Cover Image: Half-Past Tomorrow

Half-Past Tomorrow

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Member Reviews

I remembered really loving Inside Out by McGeorge so I was ready for this book to open with a bang and was ready to be blown away. Unfortunately, I found that this actually had quite a slow start and the frequent use of ‘The Dark Year’ was starting to bug me a little bit…

However, you get to about 35% in and bam, that’s where the action starts happening… “There’s been a murder”

Shirley’s approach to things definitely had me on the edge of my seat and there were multiple occasions that I thought I could foresee her getting into even more trouble. McGeorge had so many twists and managed to keep your heart racing wondering what was around the corner.

I was supposed to put this down at a reasonable hour to get some sleep but I found myself just reading one more chapter (ok, a lot more chapters) because I just needed to know what happened! From the half way point this book well and truly had me hooked.

McGeorge keeps the twists and surprises coming right up until the very end of the book, my heart was in my mouth reading the last few chapters and I definitely needed a few moments to compose myself when I’d finished.

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What would you do if you could see the future? Try to stop it or let it happen? This is what this story tries to teach us, is the future changeable or is it “pre-destined”? You’ll have to read the book if you want to have all the answers!
This book has surprised me, there are a few twists that I wasn’t expecting with some very interesting characters; expect the unexpected and much more!
Shirley Steadman, our main character, has 70 years old, she has a lot of regrets from her life, but she loves her volunteer job at the hospital radio station, it makes her happy until the day she discovers a pirate radio station that can predict the future. This will change her days; the mystery to discover who is behind it and how is it possible that they can predict the future makes her days more interesting but full of danger, will she risk her life to save the ones she love? Because the predictions start with small accidents until the first murder… then the police will become involved and Shirley knows that she is the only one that can stop the killer.
I started reading this book because I was intrigued with the plot, also, it was really interesting that the main character is an old woman, so we’ll see small bits of her life and her suffering with her husband and children. She hasn’t had an easy life and is full of regrets, that’s why she is so eager to stop this killer, is like making peace with her past.
I think this had been one of my favorite books this summer; I was glued to the story and thinking about it all the time. If you are looking for a different read, full of mystery and twists, this is the one, believe me!
Are you ready for “Half-Past Tomorrow”?

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Shirley Steadman, a 70 year old living in a small town in the North East of England, loves her volunteer work at the local hospital radio. She likes giving back to the community, and even more so, she likes getting out of the house. Haunted by the presence of her son, a reluctant Royal Navy officer who was lost at sea, and still in the shadow of her long dead abusive husband, she doesn't like being alone much.
One day, at the radio station, she is playing around with the equipment and finds a frequency that was never there before. It is a pirate radio station, and as she listens as the presenter starts reading the news. But there is one problem - the news being reported is tomorrows. Shirley first thinks it is a mere misunderstanding - a wrong date. But she watches as everything reported comes true. At first, Shirley is in awe of the station, and happily tunes in to hear the news.
But then the presenter starts reporting murders - murders that happen just the way they were reported.
And Shirley is the only one who can stop them

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Thank you to the publishers and the tour host for inviting me on this tour
I really enjoyed this book.
It is the first I have read by this author and the book reminded me of m j arlidge and Chris Carter
The book is quite chunky, but I raced through this, eager to find out the end! It was such a gripping read, with lots of red herrings thrown in!
The book is so well written.
I highly recommend it
I have the other books by the author sat on my shelves and I will be reading them very soon!

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I've not read any books by this author before but when I saw this novel was about a radio station that reports about murders before they happen I was like, yes, I need to read that!

The story centres around Shirley who, while volunteering at the local hospital radio station, comes across Mallet AM, a pirate radio station that reports tomorrow's news. At first, the incidents that are reported were simple accidents, but it slowly becomes more sinister and reports a murder. Shirley can't leave it alone and sets out to stop the murder from happening.

I love an older main character, especially in a mystery, and I thought Shirley was wonderfully done. She's headstrong, determined, and won't let even her frail health stop her from getting to the bottom of the mystery. She also carries pain and guilt around from her past, making her you root for her even more.

I also loved the hospital radio setting, as it gave me a bit of nostalgia for the days when I used to listen to the radio myself.

