My thanks to Orion Publishing Group/Trapeze for an eARC via NetGalley of Stephanie Marland’s ‘You Die Next’ in exchange for an honest review.

This is the second in her Starke and Bell series. I hadn’t read ‘My Little Eye’ though this wasn’t an issue as enough background is provided.

When a group of urban explorers (urbexers) break into an abandoned film studio outside London they stumble upon a shocking scene: a kill room complete with body. They flee from a masked figure and it soon becomes clear to the reader that they are being hunted.

Clementine Starke is working on a project for her university linked to documenting what drives people to engage in thrill-seeking activities and is prompted by a contact to look at the exploits of this particular group. Meanwhile, DI Dominic Bell is assigned to investigate a murder in the London Underground not realising that his victim is linked to the urbexer group.

Clearly the events of ‘My Little Eye’ impacted upon the relationship between Clementine and Dominic and he is holding her at a distance, which was frustrating at times as she had useful information. More murders occur.

Clementine is a dark character and I found that I was both fascinated and ambivalent. I plan to go back and read ‘My Little Eye’ to understand more of her background and their dynamic.

A fast, intense, twisty, fun (in a dark way) crime thriller that was very hard to put down. I look forward to catching up and reading further outings with these two.

I enjoyed the cat and mouse game of this book.. wish I had read the first on because there are many references to the last book which has unfortunately made this one a bit confusing. Saying that this is definitely an on the edge read. The caractures are well written and make you feel for them. Thank you for letting me read this ARC. Netgalley and TBC reviewers.

This book was great! I haven't read the first book in this series but it didn't matter, this book read well as a stand alone book. It has however made me want to go back and read the first, and also wait in anticipation for the third.

Clementine is an intriguing character; she's a good guy, but has flaws, shes interesting nd I'm looking forward to seeing how she evolves over the next book.

This is my first novel by this author and although it does read as a stand alone I wish I had read book one for more of the back story.
I didn't really warm to Clem or Dom but that did not impact on my enjoyment of the story. It was an engrossing read that kept my interest and left me with unanswered questions which I suspect will contain to subsequent novels. There were several twists and turns and an ending I did not predict.
I would recommend if you like tales with a twist

A fast gripping read that is full of twists. I liked the two main characters and would definitely want to read more about them.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

A nail-biting prologue sets the scene for what’s to come. A group of urbexers (Urban Explorers) break into an abandoned movie theatre while live streaming the event but they stumble across something rather disturbing and the streaming goes dead! We then cut to Clementine Stark being interviewed about her role in the capture of The Lover from the last novel. Right from the beginning, I was hooked and then some!
I have to say that I really connect with Clementine Starke, something about her draws her to me. There something quirky about the character. Yet despite the quirkiness, Clementine is full of depth; her obsessive personality is explored in detail in this novel and we learn so much more about the mindset of this intriguing protagonist. Family relationships are under the microscope as she pursues her own investigation into her father's death. She is obsessed with finding out what happened to her father. For years she had blamed herself. But it is becoming clearer that all is not what it first seemed as she uncovers links to her father's past and her own present, leaving her unsure of just who she can trust. Clementine is one of the strongest characters I’ve read for a long time and I love her!
Running parallel to Clem’s research is DI Dominic Bell's investigation into an unexplained death in the tube and the author marries up both plots in perfect harmony as we watch both characters struggle with the weight of their private and professional lives. And of course, there is still that chemistry between Clementine and Dominic adding extra tension to the storyline.
Abandoned railway and tube stations, Urbexers relishing the challenge of the forbidden, obsession, corruption and narcissism in a world where people attach value according to social media likes and following this is a brilliant psychological exploration of a modern phenomena, it is both topical and relevant in a world where social media and the need for recognition leads the way. It is dark both in location, the underground and of course the metaphorical underground world of those who seek their thrills; character driven with a cast of both compelling and also very relatable characters who invite you inside of their head for the ride. This series nails it for me, a genius combination of character and perfectly executed plot drew me in, placing me firmly in situ and inside the minds of the characters. I found myself thinking about them when I wasn’t reading the book. I didn’t want to put it down but I didn’t want it to end! It kept me on my toes right up until the last page, this is definitely a "read past your bedtime" kind of book!
Review will be posted on blog as part of blog tour

This is a good read, mostly because the reader has no clue about what will happen next. Bringing together two opposite characters, who had a relationship previously, helps and hinders the investigation – and one of them isn’t in the police force!

Although this is a stand alone book, I wonder what I’ve missed from book one that might have been useful to know. I’ll go back and find out.

This novel gets more intense the deeper you go and while some of the twists and turns are difficult to follow, they all show where the story is going in the longer view. The main characters are set up for conflict while striving for the same collective result. This makes for a good read and an ever developing story.

