. It contains short chapters and if I had my way I would have stayed up all night to finish it (KIDS!). I also did not expect that outcome at all… Total shocker. You got me. I look forward to book 3 in the series.

I awarded a well deserved five stars and would highly recommend Her Final Hour and this series as a whole.

EXCERPT: ...his knees buckled as he saw his wife tied to one of their carver chairs under the light of the cooker hood. A piece of blue cord was looped under her chin and the raw marks around her neck told him exactly what had happened.

ABOUT THIS BOOK: Melissa Sanderson is the perfect wife and mother. She dotes on her daughter, and lives in her dream home in a quiet cul-de-sac in the suburbs.

But looks can be deceiving.

Something is amiss in that house – all the neighbours think so. Some say Melissa is having an affair. Others say she’s been drinking too much.

Then one night, sirens wake up the whole neighbourhood.

Melissa Sanderson is dead.

MY THOUGHTS: I enjoyed the first book in this series, The Next Girl. I forgave the author her use of the stereotypical caricature of most major female detectives currently being written - heavy drinking, hard-nosed, has been in an abusive relationship, estranged from family, as her character developed through the first book. But there is absolutely zero further character development in Her Final Hour.

I also commented that 'some of the investigative techniques left something to be desired, but it does develop into a good crime thriller'. I stand by the first part of that comment as it is also true of Her Final Hour. Unfortunately Her Final Hour does not develop into a good crime thriller.

This book is clumsily written, as though it was dashed off in a hurry. The dialogue is mostly stilted. As I said earlier, there is zero character development. It was repetitive, and the characters constant dwelling on and rehashing of their traumatic pasts became extremely wearing.

There were times when I considered abandoning this read. The only thing that kept me reading was that I had enjoyed The Next Girl. I skimmed pages in an effort to get to the end, and heaved a sigh of relief when I closed the covers.

This was not 'AN ABSORBING THRILLER WITH AN ENDING YOU WON’T SEE COMING'. It didn't even come close. I won't be recommending this book to others, and I probably won't bother reading any further books in this series. 😕😕.5

I understand that reading is an entirely subjective experience and that, while this book wasn't one I enjoyed, you may well love it. So if the excerpt piques your interest and you like the sound of the plot synopsis, please get a copy Her Final Hour by Carla Kovach and read it. I sincerely wish that I had enjoyed this more than I did.

THE AUTHOR: Carla Kovach was born in Birmingham, UK and now resides in Redditch, Worcestershire. Author of supernatural drama 'Flame,' psychological thriller 'To Let,' crime thriller 'Whispers Beneath the Pines, and romantic comedy 'Meet Me at Marmaris Castle.' Carla also writes stage and screen plays, some of which have been produced in the Worcestershire area.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Bookouture via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Her Final Hour by Carla Kovach for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

Please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com for an explanation of my rating system.

This review and others are also published on my blog sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

Thank you to Bookouture for letting me take part in this blog tour. I loved the first book in the DI Harte series and I was so excited to read the next instalment. Both books can be read as standalones. 
There is quite a lot going on in this book. There are many threads that all, at first glance, seem unconnected. Carla manages to expertly weave these threads together creating a brilliant but rather disturbing story. More than once I was torn between continuing to read and being too scared to do so.
Gina is an easy character to like. She has been through hell and used that to pull herself out the other side and spend every day trying to save others from what she has been through. Gina is one tough cookie and I can't help but admire her.
This book was an addictive page turner and I honestly cannot wait to see more from DI Harte.

Her Final Hour is the second in the DI Gina Harte series, but can easily be read as a standalone. I haven’t read the first and had no problems following along.

Readers with triggers should be aware of the following (not unexpected in a murder thriller, but I include the warnings all the same); Rape, sexual abuse, marital abuse, physical abuse of a child, controlling relationship partner, torture, forced drugging, gaslighting, strangulation, burning of remains, Stepford Wife syndrome.

Harte is an interesting character as protagonist in a police procedural, because she isn’t the usual thirtysomething. She’s a grandmother and an experienced police officer with trauma in her past which makes her both relatable to the reader and empathetic to the crime victims for whom she seeks justice.