There were some good shocks and surprises along the way, but for me, the story was a little slow burn. That's not a bad thing, but I was just expecting some more chills and thrills.

Half Past Tomorrow is a solid thriller with memorable characters and an original and intriguing storyline.

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Old ladies solving murder mysteries have been popular in books and on screen for years but Shirley Steadman is no Miss Marple or Jessica Fletcher. For a start, she has a fabulous potty mouth - in spite of her more advanced years, she isn't averse to unleashing a volley of swear words. And she is regularly visited by her dead son, Gabe.
The book opens with Gabe's death by suicide years ago but Shirley has been conversing with him in her kitchen for some months. This immediately gives some sense of the sort of woman she is; she was understandably shocked when Gabe first appeared to her but now she's accepted it, despite her daughter's admonitions that it's all in her mind. She is open to other possibilities even if they are apparently impossible. When Gabe was still alive he used a Tardis mug which is particularly apt - a pirate radio station that appears to know the future and talk of paradoxes means there is something deliciously Whovian about this mystery.
Shirley volunteers for the local hospital radio and it's here that she first discovers the curious Mallet AM radio station and realises that the news appears to be predicting the future. She assumes it's a mistake initially but is soon shocked to realise that the predictions come true. At first it's all fairly benign - a man suffering minor injuries after falling off his ladder and a milk float colliding with a postbox - and she is intrigued and rather excited. During the course of the novel it becomes clear that Shirley's life was effectively put on hold during the years of her marriage to the domineering, oppressive Bob and that since his death, she is keen to make up for lost time. Determined not to go gentle into that dark night. she becomes fixated on figuring out whether the radio station really is a modern-day Nostradamus even when it puts her own health at risk - especially after the next prophecy announces a murder.
However, despite the fantastical premise, this is more crime than science fiction and anybody who has read Chris McGeorge's books in the past knows just how brilliant he is at concocting fiendish locked-room mysteries. Half-Past Tomorrow is a different sort of impossible puzzle but it's no less perplexing as Shirley desperately tries to identify the person behind Mallet AM and to stop the supposedly foreseen murders. Should she believe the 'big ball of wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey stuff ' explanation of how time works and accept that somebody really can see the future or as various surprises come to light, could there be a different reason why her life has suddenly been thrown into chaos?
In the best tradition of indomitable older crime fighters, Shirley puts herself into some risky situations as she investigates potential leads herself, rather than just phoning the remarkably understanding DI Mike 'call me Fletch' Fletchinder but even walking up a steep hill isn't a straightforward prospect for the septuagenarian. Shirley's often caustic thoughts about others and her annoyance at the limitations of her aged body ensures much of Half-Past Tomorrow is drily witty but there is a more emotional side to this engrossing novel too. The losses she has endured, both physical and in terms of time and opportunities thanks to her abusive husband, have left her wracked with guilt for the mistakes she believes she made. Her acerbic tenacity contrasts with her poignant self-doubt making her a hugely engaging character I couldn't fail to fall in love with. There are other interesting characters in the book, with a couple being particularly fascinating but although Shirley's frame might be frail, she's the one who carries this story and she does it beautifully.
An old lady trying to stop murders predicted by a pirate radio station is such an enticing, imaginative premise for a book and Half-Past Tomorrow more than met my expectations. It's brilliantly original, compulsive and enormous fun. I loved it!

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A Rather Unique Premise…
A pirate radio station, reports of future murders and one woman to stop them from happening. With a rather unique premise, an entertaining mystery which is often laced with tongue in cheek humour and with a very likeable protagonist. Most enjoyable.

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I absolutely loved this book! I kept thinking I new where the plot was going and everything it just flipped itsself round and completely blindsided me. It will have you reading into the early hours to find out what is actually going on. It's well written in a way that never feels boring or like it's a filler chapter. I couldnt recommend highly enough. Such a fun wee story to pass a few afternoon

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This was a super interesting book - not my usual read but i loved it! It was a really great escape and i loved every page!

