I recently received some feedback for the next book in The Peasedale Woods Killers series, book three,

She is, absolutely, right.

I am a mother of two boys, and I have also been involved in the raising of three stepchildren, two of which are also boys. I wrote the first book in this series, The Other Boy, in response to a documentary I watched about Dean Corll, the Candyman serial killer, responsible for the rape, mutilation, and murder of over twenty teenage boys and young men.

The story I wrote focused on the teenage accomplices of the killer, the story told from the point of view of the grieving, desperate parents, unaware of what their sons were involved in.

The Other Mother continues the story for Suzannah, one of the mothers. It is about how she negotiates life after her son is incarcerated, the sacrifices and choices she must make to try and forge a new life, with a new partner and a new baby, and how badly things can go wrong when the past comes back to bite you.

“No one wants to get close to me, to the mother of a monster, a woman who spawned the devil.”

The idea that a mother’s love is unconditional and all-consuming resonates throughout the story, and when the threats to Suzannah ramp up, her fear drives her to make some terrible decisions.

I love delving into the psychology of my characters, which is why have been drawn to writing psychological thrillers. I like to watch the darkness that my characters work hard to contain spill out when they are put under pressure, risking their sanity and their salvation. I love to put people into desperate situations, and then find out how they will claw their way out.

“I’m between a rock and a hard place, and all roads lead to destruction.”

My stories also look at teenagers, those tough years of change and growth, driven by raging hormones, big dreams, volatile emotions, and fragile egos. Choices made in those years can be so far reaching, they can really shape the grown up that emerges from the chaos, and this is seen in many of the characters in The Other Mother. Actions that can’t be undone, decisions that cause damage, relationships that create a dangerous toxicity, feelings that are twisted and manipulated for selfish reasons.

“Did you? Put me first, huh? Is that what you tell yourself so you can sleep at night?”

Secrets also play a big part in this story, and I wanted to show how a character can tell a lie that grows into a bigger lie, and this in turn creates the need for yet more and more lies. Suzannah’s story is like quicksand, the more she struggles to hide the truth of her past, the faster she sinks.

“I will always be that duck on the pond, however serene I make my life appear; below the surface I must paddle like crazy to keep myself afloat. The day I stop paddling will be the day I sink.”

But, throughout Suzannah’s journey there is also love, in abundance, in many forms. Romantic love, friendship, and the unconditional love shared between parents and their children. All the loves in The Other Mother are tested, they are all put under strain, and each one leads to places that the characters would not have gone if love was not involved.

Love can be hard won, too easily taken for granted, or disrespected, it can drive good and bad behaviours, and it is not always an emotion that brings happiness.

“And then there’s the relief. That’s the feeling that really stings, the one that plays on my conscience long after I’ve left.”

A mystery is about solving a crime; a thriller is about surviving it. This is Suzannah’s survival story. I hope you enjoy it.

About the author

Heidi Field was raised in the beautiful countryside of the South of England with her parents and her two sisters. In her twenties she was a freelance Sports Massage Therapist. She achieved a Degree in Zoology at the age of thirty and then went on to raise two boys and became the stepmother of three more young children. She still lives near her family home with her partner, their Great Dane and the children that have yet to fly the nest. In her early forties Heidi completed a Masters in Creative Writing at Winchester University. She entered the course hoping she would become a children’s fantasy writer and left with a burning desire to write contemporary mysteries and thrillers. Heidi wanted to put relatable people in extraordinary situations, challenge them, push them to their limits and watch them fight for their sanity. The Other Boy is her first novel.

GIVEAWAY: Because who doesn’t love FREE books?

We will pick ONE winner to receive a digital book of their choice from the November mystery releases.

Comment down below saying which book you’re looking most forward to reading! Giveaway is open INTERNATIONALLY. The winner will be randomly selected and announced at the end of the month.

Good luck and happy reading!

The Chocolatier’s Curse

By: Christopher Seto

If you laughed with The Thursday Murder Club, you’ll instantly love the folks at Clumindell’s chocolate factory …

Criminologists, on the whole, do not solve crimes. So Ph.D. student Theo Chan is out of his comfort zone when a pair of enigmatic private investigators hire him for what sounds like a sweet summer gig. Soon, he’s thrust into the puzzle-box world of a classic small-town whodunnit, with few sleuthing skills to rely on.

“A clown climbs up the skeleton tree; A curse on you, a plague on me.” The cryptic prophesy was discovered in Antonia Pruskain’s pocket after her mysterious death at the Clumindell Chocolate and Confectionary headquarters four years ago. Ever since, a ghostly clown has haunted the grounds, always accompanied by inexplicable deaths and disasters. Now one of Clumindell’s founders is murdered inside a locked building, and the clown is the prime suspect.

To survive his first case, Theo must reckon with an unusual murder weapon, endangered tree frogs, paranormal YouTubers, and the shadowy motives of his own employers—who may be the biggest mystery of all.

Wings of Madness

By: R. John Dingle

Serial killers, like madness and gravity, just need a small push…

The body of a third young woman is discovered in a field outside Pawtucket Falls in New England the day FBI agent and profiler Gus Wheeler and his partner arrive to investigate a string of murders. The killings seem random, yet each victim was last seen in a club in the city’s Music Row, a scene Gus is uniquely qualified to navigate.

Camera footage shows the most recent victim flirting with the moody bassist of a popular cover band. Gus knows the former prodigy from his time in the New Orleans jazz scene, but the suspect’s memory is hazy, likely due to his rock star lifestyle. Complicating their inquiry, there’s no record of any of the victims leaving the clubs—with the bassist or alone. So where were they taken and how?

A serial killer’s at work, but as they circle their suspect, the killer strikes first making it personal for Gus. And with time running out, Gus is forced to play a madman’s game.

The Other Mother

By: Heidi Field

Suzannah is pregnant with her third child. The first is in prison. The second is dead. How far will she go to keep her unborn baby safe? 

When Suzannah learns she is pregnant, she feels like safety and happiness are finally within reach. Her handsome, successful fiancé, Alec, is over the moon about the baby. He proposes and pampers her. He thinks this is Suzannah’s first marriage and first child, but she’s keeping a few secrets. Actually, a lot of secrets. And they are dangerous…putting Suzannah in a position where she must choose who and what she’s willing to sacrifice to keep her baby and her freedom.

Drowning in her lies, Suzannah is desperate to bury her past, but her ex-husband, who abandoned her years ago, returns, stalking her and demanding to know what really happened to their daughter. When the imprisoned serial killer who lured and groomed her son, threatens to sell his story to the press, Suzannah feels like the life she’d built and the precious one she’s growing, teeter on a precipice. Now the two children she’s hidden from Alec may be the least of her worries.

Game Over

By: Shelly Jones

Wren Winters and her friends road trip to an annual gaming convention anticipating a fun getaway, not danger and a dead body.  

It’s been two years since game store owner Wren Winters’ husband died in a mysterious road accident, and she finally feels ready to attend the industry’s biggest gathering. She’s a little spooked because the event was where her husband had sent her a final text claiming he’d discovered something unexpected, but Wren is determined to push aside her doubts, purchase new games for her store and have fun.

Instead, she and her gaming group stumble onto a famous cosplayer strangled with her own lanyard, and the police are side-eyeing Wren. Then the threats begin, and Wren uncovers a new lead on her husband’s death. Surely, she can piece together what happened to Marcus at this very convention, despite the danger lurking around every corner. But the clock is ticking to solve the murder before weekend ends, when all the suspects will scatter like pieces swept off a board. Will she be able to trap a murderer before she becomes another victim?