I enjoyed this novel but wish I had read the previous one first. It wasn’t a stand alone book and I had to work out some of the back storywhich slightly detracted . However, I enjoyed the story and the ending was left open for the next in the series. Good read.

Clever and well written! Ramsay is a fluent storyteller.  This is the first book in the series that I have read but I will start at the beginning now. 
Many thanks to Black Thorn and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Unbelievably good take of families torn apart and personal history that comes back to bite you ! 

Completely in love with all the characters and I hope there is a future outing (I’m guessing there is) 

Great storytelling in my home town of Glasgow- loved it ! It’s s must read this summer

This is the first book I've read by this author, and therefore the first book I have read in this detective series.  After reading this book, I will definitely be reading the remainder of the series. 
The book follows several detectives involved in multiple cases that intertwine to end up involving the same people. There is a baby abduction, and there is a 5 week old child missing.  There were also multiple sexual assaults that have gone unsolved. To top it off they have some "missing" girls. Whose to know if they are connected in some way based on the circle of people they involve, or whether that is all just a coincidence.  
Easy reading with a twisty story; definitely right up my alley.

I don’t know if it’s because this is so many books into the series, but I really disliked this book. 

The writing seemed messy, the story just jumped around, I didn’t feel any emotion to any of the characters, and I really struggled to concentrate. I found myself reading the same passages again and again as things just didn’t make sense. 

Sorry, but not a thumbs up from me...

THE SUFFERING OF STRANGERS

by

CARO RAMSAY


	An apt title as this intense thriller opens with a series of cameos of seemingly unconnected people who are in distress.  Only as the book progresses do tenuous links begin these individuals appear.  The dramatic opening chapter is a grabber.  Who is the mysterious woman?  And what is the significance of the noise she heard before she plummeted to her death? 
	 Harrowing tales of child abuse, and baby selling make emotional reading.  I sense the author’s anger at the increase in such crime with which we are becoming increasingly aware.  Similarly she depicts the stress borne by social workers and the like who have to deal with the overwhelming number of cases, many of which are seeming brushed aside due to lack of staff.  The effect on police attempting to solve crimes involving youngsters is well illustrated as Costello and Anderson labour all hours seeking links and clues in an attempt to find missing children and solve crimes. 	They are familiar and much liked characters who have appeared in previous books.  This book can be read as a stand a lone but several earlier cases are mentioned and this can be irritating when the reader does not know the outcome. 
	Caro Ramsay’s reputation as a writer of  thrillers, dark and intense, and relevant to today is growing. Skilful with words she can lighten the gloomiest scenario with witty metaphors.  One guy is summarised as ‘not the first time this zip has taken him into trouble’ and poor exhausted Costello has a face ‘like a hallowe’en ghost’.
	A disturbing read highlighting situations when children become items of nefarious trades that I fear is close to the truth.   A thought provoking read that will hold the reader from start to finish.

Having not read any of the previous books from Carp Ramsay I sometime felt a little lost with the background of the characters. The plot was of different layers which I felt was very well written and intriguing. I really enjoyed the chaarater of Costello, she is witty and well rounded.  I did feel it was ok to read as a stand alone however it would of been better to start at the beginning.

This is a dramatic and enthralling tale, well told.

I see now that this book is the 9th in a series, but I came to it with no background in this series.  So, I had to become familiar with the characters at the same time I was endeavoring to absorb the story.

Starting to read the book, the process reminded me of doing a jigsaw puzzle.  A few tantalizing pieces are tossed on the table.  Then there are a few more pieces, and matching bits are found.  Progressing further we start to see where one small gathering of pieces is related to another.  Gradually, the bigger picture takes shape. 

The story we learn in these pages is powerful and troubling, and the further we get into it the more we want to forge ahead.  A young mother’s loss of her new baby is a story that pulls at our hearts, and we--with her--yearn for solution.  Relationships emerge, and we begin to get a sense of individual characters and how they are in turn related to others.  It is necessary to keep close attention to get the full drama of the story in all its layers.  By the book’s end, the puzzle is solved--but there is a piece left over . . .

My thanks to author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing an advance copy to read and review.

The New York Times review of this book a few weeks ago highlighted something I had noticed myself. Too many people have nearly the same name and it makes it hard to keep them straight. (This reminds me of my first attempt at "War and Peace" which used full names with patronymics, family names alone, given name and patronymic, and all of the different nicknames for each of the given names, which in Russia is alot. I had not studied Russian at the time and was thoroughly confused.)

While the overall story is OK, I found it to be implausible, given the strict recordkeeping standards we expect today. It occurred to me that swapped babies will be blocked from entering the school system and accessing National Health as the births were not properly registered.

As a result I've downgraded the book.

The Suffering of Strangers is a police procedural about a baby selling ring. DI Costello must quickly try to find the most recent missing baby and save other mothers from this tragedy. Her former boss Anderson gets involved, and when we realize he has a former personal relationship with one of the main suspects, it makes solving the case a little more tricky for DI Costello. 

