mbod's review against another edition
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
kettyjay's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
mxinky's review against another edition
4.0
I started with this book on a whim. It wasn’t bad and I’ll definitely try another one. It’s a fairly traditional police procedural and the plot had a few good twists. The main cop was somewhat thoughtful, and the glimpses into his interiority were somewhat interesting.
andrew61's review against another edition
4.0
One of my favourite series gets better and better as I hit the 8th in the series.
Here our hero is investigating a series of murders which has an echo in the crimes of a previous serial killer in which as a new recruit Tom had a minor role.
Add in Tom's relationship issues with his both his deceased father , his best friend Phil the pathologist, and new girlfriend and we have the perfect formula for a police procedural.
Here our hero is investigating a series of murders which has an echo in the crimes of a previous serial killer in which as a new recruit Tom had a minor role.
Add in Tom's relationship issues with his both his deceased father , his best friend Phil the pathologist, and new girlfriend and we have the perfect formula for a police procedural.
lazygal's review against another edition
4.0
Talk about nature, not nurture: a serial killer's son is killing the children of the people Dear Old Dad killed. I loved that Carol Chamberlain was back (Waking the Dead is even namechecked) and plays a real role here. The twist about who Tony Garvey is was a little telegraphed, but his reasons weren't... of course, I could have been reading into the author's intentions, but I think I was right about the ultimate why.
Again, this is less gruesome than earlier Thornes. The soap opera parts, with colleagues and Louise, are kept largely off screen (yay). One old face, Spike, makes a cameo and it'd be nice if other do the same. London's not that big, is it?
Again, this is less gruesome than earlier Thornes. The soap opera parts, with colleagues and Louise, are kept largely off screen (yay). One old face, Spike, makes a cameo and it'd be nice if other do the same. London's not that big, is it?
sophiewilliams's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this. I like the development of Thorne's relationship with Louise.
booked_becki's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
anetq's review against another edition
3.0
Complicated story and the odd twist - both in Thorne's private life and the case (...talk about social heritage). Felt a bit long somehow - and even if the bitter end had another twist, it was sort of a foregone conclusion, so it ended on a bit of an annoying note.
willow_21_05's review against another edition
3.0
SPOILERS :
I liked this book. Not one of my favourites but I liked it. I like how the Billingham described the Raymond Garvey killings and gave context about them. It gives you a little more context to understand the plot a bit more. To add to this, I like how the serial killers son became the serial killer aswell, I think they did this to try and almost have revenge for his dad who got caught but in the end they both got caught. In crime books and ones where they is a killer you dont often see the family members of a previous killer becoming a killer which I think is intresting.
In parts of the book it goes to different points of views I personally found this a bit confusing and hard to understand at times. I wouldnt know which character was speaking or which character that bit of the book was following. Towards the end I started to understand that the different points of views and the characters were changing and this made the book a little more easier to read.
At the beginning of the of the book they was a prolouge, I got confused by this and thought it was a extract from another book I was trying to forget it so I wouldnt confuse myself with the actual book. I then skipped the same parts of the prolouge continuing through the book. To add to this, I didnt understadn whose journal I was reading until very very far into the book when it started revealing certain things. This made the rest of previuous journals more easier to understand and things started to peice together.
In the beginning it was very hard for me to understand the book as I was trying to forget the prolouge and couldnt get into the book, but I carried on reading and suddenly I couldnt put the book down. I read the book quite quickly to say I was also reading other books along side this one.
Overall I would read this book again and I would definatley understand it more and definately read things I missed previously. I would recommend this book to whoever likes mystery killer books.
I liked this book. Not one of my favourites but I liked it. I like how the Billingham described the Raymond Garvey killings and gave context about them. It gives you a little more context to understand the plot a bit more. To add to this, I like how the serial killers son became the serial killer aswell, I think they did this to try and almost have revenge for his dad who got caught but in the end they both got caught. In crime books and ones where they is a killer you dont often see the family members of a previous killer becoming a killer which I think is intresting.
In parts of the book it goes to different points of views I personally found this a bit confusing and hard to understand at times. I wouldnt know which character was speaking or which character that bit of the book was following. Towards the end I started to understand that the different points of views and the characters were changing and this made the book a little more easier to read.
At the beginning of the of the book they was a prolouge, I got confused by this and thought it was a extract from another book I was trying to forget it so I wouldnt confuse myself with the actual book. I then skipped the same parts of the prolouge continuing through the book. To add to this, I didnt understadn whose journal I was reading until very very far into the book when it started revealing certain things. This made the rest of previuous journals more easier to understand and things started to peice together.
In the beginning it was very hard for me to understand the book as I was trying to forget the prolouge and couldnt get into the book, but I carried on reading and suddenly I couldnt put the book down. I read the book quite quickly to say I was also reading other books along side this one.
Overall I would read this book again and I would definatley understand it more and definately read things I missed previously. I would recommend this book to whoever likes mystery killer books.
appalonia's review against another edition
4.0
The book starts out with heartbreak, as you find out Louise was apparently pregnant with Tom Thorne's child and has lost the baby. The two characters struggle with the loss and what it means to their relationship through the rest of the book. Hendricks lends friendly support to both of them. The actual mystery is really good in this one, a serial killer who is murdering the children of a previous serial killer's victims. Very well done resolution which I didn't see coming. And I enjoyed the few references to happenings and characters from previous books.