I received a free copy of this book and this has not affected my review. I look forward to the next in the series.

Whilst I absolutely loved this book in places, I thought that there were some missing pieces... it knocked my socks off but then made me frustrated as it left some unanswered questions... so I hopped into goodreads to record it and discovered it is #2 in a series.... aha now it makes more sense.

So... we have a troubled heroine 🦸‍♀️ Clementine, her hero, policeman 👮‍♂️ Dom who she’s put on a pedestal and a group of urban explorers 🧭 who live stream their vlog 🎥 then a whole series of grisly murders... 🔪

Cue Dom frantically trying to avoid Clementine who’s desperate to help/be involved... and the story ramps up in intensity as the murders unfold...

Great book, but I wish I’d seen that it was #2 in the series as I’d have read #1 first... whilst it clearly can be read standalone I think it would have been better not to have been.

My thanks to Orion for an advance readers’ copy. On the basis of the story it’s a 4.5* read.

This one wasn't really my bag.
It's the second book in a police procedural series featuring Detective Inspector Dominic Bell and Academic and amateur crime sleuth Clementine Starke.
I read this as a stand-alone without reading book one and did manage to follow along.
There was some back story that I was slightly in the dark with and I do think this maybe slightly detached from my overall experience here: my advice here would be read book one first.
So where this didn't work for me mostly was that I was expecting something completely different than what this actually was.
I don't read police procedural books very often but do occasionally enjoy indulging.
This to me felt more about the chaotic and obsessive relationship developing between Dom and Clem and less about solving the actual crime itself.
The crime: Urban explorers stumbling onto something they shouldn't then being picked off one by one by an unknown assailant was what initially drew me to this story.
I felt this was a secondary concern to the main event which seemed to be Clem and Dom themselves.
I also didn't really like them as people either and thought they were both equally intense and unreasonable in their natures.
Clem was overly obsessive and Dom definitely sent mixed messages.
I also found this to be slightly predictable and I won't be carrying on with this particular series.
The writing itself was good its just not really my cup of tea folks.
I voluntary reviewed a copy of "You Die Next (Starke & Bell, #2)"
All opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

You Die Next is the first book that I have read by Stephanie Marland although it is the second in a crime series.

Having not read the first book wasn't a disadvantage as there was plenty of backstory which helps a newbie to fully follow the story & various relationships.

The story itself is a fast moving & engaging one with many twists & turns and it keeps you clicking the pages until the very end when a last twist nicely finishes the book.

Overall one I enjoyed and it is thoroughly recommended

Kept me guessing to the end!
I love the idea of urban exploring (especially the old tube stations, having once seen a fascinating program on ghost stations) but not so sure I want to join in anymore given the consequences!
Clementine and DI Bell were both incredibly well written, you could feel Dominic's frustration with Clemmie oozing out of every page as he thinks about her, avoids her and eventually talks to her.
The urban explorers were also great characters, the dual identity aspect of their personalities peeping through as the murder was committed and the very real struggle they had between reporting what they saw and their online ratings shows the power social media wields.
The final twist in the tale had me cursing myself for not even considering a suspect and for waltzing directly down the path I was led towards the wrong perpetrator!
An excellent read with plenty of suspense and frustration along the way!

I would like to thank Netgalley and Orion Publishing Group for an advance copy of You Die Next, the second novel to feature DI Dominic Bell of the Met and Dr Clementine Starke, psychologist and true crime detective.

When a group of urban explorers find a kill room in a disused film studio they argue about reporting it to the police but soon they don’t need to worry about that as someone is picking them off, one at a time. In the meantime Clementine is studying adrenaline junkies and trying to work out who framed then killed her father and Dom is trying to understand which of his colleagues betrayed him and his operation to a crime Lord.

I found You Die Next to be a bit of a mixed bag. On the one hand I enjoyed the hunt for the killer with its misdirection and good twists but, on the other, I didn’t like the characters or the corruption angle which seems far fetched, not that it exists but the lengths they go to to avoid discovery. Even worse, this plot line appears to be a thread that will run through the series so there is little resolution in the novel, only new avenues of enquiry. I also liked the format which has a shifting perspective between Clementine, Dom and the urban explorers. Clementine and Dom have little interaction about the murders but both end up in the same place from entirely different directions. The compare and contrast effect of their two narratives gives the reader a fuller picture which is rounded off with the urban explorers’ actions and reactions. I often find the switch between perspectives choppy and distracting but in this case I think it adds to the read.

What can I say about the characters? The constant strife between them is wearing to read. I haven’t read the first novel in the series so I don’t know the reason for Dom’s animus towards Clementine but it seems a touch extreme. Blocking her without explanation is not a good look. Perhaps though Clementine deserves it. She is fairly obsessive about Dom and while she is self aware enough to recognise it she doesn’t seem to be able to do anything about it. To be honest she’s the type of person I would go out of my way to avoid and that’s what Dom has done, brutally. He’s not much more likeable, given to fits of temper and brooding. It’s all about him, always. To be fair it’s good writing to produce a reaction.