I was a bit confused at points because there were so many characters and it took me a while to keep track of them and remember who was who. I think that when I realized it was the 9th in a series, it shed some understanding. I do wish I'd read one or two more of the earlier novels before jumping into this one because it seemed like there was a good amount of backstory I was missing.

Overall, it was an enjoyable read for me. I loved the descriptions of the setting and the bit of suspense added to the mix. 

Thank you to NetGalley and BlackThorn Publishing for the advance copy.

This was a very entertaining, pacy and gripping story concerning baby farming, murder and surrogacy.  A baby is stolen and DI Costello is drawn into this current case which overlaps with Colin Anderson's cold case and become a tangled web, with heartbreaking conclusions.

The characters are well-drawn and the back stories of their lives are drawn into the pattern very convincingly.

I really enjoyed the book and could not put it down.  It drew on my sympathies and I found some of the social workers' stories to be difficult to read.  Overall a cracking read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Black Thorn, Canongate Books, for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was my first book by Caro. I didn't realize this was actually a series. I don't know why, but I just cannot get enough of books about kidnappings. The only downfall is at times I was confused as I felt there were so many characters to keep track of. Never have I read a kidnapping book where someone leaves another baby! that was a great twist! The suspense was good and I have to say there were many surprises at the end. Will def read more by this author!

Enjoyed this both - initially confusing as everyone was called by surname rather than first name but an interesting subject with three dimensional characters, would like to read more!

This is the ninth (the ninth!) in a series featuring Glasgow detectives Costello and Anderson, a series which I’ve somehow managed to be completely unaware of until now, though as I’ve frequently mentioned I do love a good police procedural.

When a baby is abducted from his mother’s car, another baby inexplicably left in his place, the investigations begin to uncover secrets which go far deeper than anyone might have expected.

I liked the hard-nosed Costello (I don’t think her first name is ever mentioned, which I also liked, but did find the plot quite confusing at times (there seem to be a lot of characters - babies included)... but that could well be my fault for not paying close enough attention. And the police characters, at least, would have been more familiar to me had I read the previous books. As it was, I could never recall who was who, and feel I was definitely at a disadvantage here as a first time reader of the series.

Not all the dialogue flows naturally and there are a few sentences which could do with a good editing. As I read an advance copy, hopefully this will be cleared up by publication.

While the plot and characters are intriguing, and I liked the Glasgow setting, I didn’t enjoy this as much as I might - but it hasn’t put me off reading earlier books in the series. Apart from anything else, I’m interested to learn more about the backstory of the characters. And this one ends in a cliffhanger... so I’m probably going to have to read the next, too.

A brilliant thriller, the writer holds the reader is a grip that doesn’t ease off not even when the book has been finished. The next in the series is a must read for me. 
This was the first. of the series I have read but it doesn’t spoil the enjoyment of reading this one, now I need to go back to the beginning of the stories of these characters and read more.
Certainly the best thriller of the year.

I’m not usually one for a DI book. I just find them a little too much and a little too heavy. But due to the amazing writing style of this author. I actually found myself enjoying this very well written book.

The author wrote a thriller that started with a bang and just kept going!  The twists kept coming, so I couldn't put it down.  I cannot wait to read more from this author!

DI Costello is faced with solving the mystery of a child who has been abducted. More to the point, the baby, a healthy girl, has been switched with a boy who has Downs Syndrome. As Costello follows leads, she finds that this is more than a one-issue case - there are connections to several other cases, both cold and current. DI Costello is not on her own, but she doesn't always work well with others. Nevertheless, the case unfolds with several surprising twists. I enjoyed this book and would recommend it with one caveat: for American readers, some of the Scottish words and phrases are puzzling. Context is a big help, but the librarian in me had me looking up unfamiliar words to make sure I had the right meaning.

This book can be read as a stand alone novel (which is what I did), but the reader would definitely benefit from having read earlier books in the series, as there are a number of recurring characters with significant past history that is referenced in and relevant to this story.  The plot centers around missing babies and the mystery of who took them and why, as well as issues around infertility, issues with underfunding for social services, and conflict between the police and social service workers (who have similar overall objectives, but different priorities and procedures).  The central plot is interesting and well developed, with some good surprises, including a set-up for another novel in the series.  However, there are so many different characters, with various degrees of connection to other characters, that it was hard at times to keep track of some of them.  Though it might have been easier if I had read the previous eight books in the series and therefore had developed a lengthy and deeper understanding of many of the recurring characters.  There were also some plot twists that I did not particularly care for.  A decent book, but I am not sure I would take the time to read the earlier books.

I received a copy of the e-book via NetGalley.

A baby is taken from his mother’s car; in his place is a baby with Down Syndrome.  The cold case review team is looking into a series of historical rapes.  Do these have anything to do with each other?

This is number nine is a series featuring Glaswegian detectives Costello and Anderson.  I haven’t read the prior novels, and, unfortunately, this made me fell that I had come in in the middle of something.  A number of different characters were introduced and I really had to pay attention to keep them straight.  

Despite that, I found this to be a satisfying police procedural that was an engrossing read.