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Hazel (2934 KP) rated Blood Runs Cold (DS Max Craigie #4) in Books
Apr 3, 2023
Wow ... just wow!!!
Once again, Mr Lancaster has written an absolute cracker in this brilliant series and whilst this is the fourth, it is quite successful as a standalone however, I would highly recommend you go back and read the other three because it will help with getting to know the main characters but also because they are just really good books!
DS Max Craigie and his team are strong characters that work well as a small but formidable team rooting out corruption within Police Scotland; Mr Lancaster has written them so well that I have found myself becoming really attached to them. Their relationship and dialogue feels authentic and I found myself tittering away to myself at times which helped to lighten what is, essentially, a very dark story.
This is a dark, gritty and fast paced police procedural that I was totally and completely absorbed by from the very start. The plot is scarily plausible and realistic with some excellent twists and turns which adds to the intensity.
Highly recommended and I urge everyone to read this excellent series; I can't wait for the next instalment and I must thank HQ, an imprint of HarperCollins UK and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of the brilliant Blood Runs Cold.
Once again, Mr Lancaster has written an absolute cracker in this brilliant series and whilst this is the fourth, it is quite successful as a standalone however, I would highly recommend you go back and read the other three because it will help with getting to know the main characters but also because they are just really good books!
DS Max Craigie and his team are strong characters that work well as a small but formidable team rooting out corruption within Police Scotland; Mr Lancaster has written them so well that I have found myself becoming really attached to them. Their relationship and dialogue feels authentic and I found myself tittering away to myself at times which helped to lighten what is, essentially, a very dark story.
This is a dark, gritty and fast paced police procedural that I was totally and completely absorbed by from the very start. The plot is scarily plausible and realistic with some excellent twists and turns which adds to the intensity.
Highly recommended and I urge everyone to read this excellent series; I can't wait for the next instalment and I must thank HQ, an imprint of HarperCollins UK and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of the brilliant Blood Runs Cold.
Hazel (2934 KP) rated Cruel Acts (Maeve Kerrigan #8) in Books
Sep 19, 2019
Once again, I find myself enthusing about one of Jane Casey's books starring the unparalleled partnership of Detectives Maeve Kerrigan and Josh Derwent. This might be the 8th outing in this series, but it doesn't show and remains fresh and a riveting read from start to finish. I won't go into any of the plot as the blurb explains it well enough and to say more would give the game away but what I will advise is that you be prepared for twists and turns, tension and scenes of peril!
With fantastic characters, a gripping plot and enough back story so it can be read as a standalone, this is one not to be missed for all you fans of police-procedural/crime/suspense/thriller/etc/etc., lovers out there.
Thank you once again to the Publisher via NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest review.
With fantastic characters, a gripping plot and enough back story so it can be read as a standalone, this is one not to be missed for all you fans of police-procedural/crime/suspense/thriller/etc/etc., lovers out there.
Thank you once again to the Publisher via NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest review.
Hazel (2934 KP) rated Force of Hate (DS Jo Howe #2) in Books
Apr 3, 2023
Wow ... what an exciting and thrilling read that was and is the best book I have read this year so far!
I haven't read anything by this author before but if this anything to go by, I won't be making that mistake again! Even though this is the second in the series, I don't think it mattered that much and certainly didn't detract from my enjoyment of this thrilling book.
Force of Hate has everything you would want in a gritty, police procedural ... excellent characters, perfect setting, brilliant writing, exciting, thrilling and gripping plot covering realistic and disturbing topics resulting in a tension filled read from the start.
Highly recommended and I very much look forward to reading the next in the series and I must thank Allison & Busby and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of Force of Hate.
I haven't read anything by this author before but if this anything to go by, I won't be making that mistake again! Even though this is the second in the series, I don't think it mattered that much and certainly didn't detract from my enjoyment of this thrilling book.
Force of Hate has everything you would want in a gritty, police procedural ... excellent characters, perfect setting, brilliant writing, exciting, thrilling and gripping plot covering realistic and disturbing topics resulting in a tension filled read from the start.
Highly recommended and I very much look forward to reading the next in the series and I must thank Allison & Busby and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of Force of Hate.
ClareR (5542 KP) rated Local Gone Missing in Books
Aug 24, 2022
Local Gone Missing is an engaging police procedural with a bit of a difference. The main character, Detective Elise King, is on sick leave, recovering from breast cancer treatment. But when one of the villagers in her village goes missing, she finds herself back at work in a more informal way.
I liked this a lot. For such a small village there’s a lot going on: drugs, tensions between new and old villagers, fires - and a disappearing neighbour. Honestly, it made me vow to never move to a village!
The main characters are great. Dee, who knows everyone’s secrets and flies under everyone’s radar; Ronnie, the typical nosey neighbour who wants to be Elise’s sidekick; and Elise, who is worried about going back to the job she clearly loves.
I didn’t guess who did it, as is usual.
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for serialising this and expanding my reading horizons!
