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Lying and Dying (Josef Slonsky Investigations #1)
Lying and Dying (Josef Slonsky Investigations #1)
Graham Brack | 2018 | Crime, Mystery
8
8.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Prague police procedural
Josef Slonsky is a detective in the Prague police force. He is called to the body of a woman who is discovered at the train station, murdered. His partner, Navratil, is a probationary officer, and seems a little bewildered by Slonsky's methods. To be fair, he has every right to be. Slonsky is irreverent, seems to be incredibly lazy, and therefore does as little as possible. But I think this is all very misleading. Underneath all this is a man who knows exactly what he is doing. He has served on the police force whilst Prague was the capital city in a communist country, and knows all about the systemic corruption.
He's an amusing character though, and seems to have a (usually sarcastic) answer to everything. It's not until the near the end that we see another side to Slonsky. I still can't make up my mind as to whether the ending was rushed, or whether Slonsky really had just had enough. I hope it's the latter - it gives him a bit of an edge.
I enjoyed this book, and I will be reading the next one.
Many thanks to Sapere books for my copy to read and honestly review.
  
Right Behind You
Right Behind You
Lisa Gardner | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
8
9.0 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
In Lisa Gardner’s next thriller following her runaway New York Times bestseller Find Her — Right Behind You sees the return of (now retired) FBI Profiler Pierce Quincy and his wife Rainie Conner who have now adopted Sharlah. Several years ago her older brother Telly Ray Nash killed their drunken father to protect them.

But when it appears that Telly has killed again, this time it can’t be for her protection, can it? Especially as it is later discovered he’s also killed his foster parents.

This story is a lot slower than other Lisa Gardner books. I still enjoyed it, but as the story unravelled I found myself more drawn to the relationships of families involved – the abuse that went on – the secrets and lies. It’s like the author has gone from fast-paced FBI police procedural crime novel to a character driven story. Nothing wrong with that, it’s just not what I expected.

Rainie and Quincy still make a great couple, the writing style is enjoyable and easy to read. It may be light on the FBI profile and police procedural aspects, but
Right Behind You still made for a great read because the characters were so endearing, and quite often physically and emotionally vulnerable.

I’m interested to see what Lisa Gardner’s next book (comes out Feb. 19 2019) titled NEVER TELL, is going to be like. It apparently features Detective D.D. Warren joining forces with vigilante Flora Dane to investigate the murder of known associate of Flora’s infamous kidnapper.
  
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Christine A. (965 KP) rated Truth or Die (D.S. Imogen Grey, #5) in Books

Jul 31, 2019 (Updated Jul 31, 2019)  
Truth or Die (D.S. Imogen Grey, #5)
Truth or Die (D.S. Imogen Grey, #5)
Katerina Diamond | 2019 | Mystery, Thriller
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
fast-paced police procedural novel (0 more)
The cover has a warning indicating this is not for the faint-hearted. Believe it! (0 more)
Book #5 of DS Imogen Grey series
‏I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review.

Truth or Die is the 5th book in the D.S. Imogen Grey series by Katerina Diamond. I did not realize it was part of a series until I was finished reading it. Reading the earlier books may help with understanding the characters and their behavior better, but it is not necessary. This book can stand alone.

DS Imogen Grey and DS Adrian Miles are partners who are very close in work and out. There is an attraction between them which is a storyline throughout the book and, according to reviewers on Goodreads, has been a slow-building theme woven throughout the entire series. However, the main storyline is the case they are investigating, the brutal murder of a college professor.

The cover has a warning indicating this is not for the faint-hearted. This is a fast-paced police procedural novel that is also a violent, dark, and graphic read. These scenes are not part of the book for mere shock value. They enhance the story and our understanding of the killer's thoughts and actions.

A 6th book is not listed on Goodreads, but I will be looking for it. In the meantime, I do plan to read the series from the beginning.

This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 7/30/19.
  
A Cut for a Cut (Detective Kate Young #2)
A Cut for a Cut (Detective Kate Young #2)
Carol Wyer | 2021 | Mystery, Thriller
8
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review. The opinions are entirely my own, and any quotes are taken from the ARC and may be different in the final published copy.

Detective Kate Young is back in the second installment of Carol Wyer's Detective Kate Young series, A Cut for a Cut. To give a fair review, I read the first book in the series, An Eye for an Eye. Some books in a series can stand alone. With this one, you would benefit from reading the first book.

I am a fan of Wyer's two police procedural series, her DI Robyn Carter series and the Detective Natalie Ward series, and was excited about a new series.

Young is a damaged but determined detective who works with a small team. She is struggling to come to terms with her husband's murder, and her team begins to notice she is not on the top of her game when they are tasked with finding who is sexually assaulting then killing young women. The investigation hits home when one of the victims is a woman the team all know through work. All through this, Kate continues an unsanctioned investigation started in the first book.
 
Let me just say, if you are a fan of British police procedural and strong women characters, then this or either of Wyer's other two series are ones to read.

This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com.