I didnt realise when starting this book it is the second in the series so I am sure some of what I didn't enjoy may have been to a lack of insight to the main characters. The ending seemed a little rushed but a good plot and well written

When I started this book, I really had this feeling that i'd missed something. My mind working overtime, i went and checked, and yes. Silly me, this was book 2. I had read 25% when I realised and thought it wouldn't matter. But then it got the better of me and I ended up going back and reading book one first. Then back to this one.

So what does book 2 offer.

Another outing with Caelan Small. A woman that after her last case is rather fragile. It's not take much to get her back in work though, Bandages and all.

​This is certainly a page turner, I have no problem recommending this book and I look forward to reading more.

Last July you may have seen me rave about a new detective series by Lisa Hartley, I reviewed Ask No Questions as part of the blog tour, and you can find it here. I adored Ask No Questions so you can imagine my excitement when I was contacted and asked if I’d like to take part in the blog tour for the sequel Tell No Lies. My review won’t feature any spoilers for Tell No Lies, but will feature spoilers from Ask No Questions so if you’ve not read it yet consider yourself warned!

Tell No Lies picks up just after Ask No Questions, Caelan is still coming to terms with the aftermath of her last case, dealing with her physical injuries, the betrayal of her senior colleague and the discovery that the love of her life didn’t actually die in her arms but that her death was faked and she had been taken into witness protection. Less than 24 hours into her enforced leave Caelan receives a phone call from Elizabeth Beckett calling her back to the station, a body has been discovered and it’s clear they were tortured before they were killed, with possible connections to a murdered police office Beckett wants Caelan on the case, not just on the case but working with Nicky. Tell No Lies follows Caelan and Nicky to North London as they immerse themselves into the gangs and drug dealers of the area – I will say no more on the plot!

I really enjoyed being back with Caelan Small for another investigation. If you’ve been following my blog for a while you may have noticed I do enjoy a good crime novel. The Caelan Small books differentiate themselves from a lot of other crime books by focusing on the work of undercover officers. I really enjoy reading this slightly different side to a criminal investigation, the different challenges an undercover police officer might face.

The introduction of Nicky brought an interesting new dynamic to the book, but I must admit to missing Ewan who featured less prominently in this story, however considering he is still nursing a couple of cracked ribs from the end of Ask No Questions it’s perfectly understandable!

I thought the plot was well paced, with well timed developments keeping me turning the pages well into the night desperate to know what was coming next, I must admit to being surprised by the final few chapters, and then there’s that ending! Yet again Lisa had be desperately flicking at my iPad trying to turn to another page that just wasn’t there, she definitely knows how to leave the reader wanting more, I really hope there’s a book three, and I hope I’m not left waiting for too long!

Would I Recommend?
Yes! In Tell No Lies Lisa has once again created a gripping, page turning thriller. I loved following Caelan through another adventure, and I certainly wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Tell No Lies to anyone who enjoys a good crime thriller. If you’ve not yet read Ask No Questions I’d definitely suggest reading that first to get the most out of Tell No Lies.

While in many ways this is just a typical police thriller, it's the characterisation that elevates "Tell No Lies" above the average. Caelan is an undercover cop investigating a string of crimes targeting the police and local drug smugglers.

Author Hartley takes us through the full implications of working undercover, the impact on both Caelan's personal life and her career, and how she interacts with her colleagues and targets. Although I wouldn't say that it's massively tense or surprise-filled, it's engaging and kept me wanting to know what happens next.

It's a light read, perfect for a few hours' escapism.

Rival drug gangs vying for territory, 2 missing cops and an undercover detective alone and stuck in the middle searching for answers. A real page turner from start to finish.

This is the first book I have read in this series but enjoyed it so much. A very well written book with twists and turn you don’t see coming.




Tell No Lies
by Lisa Hartley

Canelo

General Fiction (Adult) ,
Mystery & Thrillers

Pub Date 19 Feb 2018


I am reviewing a copy of Tell No Lies through Canelo and Netgalley:
A body is found in a basement, the victim had been tortured beyond imagining. Drug deals and smuggling has become more common and perhaps one of the worst things is the fact that's police sent to work on these cases are disappearing as well.


Many seem to think there is nothing connecting these crimes but Detective Caelamn Small can't shake the feeling something isn't right.

Detective Caelamn finds herself plunged into a dangerous new investigation, one that leaves lives on the line. Caelamn must get to the truth or die trying.

I give Tell No Lies four out of five stars!

Happy Reading!