The brutal murder of a young mother with an apparently perfect life in her own home propels Gina into her first case as SIO (senior investigating officer) on a major crime. Determined to solve it before the killer strikes again, she gets on the killer’s radar herself.

I found Gina intriguing and I’d have liked to see more of her character. The plot seemed to keep circling back to the same point in her history, which although it obviously played a big role in defining who she became, was a long time ago in the timeline of the book and there was a lot more to her than that I wanted to know about.

The story moved about between multiple viewpoints, so we knew what was going on fairly early and got to watch Gina figuring it out as the evidence came in. It did occasionally become repetitive as the same scene was retold twice from different viewpoints, and the plot had moment of dragging. At the end of the book, I felt the title really didn’t fit; there was more than one murder and ‘Her Final Hour’ really only applied to a brief scene at the very beginning. There were a couple of interesting twists, but I didn’t come away with any sense of particular enjoyment or a desire to read any more of the author’s works. It was just an okay read, and therefore I’m giving it three stars.

The original title of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, a book so good that I named my cat Lisbeth, was “Men Who Hate Women”. Well this could be named “English Men Who Hate Women”. A darker follow up to The Next Girl, you don’t need to have read the first book, although it helps to know the characters, but is a new story set four months later.

DI Gina Harte gets back from a short holiday and is called to the scene of a home invasion where a woman has been tied to a chair and strangled. Her husband has a solid alibi so the police suspect her lover, but then find signs of chronic abuse on the victims body, and her daughter also has bruises. Meanwhile one woman is planning to finally confront the man who drugged and raped her years earlier, another is trapped indoors by her confusion and anxiety, and a third listens at doors when her husband’s friends come round.

This one kept me reading late into the night - just one more chapter... Gina is a frustrating heroine, so stubborn and determined to stay in control that she refuses to rest or seek help, despite a concussion that has her missing signs and making mistakes, although she is still sharper than anyone else. I spent half the book worrying that something would happen to her poor neglected cat Ebony, but it’s ok, she survives. I liked her on-off relationship with Briggs, her boss, and was happy to hear that Rosie, from the first book, got a happy ending.

This has been added to my list of New Favourite Series, and I await the next one eagerly. My thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture (fast becoming one of my favourite publishers) for the ARC, with apologies for being a little late finishing it, as it was published two days ago.

"Her secrets were her secrets. They were nibbling through her flesh like worms trying to eat their way out of an apple, but, as far as she was concerned, the apple could rot and take her with it."

Carla Kovach's Her Final Hour is the second installment in the Detective Gina Harte series and is the second book I've read by Kovach. I read the first installment earlier this year and my review can be found here. Beyond being great reads, I absolutely love the cover art for both of Kovach's books.

Kovach's latest book starts with a terrifying murder in a quiet suburban neighborhood. Melissa Sanderson and her daughter are home alone when intruders break into their house and terrorize Sanderson. Sanderson is murdered in a brutal fashion by a killer (or killers?) who seems to know how to keep a crime scene semi-pristine. Over the course of her murder investigation, Sanderson's private life, which from the outside appeared idyllic, is revealed. We discover that there were dark secrets she was hiding from the world. Melissa appears to be abused or the victim of longterm sexual violence, placing the spotlight on her husband as the potential killer. We also learn that Melissa was in an incredibly unhappy marriage to the point she had started to see someone on the side, someone who she had tried to leave. 

Who is the killer? Melissa's husband? A man with whom Melissa was having an affair? Or someone else lurking in the shadows, tormenting other women?

While the murder investigation is underway, we are introduced to additional characters who are suffering or have suffered at the hands of a cruel man. Is this man somehow connected to Melissa's murder? This story occurs in between narratives about Detective Harte's investigation of Melissa's murder. It acts like a carrot dangled in front of the reader, taunting you to make connections between the several intertwined stories of women suffering at the hands of abusive men.