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I enjoyed and found it entertaining, poignant and quite funny at times.
There're tropes from different types genres, sometimes the tone is almost cosy mystery, sometimes domestic thriller.
it's well thought and kept my attention. i laughed and felt for Shirley, a very interesting and hurt woman.
i loved her circle of friends and liked her will to live.
The mystery is solid, full of twists and turns. I didn't guess the culprit and found the solution satisfying.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

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hirley Steadman has a straightforward life. The 70 year old lives near the local hospital, where the centre of her life is her volunteer work on the hospital radio. It provides some calm for her as she tries to deal with the past trauma in her life – her long dead abusive husband and her son who committed suicide – the latter of who’s ghost has begun to haunt her, which at least gives her someone to talk to.

And then one day, at work, she tunes at random into a random AM radio station, and listens to a brief news cast. It seems at the time that the date on the broadcast is wrong – it is for the next day – but when one of the events, an accident for a local businessman, comes true, it seems she has managed to tune in to the future. When, however, the radio station starts predicting murders – murders of people that Shirley knows – things take an even more sinister turn…

Well, it can’t be easy to classify Chris McGeorge’s work. His opening novel, Guess Who?, was touted as a locked room mystery, but apart from that misclassification – sorry, but this misuse of the term by the publishing industry REALLY bothers me – it was an entertaining thriller. Locked In tried to do the classic locked room mystery and while it was a fun thriller, the locked room element of it was the weakest part. Here he takes on a different impossible mystery, an original problem as far as I am aware. Or does he? Because that is the advantage of a non-series author – there is every chance that there could be a sci-fi element going on here, and I’m not going to be the one to spoil if there is or isn’t. Which does, however, make it pretty hard to review…

It’s another fun read, with some clever ideas going on. It does take its time to get going, but when it hits its first major twist – a very impressive one – it takes off with some pace. But I really can’t write about those bits, as it definitely comes into the category of spoilers.

So what can I say? Well, over all, it just about works. There are some ambitious ideas here, and in places, logic does fall a little by the wayside. The murderer’s identity seemed inevitable to me from too early in the book, and there is an issue, I think, with the early predictions, as a little too much coincidence is on display here. Oh, and there’s something right at the death that I could have done without.

But overall, it’s a clever idea, with a strong central character, that keeps the reader’s attention once events kick off. If you want to read something a little different, why not give it a go?

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An engaging mystery with a cast of eccentric characters, "Half-Past Tomorrow" centres around a radio station which predicts the news. I particularly enjoyed the use of regional dialect and felt it added authenticity and humour.

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I received a copy of this e-arc in exchange for an honest review thanks to NetGalley and Orion Books.

I just loved the premise of this book at had to read it:

Shirley is a 70 year old lady who is a volunteer at the local hospital radio. One day at work, she finds a pirate radio station which, as she starts listening to it, reports the news for the following day. She’s very intrigued and starts to follow along, investigating each of the news stories to check if they’re real. However, the presenter starts reporting murders, and Shirley is the only one who listens to the station.

It started off great, I was really invested in the story. I wanted to know who the radio host was, how they knew what was going to happen.

It was very intriguing up until the last 10% when the reveal happened and then it felt very rushed. It was disappointing to have such a great build-up and then falling flat at the end.

The whole concept was fantastic and it was well written but that ending could’ve done with being a bit longer to pad it out better.

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4.5 stars
Well, this book kept me on my toes throughout my time with it. I spent quite a while flummoxed and chasing my tail but, as I have read and enjoyed three of this author's previous books, I trusted and that trust was rewarded as I reached the end and was left satisfied.
So, we meet Shirley Steadman, stalwart of her local hospital radio. She's widowed and still haunted by some aspects of her marriage and also the loss at sea of her Naval son. She is in touch with her daughter but their relationship is a bit fractious. So, the hospital radio fills a gap in her life, gives her self-esteem and purpose.
One day, as she is waiting for her radio slot time, she is fiddling with the tuning on a radio in the next door studio, and comes across a pirate radio station - oh I remember those days, Radio Caroline and Laser 558, but I digress - Mallet FM is its name and she tunes in just in time to hear the last song before the news. And then the news starts and she's a bit confused as the broadcaster gives the wrong date. It's a day out. It's tomorrow. And then delivers the news that the baker will have an accident.
Cut to the next day and, long story short, the baker has his accident.
Spooky or what.
Shirley is determined to find the station again and listen in.
This time, it's the milkman that has an accident.
The next time, it's not an accident that gets reported...
And things get very dark, very quickly...
And that's all I'm saying about what happens.
Ok so I had to suspend belief along the way but, when all was revealed, my patience and trust was rewarded with a wholly satisfying ending. Not one I guessed, I hasten to add, one I skirted round but never quite got the whole picture ahead of the reveal. So, I guess hats off and kudos for the author for wool pulling!
I also loved Shirley. For what she went through prior to us meeting her, things we learned about her as the book went on. How much she had suffered at the hands of her abuser. The loss of her son. But despite all that, she still got up and got on with things. Loved her grit and tenacity. And the way she went about her investigation, teaming up with her trusty sidekick, and dealing with the Police. Loved the craft circle times. Yes there are parts that are a tad tongue in cheek along the way but they are not distracting, always add something to the narrative, and allow the reader precious breathing time before it all kicks off again.
All in all, another worthy addition to what is looking to become an impressive back catalogue. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

