The Bowman By Rhys Dylan

November 10, 2025 By Leave a Comment


The Bowman By Rhys Dylan
Publisher: Wyrmwood Books
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

In the wild heart of Wales, terror stalks the open moor.

In the remote and unforgiving Cambrian Mountains, two bodies are found, sparking fears that a long-buried nightmare has returned. DCI Warlow is plunged into a chilling mystery, hunting a murderer who disappeared without a trace—leaving only blood and silence behind.

As Warlow’s team battles against mounting pressure, they face a haunting question: is this the work of a twisted imitator, or has The Bowman, a ruthless killer thought to be gone forever, resurfaced?

With each dark discovery, they’re pulled deeper into a case where the land itself seems to conspire against them—and the answers may come at a deadly cost.

In remote, rural Wales two people are killed within hours of each other, each struck down by a crossbow bolt. DCI Evan Warlow and his team are called in to investigate, but the details of the case soon remind them of a similar set of killings from decades ago – has the Bowman returned?

I have been really enjoying this slightly gritter series set in Wales. I found this to be a very well written addition to the series. The team has plenty of cases behind them now, and I find they work very well together without seeming stale or repetitive. While this is very much a British police procedural style of book, I strongly enjoy the Welsh atmosphere and aspects to both the plot and characters, it keeps the story feeling fresh and interesting to me.

I thought the plot was very well contained in this book and while there are a number of secondary characters in the larger team – and plenty of both good and bad history there – I do feel that readers new to this author and series should easily be able to pick this story up and thoroughly enjoy it. This had a slightly slower pace that builds to a strong and fast ending. I’m looking forward to the next installment.

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Troubled Blood by Robert Galbraith

November 4, 2025 By Leave a Comment


Troubled Blood by Robert Galbraith
Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Private Detective Cormoran Strike is visiting his family in Cornwall when he is approached by a woman asking for help finding her mother, Margot Bamborough—who went missing in mysterious circumstances in 1974.

Strike has never tackled a cold case before, let alone one forty years old. But despite the slim chance of success, he is intrigued and takes it on; adding to the long list of cases that he and his partner in the agency, Robin Ellacott, are currently working on. And Robin herself is also juggling a messy divorce and unwanted male attention, as well as battling her own feelings about Strike.

As Strike and Robin investigate Margot’s disappearance, they come up against a fiendishly complex case with leads that include tarot cards, a psychopathic serial killer and witnesses who cannot all be trusted. And they learn that even cases decades old can prove to be deadly . . .

Private Detective Cormoran Strike is back in Cornwell visiting sick family when a stranger approaches him outside the pub. The woman is asking for answers and help to discover what happened nearly forty years ago to her mother. Having never taken on a cold case Strike admits he is curious, and both he and his business partner Robin Ellacott soon find the case brings them more questions than answers. With a year to solve this case in amongst all their other more usual cases, can Strike and Robin give the woman the longed for answers she seeks?

While I greatly enjoy the Strike series the previous book in particular was very weighty to my mind and I had a few qualms about continuing. I am vastly relieved to learn that – in my opinion at least – this book handled the evolving friendship/business relationship between Strike and Robin far, far better and the author really has begun to get a good pace going with juggling the multiple main characters in the detective agency as well as the multiple cases/plotlines all rolling around at once. I enjoyed this book far more than I expected to – though that partly might have been due to my not-overly-high expectations.

Yes, there is still the will they/won’t they bubbling between Strike and Robin, but I truly felt they both turned a corner with each other in this book. They didn’t guard their private lives as fiercely as they did previously, seeming to finally trust each other a bit better which is a critical item for both their friendship and more importantly their business relationship. Also they didn’t miscommunicate anywhere near as badly as I felt they have in all the previous books – but the one before this most particularly. I was thrilled that they both seem to have screwed their heads on a little straighter now, and equally they are both taking small but meaningful steps into a more healthy working relationship. Indeed, toward the end of the book I even began to feel they might really round a corner and start acting like best friends and business partners and not being quite so block-headed around each other. A girl can hope.

