Book review: Lost Girls by Angela Marsons

"Two girls go missing. Only one will return.

The couple that offers the highest amount will see their daughter again. The losing couple will not. Make no mistake. One child will die. 

When nine-year-old best friends Charlie and Amy disappear, two families are plunged into a living nightmare. A text message confirms the unthinkable; that the girls are the victims of a terrifying kidnapping. 

And when a second text message pits the two families against each other for the life of their children, the clock starts ticking for D.I. Kim Stone and the squad. 

Seemingly outwitted at every turn, as they uncover a trail of bodies, Stone realises that these ruthless killers might be the most deadly she has ever faced. And that their chances of bringing the girls home alive, are getting smaller by the hour… 

Untangling a dark web of secrets from the families’ past might hold the key to solving this case. But can Kim stay alive long enough to do so? Or will someone’s child pay the ultimate price?"

Lost Girls is the third novel in the DC Kim Stone series. I find it pretty mind-blowing that this is the third book Angela Marsons has released this year - what a massive achievement! I absolutely loved the first book in the series, Silent Scream, and thought the sequel, Evil Games was even better, so I had high expectations for Lost Girls. I honestly think that it's the best of the trilogy... Angela's writing is even more descriptive and flowing, the plot tense and gripping and it's a brilliant, tense and fast-paced thriller.

The story follows DC Kim Stone as she investigates the abduction of two young girls, doing all she can to bring them home safe. The case is on a press and police force blackout, meaning no-one except the officers assigned to the case can no about it. This is for the girl's safety, but does create some major barriers for the investigation. The stress and strains of the investigation are heightened as the force look back to a similar abduction case the previous year that didn't end well... one of the girls didn't make it home. This thought is constantly playing on Kim's mind and she is determined for it not to happen again. Things are made even worse when the kidnappers send on a ransom demand to the to families - the highest bidder wins and will get their daughter back. The lowest won't. This horrible situation creates even more twists and turns for the families and plays on their already heightened emotions. It's a terrible situation but, as a reader, an amazing idea from Angela Marsons. It makes what would be a difficult abduction case even more tense and uncomfortable and you can see the close relationship between the families unravel - secrets are revealed and sturdy relationships fractured, which makes for great reading. 

As usual, Kim Stone goes above and beyond to find the girls. She is a fantastic, realistic character. I've loved her since the start of this series, but I enjoy seeing her character develop and learning more about her. She just seems so real - it's hard to remember that you're actually reading a book. She's still just as stand-offish and cold, not wanting to make anything too personal, but I still really, really like her. She throws herself into her work and wants to do all she can to solve the case, and not just for her own personal satisfaction, but to genuinely help the victims and their families. She goes to great lengths to protect people and isn't afraid to bend the rules to succeed, usually to her boss's dismay, but for the right result. Towards the end of the story we see a big development in her personal life that's rather unusual for Kim. I must admit, I did see it coming, but I was still really pleased and I'm eager to see what happens next with that.

As usual with Angela Marson's stories we also get an insight into the mind of the abducter. This didn't make for easy reading, especially as one of the kidnappers is extremely violent. However, these chapters add another gripping layer to the story and really ramp up the tension. It makes you want to scream at Kim Stone 'I know who they are!!' and will her on to find them. Despite it not being the most comfortable topic to cover, Angela Marson's writing talents shine through - she creates a gripping, mind-whirring read that has you hooked from the very start. 

If you've read and enjoyed the rest of this series, then you will love Lost Girls. It really is brilliant.  If, somehow, you've missed out on the wonder that it Angela Marsons then I'd suggest you rectify that immediately! Purchase the others as well as Lost Girls and catch up on these gripping thrillers. If you love crime and mystery novels then these are the books for you. Saying that though, I started Silent Scream when I didn't read many crime books, and I loved it. So if you're looking for something a bit different or want to delve into a new genre, give this series a whirl! I'm pretty sure you won't be disappointed. 

So what are you waiting for?! Go and download all three books in the series and devour them as eagerly as I did - I have no qualms in recommending this series to anyone that will listen, it really is that brilliant. I can't wait to see what's next from Angela Marsons, but I have no doubts that it will be fantastic. 

*A big thank you to the publishers of Lost Girls, Bookouture, for an advance copy of the story in exchange for an honest review. 

Links: 

Buy Lost Girls

Buy Silent Scream (book 1)

Buy Evil Games (book 2)

Bookouture website

Angela Marsons website

Twitter 

Facebook

Book review: Evil Games by Angela Marsons

"When a rapist is found mutilated in a brutal attack, Detective Kim Stone and her team are called in to bring a swift resolution. But, as more vengeful killings come to light, it soon becomes clear that there is someone far more sinister at work. 

With the investigation quickly gathering momentum, Kim finds herself exposed to great danger and in the sights of a lethal individual undertaking their own twisted experiment. 

Up against a sociopath who seems to know her every weakness, for Detective Stone, each move she makes could be deadly. As the body count starts to mount, Kim will have to dig deeper than ever before to stop the killing.

 And this time - it’s personal."

Well, she's done it again. Angela Marsons has created yet another brilliantly written, gripping story that had me hooked from beginning to end. After the HUGE success of Silent Scream (the first novel in the DCI Kim Stone Series) Evil Games had a lot to live up to. But boy did it.

Like Silent Scream, the story flits between the narrative of the two main characters: DCI Kim Stone and Alex - the 'bad guy' for this story. Both these characters are absolutely remarkable and I loved reading about them, for very different reasons.