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I went into this book not knowing exactly what I was in for. It completely threw me for a loop, with a creative storyline and a remarkable protagonist who persisted in her quest to find the murderer and stop the next homicide.

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The blurb for this book makes it sound better than it is. A disappointing read especially when the author'd previous books have been good. Perhaps the author was not quite as on form as usual or perhaps its just me this time.

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While volunteering at her local hospital radio station, Shirley comes across a pirate broadcast she has never heard before. Impressed by the presenters patter, she carries on listening only to realise that it appears to be broadcasting tomorrows news! Passing it off as a mistake, Shirley carries on with her tasks, but when things start to happen the following day that the show predicited, she starts to belive that Mallet FM might not be the crackpot station she thought it was!

While also dealing with personal issues, Shirley is now on a mission to find out who is behind Mallet FM and to also make sure these predictions do not come true, at whatever cost!

A clever story that went in a different way than I was expecting, but enjoyable nonetheless!

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Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book

Enjoyed the premise of this book but there were a few things that I just didn’t get. Still worth a read!

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Septuagenarian Shirley Steadman loves her quiet, calm life. A volunteer at the local hospital radio, she enjoys being charitable and also, being away from home, where she is haunted (in more ways than one) with a reminder of her past. She prefers company – that she’s chosen – at all times. But one day when she’s playing with the radio equipment, she finds a new frequency and while she smiles at the thought of the pirate radio, what the presenter has to say will chill Shirley to the bone. The news being reported is tomorrow’s headlines – but how can this presenter predict what will happen? And when the news purports to be about murders, of people in her locality in myriad ways, Shirley starts to feel unnerved. It’s clear only Shirley can put a stop to the wickedness – but how? There’s plenty to keep you entertained throughout the novel and you will jump between who is responsible right until the end.

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3.5 stars rounded up to 4

Shirley Steadman, a seventy year old living in a small town in the North East of England., loves her volunteer work at the local hospital radio. She likes giving back to the community, and even more so, she likes getting out of the house. Haunted by the presence of her son, a reluctant Royal Navy officer who was lost at sea, and still in the shadow of her long dead abusive husband, she doesn't like being alone much. One day, at the radio station, she is playing around with the equipment and finds a frequency that was never there before. It is a pirate radio station, and she listens as the presenter starts reading the news. But there is a problem - the news being reported is tomorrows. Then the reporter starts reporting murders - murders that happened just the way they were reported.

When Shirley accidently comes across Mallet FM, a pirate radio station, she quickly becomes addicted to listening in. The station broadcasts tomorrows news and all the predictions come accurately true. Shirley decides to do her own investigation into who is behind this show. I quite liked this cleverly crafted tale. I also liked Shirley for many reasons. You do have to suspend your belief for some of the story. This is an easy book to read.

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Shirley Steadman is presenting her hospital radio programme one even when she’s fiddling with the dials and comes across Mallet FM, a pirate station which is broadcasting tomorrow’s news.

Shirley finds that the stations predictions come true, so she starts to investigate; who is behind the programme, and why? And is it possible to stop a murder before it happens?

A clever storyline that had me hooked till the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orion Publishing Group for an advance reader copy in return for an honest review.

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