Smorgasbord Book Reviews – #Mystery – Examining Kitchen Cupboards by Stevie Turner

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This is my review for the engaging mystery Examining Kitchen Cupboards by Stevie Turner

About the book

Jill Hayes discovers that not all is as it seems in her new post as a college examinations administrator. When she turns whistle-blower and tries to report her findings to the authorities, she is horrified to discover that some people will stop at nothing to ensure her silence.

For readers’ information: Although the characters and college are fictional, the actual exam question that sparked Jill’s nightmare is a genuine one from 1999.

My review for the book.

A mystery that is thought provoking and a good read..

There is a huge amount of pressure on both schools and teachers to maintain very high standards with regard to their pupils performances in examinations. There are meant to be layers of oversight to ensure that students are taught the curriculum effectively, that examinations are fair and evaluate the student’s knowledge based on their detailed responses to the questions, and that inspections are carried out to ensure that at all stages this is carried out to the highest standard.

But what if there is collusion at every level to ensure that schools and colleges come out at the top of the leagues by dumbing down the questions to achieve high pass marks?

This is the question that temporary administrator Jill Hayes asks herself when she reads an examination paper that asks the simple question about the contents of a kitchen cupboard. A question more suitable for a six year old than a sixteen year old.

Unfortunately, delving into this worrying discovery has dire consequences, and eventually leads to a police detective on sick leave going undercover in an organisation that will stop at nothing to maintain their hold on the education system they have infiltrated and manipulated at every stage of a child’s education.

The characters are believable and the investigation gathers pace and draws you in to the search for answers. At times it becomes dangerous, as those with everything to lose become ruthless in their efforts to remove the threat to their million pound enterprise

For those reading the book, especially if you are a parent with teenagers just about to sit their final exams, it might prompt a close look at the examination process at their school and perhaps a look at last year’s papers!

Read the reviews and buy the book: Amazon UK

and : Amazon US

A small selection of other books by Stevie Turner

Read all the reviews and buy the books: Amazon US

And: Amazon UK

Follow Stevie Turner on: Goodreads

About Stevie Turner

Stevie Turner works part time as a medical secretary in a busy NHS hospital and writes suspense, women’s fiction, and darkly humorous novels in her spare time. She won a New Apple Book Award in 2014 and a Readers’ Favorite Gold Award in 2015 for her book ‘A House Without Windows’, and one of her short stories, ‘Checking Out’, was published in the Creative Writing Institute’s 2016 anthology ‘Explain!’ Her psychological thriller ‘Repent at Leisure’ won third place in the 2016 Drunken Druid Book Award contest.

Stevie lives in the East of England, and is married with two sons and four grandchildren. She has also branched out into the world of audio books, screenplays, and translations. Most of her novels are now available as audio books, and one screenplay, ‘For the Sake of a Child’, won a silver award in the Spring 2017 Depth of Field International Film Festival. ‘A House Without Windows’ gained the attention of a New York media production company in December 2017.

Some of Stevie’s books are currently being translated into German, Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese.

Connect to Stevie Turner

Website: Stevie Turner Author
Twitter: @StevieTurner6
Blog: Stevie Turner WordPress
Pinterest: Stevie Turner
YouTube: Stevie Turner

42 thoughts on “Smorgasbord Book Reviews – #Mystery – Examining Kitchen Cupboards by Stevie Turner”

  2. There was a superintendent who only taught music but never taught other subjects. He went on to be a assistant principal and then assistant director of HR in the school district and got hired as district superintendent. He never had any curriculum background. I was sad about people like him who moved the way up without anyone questioning his qualification in curriculum.
    Then there are colleges and universities who accepted students to their campus to boost the school status. Those students also could get away with not passing other subjects. Who knows what the outcome would be after they graduated.
    There was also a congressman who only got two years of city college education. Many political officials could run for office by volunteering in the beginning and get popular and move up the ladder.
    Of course, we just hope that they hit the Peter Principle of incompetency that knock them down, but many people suffer along the way.
    Great review on Stevie Turner’s book, Sally.

    Liked by 2 people

  3. It’s scary when someone is trying to do the right thing and faces obstacles and even danger along the way because of the cover-up. It’s a sad reality that this type of thing goes on far more than we realize. The intriguing title got me right away.

    Liked by 2 people

  5. Good review. I read this and agree with everything you’ve said. I like the extra about being aware of issues in schools.

    Liked by 2 people

  6. Pingback: Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – Weekly Round Up March 1st – 7th 2020 – #Backup larders #Jazz, Books, Guests, Humour and Health | Smorgasbord Blog Magazine

  9. This is a great premise for a book, Sally. This sort of corruption has a huge impact on the nation as the people coming out of the institutions who are not properly education and are thus not competent. This is a huge problem here in South Africa. People came out of University without the property training and skills to do their jobs.

    Liked by 3 people

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