I'm in between a 3.5 and 4 star here and can't quite sit at one or the other, so my review is based on an in between instead.

Though I liked the concept of the story, and the ending was amazing, as was Ask No Questions, I still felt the characters were shaky. I'm still not keen on Caelan; one minute badass, the next a wimp. And she's quite melodramatic about Nicky and it got a little annoying.

I'm gutted Ewan didn't get much of a part in this because he was the one character I really liked. He was a consistent character and his personality never changed throughout book one, but he hardly got a mention in this one.

I did feel the story dragged out more than necessary which made it an unnecessarily long read.

I did like the story line, where it went and how it ended, though I feel it's been left on a cliffhanger ready for another book in the series.

I liked Ryan's character, no idea why, but he was definitely the proper picture of a junkie and there was no stone left unturned with him.

Storyline: Great
Characters: Shaky in many places
Setting: Pretty good, definitely makes you imagine the streets of London; very detailed.
Ending: Amazing.

Did I see the twist coming? Yes, but that's because the main characters already had their suspicions, and he was the strongest link. I would have liked to know how they managed to find DI Hobbs and Nicky but never mind.

I great read, but one for if you have plenty of time to read it.

I started e this book directly after the first book, and I'm glad I did! The action of book one just flowed over to book 2, and it was done brilliantly! Well done, please where is number 3?

This is the second book and although I hadn’t read the first one I did enjoy it. I guess you can read as a stand-alone but I have ordered the first one now. Will look forward to the next one.
It’s pacy and I like the writing style do s 5/5 for me. I have given it 5 stars on goodreads too.

First time reader of the author and I look forward to more books by Lisa Hartley. Well written story line and it just didn't end how I thought it would. I love books that make you not want to stop reading and this is one that made me stay up to finish. Great job by the author!

This is the first book by Lisa Hartley that I have had the pleasure of reading and reviewing. Rest assured that it certainly won’t be the last. I really did enjoy reading it but more about that in a bit.
Caelan Small is the lead character. She is a strong and feisty female police officer, who has worked on many undercover operations. When we meet her, it is obvious that she has been left with scars- both mentally and physically from a recent police operation. Her partner, Nicky Sturgess, who is also an undercover police officer, took part in an operation and as a result of what happened, Nicky had to move to a safe house, whilst her loved ones were lead to believe that she had been killed. Understandably Caelan was more than a little miffed when she found out that not only had Nicky not been killed but she hadn’t seen fit to tell her that she had survived. I can see this from both sides of the fence so to speak. I would be absolutely hopping mad if I discovered that my presumed dead partner was really alive and kicking and living in a safe house. At the same time I can see why the police had to keep matters so secretive because the last thing they would want would be to place more people in danger. Caelan feels less than happy about going back to being a police officer but she is strongly urged/ emotionally blackmailed to return to work, as they have a big undercover operation planned. They need to find out who killed a police officer, his links to another murder and who is trying to muscle in on the drugs scene in their area. It isn’t too long until Caelan gets back into the swing of things and she is very food at thinking on her feet. Caelan is a bit reckless at times and places herself in unnecessary danger. So much so that I did begin to wonder if she had a death wish. However, it soon becomes clear that she is still not being told the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Caelan does what she does best and it isn’t too long until she makes progress in the investigation. At the same time she finds herself in ever increasing dangerous situations, which also risk the safety of those she cares about. Who is behind the murders? Who is the new face on the drugs scene in that area? Will Nicky survive and what does this mean for their relationship? Will Caelan survive in one piece? Well for the answers to those questions and more you are just going to have to read the book for yourselves to find out.
Reading ‘Tell No Lies’ is one hell of a rollercoaster ride of a read. There are several twists and turns and just when you think that things are on a bit more of a steady and even keel something happens, which feels just like a kick in the guts and off the action goes again. The story hits the ground running and maintains the pace throughout. I binge read ‘Tell No Lies’ over a couple of days because I just needed to know who had done what to whom and why. My binge reading worked really well because it helped give me a sense of the urgency of the investigation. The writing style is such that I was hooked from the Prologue onwards and reading ‘Tell No Lies’ became seriously addictive. I just had to read one more page, one more chapter and so on and so forth. Before I knew what was happening I had cleared a fair chunk of the book and I was still no nearer to fathoming out who was guilty and what their motivation was. ‘Tell No Lies’ is one of those books that will keep your interest, keep you entertained, keep you on the edge of your seat and it will certainly keep you guessing.
In short I really enjoyed reading ‘Tell No Lies’ and my introduction to Lisa Hartley and her books. I can’t wait to read what comes next from this talented and slightly twisted author. I would have no hesitation in recommending Lisa Hartley or her work to other readers. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a solid and very well deserved 4* out of 5*.

