The story is set in Australia. I really liked the main character
I loved the writing style. The pacing was good with plenty of twists
A gripping read

This is part of series but the first I have read. I could easily follow it though without the need to have read the first book. . The main character Judi's brother is killed, and she takes up the guardianship of his young daughter. Book had enough twists and turns to hold my interest throughout.

This book is the second book in the series, but the first I have read, however this one read nicely as a standalone. The main character's brother is killed, and she is now the guardian of his young daughter, the little girl Mia. This sets the tone of a solid read, where you feel the pain Judi is experiencing by coping with the loss of her brother, as well as having to suddenly raise a young girl. Book was full of twists and kept me entertained to the end.

A good solid second novel from a promising author, which continues the story of Judi Westerholme, a fascinating heroine who draws you in and takes us on an engaging ride.

When I requested this book I had no idea it was part of a series. But having said that, DEAD AND GONE can be quite easily read as a standalone without having read the first book, as I haven't, as the author gives the reader enough backstory to keep up. And believe me, you won't be disappointed.

Having had her life change completely after the death of her brother, Judi Westerholme is back in Candlebark struggling to make ends meet by managing the local pub and raise a toddler. Upon learning her brother had stipulated in his will that she become guardian of little Mia in the event of his death, Judi was reluctant to be lumbered with such a responsibility. After all, kids had never been on her radar. But after four months of caring for little Mia, she cannot imagine her life without her. Added to that, she has a fledgling long distance romance with a police detective back in Melbourne with no real idea where they both stand with each other.

And then, on one of the pub's busiest days everything changes.

A body has been discovered in the dumpster behind the pub. It's identified as Macca, the owner and landlord. And he's been murdered.

Now Judi finds herself having to juggle the running of the pub along with everything else. At least until the police find out who murdered Macca and they work out what to do now with the hotel. But then, Judi learns that she has inherited a third of the pub, alongside two of Macca's longest serving staff - Andre, the chef, and Suzy, the barmaid. But why would Macca leave them the pub when he has a daughter who has just turned up claiming the business is now hers? According to her, Macca had promised it to her. So what changed? On top of everything else, Judi did not want to deal with the woman's histrionics.

But something is definitely amiss and, unable to leave things alone, Judi begins her own investigation, talking to locals behind the bar and getting a feel for things, and ends up discovering more than she expected to. A search of Macca's room uncovers old service medals from Vietnam and a photo of a group of smiling soldiers identifying Macca as one of them and his friend Carl as another. Along with the photo, Judi also finds a couple of newspaper clippings detailing the deaths of two men in different circumstances. The names of the men are the same as two of those in the group photo with Macca and Carl. What has she uncovered?

Taking her new information to the police, Judi tells them her thoughts but is brushed off and told the circumstances in which the two men died are most probably unrelated and to leave the investigating to them. Of course it doesn't help that one of the homicide detectives up from Melbourne to investigate Macca's death is Heath, her fledgling romance. But despite being warned by the police to stay out of the investigation, she continues looking for answers. And when the pub comes under fire, Judi will stop at nothing to ensure it remains safe at all costs.

Although she is now the fulltime guardian of Mia, Judi must also ensure her safety as well. She has engaged childcare with a local woman to look after Mia during Judi's shifts at the pub, knowing Mia enjoys herself thoroughly at Joleen's house with her two young boys. But a part of her feels guilty that she is neglecting the little girl who has already lost her mummy and daddy by the time she was two years old while at the same time not wanting to put Mia in danger at the pub should danger come looking for them. Mia is quite used to being at the pub with Judi on occasion and has even got her own little play corner that Judi set up for her, that other parents with children have come to appreciate as well. But given all that she has learnt since Macca's death, Judi isn't sure the Candlebark Hotel is the safest place for little Mia.

And then comes the suckerpunch. Judi receives a phone call from her solicitor in Melbourne to inform her that Mia's maternal grandparents have applied for guardianship of their granddaughter. The granddaughter they never knew existed until their daughter's death because they had been estranged. And now Judi must deal with the threat of losing Mia, the little girl who has become her world. She finds herself torn between what is best for Mia and her promise to take care of her. She may not have wanted to take her on in the beginning but she has come to love that little girl who has brought such sunshine into her life.

Initially, I requested DEAD AND GONE purely for the fact that it is Australian and I like to support my fellow Aussies where I can, despite not knowing it was part of a series. However, it most definitely reads sufficiently as a standalone and readers won't find themselves lost having not read the first book. Set in rural Victoria, I am familiar with Bendigo and of course Melbourne but not much more beyond that. I knew right away what chop chop was before it was explained to Judi and I must say it was a welcome change to be immersed in an Australian mystery thriller once again.

My first book by Sherryl Clark, DEAD AND GONE is well written and addictive from the start. I found myself enjoying it immensely and I loved each of the characters from the pub locals to the detectives from Melbourne. I even loved little Mia. I found it a welcome change that, while still an important part of Judi's life, not everything revolved around Mia. She was there but she wasn't mollycoddled and pandered to at every whim. And Mia was okay with that. And that endeared her to me even more. She didn't demand every bit of attention at every minute of every day. She was happy to sit in the corner stacking blocks, drawing circles on scraps of paper or chasing the cat and pulling its tail. A child who provides her own entertainment as we did as kids and not relying on or demanding an adult's attention every second of the day. Mia was a sweet child and I look forward to seeing her bloom in future books.