As an audience we already became acquainted with DCI Kim Stone in Silent Scream, and I loved her character as much in Evil Games as I did in the debut. She remains a gritty, hard-faced and, at times, difficult woman that is not to be messed with. I loved seeing her friendship with her colleague Byrant further develop- he is one of the few people she slightly opens up to and I enjoyed seeing a lighter side to Kim. She is still a work-a-holic, living and breathing the investigation at hand until it is resolved. Her strong work ethic warmed me to her as despite her abrupt nature you know she's doing things for the right reasons and I was rooting for her from the very start, willing her to solve the crime and cotton on that Alex isn't quite as picture-prefect as she appears.

That's brought me nicely on to Alex. What a unique, unusual antagonist to have in a story. Portrayed as a picture-prefect psychiatrist, Alex appears to be a completely normal, albeit glamorous, woman. What people don't realise is she is a twisted person with an interesting motive behind her selection of patients, choosing them specifically to work into her rather evil plan. I don't want to say too much else as it'll ruin it, but I thought Alex was a refreshing character that, although clearly the 'bad guy', isn't the usual, obvious murderer you'd expect in this kind of story. (Hopefully that should make more sense once you've read the book!)

The story develops at a fast pace and is gripping throughout, leading up to a huge conclusion that had me reeling for a few days. As with most stories, there is a big build up towards a final explosive conflict between the main characters and my, oh my, is that what happens. I won't say much more but the final few pages had me reading as fast as I could to find out what happens and it is so worth it. A satisfying ending with the only disappointment being that I'd finished! (boo).

I find it remarkable that an author can jump onto the crime-writing scene and provide an outstanding debut as well as an equally as brilliant sequel in the same year (well - half a year to be exact!). Angela is truly fantastic and I am so, so pleased she is firmly on the crime (writing) scene. She is a true expert at creating tension, providing just the right level of detail and creating characters that jump off a page. Angela firmly deserves all the success she has achieved with Silent Scream so far, and I'm sure that Evil Games will follow on and be a big success.  

If you haven't already gathered from this gushing review, I'd highly HIGHLY recommend this book. Just free up some time to read it as once you begin, you won't want to stop until you've read the very last word.

Now to start the wait for the third book in the series.....

Links:
Buy Evil Games 
Buy Silent Scream
My review of Silent Scream 
Author website 
Angela Marsons twitter

Book review: Silent Scream by Angela Marsons

Silent Scream - Angela Marsons
Published February 2015

"Even the darkest secrets can’t stay buried forever…Five figures gather round a shallow grave. They had all taken turns to dig. An adult sized hole would have taken longer. An innocent life had been taken but the pact had been made. Their secrets would be buried, bound in blood … Years later, a headmistress is found brutally strangled, the first in a spate of gruesome murders which shock the Black Country. But when human remains are discovered at a former children’s home, disturbing secrets are also unearthed. D.I. Kim Stone fast realises she’s on the hunt for a twisted individual whose killing spree spans decades. As the body count rises, Kim needs to stop the murderer before they strike again. But to catch the killer, can Kim confront the demons of her own past before it’s too late?"

Really, if it wasn't a cop-out, this could quite easily be a 1 word review.

Wow.

That's all I need to say about this book, perhaps also with the line 'buy it. Buy it now'. But, as a book blogger I know I need to tell you more, so here goes!

This has been one of the best books I've read so far this year. Usually,I'm not a reader of crime novels. I love murder mystery programmes - Broadchurch, Lewis, CSI, Criminal Minds, DCI Banks, even Midsomer Murders - I watch and enjoy them all but for some reason I rarely think to pick up a crime novel. However, it's been hard to miss the good things being said about Silent Scream. My twitter account has been full of fellow book bloggers, authors and fans commenting on how fantastic this book is, so I had to give it a go.

I'm so glad I did.

The novel follows DCI Kim Stone as she investigates a series of murders in the Black Country that all seem to link back to a closed, derelict former children's home. It is a gripping book that hooks you in from Chapter One. Take some time out to read this one, as you won't want to put it down once you start. 

The only thing I found hard to believe is that this is Angela's debut novel. It reads like a product of a well-established, long published author. It is fantastically written- the location, characters and level of detail around crime scenes are well thought through and jump off the page. It's clear a lot of research has gone into making police procedures and crime scenes as realistic as possible - and it pays off. 

DCI Kim Stone is a 'stony' character (see what I did there?!) - she is hard to please and a workaholic, pushing her team to their limits. Despite this, you really root for her to solve the crime and find the murderer. You get a glimpse of her difficult past which explains her brash nature and difficulty to form relationships. She may be prickly and stern, but I still really liked her. From the very start I was thinking GO! GO KIM! You also warm to the other members of the team, they all work extremely hard and are good at their jobs. 

Another point I really liked was the split chapters. The bulk of the novel follows Kim as she investigates the case, but on occasion some paragraphs are written from the point of view from the killer. This was an effective way to easily explain the murders and how the victims had been killed, as well as give you an insight into the murderers mind and why he was doing this. I was worried the book would be really gory and filled with finite details about each death. Now, some of the murders are pretty gruesome, but thankfully there isn't play-by-play details of the murders, more of a brief overview that even for someone squeamish like me, it's fine to read. 

Overall, this is a fantastic book that if you haven't read already I'd urge you to buy now. I'm also really pleased that Angela's second novel in the series Evil Games has been confirmed and will be published soon - I know for sure that one will be on my Kindle as soon as it's out!