The second book in a series, but can definitely be read as a standalone. This was a fast-paced and gritty crime novel that hooked me from page one.

I was looking forward to this second book about Caelan by Lisa Hartley and was not disappointed. The story moves along at a good pace and whilst Caelan is yet another tortured 'heroine' copper she comes over as a believable character.
A solid writing style and intricate plotting means that this is a book that stands alone even though it is part of a series.
A good read.

Like it's predecessor, Tell No Lies has an action-packed and violent start. We are thrown straight into the story (which picks up soon after Ask No Questions finished). This story has some dark themes: it opens with us knowing of two people who have been violently tortured and killed. A police officer has been involved in a collision that may not have been accidental; her brother is a drug dealer and her family are well known in the drug scene. There is also a brothel where young immigrant girls are being held locked away. We know these threads will all link together somehow, but we have no idea how or why. I love stories that keep me me turning the pages into the small hours and guessing until very end (and beyond).

Caelan Small continues to be a strong character. She is opinionated, vocal and still wants to be in control, although we see her have to face the loss of this control at various parts of the novel. It was good to see Caelan taken out of her comfort zone and how she dealt with this. We see a more emotional side of her in Tell No Lies: her relationship with Nicky is examined in more detail as the two of them deal with the aftermath of Nicky's reappearance. Tell No Lies is set soon after Ask No Questions - so the emotions of Nicky's return from the dead are still running high (for the characters as much as for me). We get to see more of their history, their feelings towards each other and how they are each dealing with their relationship differently whilst having to work closely together on a new case.

We also get more insight into Caelan's other relationships: her growing working relationship and friendship with Ewan (who is just as wonderful in this second book), and her strained relationship with her family (and their feelings about her job). I enjoyed reading more about Caelan's life outside of work and I look forward to seeing her develop further.

Lisa's writing is excellent. The pace of the novel is perfect and kept me turning the pages until I couldn't read any more. The storylines are intricate with wonderful twists that caught me unawares (my notes for the BIG twist were just a string of expletives). The ending was dramatic, unexpected and utterly perfect. Lisa Hartley is a master of the genre and I cannot wait to read more from her.

As many reviewers before me has commented on this book is the second in a series. After I were totally confused by all the different characters who also to make it more challenging are sometimes called by their first names and other times by their surname, I looked the author up and found the first book in the series. I should probably have stopped there and bought the first one but I had already invested so much time on this one.
It’s a police procedural book with different departments involved which also affect who is in charge and add to the overall confusion. DS Caelan Small is the main character and does a lot of thinking outside the box which sometimes causes problems with her superiors. The story is about sex slaves, people trafficking and drugs - all the ingredients for a great story. I do recommend this book to anyone but with the warning to read the first book first. Thanks to #NetGalley for letting me read this book with my honest review.

Only after starting to read this book did I spot that it is the 2nd in a series featuring Detective Caelan Small.

It is a shame that I missed the first book in the series, because I feel that I have missed some of the back-story of some of the characters.

The story started strongly and built up to a very tense conclusion.

On the strength of this novel I will look forward to reading future Detective Caelan Small stories.

My thanks go to Netgalley and Canelo Books for a copy of this book in return for this review.

This is the second book in the series featuring Detective Caelan Small. This book can be read as a standalone, bit I do think I would have enjoyed the characters if I had known more about them and read the first one.
The book begins with Caelan being brought back from her leave after her first case to work undercover in a case of drug trafficking including a number of missing persons and a dead fellow officer. This is a fast paced police drama, full of intrigue that will have you turning the pages to the ending which I didn’t predict. Will definitely have to read Lisa’s first book. Ask No Questions, and then look forward to book number three in the series.
Thanks to NetGalley and Canelo for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

This was a great thriller, the ending was brilliant. This book is the second in the series, I read the first book before reading this one. Highly recommend this book. I can’t wait for the next instalment.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Lisa Hartley for the copy of this book. I agreed to give my unbiased opinion voluntarily.

This book was hard work but the last few pages were awesome and I loved all the twists and turns. I think it’s way better for people who read the first book as well because a lot of the book is built on the knowledge of the first book. Defo not a book to be read by itself. I honestly didn’t like the main character of Caelan, she seems arrogant and full of herself