Like Judi I had my suspects, but I had no idea really what was going on or why. So Sherryl had me pretty much hoodwinked throughout. DEAD AND GONE was one of those books that grabbed your attention and keeps you guessing until the end.

A nice easy read, I really enjoyed DEAD AND GONE and recommend it fans of crime fiction thrillers.

I would like to thank #SherrylClark, #NetGalley and #VerveBooks for an ARC of #DeadAndGone in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and Oldcastle books for the arc of Dead and Gone by Sherryl Clark..

This is the second book in the series. A great read, A great plot, fabulous characters. I can't wait to read the next installment.,

Dead and gone is the sequel to Trust me I'm dead by Sherryl Clark. It follows Judi Westerholme's life, and in this instalment Judi is left as guardian to her young niece Mia, following the tragic death of her parents.
This situation is far from ideal for Judi as she has to navigate between not only what is best for her, but best for Mia too. As she is reluctant to sell her late brother's house, Judi finds herself taking on a job at the local pub, and everything seems to run smoothly - that is until her new boss Macca is found dead.
When Heath is sent to investigate the murder, things start to spiral, and Judi finds herself being named as a suspect.

This is an incredible read and really had me guessing right until the end. I loved the pace in which the suspense built up throughout the book, and the way in which the writing style really draws you in and fully immerses you in this story. A definite must read for lovers of crime/thriller fiction.

*Thank you to Verve Books and Netgalley for my copy of this book in return for my honest review.*

🅜🅨 🅡🅔🅥🅘🅔🅦 🅞🅕
DEAD AND GONE
by Sherryl Clark
⭐⭐⭐⭐

My thanks to @Netgalley for sending me this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Judi is making ends meet by managing the Candlebark Hotel. On one of their busiest days a body is found in the skip behind the hotel. It's identified as Big Macca, the owner. Murdered. 
What follows is a roller coaster ride for Judi, who has to deal with the aftermath of the murder, frightening incidents which seem to indicate things are far from over, and the sudden appearance of a woman claiming she was Big Macca's long lost daughter and that the hotel is now her property. Despite being warned by police to stay out of the investigation, Judi keeps looking for answers, and finds far more than she bargained for. 

I enjoyed Dead and Gone immensely. Now, it is the second in the Judi Westerholme series, and while it performed admirably as a standalone book, I'm glad I had already read the first book Trust Me, I'm Dead. I found the characters easier to understand and empathise with because I knew their history and this enriched the whole book.

The characters are well thought out and I felt warmth, or occasionally sheer loathing, when appropriate. I think Judi could do with some counselling to help deal with her past, and her anger management issues. Sherryl Clark has written Judi's difficult past into her personality perfectly, and I'd like to see how she develops her in future books. I wasn't expecting the ending that came, and it neatly closed the story. 

I think one or two incidents stretched my suspension of disbelief somewhat, but I'll leave that to you to agree or disagree as you encounter them. 

Overall, Dead and Gone is a skilled piece of wordcraft that was a pleasure to read, and I recommend it to any crime fiction reader, although I would suggest reading Trust Me, I'm Dead first.

I very much enjoyed this book. It has a good story and excellent main characters. I would definately recommend this book.

What an amazing crime thriller.

The story centres around Judi who finds herself wrapped up in another murder mystery, (turns out there's a first book that I need to read) after her boss Macca is murdered. Macca is a well loved memory of the community local pub owner and all round good guy which makes his murder all the more confusing. Alot unfolds as Judi has a feeling the police are missing something, ignoring all advice to stay out of it she starts her own investigation which sends her down many dangerous paths.

The story is told by Judi in first person, she is adjusting to life as a single paren,t after her brothers murder (apparently in book one), to the lovely Mia. They seem to have a good relationship but its great to see the real struggles of adjusting to motherhood. Judi seems to be unaware of how much she fiercely loves Mia. Their bound is so sweet and obvious throughout the story.

Her other love do it seems is a detective from Melbourne called Heath who she met during the investigation into her brothers murder. He's called up to candlebark to handle the murder of Macca and their paths cross again. Another well written relationship. It's not all sunsets and sex but rather real hard struggles. Honestly the love story was hit or miss for me but I can see the reason for building it into the storyline.

The other main characters; Andre, Suzie, Connor and Carl all have their own roles to play. Each character has a depth to them which is brought across well even with Judi narrating. Andre probably being my favourite with his obsessions around his home from home the pub bistro and it's menu.

Dead and gone is extremely suspenseful and other than the one link to the murder Judi discovers early on I honestly had no clue how it was going to end. I am normally really good at guessing killers and their reasons but I didn't have the foggiest and I think thats what got me turning the pages even faster. I honestly enjoyed the book from the begining even though its not full with action throughout, it still manages to build enough tension to keep you invested.