Before reading this book I was also quite worried that – at very nearly 1100 pages for the paperback copy I personally own – the book would be overly bloated and dragging at times with far too much weight. I was so relieved this wasn’t the case. At any given point in the story both Robin and Strike had personal life stuff they were dealing with, plus the agency was normally juggling about four different cases with all the work, staking out and following down leads and people that any case would require. With only an admin and four to five detectives in the whole business this was no small feat and there was ample detective work/cases to carry the plots of the story along at a decent pace. Readers should note this is not an action-orientated or fast moving book, but equally I did not feel at any point like the book was dragging on or just bloated under it’s own massive weight. I felt the author did a really good job with this.

The main plot – that of the 40 year old cold case of the missing person – was threaded very well through the exceptionally long book. I was pleased that this case was strongly present throughout almost the whole of the book and unlike what could have happened the other plots didn’t ever really overtake this main plotline to my mind. A lot went on in both Strike’s and Robin’s personal lives, so it wasn’t like these took a back seat either, but at no point did I find myself wondering or skipping ahead to when they reverted back to this case. It was quite prominent throughout the whole book and I was grateful for that.

While I still really wish the whole “will they/won’t they” aspect to Robin and Strike’s private relationship would get a shuffle on and move forward – I now have a strong feeling we won’t get proper closure (one way or the other) for quite some time, potentially even in the last book or two when the series is coming to a close. Overall I’m pretty happy with this book and definitely more enthusiastic about the next in the series.

A ginormous book that’s more of a marathon than a sprint, this is nevertheless a solid mystery with interesting characters and a lot of layers. Recommended.

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Time Of Death by Mark Billingham

November 3, 2025 By Leave a Comment


Time Of Death by Mark Billingham
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Contemporary, Erotic Romance, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Tom Thorne is on holiday with his girlfriend, DS Helen Weeks, when two girls are abducted in Helen’s hometown in Warwickshire. When a body is discovered and a man is arrested, Helen recognizes the suspect’s wife as an old school friend, and reluctantly returns home for the first time in twenty-five years to lend her support.

As his partner faces up to a past she has tried desperately to forget and a media storm engulfs the town, Thorne becomes convinced that, despite overwhelming evidence of his guilt, the police have got the wrong man. There is still an extremely clever killer on the loose—and a missing girl who Thorne believes might still be alive . . .

While this book is well into the DI Tom Thorne series I was intrigued to find that it’s a little different to many of the previous books in that Thorne and his partner, Helen, have decided to go away for a brief holiday over Valentine’s Day. Despite their intentions for some rest and well-earned alone time together, only a day into their break and Helen abruptly changes plans. A second missing teenage girl in Helen’s hometown has the husband of her childhood best friend being arrested. Wanting to support her old friend – even though it’s been decades since they’ve seen each other – Helen with Thorne in tow enter the fray of both Helen’s past and the small community.

In some respects, this has all the hallmarks of what I’ve come to expect from a DI Thorne story – an uncomfortable plotline and gripping, modern and gritty writing. But this book felt somewhat fresh with the different setting and Thorne trying – as much as he can – to very much remain on the outside. Professional curiosity of course has him taking an interest in the case but unlike virtually every other book I’ve read in this series he’s not trying to horn his way in or step on toes. I found that delightful and refreshing to read and was pleased that in some ways his character is definitely learning from (at least a few) of his past mistakes. Also, it was quite different to read a bit more about Helen’s past. While her character is certainly more open in many respects than Thorne’s is, it quickly becomes clear there are plenty of things in her past she really doesn’t want to share or discuss. I found that interesting, and I thought the way the author wove Helen’s past into the plot was both skillful and believable.

Readers looking for a cozy mystery or an easy read absolutely won’t find that here. Much like the rest of the series this is a gritty, slightly hard book and while it’s an excellent series and one I greatly enjoy I can well understand that it won’t be every reader’s cup of tea. Readers looking for something different or a bit more noir should absolutely check this author and series out. I also feel this book can certainly be read by itself, especially since much of the team and regular characters aren’t present since Thorne isn’t in London on their home turf, so readers wanting a more recent book without starting at the beginning might find this a good place to dip a toe in.

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Murder At Home by Faith Martin

October 31, 2025 By Leave a Comment


Murder At Home by Faith Martin
Publisher: Joffe Books
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Looking for a brilliant bestselling murder mystery with a feisty female detective?