You Die Next will appeal to many readers but I prefer characters I can like.

I loved the first book in this series and so couldn’t wait to read this one, and I wasn’t disappointed! I think it might even be better than the first and that’s saying something!

Once again Clementine Starke is back. She’s a brilliant flawed character – hard as nails on the outside, but inside she’s very fragile. She’s damaged and obsessed in trying to find her father’s killer. Her relationship with DI Dominic Bell is extremely strained and he wants nothing to do with her.

The book has a really modern feel to it. The storyline about urban explorers was really gripping and intriguing as I’d never heard of them (must be my age!) and I could feel the tension as they explored the derelict buildings, and I read until 3am just to finish it.

As I said this is the second in the series and there are lots of mentions about Clementine and Dom’s previous case, and also about Dom’s IPCC investigation, so I feel that if I hadn’t read the first book I might not have known exactly what was going on.

This was a definite 5* read and I hope there will be more in the series!

I read this not realising it was the second in the series, although it doesn't matter to the plot I found the two main characters complex and I would have benefited from getting to know them in the first book.
Dom is officially as a detective trying to solve a murder, he has a lot of other things going on and is battling to stay focused and on top of things. Clementine is unofficially trying to solve the murders through her true crime followers and exploring obsession for her PhD. Dom tries to stay away from her although she may be the only one who can help him solve the murder.
The ending leads us to think there'll be another.

Thank you to both NetGalley and orion publishing group, trapeze and the author for my eARC of this book in exchange for my honest unbiased review

here comes the blurb as the say it better than i ever could!

When a group of urban explorers stumble across a murderer's kill room in a derelict film studio, terror strikes. And when one of the group is found dead, the team realise - they're being hunted.
DI Dominic Bell is investigating the murder, but as the body count rises, time is running out. The only person who can help him is Dominic's ex, Clementine Starke - but Clementine is haunted by her own demons. Can the two of them pair up to catch the killer? Or is it already too late?

very much enjoyed this book loved the serial killer element only wish i had read the first book as i felt like i was missing a bit of connection with the main characters! looking forward to reading more form Stephanie Marland!

I really enjoyed this book. I knew nothing about urban explorers before reading this book but it’s really interesting and love the thought of finding abandoned places being reclaimed by nature. The serial killer story was exciting and I loved the two main leads and really need another book to find out what happens next. This did not disappoint.

A dark murderous story set amongst abandoned buildings in London. I liked the sound of the story and that worked well. Urban explorers thrill seeking in these abandoned buildings and stations come across a kill room. They are there illegally and linking to the outside world during their exploits via social media, getting immediate feedback as they go. This demonstrated the nasty aspects of the media to me. Detectives are trying to find the murderer 'helped' by a young PhD student researching obsession. Said student is herself obsessed with the main detective character and this felt both unrealistic and uncomfortable. to me. Likewise the relationship with her supervisor; this would be seriously frowned upon by most, if not all, British Universities. The story was strong and interesting, the detection ok. I'm afraid that I disliked said student too much to either read book 1 in the series or to read future stories and her character lost a star for the book. Thanks to NetGalley and the Orion Publishing Group for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this tale, but, wasn't as wowed with it as others appear to have been.

It's an engrossing tale about a damaged academic who is writing a Phd on obsession and who is pulled into a murder investigation when some urban explorers come across a murderer's kill room. It's a good premise and some interesting characters, but, there was something missing for me which made this an OK read, rather than a really good one. I'm not sure if it's due to my not having read the first book in the series, but, I'd advise you do before reading this to ensure you fully understand the characters.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to preview in exchange for this honest review and I wish it and the author every success.

A very enjoyable read! I was very interested in getting my hands on this one after I read the blurb and I am pleased to say that I was not let down.

The story is written very well and the characters are interesting and jump off the page. I would recommend this read!

This is the second book in the wonderful Starke and Bell series and oh it’s a goodie and just as brilliant if not better than the first !!! I love Clementine Starke she is one hell of a character, dark, obsessional, hard as nails on the outside and yet fragile inside. Dominic (Dom) Bell is also very well written a real and likeable character If not somewhat flawed at times by his own demons. The storyline is is excellent a real gripping thriller violent at times and as the body count rises Clementine and Dom work together (not always that comfortably) to hunt the killer. This really is an unputdownable read and I’m so looking forward to reading the next instalment in this series which I know will be one of my favourites of 2019. So if you love your thrillers dark and gritty then you have it all here a real 5 Star read and well recommended.
My thanks to NetGalley and Orion Publishing group / Trapeze for giving me the chance to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.