Customer Reviews

Betrayed (Unabridged)

I have previously read gangster Martine Cole style books but, I would not put it down as my favourite genre. However, this book has changed my perspective completely. This is an exceptionally well written story.

The author has created strong dynamic characters who engage you. Through the book I really invested in these characters and wanted to know what happened to them. The skill of this author at creating characters is huge and she can create characters of all ages. As well as the adults she has created an excellent likeable child in Star who helps the story progress on. Star made me smile on several occasions. An author that can write both genders and all ages equally well is rare. The characters are not all exceptional human beings and Jacqui Rose shows the dark side of human personality as well as the good.

The story is gripping and fast paced and the shorter chapters make you find yourself progressing through the book at a rapid speed eager to find out what happens next. The story itself has an excellent gripping start, good middle portion of story telling and a fantastic end. There is a twist through the book which some may guess but I certainly didn't. Morally the story deals with some quite disturbing aspects of life such as child abuse and abduction. You find yourself recognising these as the true villains of the story. It is only when you finish that you realise that you have turned drug dealers into the good guys when compared against the child abductors.

This is a brilliant read which I thoroughly enjoyed I will certainly be looking for more from this author.

Once again I finish a book wishing I was better at writing reviews as there's so much I want to say about this one! I first discovered Jacqui Rose when I read her debut novel TAKEN. I was searching for similar authors to Kimberley Chambers and Martina Cole. I definitely found someone worthy of comparison to the Queen of the Underworld. Jacqui is an incredibly talented author and I cannot recommend her work highly enough!

I finished TAKEN and again was lost for words. I knew that when her second book was released, I had to get it instantly. It was even better than the first. Now, normally it would be a case of waiting at least 12 months for an author's next book, not so with Jacqui. She spoils us with two books a year! The fact she can write two books of such high quality in a year just shows how talented she is.

Back to BETRAYED however and it was definitely near the top of my most anticipated books of 2014. So much so that I downloaded it just after midnight from Amazon. I started to read it but didn't want to rush it so rationed it over a couple of days! Books like this are so good you could read them in a few hours but I didn't want to rush it. One thing about Jacqui is she creates amazing characters. She creates ones who are extremely likeable but it's the villains, think bad, multiply it by 100 and you might be near to how bad her villains are! Particularly in this book. Parts of it made me feel sick, my heart was beating so fast I could actually hear it trying to jump out of my chest! I was literally on the edge of my seat not blinking for the last few chapters. I'm going to put my finger through my Kindle one of these days!

Jacqui's books tend to be set in the same 'world'. By that I mean they feature mentions of the same characters in Soho. To me that makes the book feel a little bit more authentic and it's almost like you are just picking up where you left off even though all her books can be read standalone and DISHONOUR wasn't set in London. It's hard to talk about the story too much as it'd give too much away. I can say though that the story here is one of the strongest yet from Jacqui. Very fast paced, full of villains and wannabe villains looking for revenge against Del Williams. One chapter ends and you just cannot not read the next one!

Fans of Jessie Keane, Martina Cole and the amazing Kimberley Chambers who are yet to read a Jacqui Rose book need to do so right now! And for those of you who have read one of Jacqui's books, well you will love this too. Luckily for us we don't have too long to wait for the next book! AVENGED is out in August and I am already ridiculously excited for it. Years back one author owned this genre, now fans are spoilt for choice and Jacqui is right at the top with Kimberley Chambers (I'm going to hijack this review and say if you haven't read any of Kim's books, READ THEM!!!). In fact if Jacqui and Kimberley wrote a book together I don't think I could cope with it's amazingness. Don't miss this one, buy it now!

The book opens in 1990 London, a young girl is looking for her sister in the woods. A horrific event takes place and we see a glimpse of the events that follow. We skip forward to present day, still London and the story picks up from there, seemingly unrelated to the previous chapter however it is all related and linked which becomes clear as the story unfolds. Bunny Barker is our main character, she is a prostitute with her own rules. Her daughter is her number one concern and nothing, not even the man she loves, Del Williams will tell her what she can do. Del is a big face in London, involved in drugs and is a dangerous man. When a young girl goes missing and a body turns up Bunny is forced to look to her past and remember things she would rather have forgotten forever.

