Brilliant, not disappointing read at all! Wonderful to get into the life and role of Helen grace again. Catch up with Charlie brooks and the rest of the team! Awesome writing love love love

Please, do yourself a favour if you haven't already done so and start this series from book one and read in order. To say that Helen Grace is a bit complex would be a bit of an understatement so to get the best from her, what she does, and how she does it you do need that backstory. Oh and they are all brilliant reads in their own rights so, why wouldn't you?!
So, someone is killing people with arrows and stringing them up in the New Forest. Sounds like just another day for Helen and her team. Disappearing from tents, pitched at campsites, in the middle of the night, leaving their partners still asleep too. Bizarre! With two bodies so far, is there a connection between the two or are these just random acts of violence. With a new team member to get to grips with, can Helen solve this before things get worse? And, more importantly, before annoying journalist Emilia interferes too much.
I love this series. Despite the fact that I live in Portsmouth and it is set in Southampton (although we here spell that word in a completely different way I will try and play nice here) I do like it that I know a lot of the places mentioned, if in name only for the most part.
It also has the best mix of characters who, together with our main character Helen, all rub along nicely. Some more than others and all in their own ways. They have all, for the most part, suffered in their own ways and are all very supportive of each other even though, on the face of things, they may be chalk and cheese. Even the new boy to the team brings something to the table even if he can't yet see it himself. Even that blooming darned annoying journalist has her part to play in things.
The plot this time is an absolute doozy. So much so that I am going to say absolutely nothing more specific about it. Needless to say though, it meanders around and about itself, dragging the police this way and that, down dead ends as it twists and turns along to a conclusion that I really (hand on heart) didn't see coming even though there were clues along the way.
What I loved most about this book is the spark that a certain person has re-ignited in Helen. I had started to think that she has tamed a little too much recently, since prison and definitely in her previous outing, but here, I think she may have not only a willing participant but also an adrenaline rival and I'm definitely looking forward to seeing how this develops, especially as it has Simmon's apparent approval!
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

M J Arlidge just gets better and better!

Having read all of the previous books in the series I was really looking forward to the next instalment, particularly as I am a resident of the New Forest.

The plot cracks along at a great pace and just when you think you know in which direction it is headed new lines of enquiry are introduced and you are constantly wondering what will happen next.

It was great to meet all of the old characters and the introduction of new ones was welcome, adding a new dynamic to plots and relationships.

The ending felt satisfying and was not rushed, although I was reading faster and faster to find out how the ending would pan out. Looking forward to the next one already!

I loved the previous DI Helen Grace books and so was super excited to receive a copy of this one to review from NetGalley. As expected, it did not disappoint. Helen Grace is a brilliant heroine with well-written supporting cast, and Arlidge skillfully writes his thrillers, keeping you enthralled and guessing til the last page as he ties the loose ends up. Being set in the place I grew up gives these stories an added layer of enjoyment for me, as I recognise places I knew. I'm already anticipating the next one.

I read Down to the Woods, the eighth Helen Grace book in a couple of days. It follows the story of a sickness in the forest. First horses and then innocent men and women hunted down and murdered by a faceless figure. It’s down to Helen Grace and her team to find the killer before he takes any more lives.

This book is fast paced.’good plot line and enjoyable read.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin UK Michael Joseph and the author for the chance to review.