I love Kovach's ability to create three-dimensional, relatable characters. She makes you truly care about the fate of the characters and makes the reader want to know what will happen to them at the end of the story. My only critique of the book is that I would have liked to have a bit more backstory/parallel story with Detective Gina Harte. Her story was very compelling and kept me engaged in the first book of the series. Detective Harte's story is what will also keep me reading this series. Thank you to Bookouture, Carla Kovach, and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy of Her Final Hour.

Love this book and DI GIna Harte . I will definitely be reading more from this author . Good series and good book

ow, this was my first introduction to DI Gina Harte I have to say and I was not disappointed at all. I did purchase book 1 The Next Girl so I could read it before my stop today but alas time was not on my side……and I over-committed my reading – doh! However, I am happy to say you can get away with not reading the first book, it does allude to things that happened in the first book but it does not deter from this chilling story.

The main woman DI Gina Harte is a woman not to be messed with, I love her character. She puts the job first, she loves it, even to the detriment of her relationship, she also harbours a secret that could destroy her if she let it.

She has such a strong team around her, constantly supporting her especially as she becomes the SIO (Senior Investigating Officer) on this case, a massive recognition that she thoroughly deserves.

A woman is found dead at home, discovered by her husband once he got back from the pub, their child screaming in her bedroom. What this woman endured when she was alive was disgusting. Again, I do wish I could jump into the books and give some characters a good slap in the face and then jump back to safety lol. She was a woman that was being broken, trying to fight for a better life before she died. Something does not sound right with the husband’s story! Does the husband have something to hide? What happened? Is his daughter safe?

Now it does get confusing at times as we jump between characters in each new chapter, so you do have to pay attention as we have a lot of lives to follow. Yet I found it to be like a tv-show as it was not a singular person we follow but many, getting a wider picture of what is going on. I actually enjoy books more like this. It makes for a fulfilling read. Also, the chapters are short and snappy and it makes you fly through the book without realising, this is a definite page-turner.

With the different plot occurring, it brought more heartbreak but also intrigue as you slowly see how all the dots joined and for some shocking shocking (yes I said that twice) discoveries, reminding me of a butterfly effect showing the links. Sometimes, even when you can kind of guess where the story is going to go, with twists thrown in, I fully believe it is the journey you go on which is more important, and this is true of Harte, she has her journey of discovery of herself, not just the case.

#Sorrynotsorry but I know this review is vague, it is the sort of book that if one thing is revealed it can ruin the reading for you. The author’s writing will have you hooked in no time and as I said before it is a page-turner of the fastest kind.

I do have to make one comment before I go, look at the cover. What a beautiful but haunting cover, it fits perfectly with the story.

I cannot wait to head back to the past and read the first book in the series. I am excited about the future too of Gina, and I cannot wait for book 3……there will be one right?!!

I so wanted to love love love this book, because I respect the character of Gina Harte. However, there were certain aspects of this book that I found really disturbing. The first Gina Harte book was fantastic, and I wanted to love this book just as much... but there's a real darkness in this one that I couldn't get past. And, it may be a personal preference -- Carla Kovach is a very talented author... maybe this one I couldn't connect with, as much as I care for the character of Gina Harte.

I really don't know where to start my review of Her Final Hour, there was so much going on in this fantastic, fast-paced psychological thriller.

D I Gina Harte returns home from a mini-break to a phone call from the police station where she works. A woman has been found dead in her own kitchen with her baby daughter crying upstairs. There is no sign of a burglary, and plenty of evidence to show that this killer knows exactly what he or she was doing.

Gina is suffering silently. She is haunted by the memories of an abusive marriage and trying to put a more recent relationship out of her mind. Will she be able to face her demons when the investigation reveals some highly unsavoury but sadly familiar behaviour?

I think I held my breath from page one. There is no flowery introduction here, even the prologue is gritty and unnerving. Hairs rose up on the back of my neck as I flew through this crime thriller and it just keeps getting better, and better, until the ending which had my blood pressure skyrocketing.

I sadly hadn't read the first book in the series (I will now!)but it didn't matter. There were snippets alluding to a previous case but it worked fine as a standalone.

Some parts were difficult to read, the author keeps the storyline authentic and has produced a hard-hitting, dark, police procedural which really packs a punch. The storyline is complex and you wonder how it will weave together, as for the characters...people are often not how they seem!

