Play Dead – Angela Marsons

Crime Fiction
5*s

I was so excited to be approved to read Play Dead on NetGalley as each of Angela Marsons’ previous three books had me absolutely hooked, and each got awarded the full five stars. After the excitement came the slight apprehension, after all the first three had come swiftly on the heels of each other with the author releasing all three between February and November last year, would this book live up to those? The answer is a resounding yes, if anything this one was even better!

I thought I’d read what I’d written about those before writing this review so that I didn’t sound repetitive, but I’m afraid that simply won’t be possible because what I loved about this book is exactly what made the others so wonderful, but I’ll try…

The story opens with a prologue set in 1996 which haunted me throughout the book, even more so as we hear from the same narrator sporadically whilst we are watching Detective Kim Stone investigate. This investigation is on a site more unusual than most, a body farm in the DI’s native Black Country. Westerley research facility is for the scientists whose work in entomology and the like to help define the time of death of bodies left exposed to the open air and Kim Stone and her partner Bryant were visiting to be educated when a body is found. And so we’re out of the traps with a fresh body, one not chosen by the resident scientists, and it is not long before this is joined by a cold case that Kim Stone has picked up along the way! In boths cases just finding out who the victim was is the first step in a marathon.

Kim Stone is exactly my kind of protagonist; she is damaged by her past but about as far from a victim as you can get. She’s complex, not overly friendly to anyone much and yet she has the respect of her officers, and me. In this case she uses her sharp intellect as she gets to work with the unusual crime scene and follows her intuition to get her first link to the killer. But don’t worry, even this sharp cookie doesn’t own a crystal ball, so the twists and turns hold the interest at optimum level.  Angela Marsons really does manage the pace exceptionally well, there is definitely no dropping off in the middle of these books, and yet she still manages to accelerate towards the end so that you really do get that edge of the seat sensation.

One thing that draws me to crime fiction is the understanding of why the perpetrators act the way they do and in this novel the why as well as the who is put together in pieces so it is far too easy to jump to one conclusion, only to find out that maybe the answer is something quite different indeed. But it isn’t just the perpetrator that gets this treatment, all of the characters are exceptionally realistic, and we get to see behind the scenes of these too. In Play Dead we get a little insight into Kim Stone’s nemesis, Tracey Frost the local reporter.

So once again we have a fantastic plot, equally full of interest and absolute horror, complex and engaging characters from the most minimal dinner lady to the chief protagonists and enough adrenaline to fire up that fight of flight reaction – or in my case rooted to the chair reading frantically to find out how on earth it was all going to end. I love books that sprinkle enough clues to allow me to have a go with my poor investigative skills and in this instance I did have some parts right but there were plenty of aspects to make the finale a compelling read.

I’d like to say a huge thank you to Bookouture not only for allowing me to read Play Dead for review purposes but also for choosing such a talented author to publish and allowing us all to enjoy a fantastic series, one that is now a definite ‘must-read.’ This review is my thank you to them ahead of publication on 20 May 2016.

Previous Books featuring Kim Stone

Silent Scream
Evil Games
Lost Girls

If you are a lover of contemporary crime fiction, I really can’t recommend this series highly enough.

 

Lost Girls – Angela Marsons

Crime Fiction
5*s

Having read the first two books featuring DI Kim Stone already this year and loved them partly because although they are crime fiction, there is plenty within the pages that allows the reader to deduce the psychology, not just of the perpetrators of the crime but those investigating it as well as the victims and their families.

In this book two young girls have been kidnapped on what should have been an ordinary day for the two friends; swimming lessons at the leisure centre and then being picked up by one of their mothers. But for Charlie and Amy the expected lift never turned up, instead they found themselves bundled into the back of a van and driven away. I must admit the scenes involving the two girls were incredibly effecting, never over-the-top but you’d have to have a heart of stone not to feel the fear that comes of the pages.

Kim Stone is the Investigating Officer requested by Karen Timmins, Charlie’s mother, who grew up with Kim although they were far from friends. Kim quickly assembles her team, old favourites from the previous books, and after visiting the parents they sets up a ‘war room.’ If you’ve read the previous books it is clear that not solving the case and bringing the girls home safely is simply not an option for Kim Stone so she starts combing the background of the parent’s lives for clues as well as trying to find a connection to a similar kidnapping eighteen months previously. In that instance, one of the girls returned home, the other was never seen again. And then the text messages start! In a horrific twist on the ransom demand expected, the two sets of parents are asked to enter into a bidding war for their daughter’s lives. The negotiator seconded to the team for the duration, Matt Ward, has a problem on his hands as it seems like the kidnapper’s motive isn’t just the money!

For a female crime writer, Angela Marsons doesn’t shy away from the worst kinds of crimes, and the worst kinds of criminals and her chief protagonist Kim Stone isn’t someone that you would want to be on the wrong side of, that’s for sure. But for all of that, these books give far more than that shiver of fear that you get when you know that this is just a story that you’re reading while safely tucked up in your secure house. In fact there is plenty to observe as the author portrays the relationships between all her characters perfectly with so much showing, rather than telling, that in some ways it feels like you are watching an exceptionally good drama on TV.Realistically the workload always makes mention of other parts of the caseload that comprises her role as DI in the Black Country, in this instance the death of a young gang member and a certain reporter that Kim is determined to keep in her place.

This book conforms to all the clichés, there is palpable tension from the start and it doesn’t really ease up at any point, so there is no sitting comfortably and enjoying a relaxing read, your heart will race, you’ll be on the edge of your seat and those pages simply won’t turn fast enough.