I liked this a lot. For such a small village there’s a lot going on: drugs, tensions between new and old villagers, fires - and a disappearing neighbour. Honestly, it made me vow to never move to a village!
The main characters are great. Dee, who knows everyone’s secrets and flies under everyone’s radar; Ronnie, the typical nosey neighbour who wants to be Elise’s sidekick; and Elise, who is worried about going back to the job she clearly loves.
I didn’t guess who did it, as is usual.
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for serialising this and expanding my reading horizons!
Hazel (2934 KP) rated The Chosen Ones in Books
Oct 20, 2018
I have never read anything by Howard Linskey before but if this book is anything to go by, I won't be making that mistake again ... what a great read and even though this is book number 4 in the series, I don't think it's totally necessary to have read the previous ones. Yes you may miss out on some of the back story and relationship building that has gone on before but I think there is enough provided to give you a good idea but not so much that it becomes tedious.
The writing flows well making it easy to read and with great characters, creepy and disturbing storyline and a great ending, I have no hesitation in recommending this to those who enjoy a good police procedural with a psychologically thrilling edge.
Thanks go to the publisher, Penguin UK - Michael Joseph, via NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest and unbiased review and for introducing me to another fantastic British author.
The writing flows well making it easy to read and with great characters, creepy and disturbing storyline and a great ending, I have no hesitation in recommending this to those who enjoy a good police procedural with a psychologically thrilling edge.
Thanks go to the publisher, Penguin UK - Michael Joseph, via NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest and unbiased review and for introducing me to another fantastic British author.
LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated The Other Guys (2010) in Movies
Sep 20, 2020 (Updated Sep 20, 2020)
"𝘐'𝘮 𝘢 𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘰𝘤𝘬 𝘧𝘭𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘣𝘰𝘸!" - Mark Wahlberg, this movie.
Hadn't seen it since the theater approximately ten years ago but still one of the funniest movies I've ever seen, and at least twenty times more quotable than either 𝘈𝘯𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘯 film. An old-school police procedural pretty impressively melded with a more restrained McKay comedy - switching the focus (smartly, with this one) from his patented over-the-topness to squarely on the jokes. Exhibit A on why Wahlberg is one of the most underused comedic actors on the planet, dude is fully game to satirize his tough guy image and lean into it at the same time. My biggest complaint is that all the vehicle action is shot and edited like utter crap, but the stuntwork and practicals are as sound as can be and there's a pretty bitchin' little shootout near the end of this thing. Plus they blow up the Trump tower less than five minutes into it, what more can you ask for?
Hadn't seen it since the theater approximately ten years ago but still one of the funniest movies I've ever seen, and at least twenty times more quotable than either 𝘈𝘯𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘯 film. An old-school police procedural pretty impressively melded with a more restrained McKay comedy - switching the focus (smartly, with this one) from his patented over-the-topness to squarely on the jokes. Exhibit A on why Wahlberg is one of the most underused comedic actors on the planet, dude is fully game to satirize his tough guy image and lean into it at the same time. My biggest complaint is that all the vehicle action is shot and edited like utter crap, but the stuntwork and practicals are as sound as can be and there's a pretty bitchin' little shootout near the end of this thing. Plus they blow up the Trump tower less than five minutes into it, what more can you ask for?
Hazel (2934 KP) rated Good Girl (DS Grace Allendale #4) in Books
Dec 13, 2020
I have never been disappointed by anything written by Mel Sherrratt so had no hesitation in reading this, the fourth in the series, and, once again, it was as good as I was expecting and, as an added bonus, you don't have to have read the others in the series, as this works well as a standalone so don't worry!
What we have in "Good Girl" is a pretty dark and hard-hitting police procedural which follows the investigation of DS Grace Allendale and her team into the apparent mugging and murder of a young 16 year old but as Grace delves deeper, all is not what it seems.
With believable characters, an authentic and frighteningly realistic story line written at a great pace and with sensitivity, given the subject matter which is difficult to read at times, this is another excellent book.
Thank you to Avon Books UK, a division of HarperCollins, and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.
What we have in "Good Girl" is a pretty dark and hard-hitting police procedural which follows the investigation of DS Grace Allendale and her team into the apparent mugging and murder of a young 16 year old but as Grace delves deeper, all is not what it seems.
With believable characters, an authentic and frighteningly realistic story line written at a great pace and with sensitivity, given the subject matter which is difficult to read at times, this is another excellent book.
Thank you to Avon Books UK, a division of HarperCollins, and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.
Erika Kehlet (21 KP) rated The Hidden Child (Patrik Hedström, #5) in Books
Feb 21, 2018
Had I realized when I picked it up that this was the 4th book in a series, I would have looked for the first book to start at the beginning. I didnt feel like I was missing anything starting at this point in the story, however. The relationships between characters were either evident or explained well enough that you can easily read or listen to this book without having read the previous books, and not feel lost.