I can now confidently say that I have added a new author and series to my list of favorites. In April, I read the first book in the Detective Gina Harte series, The Next Girl. I have since been stalking Bookouture’s social media pages, waiting for news about the series. Having loved the first book so much, I had high expectations for this one and I am pleased to say that this ended up being an even better read.

I really like Detective Gina Harte. From the first book, I thought her back story was unique and it got me drawn to her. I liked reconnecting with her in this book. Once again, she is likeable and easy to root for. Gina took more than a central role in this investigation. I can’t say much about this but let me just say that her role made this story even more addictive. I love getting to the end of thrillers and seeing the mystery getting solved but I didn’t want this book to end.

This case is tougher, darker, unique, twisted and the villain(s) are even more complex. The story is narrated in such a way that readers are in the know. There are multiple narrators and so we get to be ahead of the detectives. However, I couldn’t wait to see Gina and her team connect all the dots. It was simply a brilliant case and investigation.

Her Final Hour is addictive, fast-paced and quite well-written. This is a series that I recommend to all fans of crime thrillers. Although this book can be read as a standalone, it is best enjoyed if read in order. You really need to get to know Gina and the other characters.

What a brilliant series!

I loved Carla Kovach previous book which is the first book in the Gina Harte series and was really looking forward to the follow up. If anything I would say Her Final Hour is even better!! Gina is a great character and has her own skeletons in the closet and a complex private life. The crime in this book was gripping and had me on the edge of my seat. Lots of suspects and scary drama throughout. Great writing and even if you havent read the first book the story explains her past enough for you to understand. Look forward to reading more books about Gina. An outstanding book.

3.5 stars

I flew through this book in a day. It’s weird because I got the digital arc of this novel and I didn’t read the first one in the series so I went in the opposite direction. I don’t think it was a continuation, it just had the same lead, Detective Gina Harte.

One thing that drew me most to the story was its interesting plot. I really love murder stories and I love trying to figure out who the murderer is before the characters do. This one was a bit obvious but we don’t know why. Or you think you know and then it turns out it’s someone else. The mystery in this story is there for sure.

It’s evident why Gina Harte is the protagonist of the story. She’s a very lovable character and she’s such a great detective. She never gives up even though when she’s at her worst and she’s determined to find the killer no matter what. Kovach did a tremendous job writing her character.

This story is told in multiple point of views and it’s a lot more interesting this way. The story opens with a women who was raped many years ago and left in the parking lot and then it switches to the present day. But this story is different from the murder, but it’s also connected and the way it’s linked is very smooth and you can tell that Kovach has put a lot of thought into how she will link these two stories together. It’s just amazing!

I will be reading the first novel sometime this year and hopefully I will get a glimpse of Gina Harte because I did feel as though I missed something that might have occurred in the first book.

Overall, a great mystery and it is hard to put down once you pick it up.

'Her Final Hour' is the second book to feature DI Gina Harte, set in the fictional town of Cleevesford. England. Having enjoyed the first book of the series and Gina's inimitable personality, this one was just as compelling.

Melissa Sanderson appears to have the perfect life. So, when she is murdered in her small hometown noone has any idea who would target the young mother. When the team are called in to investigate the killing. they begin to discover things about her that indicate that her whole life was a facade, and that what her life was truly like and how her life was described like by others are in deep conflict. She has been hiding a lot of shady secrets from everyone for a long time. This is the first case Gina Harte has taken control of since becoming Senior Investigative Officer, so the desire to do it well is clear to see. Her tanacity and willingness to throw herself into a case and not leave alone when she has a gut-feeling is admirable and fun to read.

'Her Final Hour' was cleverly plotted, with a great storyline and the wonderful Gina Harte. Gina really makes this series what it is and is a wonderful creation. It is mainly told from her point-of-view, but there is other POV's in the mix too. I found myself rapidly page-turning to find out exactly what happened, and the twists properly caught me out! The explosive twist at the end of the book was something I greatly appreciated as I love to be shocked! There is a gradual build-up of tension through the story, and the more informaation and layers are revealed the more suspenseful it became. This leads me to conclude that the author is an expert in her craft!

