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A review by confessions_of_a_bookaholic
The Burning Men by Will Shindler
3.0
Five years ago a new development in South London caught fire. Five of the first responders went into the building to try and save someone they spotted in the window, but they are unsuccesful. They leave the fire service. The men haven't spoken sincethey left the service, until one of them is shockingly set alight at his own wedding. Soon after another of the men is found burned alive. DI Finn and DC Paulsen are the detectives investigating the case, and are racing against the clock to catch the killer before all five men are murdered.
This is the first book in what is planned to be a police procedural series featuring Finn and Paulsen. It was quick to get into, jumping into the nitty gritty of the story immediately, and keeps moving at a decent pace throughout.
I liked Finn's character, he seems to be a rather reserved character, someone who takes the time to think things through rather than making leaps of faith. I like that he doesn't fall into the stereotype that we often see in these sorts of books. I'm unsure about Paulsen. I like that she is also different, and that she is a strong woman, however her persona rubbed me up the wrong way at times. For both characters the author spends time developing their backstory and really fleshing them out which is great, especially for a series. Hopefully he keeps building on this as the booms progress.
In terms of the plot I found the premise really interesting. Although some parts of the story became clear very early on, others weren't revealed until the end of the book. There were times when I felt things were a little obvious, and some of the procedural aspects seemed over explained to me, but that is possibly because I have read a lot of these sorts of books and so have read about similar procedures before.
All in all the book was an enjoyable read, there was plenty going on and the story was interesting and different. I'll be interested to see what Shindler writes next and see how the two main characters develop. If you like police procedural books you'll definitely enjoy this one.
Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an arc in exchange for an honest review
This is the first book in what is planned to be a police procedural series featuring Finn and Paulsen. It was quick to get into, jumping into the nitty gritty of the story immediately, and keeps moving at a decent pace throughout.
I liked Finn's character, he seems to be a rather reserved character, someone who takes the time to think things through rather than making leaps of faith. I like that he doesn't fall into the stereotype that we often see in these sorts of books. I'm unsure about Paulsen. I like that she is also different, and that she is a strong woman, however her persona rubbed me up the wrong way at times. For both characters the author spends time developing their backstory and really fleshing them out which is great, especially for a series. Hopefully he keeps building on this as the booms progress.
In terms of the plot I found the premise really interesting. Although some parts of the story became clear very early on, others weren't revealed until the end of the book. There were times when I felt things were a little obvious, and some of the procedural aspects seemed over explained to me, but that is possibly because I have read a lot of these sorts of books and so have read about similar procedures before.
All in all the book was an enjoyable read, there was plenty going on and the story was interesting and different. I'll be interested to see what Shindler writes next and see how the two main characters develop. If you like police procedural books you'll definitely enjoy this one.
Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an arc in exchange for an honest review