Synopsis:
Jessica Ripley didn’t kill her ex-husband. But everyone thinks she did. After serving twelve years for his murder, it’s time to get her own back on those who put her inside.
During those twelve years, Jessy’s son, Michael, has turned against her. Whatever mercy Jessy had for her intended victims, just blew away.
CSI Eddie Collins is having a hard time watching his father enjoying life. He’s also having it tough in the form of two new recruits to his office. One is off his tree on drugs and the other wants his job.
And then the murders begin.
Can Eddie trust the evidence, or is someone twisting it, desperate to get even? And who did kill Jessy’s ex?
My Review
This is my first full length Eddie Collins novel. I have previously read two of Andrew’s novella’s and enjoyed them enormously so I was thrilled to take part in this blog tour. I know a little about the characters in these books from my previous reads. However, I feel confident in saying this can be read as a stand alone and you will still thoroughly enjoy it.
Eddie
Oh how I have grown to love him. I would imagine he’s a very marmite character. He has a caustic manner, clearly there is history there which has added to this and I will be going back to the beginning to fill in my own gaps. He’s fantastic, says it as it is and suffers no fools. There is a softer side to him that peeks through occasionally.
I love the way he conducts scenes. Andrew gives you finer details into the workings of CSI which I really enjoyed. The way Eddie views and processes the scenes, gives the reader excellent insight into what is going on. I found myself really encaptured in the details.
I am doing a disservice to the other characters. Andrew has such a great array of unique individuals in his book. This really makes a book for me. I have to connect with the characters to enjoy the book. (It’s why I bang on so much about characters in my reviews!) They all work so well together and I loved their interactions.
The Story
Interestingly the reader finds out quite early on who is responsible. Or do they? Jessica is out of prison, she just wants to get her life back on track and rekindle her relationship with her son. But then her defense lawyer gets murdered.
Things start to unravel pretty fast for Jessica, her son doesn’t want to know her. He was two when she was put in prison, he’s 14 now and settled with his foster family. Jessy wants revenge for all those wasted years. Her ex boyfriend is also hanging around and isn’t very welcome.
There were many moments in this book that made me go ‘hang on a minute!’ I thought I had everything figured out but this is a book that will make you wonder how you didn’t notice certain details. It seems pretty straight forward, but it’s really not.
What I also enjoyed where the smaller threads running through the book. Eddy and his dad are having cross words about his dads new love. Two new recruits are making things hard for Eddy as well as two new bosses. It felt like real life.
Final Thoughts
I was looking forward to reading a full Eddie Collins novel and this certainly lived up to expectations. The pacing is perfect, the book is written in quite short chapters which really helps to pull you through. I sat and read this in two sittings. A story that you feel goings to be quite obvious catches you off guard several times. A brilliant crime thriller and any fans of the genre should get acquainted with Eddie ASAP.
My thanks to Sarah for inviting me on to the blog tour and to Andrew for a copy of his book in exchange for an honest review.
Author Bio:
Andrew Barrett has enjoyed variety in his professional life, from engine-builder to farmer, from Oilfield Service Technician in Kuwait, to his current role of Senior CSI in Yorkshire.
He’s been a CSI since 1996, and has worked on all scene types from terrorism to murder, suicide to rape, drugs manufacture to bomb scenes. One way or another, Andrew’s life revolves around crime.
In 1997 he finished his first crime thriller, A Long Time Dead, and it’s still a readers’ favourite today, some 150,000 copies later, topping the Amazon charts several times. Two more books featuring SOCO Roger Conniston completed the trilogy.
Today, Andrew is still producing authentic crime thrillers with a forensic flavour that attract attention from readers worldwide. He’s also attracted attention from the Yorkshire media, having been featured in the Yorkshire Post and interviewed on BBC Radio Leeds.
He’s best known for his lead character, CSI Eddie Collins, and the acerbic way in which he roots out criminals, and administers justice. Eddie’s series is five books and three novellas in length, and there’s still more to come.
Andrew has recently discovered the delights of writing stand-alones, with one under his belt another under way.
Andrew is a proud Yorkshireman and sets all of his novels there, using his home city of Leeds as another major, and complementary, character in each of the stories.
You can find out more about him and his writing at www.andrewbarrett.co.uk
Links:
Contact: andrew@andrewbarrett.co.uk
Website: https://www.andrewbarrett.co.uk
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/AndrewBarrettUK
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AndrewBarrett.author
Exclusive Readers Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/BarrettERG/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andrewbarrettauthor
Amazon.co.uk: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Andrew-Barrett/e/B0055888Q0/
Amazon.com: https://www.amazon.com/Andrew-Barrett/e/B0055888Q0/
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