Meet DI HILLARY GREENE, a policewoman struggling to save her career and catch criminals.

Flo Jenkins is found murdered in her armchair, a paperknife sticking out of her chest. The old woman was well liked and nothing seems to have been stolen from her home. And it was common knowledge that she only had weeks to live.

Why kill a dying woman? This is going to be one of the toughest cases yet for Hillary to solve.

Hillary also has to deal with a new colleague who has a terrible temper and a rocky past.

With no forensics, no leads, and only a drug-addict nephew as a suspect, will this be Hillary’s first failure to solve a murder case?

This is a crime mystery full of well-observed characters, which will have you gripped from start to finish.

DI Hillary Greene has a lot going on right now. With one member of her team about to get married and move to a different stations and already down a team member from a recent promotion Hillary is being kept rather busy. With a new relationship only a few months old and still in the getting-to-know-you phase and avoiding the clear intentions of her boss, DI Greene has a rather full life. So it’s almost a relief when she catches a new murder case – an elderly lady stabbed in her home. But with no clear motive and hardly anyone with a cross word about her, soon the case is yet another difficulty DI Greene has to try and get on top of.

I have been enjoying this series and was cautiously optimistic when there were quite a few changes shown in this book. I was pleased Hillary and Mike had finally moved forward – after circling each other for a number of books now – and while their relationship is still clearly in the early stages I was happy with some progress with this very slow moving sub-plot. Equally I was happy that a new character was introduced to replace Tommy – who moved stations at the end of the previous book and left a slot open on Hillary’s team. I’d be interested to see if another new character is introduced in the next book as another team member got married at the very end of this book (another long-running sub plot finally coming to a close).

I felt Kevin, the new character, was an interesting breath of fresh air in this story and so am interested to learn more about him in the coming few books. There also was a small sub plot revolving around him that was left open at the end of this book so I expect this will likely get followed up soon and that should prove interesting too.

I found this to be a well written and well paced British Police Procedural style of book and I really enjoyed it. I particularly liked how for the vast majority of the book there was no clear motive to the murder. While there were a few really good red herrings and leads followed through much of the mystery came from trying to unravel the old dear’s life and work out why on earth anyone would want her dead. This was certainly a different perspective on the usual who-dun-it style of story and I actually found it quite refreshing. I also feel it left plenty of time and space for all the other sub-plots and character arc to really flourish and get some good mileage.

I definitely feel readers can pick this book up by itself and enjoy it – but must admit there’s a fair amount of progress with a number of longer-running character arcs so it might be felt that some knowledge of the previous books might give the reader a deeper emotional connection and interest in all these sub-plots going on. I feel the actual mystery itself is very well contained and explained in this novel but a deeper appreciation might be had by readers who know a lot of the history between the main characters and team

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The Bones Beneath By Mark Billingham

October 27, 2025 By Leave a Comment


The Bones Beneath By Mark Billingham
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Who’d trust a depraved killer like Stuart Nicklin? Tom Thorne, the DI who put him away, has to. Nicklin has promised to bring closure to the grieving mother of one of his first victims by finally revealing where the body can be found. But there’s just one condition: Thorne must accompany him to the burial ground—the remote Bardsey Island, which is cut off from the mainland of Wales in more ways than one. Nicklin is in cuffs, surrounded by authorities, and under watchful eye. What could go wrong?

As the macabre outing begins, so do Nicklin’s mind games—and it becomes clear that his motives are far from altruistic. There are more than bones buried on the storm-shrouded island. There are secrets, too. And as Thorne becomes entangled in the twisted schemes of a manipulative psychopath, he’ll be left with the most terrible choice he’s ever had to make.

Decades ago, Simon Milner was a youthful delinquent, one of a small number sent to a tiny Welsh island for a cutting edge chance at rehabilitation. When he escaped he was never seen or heard from again. All these years later DI Tom Thorne is informed his nemesis, Stuart Nicklin has confessed to killing Milner just before their escape and burying his friends body on that tiny Welsh island. He’ll reveal the grave – but only if Thorne brings him there personally. Thorne knows nothing is simple with Nicklin and is not at all keen to dance to Nicklin’s tune – but with a distraught mother and his superiors all forcing his hand, Thorne knows once again he shall have to play Nicklin’s game on his terms.