So it was an easy 5 stars and I have already purchased the first book to catch up on before hopefully the third book.....
If you enjoy a crime thriller this book will not let you down. Crime thrillers are my favourite and most read and this is up there with some of the best I've read. The story may be simple but that's what is so endearing about it! Highly recommend.


Thank you netgalley, old castles books and Sherryl Clark for the APC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I’ve read both Dead and Gone and the first book in the series, Trust Me, I’m Dead this week. They are addictive and offer something new in the crime genre - a 40-something woman drawn reluctantly into murder investigations when people connected to her are killed. While she is out of her comfort zone in every way, she has skills she brings that make her a really great protagonist.

Fantastic read. Highly recommended. Kept me hooked, didn't want to put it down. Passed it to my sister to read and she was the same! Now recommending it to all her friends who read 🤣

'Dead & Gone' is the second book in the series featuring Judi Westerholme. The first book in the series is called 'Trust Me, I'm Dead'. I do have the first book on my ever increasing 'to be read' mountain, I haven't actually read it yet. What a mistake to make. I thoroughly enjoyed reading 'Dead & Gone' but more about that in a bit.
I liked the character of Judi Westerholme and took to her from the start. She is a young woman, who works in a bar where she does the books. Judi is a single parent to her niece. Judi had a brother but he was killed and Judi took in his daughter. She has a good relationship with her niece and there is a tight bond there. As I mention Judi works at a bar and her boss is found dead in the bin. Judi is certainly in the thick of it and she ends up doing her own little investigation. She talks to a lot of people and ends up finding out far more than she had ever expected to.
It didn't take me long at all to get into 'Dead & Gone'. In fact by the end of the first page or two, I knew that I would find it increasingly difficult to put the book to one side for any length of time. I think I took to Judi so well that I cared about what happened to her and I was desperate to find out who killed Macca and why. The pages turned over increasingly quickly as my desperation to find out what happened just grew and grew. If I wasn't reading the book, I was thinking about the book. If I had to put the book down then I would immediately look forward to being able to pick the book up again. I soon got to the end of the story and I thoroughly enjoyed every single minute of the story.
'Dead & Gone' is well written. I was completely under this book's spell from the moment I first picked the book up until the moment I read the last word on the last page. Sherryl certainly grabbed my attention from the start and drew me into the story. This was one of those books that kept me guessing, kept me gripped and kept me on the edge of my seat throughout. I felt as though I was part of the story myself and that's thanks to Sherryl's very vivid and realistic writing style.
In short, I really enjoyed reading 'Dead & Gone' and I would recommend it to other readers. I will be reading more of Sherryl's work in the future. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.

I struggled with the plot and the story didn't keep my attention. Not my cup of tea.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Thank you to Netgalley and Oldcastle books for the arc of Dead and Gone by Sherryl Clark.

This follows Judi whom is a very strong and brave lady whom is coping and adjusting to being a foster parent to a relative of her niece whom unfortunately is an orphan... She's working in her local pub in which helps her to manage with her earnings and makes ends meet with what she has.. Peter whom is the pub landlord is an Army Veteran but sadly has been murdered... So she is determined to find whom it may but the police tell her not too as it may become dangerous whom she may deal with and it did ..

This is a 4 star read I throughly enjoyed this was such an amazing and gripping book I read this within one day ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Recommend highly ❤️

Judi Westerholme is brave, strong willed and just about coping as a foster parent to her orphaned niece. She's working in the local pub to help make ends meet. But the pub landlord, army veteran Peter Macca" Maccasfield has been murdered. The police warn Judi not to get involved but she has to try and help find Macca's killer. It's not long before she's dealing with ruthlessly dangerous men.

The story is set in Australia. I liked the main protagonist, Judi. She doesn't hold back when trying to find out who had murdered her boss. I like the authors writing style. Thenoace was steady with plenty of twists. I found this a gripping read. 5his is my first book by the author but it won't be my last.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Verve Books and the author Sherryl Clark for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a nice easy read by this author. I loved the small town Australian setting and the interesting characters. Judi, the main character, has an interesting background and has custody of her niece. When her boss at the local hotel is murdered, she just can't stop herself from trying to find the killer. i liked the writing style, the pacey plot and the twists in the tale. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

Secrets have a way of coming to the fore and in this tautly written read, that’s exactly what happens. When Judi’s friend Pete is murdered, life doesn’t feel like it’ll ever get back to normal. Just about managing being a foster parent and a new job – done so to have enough money to live on – Judi wants to find out the truth about who killed Pete. But not everyone’s delighted that she’ poking her nose in. It felt like a different sort of crime read to me from an author I’d like to read again.

I received an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review

I agree with other reviewers that this book is fair to middling compared to other thrillers out there you can get through NetGalley or cheap online, you could probably pass on this because it never quits satisfies in anyway

Thanks to Netgalley for the preview of this book. Unfortunately it was not for me. I struggled with it & found the plot weak & characters unlikeable. The storyline was all over the place and hard to follow.