A lot of Swedish crime fiction has a particular melancholy feel to it, and The Hidden Child is no exception. The author did injected occasional brief moments of humor into the story that helped lighten the mood, however, and they kept it from feeling too dark.
The story is told in both in the present, and through flashbacks, in the time around WW2. It follows the police investigation into the murder of a local historian, as well as the family drama unfolding as Erica Faulk digs into her mothers past. The two series of events turn out to be more intertwined than anyone could have imagined, and even though I could see where it was going, the story didnt give everything away at once and I didnt really know what had happened until the end.
If you are a fan of police procedural and / or historical mysteries, give this one a try!
A lot of Swedish crime fiction has a particular melancholy feel to it, and The Hidden Child is no exception. The author did injected occasional brief moments of humor into the story that helped lighten the mood, however, and they kept it from feeling too dark.
The story is told in both in the present, and through flashbacks, in the time around WW2. It follows the police investigation into the murder of a local historian, as well as the family drama unfolding as Erica Faulk digs into her mothers past. The two series of events turn out to be more intertwined than anyone could have imagined, and even though I could see where it was going, the story didnt give everything away at once and I didnt really know what had happened until the end.
If you are a fan of police procedural and / or historical mysteries, give this one a try!
Hazel (2934 KP) rated All The Rage (DI Adam Fawley #4) in Books
Dec 30, 2019
Highly entertaining
I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed this book and ate it up in super quick time. I read Close to Home, book 1 in the series, immediately before this one and I think this enhanced my enjoyment of this story as it gave a bit more meat to the characters but having said that, I think it would work as a standalone.
A young woman is attacked but doesn't want the police involved and then it happens again; both cases bearing a striking resemblance to an old case Fawley was involved in where the perpetrator was imprisoned ... could this be a copy-cat or has an innocent man been in jail for many years?
Once again, we are treated by Ms Hunter with her excellent characters, dark and gritty story line, intrigue and suspense all wrapped up in this fast paced, page-turning thriller with twists and surprises along the way. All this and the use of social media excerpts, court and interview transcripts woven, throughout make this feel current and relevant.
This will not be my last of reading Ms Hunter's books and I highly recommend to those who enjoy police procedural/thrillers with complex story lines which are easy to follow and that are highly entertaining ... can't wait for book 5!
Thank you to Penguin Books (UK) and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest and unbiased review.
A young woman is attacked but doesn't want the police involved and then it happens again; both cases bearing a striking resemblance to an old case Fawley was involved in where the perpetrator was imprisoned ... could this be a copy-cat or has an innocent man been in jail for many years?
Once again, we are treated by Ms Hunter with her excellent characters, dark and gritty story line, intrigue and suspense all wrapped up in this fast paced, page-turning thriller with twists and surprises along the way. All this and the use of social media excerpts, court and interview transcripts woven, throughout make this feel current and relevant.
This will not be my last of reading Ms Hunter's books and I highly recommend to those who enjoy police procedural/thrillers with complex story lines which are easy to follow and that are highly entertaining ... can't wait for book 5!
Thank you to Penguin Books (UK) and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest and unbiased review.
Hazel (2934 KP) rated The Night Watch (DS Max Craigie #3) in Books
Sep 4, 2022
I have read the first 2 in this series and absolutely loved them so I was a bit worried that Mr Lancaster wouldn't be able to match them however, I have to say that he has exceeded my expectations because this is an absolute cracker.
DS Max Craigie and his team are a small but formidable group; their relationship and dialogue feels authentic and I have found myself becoming rather attached to them. Max's boss, DI Ross Fraser, provided me much amusement and laugh out loud moments which helped to lighten what is a dark story of what appears to be vigilante justice with a strong suspicion that the perpetrator is a serving police officer. When he is found dead of an apparent suicide, Max and his team are convinced it was murder but how and who is responsible and who will be next?
Once again, this is a gritty, fast paced and absorbing police procedural with an engrossing plot with great twists and excellent characters and although it can be read as a standalone quite successfully, I would highly recommend reading the first 2 in the series not only because it will help with getting to know the characters but also because they are damn fine books!
Bravo Mr Lancaster, you have a fan here and I can't wait to read the next and I must thank HQ, HQ Digital and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of The Night Watch.
DS Max Craigie and his team are a small but formidable group; their relationship and dialogue feels authentic and I have found myself becoming rather attached to them. Max's boss, DI Ross Fraser, provided me much amusement and laugh out loud moments which helped to lighten what is a dark story of what appears to be vigilante justice with a strong suspicion that the perpetrator is a serving police officer. When he is found dead of an apparent suicide, Max and his team are convinced it was murder but how and who is responsible and who will be next?
Once again, this is a gritty, fast paced and absorbing police procedural with an engrossing plot with great twists and excellent characters and although it can be read as a standalone quite successfully, I would highly recommend reading the first 2 in the series not only because it will help with getting to know the characters but also because they are damn fine books!
Bravo Mr Lancaster, you have a fan here and I can't wait to read the next and I must thank HQ, HQ Digital and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of The Night Watch.