Unlike a number of the previous books in this series this story felt quite a bit slower and calmer than I’m used to from this author. While Thorne is clearly on edge and frustrated with having to deal with Nicklin and cater to the serial killer’s whims Thornes hands are tied while they try to locate a decades-long missing teenage boy from Nicklin’s past.

I admit at times I wanted to skip ahead to find out what rose was going on – something I’ve never yet felt like doing in this series – and while I do feel the first half of the story is building towards the climax once the action begins the remains of the story is at a break neck pace.

I don’t feel readers need to have read any of the previous books in order or enjoy this one. The history between Thorne and Nicklin is quickly and easily explained and most of the plot is well encapsulated within this story. I also think readers who usually enjoy a slower paced British police procedural style of novel should find this really fits the bill. While they is quite a bit of tension and building in this book the plot is quite palatable and for the most part it’s not as heavy or dark as I’ve usually found this series to be. There is a sub-plot that threads through much of the book and while this one is darker it’s also not really unveiled towards the end of the story where all hell has broken loose.

I found this to be a slightly slower paced book but still quite interesting mystery novel and a solid read which I really enjoyed. With a few serious twists towards the end I felt this book will likely have repercussions in the future that will have a significant impact on Thorne and those he loves.

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In Love And Murder by MS Morris

October 24, 2025 By Leave a Comment


In Love And Murder by MS Morris
Publisher: Landmark Media
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Fern

Deception. Death. A Deal with the Devil.

When Dr Nathan Frost, a lecturer in German literature at Oxford University, is invited to a lavish party at the country house of a wealthy businessman, he knows there’ll be a price to pay. After all, as an expert on the legend of Faust and Mephistopheles, he can recognise a deal with the devil easily enough. But even he’s not expecting such a sinister end to the evening.

Called to investigate a suspicious death at a country house, Detective Inspector Bridget Hart is surprised to find a government minister among the party guests. Her team must navigate powerful interests to find the truth. But in a world of favours, backhanders and corruption, nothing is as it seems and nobody can be trusted.

Set amongst the dreaming spires of Oxford University, the Bridget Hart series is perfect for fans of Elly Griffiths, JR Ellis, Faith Martin and classic British murder mysteries.

DI Bridget Hart and her team are called in to a local university when one of their Professors wakes up after a house party sleeping next to a young dead college student. The lecturer admits he has no recollection of the evening before after feeling unwell and going to bed. With numerous important people at the party and plenty of pressure for quick answers, can DI Hart navigate her way around the various conflicting accounts of that evening?

I have been enjoying this series and find that it has a good balance between the mystery of the British police procedural mystery and various growth and sub-plots involving the secondary characters and their personal lives. While it seems DI Hart’s personal life is finally starting to even out a little I was interested that two of her team members seemed to be entering murky waters. I thought the workplace romance – and all the issues that can cause – strongly relatable, but admit I was a little disappointed both by the cliched aspect of the “misunderstandings/jealousy” theme and also how both the characters fell into the trap of miscommunication. While utterly relatable and very common, I do find it a little annoying sometimes how cliched this sort of sub-plot can come across at times.

That said, I admit the romantic entanglements of the team made an excellent contrast to the murder plot, and made the various characters extremely realistic and empathetic. I also found the mystery plot itself interesting and set at a good pace. I was pleased that there were aspects to the plot I did guess early on, but there were still a few twists I didn’t see coming so I felt both proud of my own investigative skills but remained interested because there were enough aspects that were fresh and surprising to me.

I found this to be a very well written and solidly plotted British murder mystery. I am enjoying this series and can strongly recommend both the author and these works.

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The Curator by M.W. Craven

October 22, 2025 By Leave a Comment


The Curator by M.W. Craven
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

It’s Christmas and a serial killer is leaving displayed body parts all over Cumbria. A strange message is left at each scene: #BSC6

Called in to investigate, the National Crime Agency’s Washington Poe and Tilly Bradshaw are faced with a case that makes no sense. Why were some victims anaesthetized, while others died in appalling agony? Why is their only suspect denying what they can irrefutably prove but admitting to things they weren’t even aware of? And why did the victims all take the same two weeks off work three years earlier?

