Carol Wyer has done it again, raised the bar so high with this book that I wonder how she would top this up with her next.
The main character DI Natalie Ward and her team have slogged hard in this book, worked day and night, looking at miles of footage of CCTV to find the tiniest of clues. Believe me, this was done on absolutely no sleep and junk food from vending machine. Why did this strike me, you ask? Because Carol has personalized them so much that they now feel like people I know, people I work with.
I love books like these where I can don my detective hat, sift through the clues, try to understand the forensics, and give my pointed, accusatory stare at the suspects. I have yet to interrogate them, but reading Carol’s book is like looking at the interview through the one way mirror.
The story went thus, girls were disappearing every day and found dead near the dumpster the next. 3 girls, 3 days. And then came Natalie’s daughter Leigh, she disappeared when her mom was at work… So it was race against time to get to the murderer. I loved Natalie’s fortitude and professionalism in the face of such a crisis. I was in awe of her. I loved the way her personal life unfolded in this. Didn’t like the husband much. He was meh!!
In every book in this series, the author has taken a social aspect and used her magical craftiness and plotted the story. This time too, Carol has used the new craze of a website daring each other to do weird (read this as stupid, every day I hear one such deed) stuff, and that gives evil to hiss and crawl, constrict its coils around the victim slowly one by one, strangulating life and squeezing the breath. Just a tiny niggle, I wanted better connection and reasoning for the murders.
Whew!! That was the book in short, sounds fun, doesn’t it? Get it, read it, and enjoy it!
I received an ARC from NetGalley and publisher Bookouture, and this is my journey into its pages, straight from the heart!!
All my reviews can be found here
P. S. Did I guess the murderer? Yep I did. If you read all of Carol’s books and love her as much as I do, you might just be lucky enough to get into her mind and find the murderer. Or it might just be a Freaky Friday thing happening!! 😂 😂
Why can’t these dares be the sort that help humans and life on earth
Like helping someone in need, being a support.
Why is it always stupid stuff that garners maximum publicity?
When thirteen-year-old Savannah Hopkins doesn’t come straight home from school as she always does, her mother Jane immediately raises the alarm. With her blonde ponytail and red school jumper, someone must have spotted Savannah.
Detective Natalie Ward is determined to help the distraught mother – her own daughter is the same age as Savannah. But before Natalie and her team can get started, their worst fears are confirmed when the teenager’s broken body is found in nearby shrubland.
Evidence points towards a local recluse, but just as Natalie closes the net around him, one of Savannah’s friends, Harriet, is reported missing. Harriet might look grown up and sophisticated but she is only fourteen…
As Natalie delves into the lives of both girls, she soon discovers a sinister video on both their phones, daring the girls to disappear from their families for 48 hours. She’s sure this is the key to the case, but before she can act, Harriet’s body is found discarded on a roadside.
Natalie’s superiors don’t have to put any extra pressure on Natalie. Devastated, she and her team work without sleep, watching that video over and over. But just as she thinks they’re getting close, the person Natalie loves more than anything goes missing.
Natalie is no stranger to loss. She is terrified and the clock is ticking. Can she push through her fear to catch this depraved killer, before her loved one becomes the next victim?
Publication Date: 25th April 2019
Publisher: Bookouture
43 Responses
What a fantastic review! Sounds like a missed a really great one. Adding this one to my list 💙💙
Huge thanks and I hope you enjoy it…
Shalini – thank you x
One for my TBR pile, it sounds like a great read and I love something that keeps me hooked.
Huge thanks. I hope you also enjoy it. xx
great review 💕as always 💕
Thank you ❤️
I was blocked for words for this book. And the next one… I have only one line running in my brain – Book was good… Now to expand on it
Shalini is an incredibly good reviewer, isn’t she?
Aww thank you. I think Carol, you are an awesome author
Fantastic
Thank you Nikhil ❤️
Super keep on rocking
Hahaha alright.
😂
Oh Shalini – I have no words to express how you have made me feel and there’s only one word to adequately describe this review and that is ‘awesome!’ I truly loved reading it. You have such a way with words (says the author – lol!) Also loved the discussion point. In brief I have enjoyed reading this review so much I have once again bookmarked it for future enjoyment. You have truly made my day and thank you too for sharing the book love. XXXXX
Aww you are so cute to say that. I love love love your Natalie Ward series. And I love you. You are an awesome human being.
And I was blocked for words to write this review. Hahaha I was not sure how it came out. Thank you for liking it. I had only one line – it was awesome. The other emotions wouldn’t come out 😂❤️
What an awesome review, Shalini! Glad to see you found a series and an author you thoroughly enjoy! I love it when I find a new author that I love. I always have to buy all of her books, and then I’m sad when I’ve read them all and there’s no more left to read! Thanks for sharing, and have a wonderful weekend, my friend! 🙂
Hey Leslie, this is a fantastic series and it is on Kindle unlimited so I love that it is accessible to everyone. Thank you so much.
Carol writes very good police procedurals… I enjoy the forensics
That’s awesome that you can guess who the killer is. I like reading thriller for that very reason though, often I prefer the twists in a way that I can never guess the killer hehe.. Lovely review Shalini!
Thanks Jasmine. Hope you like it too when you get to it
Boo Hoo – Bookouture rejected my Netgallery request ~ pouting…
It is on kindle unlimited… Get to it… The entire series is on there. Just checked
Boo! Am sad. x
Terrific review, Shalini! I’ve wanted to read this author for a while. Sounds like this is a great place to start!
Book 1 would be ideal as you would get to know the main character ❤️Thank you
Thank you Jennifer. I hope you do read it and enjoy it xx
I usually never get my killer right lol great review, Shalini!
I never do too. This was one of the rare ones. ❤️
Fab review Shalini!!! Another book added to the TBR list.
This was simply fabulous.. No 2 ways about it
might read this…
On kindle unlimited
😀
5 stars. yay! i love how you got so excited about being drawn into the story and feeling the characters and ‘witnessing’ the interviews. That’s pretty great.
Hahahaha well… I do like being a detective ❤️
😘😘
Fab review, Shalini and you are way better at detective work than I am. I only guessed the suspect like 3/4 into the story haha. Glad you enjoyed this one though.
Hahaha this was a freak accident… I am sure I would be clueless in the next one
Great review Shalini. I have read great things about this series. I love books that take current social issues and use them in their stories. I need to read this series, I believe it is available on KU
Oh yes, that’s the best part of this series. It is on KU