Many thanks to Bookouture for an ARC. I was not required to post a review, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

DI Gina Harte is back on the case in Carla Kovach's latest book, <b>Her Final Hour</b>. When I opened up this book last night I only intended to read the first chapter. Just to get a feel for the novel; to help me decide which book I was going to read next. But from the first scene I was hooked. Then the novel jumped 25 years and I found myself catapulted into a murder scene. The pacing of the novel was swift. Not for a moment did the suspense let up. DI Harte channeled strength from her past and was ardent in her pursuit. At one point in the book I <i>thought</i> I had the mystery solved but was enjoying myself so much that I was riveted. If my Kindle hadn't died I probably would not have slept last night. So excited to see what Kovach and DI Harte have in store for the next installment in this series.

I love Gina Harte and am already awaiting her next outing anxiously! Great book, great story, great heroine!

I had put in a request for this book because the synopsis sounded good. However, two things I missed. I hadn't realized it was a second book in a series, and two I had no idea that it was a mystery. I don't read mysteries but in this case, I did, and I loved It!
I could not put it down, it had me going for awhile. And while there was no surprise on who did it, since they pretty much tell you, you're right along for the ride wondering how the police are going to solve it. There was a small twist at the end, but you could still guess. However with that being said, I definitely would recommend this book. I've recommended the book to my book club on FB, I think we have a lot of mystery fans that won't be disappointed.

Loved this book!! Full of suspense and twists and turns. I was completely shocked at the end when I found out who was actually involved with the murders. This book was full of crazy/scary people, between the Stepford wives and the group of men with their insane ideas about women. I loved Detective Gina Harte. I was scared for her every time she was alone in her house. I was also afraid for her cat. I thought the kitty might be killed with all the psychos trying to kill Gina.

Detective Gina Harte returns home from a much needed vacation, only to find herself investigating a murder. Melissa Sanderson was found dead inside her house by her husband, who naturally had an alibi. Melissa was tied up to a chair and killed while her little girl was upstairs crying. What went on in the Sanderson house was scary and horrible and I'm talking about when Melissa was alive. Soon after Melissa's death, Ellie is reported missing by her girlfriend. Ellie was stalking the man who raped her many years ago. The scenes with Ellie where she was brutalized were awful. So now Detective Harte is trying to solve what really happened to Melissa and Ellie while also trying to stay alive. Gina is one strong woman. She held onto her attacker's hair so there would be DNA evidence. I loved when Ebony, the cat, attacked the person in Gina's house. Gina puts her cat in a carrier to see if they can extract DNA from under her claws.

I definitely recommend this book. I need to read the first book in the series and I can't wait to read more. I loved the story, writing style and characters.

Thanks to NetGalley, Bookouture and the author, Carla Kovach, for a free electronic ARC of this novel.

Book Review - ‘Her Final Hour:Detective Gina Harte Book 2’ by Carla Kovack 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and Carla Kovach for the chance to read an ARC of this novel.

‘Her Final Hour’ is a fantastic psychological thriller. It starts out strong, with the historic rape of a teenage girl at a bar and then the gruesome murder of Melissa Sanderson, and continues building the tension with each page as DI Harte and her team race to find her killer.

This book had a multilayered plot that was filled with mystery, misogyny and murder. The violence could be a stomach churning read at times but it put you not only in the mind of the killer but of DI Harte too, as it served to strengthen her resolve to get justice. There were many of twists and turns, and an array of mysterious, strange and sinister suspects. Like the police you find it hard to determine just who is involved in what way right until the moment all is revealed.

I hadn’t read a book by this author before. I have her first novel on my Amazon Wish List so I was thrilled to be given the chance to read this one. I don’t usually like reading a series out of order, in fact this might be the first time I’ve ever done so, but I didn't feel like it negatively impacted the story. There were things alluded to that were clearly in the previous novel but enough information was given that it to make sense. In fact, it all just made me want to read Book 1 to find out about that case and after reading this amazing book I intend to do just that.

A brilliant, well written and fast paced book that I would recommend to anyone who enjoys crime, thriller and mystery novels.

Available 23rd August.