And when a disgraced FBI agent gets in touch things take an even darker turn. Because she doesn’t think Poe is dealing with a serial killer at all; she thinks he’s dealing with someone far, far worse – a man who calls himself the Curator.

And nothing will ever be the same again . . .

It’s Christmas, but when what appears to be a serial killer leaves a pair of severed fingers from three victims all over Cumbria Washington Poe, Tilly and their team are called in to try and work out what’s really going on. And while their boss, Stephanie Flynn is heavily pregnant and refusing to start her maternity leave, there are more than a few things on each of their minds. Can Poe and Tilly figure out who is behind everything before their time runs out?

I have been greatly enjoying this series but found this to be a particularly strong addition. While I don’t feel it necessary to have read both the previous books to thoroughly enjoy this third outing, I must admit I feel I enjoyed the deeper emotional connection I had knowing about Poe, Tilly and Flynn’s previous cases and shared working history. I believe I would have still thoroughly enjoyed this story had I picked it up alone – but I’m glad I’ve read the previous two and can strongly recommend them as well.

I also absolutely loved how about halfway through the book the entire plot was pretty much thrown on its head. I thought the author wrote this part exceptionally well as it fundamentally changed the whole plotline without making Poe or any of the police officers seem like idiots. I can’t recall reading a book previously where such a massive twist occurred without much forewarning and wasn’t due to severe ineptitude on the detective’s part, so I really thought this was an excellent twist and made the second half of the book even more intense to my mind.

While many British police procedurals have a slow and steady pace – as this one does also – I absolutely feel there is a steady ramping up of the intensity and I admit I had to stay up past my bedtime (on a work night too!) to read the last 10% of the story because I simply couldn’t put it down and go to sleep, I needed to know how it all unfolded.

An excellent book and a brilliant series, one I am happily and thoroughly addicted to.

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The Boss by Gale Stanley

October 17, 2025 By Leave a Comment


The Boss by Gale Stanley
Publisher: Changeling Press
Genre: Contemporary, Erotic Romance, LGBTQ Romance
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Maxwell Barnes runs the top law firm in the city, owns a private BDSM club, and has more money than he can spend in a lifetime. He gets everything he wants, and now he wants his paralegal, Aaron Marshall. Mixing work and pleasure is a big no-no, but their mutual attraction is off the charts. The one thing Maxwell isn’t looking for is love, but sometimes fate has a mind of its own.

Maxwell Barnes is used to getting what he wants. He runs to top legal firm in New York and owns a private BDMS club. He has everything – except his paralegal, Aaron Marshall.

I really enjoyed this short, sexy story. Aaron’s character in particular appealed to me because he wasn’t the usual cookie cutter submissive male co-worker. Right from his introduction it’s clear Aaron has plans – school, career and life-goal plans and while he’s a natural red-blooded man, sex and a special partner is fairly low on his priority list. I found it delightfully refreshing that while Aaron was completely open to some sexy shenanigans, his priority wasn’t bedding a delicious Dom. Aaron’s plans and brains grabbed me from the start.

BDSM features pretty heavily – but tastefully in my opinion – throughout this short story so readers should definitely be aware of that. I enjoyed the fact that both Aaron and Maxwell discussed some of their past and personal needs before things got too physical between them. While I admit it slowed down the pace of the story, it did give the whole scenario a more realistic feel to it. Some important factors were discussed and I would have had to suspend my disbelief if they hadn’t gone there.

The sex was hot and spicy. I feel erotic readers should find this a fun and exciting read. I liked that the story had a definite resolution – but I do also feel like the author left things open enough there’s absolutely room for a sequel or another short story that could come about how the two men progress from here. I found this to be a fun and sexy short read.

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Dragon’s Breath by Rhys Dylan

October 13, 2025 By Leave a Comment


Dragon’s Breath by Rhys Dylan
Publisher: Wyrmwood Books
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Fern

In the mountains, some secrets are deadlier than the storms.

A man wanders lost on a filthy night in the Black mountains of Wales.

Despite the valiant efforts of the rescue services, he does not survive.

Is this an accident? Or malice aforethought?

