A review by abookwormwithwine
Murderland by Pamela Murray
4.0
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5
It's hard to believe, but [b:Murderland|46257409|Murderland|Pamela Murray|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1560247136l/46257409._SX50_.jpg|71243691] is [a:Pamela Murray|1089533|Pamela Murray|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1563474694p2/1089533.jpg]'s first crime fiction novel. If this hadn't been mentioned in the acknowledgments I never would have guessed!
What it's about: DI Joe Burton and DS Sally Fielding have been partners for years when they are called to investigate the grisly deaths of people with playing cards left at the scene. As bodies keep coming and the case gets even more confusing, Fielding and Burton will have to race against time before the next target gets killed.
Murderland is one of the most unique crime novels I have ever read and I really enjoyed it! I usually like it better when each chapter is spoken from a specific point of view, but Murray chose to have both Burton's and Fielding's viewpoints throughout the book, and many times in the same paragraph. That would normally drive me insane, but the voices were so clear in this book and there were enough identifying markers that it didn't bother me at all. Every once and awhile there would be a tiny bit of another POV, but that didn't bother me either! I clearly really like this author's writing style and I don't think it is going to confuse anyone.
I also really liked both Burton and Fielding and was intrigued by the bit of their personal lives that get mentioned in this book. Fielding has 2 cats, so I was completely sold on her just for that reason, but they are also both so smart and gruff and I loved it. The crimes in Murderland did get a little gory, but there isn't a whole lot of detail, so most people won't get grossed out by it. After reading some pretty intense (super gory) books, this felt like a bit of a respite from all that.
Murderland is the first book to a series with the next being [b:Bloodline|47943296|Bloodline|Pamela Murray|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1566914783l/47943296._SX50_.jpg|73108504], and I am really excited to see what is next for this series. Murderland ended on the tiniest bit of a cliffhanger personal-wise, and I can't wait to see how it comes together. This style reminded me a bit of Criminal Minds, which I love, so that made me even happier.
Final Thought: Murderland had an ending that while I did have some suspicions on, I didn't expect the full killer reveal that happened. I love a book that can surprise me, and that is what this book did. It was also incredibly short, and for being just under 200 pages it didn't even take me 3 hours to read. If you are looking for a super unique crime novel that you can read in one sitting (that isn't overly gory), then I highly recommend checking out Murderland!
It's hard to believe, but [b:Murderland|46257409|Murderland|Pamela Murray|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1560247136l/46257409._SX50_.jpg|71243691] is [a:Pamela Murray|1089533|Pamela Murray|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1563474694p2/1089533.jpg]'s first crime fiction novel. If this hadn't been mentioned in the acknowledgments I never would have guessed!
What it's about: DI Joe Burton and DS Sally Fielding have been partners for years when they are called to investigate the grisly deaths of people with playing cards left at the scene. As bodies keep coming and the case gets even more confusing, Fielding and Burton will have to race against time before the next target gets killed.
Murderland is one of the most unique crime novels I have ever read and I really enjoyed it! I usually like it better when each chapter is spoken from a specific point of view, but Murray chose to have both Burton's and Fielding's viewpoints throughout the book, and many times in the same paragraph. That would normally drive me insane, but the voices were so clear in this book and there were enough identifying markers that it didn't bother me at all. Every once and awhile there would be a tiny bit of another POV, but that didn't bother me either! I clearly really like this author's writing style and I don't think it is going to confuse anyone.
I also really liked both Burton and Fielding and was intrigued by the bit of their personal lives that get mentioned in this book. Fielding has 2 cats, so I was completely sold on her just for that reason, but they are also both so smart and gruff and I loved it. The crimes in Murderland did get a little gory, but there isn't a whole lot of detail, so most people won't get grossed out by it. After reading some pretty intense (super gory) books, this felt like a bit of a respite from all that.
Murderland is the first book to a series with the next being [b:Bloodline|47943296|Bloodline|Pamela Murray|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1566914783l/47943296._SX50_.jpg|73108504], and I am really excited to see what is next for this series. Murderland ended on the tiniest bit of a cliffhanger personal-wise, and I can't wait to see how it comes together. This style reminded me a bit of Criminal Minds, which I love, so that made me even happier.
Final Thought: Murderland had an ending that while I did have some suspicions on, I didn't expect the full killer reveal that happened. I love a book that can surprise me, and that is what this book did. It was also incredibly short, and for being just under 200 pages it didn't even take me 3 hours to read. If you are looking for a super unique crime novel that you can read in one sitting (that isn't overly gory), then I highly recommend checking out Murderland!