This book is a hard read, not because it is badly written in actual fact it is the opposite, it is really well done and pulls you in even though the content is hard to read. Young girls being abused and murdered is always hard to read and when there are pedophiles chucked in to the mix it can make for a tough subject. There of course is the usual mix of violence, deception, sex, drugs, prostitution, secrets, adultery and lies to name just some of the themes within the book.

After the first few chapters, I couldn't put it down. I wanted to know what happened to the little girl at the beginning of the book. Then as more characters are introduced and brought in, you want to see where their storyline goes and the character development. It reminded me of, I believe it was, Martina Cole's the graft that covered pedophilia themes and this one does too although the whole story isn't about that although it is central to the plot.

The writer creates a very murky dark world, people doing what they have to do to survive and thrive within it. If you like a good crime story and can cope with some of the horrific issues, child murder, prostitution and pedophilia, then you will really like this author. She has her own style but I would certainly group her with the likes of Kimberley Chambers, Martina Cole and Mandasue Heller. I don't think I had read this author before, if I had it was a long time ago however I would read her again and may seek out her other works, 4/5 for me this time.

Brilliant Betrayed

Jacqui Rose’s Betrayed brings to life the dark and gritty world of Soho, the Soho the developers and Westminster Council prefer you to forget about. This is an old style world where men are men and do men things drink, pimp do drugs parties and ladies of the night are the queens. This is the world where men are real men and it is their ‘birds’ who really have them by the nuts the power behind those men, definitely “she who must be obeyed.... well if you fancy a quiet life.”

Del Williams is the biggest of the faces in Soho the man that controls all the dark and dirty dealing of the area, he has men at his beck and call a wife in Spain a girlfriend and daughter in Soho and a copper in his pocket. It is his girlfriend Bunny and his daughter Star who would he would take a bullet for but there is something that Bunny is hiding he needs to know what and it is killing him.

The book opens when Bunny is still a child and she is the witness to her sister’s murder the one for which she is taken into care for. Unfortunately her time in care is anything but easy as the people who con her mother in to signing the papers only want her for one reason so they could use and abuse her to their hearts content. Managing to escape and now with a daughter who she will protect to the ends of the earth she does not trust anyone other than herself and Claudia. To protect her daughter she would eventually have to trust Del and tell him about that very dark past.

This really is a book that displays Soho at its grimiest with a gripping and breath taking tale of gangs, drugs, girls those unspeakable bonds between them all. To muddy the scene are the Russian Mafia and DS Teddy Davies. A thriller of the highest order when you put all the variables in to the mix and will Bunny and Star be able to live through Del’s dark world and survive?

This is a fantastic crime thriller that grabs you from the beginning and like Soho in all its dirty glory grabs your throat and will not let you go till your pockets are empty. This crime thriller really is a fast paced multi level thriller to use the cliché is a real page turner that just reading that one last chapter means you are half way through without realising how much you have actually read. This book is everything you want from a crime thriller believable strong and dark, a world where only the tough really do survive. Great book great thriller great writer.

This book is the second that I have read by thus author. The first was good but this was wow!!!!!! A real page turner kept me griped. At times you can imagine what the the scenery and the characters look like. Would defiantly recommend this book .

Oh my....................This book is the best, it's brilliant, it's fantastic.
This book has got to be a best seller it had me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end
A must to read..............go out and buy it, you will be so glad you did.

A fantastic read, as always .Well done Jacqui , a neat tying up of loose ends ,a successful result all round

Betrayed.
Couldn't wait to start this the newest book by Jacqui Rose. And it didn't dissapoint.
Perfect for fans of Martina Cole and Mandasue Heller, Kimberley Chambers.
Enjoyed it from start to finish. I just loved the main characters in this book, and wanted to read more and more about them. Would love to read a follow up to this.
We start off in 1990 where a young girl is killed, we then jump forwart to the present day, where it is all put together so well.
Bunny the high class hooker.
Del the London Face.
then we have Eidith his not so wifey wife. A bent copper. Guns, drugs, Russian mafia.... what more can you get into a book.........
A must read... really did enjoy this...

Excellent read loved it!
Characters were good and storyline just brilliant! Edith well what a character. Cant wait for next book /-)

Jacqui Rose just wanted to say what a truly fantastic gripping read. I couldn't put this book down, keep up the good work and keep them coming. Move over Martina Cole, Kimberley Chambers we have a new writer in town.