DCI Warlow and team are drawn into a mystery that soon spirals into more deaths and a poisonous trade.

A devious killer is abroad. One that cares for nothing other than their own twisted greed. The dragon’s breath taints everything it touches.

And no one is safe.

DCI Warlow and his team are called in to investigate when a young electrician is left to die in a remote region in the Black Mountains. With plenty of questions – and a distraught family left behind – can they unravel what really happened, when everything merely leads to more questions.

I have been greatly enjoying this series and found this to be a particularly strong addition to the collective. While it’s clear there is plenty of working history and connections now between the team, I still found this mystery to be suitable for new readers to pick up and begin fresh. While there are a few references to things that occurred in previous books broadly speaking I thought there was nothing too onerous or difficult for readers to easily pick up and understand. More importantly, the murder mystery within this book was clearly defined and contained in this story.

I admit I felt a greater connection to the characters knowing their shared history. I was also pleased the team’s personal lives all seemed to make some good progress. In particular DCI Warlow had a breakthrough that’s been clearly needed for at least the last few books, and we also had some good progress with Catrin and her personal storyline which was just lovely to see. This all felt really satisfying along with a very well written murder mystery. I was pleased that I guessed quite a bit of the plot – but there were still enough surprises and freshness to the plot that some of the twists I didn’t see coming at all.

I found this to be a good balance between characters personal story arcs progressing and a well written and deeply interesting murder mystery. The Welsh setting was an absolutely bonus – and this remains the only Welsh mystery series I know of. A lovely change of pace and tone to the more usual British police procedural style of books and a series I can strongly recommend. Thoroughly enjoyable.

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The Dying Hours by Mark Billingham

October 8, 2025 By Leave a Comment


The Dying Hours by Mark Billingham
Publisher: Self-published
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Recently demoted for stepping out of line once too often, prickly inspector Tom Thorne is convinced that a spate of suicides among the elderly in south London is something more sinister. When his concerns are dismissed by former colleagues at the CID, and even by his patient girlfriend, Thorne can only trust himself and his best friend—gay pub-crawling pathologist Phil Hendricks—with his suspicions of murder.

Thorne draws a chilling connection between the deaths and a controversial case three decades old. But by going solo with his investigation, he not only risks the lives of those closest to him, but also further endangers those being targeted by a deranged killer—a man with the power and cold-blooded motives to coerce his vulnerable victims toward a breathtaking end.

Recently demoted Tom Thorne pushed his luck too far in his previous case and – to the glee of some of the upper brass – has been newly demoted back into Uniform. Booted from his beloved Murder Investigations, cut off from his usual team and colleagues, Tom is hating his day to day grind and trying desperately to keep his head above water. When Tom is convinced a cluster of elderly suicides is related no one will listen to him, and even when he swallows his pride and asks for someone to look into it further he is brutally brushed off and put in his place. Willing to risk everything – including the trust and livelihoods of the very few friends he has remaining – can Tom gamble everything on what he becomes more and more convinced is a killer who equally has absolutely nothing to lose and a mission to complete.

I have found this to be an interesting, gritty and at times even harsh British police procedural series. While the main character – Tom Thorne – has often pushed the boundaries and irked his superiors his previous case ended on a desperate note and Thorne reacted accordingly. Unlike his many previous times, this case resulted in his demotion and removal from his beloved Murder team. I found this massive shift in Thorne’s duties to be gripping reading and an interesting change of pace. I was pleased that much of his character remains unchanged and his sense of self and purpose while battered appears intact.

Readers picking this book up with no prior experience may find there are a few gaps they need to fill but I definitely think this book can still be enjoyed on it’s own merits. The writing is quite British and the tone of the book (and series, really) is quite different to many other murder mysteries. This might not be a comfortable tone for many readers, but I have been really enjoying it for the most part.

I equally liked how there were snippets through the book from the killer’s perspective. As the reader I was heartened to know that Thorne wasn’t going off the deep end (as some other characters thought) but watching Thorne struggle and put everything together was the usual gripping read. While still not a comfortable read I definitely feel this book should be suitable for most mystery readers, especially those who like a more British style of gritty plotline.

A strongly plotted and well paced mystery – I’m eager for the next book.

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