I’d like to say a huge thank you to Bookouture for allowing me to read a copy of this book in return for my honest review. Lost Girls is published tomorrow, 6 November 2015 and even though I’d suggest reading the whole series I think that this would read perfectly well as a stand-alone novel.

Previous Books featuring Kim Stone

Silent Scream
Evil Games

Evil Games – Angela Marsons

Crime Fiction
5*s

Well Angela Marsons has done it again! Well to be honest she has more than done it again, producing a book even more enthralling than her debut novel, Silent Scream, something I didn’t think was possible. How? Well we have the same intriguing protagonist; DI Kim Stone is a woman with a mission to ensure that those who do wrong are punished, a woman who is about as far away from victim as you can imagine, despite having being dealt a rough start in life. That’s not to say she’s without her flaws but that makes her even more believable although I wouldn’t want to be on the wrong side of that sharp intellect!

In Evil Games our intrepid detective is trying to wrap up a horrifying case of child abuse, she doesn’t want there to be any loopholes so that the man responsible walks free but nor does she want anyone else involved to escape justice. She spurs her team onto action despite the frustrating lack of evidence or leads when a body is discovered. The culprit is soon located but Kim Stone can’t help thinking that there is more to the crime.

This book really does delve into the workings of the mind, something that really interests me and hence why I’m drawn to psychological thrillers, so for this to occur in a more traditional crime novel makes this a truly special read. When Kim’s investigations lead her to Dr Alex Thorne’s consulting room the reader gets to read an intelligent and scary show-down as a battle of wits ensue as each woman is determined not to give ground.

There are lots of reasons why a book is a ‘must-read’ and the key for me has to be the ability of the writer not only to come up with a good concept but to be able to tell a good story. This book absolutely meets that requirement. Second to that is that the solving of the crime has to be complex enough to hold my attention without being so fiendishly difficult that I am completely out of ideas, I don’t have to be able to guess as I’m notoriously bad at that, but I must be given the clues. To be honest, in this one I picked up on a clue early on and so was able to give myself a congratulatory pat on the back, but as there are multiple elements with plenty of red-herrings there was still plenty in the reveal to be satisfying. Lastly the characters have to feel realistic, again, I don’t know how Angela Marsons did it but there wasn’t one character that didn’t feel fully formed. That isn’t to be mistaken with I need to like every character, unlikely in a crime novel, but I do have to feel that they aren’t going to behave in an unbelievable way just to further the story. As a complete bonus point, I do like the setting of the Black Country, not an overpopulated region for crime fiction, and while it probably isn’t the most picturesque region of the UK, the parts that the author describes paint a picture of an area once dominated by the Industrial revolution with disused factories turned into apartments and canals aplenty.

I can’t recommend this series enough, these are meaty books, with plenty to keep you thinking long after the final page has been turned. The only word of warning I give is don’t start it if you have an engagement you can’t get out of, you won’t want to put this one down.

I’d like to say a huge thank you to Bookouture for allowing me to read a copy of this wonderful book for review purposes. Evil Games is due to be published on 29 May 2015.

DI Kim Stone first featured in Silent Scream and I’d recommend that you read that one first although it isn’t strictly necessary.

Silent Scream – Angela Marsons

Crime Fiction
5*’s

I’ll be honest I wasn’t going to choose this book, after all I follow a number of different crime fiction series and I wasn’t sure that I needed to add another to the list until I saw a number of reviews for this one and decided to see for myself, and boy, am I glad I did. Why? Well DI Kim Stone is a fantastic protagonist, driven seemingly a hard-taskmaster, yet we are shown early on that her team are determined to go the extra mile for her which indicates there is far more to her character. Secondly the mystery element is fantastically complex giving this reader plenty of information to pit her admittedly poor detective skills against.

Set in the Black Country the author gives a good sense of the place with references to the industrial revolution that shaped this area, the book opens with a group of five gather round a shallow grave to bury a secret in 2004.

In the present day Kim Stone is called in to investigate the murder of a retired headmistress, Teresa Wyatt, and her team are soon given direction by their boss. Teresa Wyatt’s was a gruesome murder and seemingly it is a mystery as to why this respectable woman has invited such horror. Led by Kim the team follow a lead to the grounds of a former children’s home which only causes the mystery to deepen.

This is a book that wears its heart on its sleeve, unusual in crime fiction where the focus was as much on the why, as the who. Every element of this book is complex, not least DI Kim Stone but not in the now ubiquitous screwed-up cop but played with far more subtlety. This book isn’t about the main protagonist, or her team, yet it gives us enough feeling of the characters, mainly by showing us in their actions, to make them easily identifiable and leave the reader wanting to know more, absolutely essential for a series to be a success. I want to know more!

With tough issues at the heart of this book Angela Marsons has made a brave move, not every reader wants to go to sleep thinking about the murder of children and yet even the younger potential victims are given rounded characters, not for this author is the stereotypical angelic child who was preyed upon, nor the troubled youngster that invited trouble in return, rather we get distinct and believable characters, both major and minor.

I was gripped by this novel and the fast pace only served to keep me turning the pages frantically, desperate to know the truth which was kept hidden from right up until the moment of the reveal. I for one will be looking out with eagerness for the next in this series and have concluded that of course there is room in my life for one more crime fiction series, especially one as good as this.

I’d like to say a huge thank you to Bookouture for allowing me to have the opportunity to read this book in return for my honest opinion. This book is great, you can read it now as it was published on 20 February 2015.