Where the Dead Fall is the second book in the DI Ridpath series and happens to be even better than the preceding novel. It's a compelling page-turner with many twists, turns and ample misdirection to keep the reader guessing and there is more action than you can shake a stick at. With fast pacing, an interesting and unusual protagonist and a superbly crafted, exciting yarn, crime fiction aficionados will find a lot of enjoyment within these pages. I never thought I would say this, but I very much enjoyed the politics surrounding policing which come across as well researched and realistic.

Many thanks to Canelo for an ARC.

This is the second book in the DI Tom Ridpath series and I was lucky enough to read the first book so I was looking forward to reading this new book and I wasn't disappointed .DI Ridpath now works for the Coroners Office after his battle with Cancer ,he is driving down the motorway when a nearly naked young man runs in front of him being chased by a gun man , Ridpath manages to avoid him but a lorry runs him over and so begins the start of a really gripping read .Set in Manchester it seems that gangland is rearing it's ugly head again !! This is a fabulous read ,all the characters are believable very hard to put down ,the ending left me wanting to read the next book in the series .Many thanks to the Publishers ,the Author and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest review

Gripping from start to finish. This is a really well written book that is full of action and suspense. The plot is well thought out and kept me guessing the whole way through. The characters are really good and I hope there are more books to come in this series so I can find out more about them.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

DI Ridpath returns in this sequel to Where the Truth Lies. Ridpath is still working at the Coroner's Office and juggling that busy role with his health and increasingly fracturing family life. Whilst driving to see his daughter, Ridpath sees a semi-naked young man run into the busy road. The man looks frightened for his life and following his gaze, Ridpath sees a man with a gun standing by the side of the road. The first young man is unfortunately hit and killed by a lorry before Ridpath can react, and when the police arrive to investigate, the other drivers claim not to have seen the gunman.

I thought this was a great follow-up to the first book. The pacing is excellent, the main character is engaging, and I found myself eager to read the next chapter. The only downside was the overuse of superiors failing to listen to Ridpath to their detriment. I did notice that Ridpath seems to spend quite a bit of time noting the appearance of one (as yet) minor character, and I wonder if this is an indication that romance will blossom further through the series if things do not work out with his wife.

Thanks to NetGalley and publishers, Canelo, for the opportunity to review an ARC.

This is book two in the DI Ridpath series and every bit as good as book one. Ridpath is a very likeable character and I quickly became drawn in by his personal problems. The book is fast paced and a very well written piece of crime fiction, with excellent character development. Set in Manchester, gang wars, murder and family treachery make this a winning read, with an excellent ending. My thanks to Net Galley for my ARC. Reviews on Amazon, Goodreads and Facebook.

# where The Dead Fall #Netgalley
oh my god . Wow what a absolutely awesome book, it’s the first book I have read of this author and it’s his second D I Ridpath book, you bet I am going to be doing things the wrong way round. After reading this one I just have to go back and read the first. I absolutely loved the characters in the book including Ridpaths boss Charlie, his sarcastic comment about the new boss of MIT Clare Trent. Who’s Charlie’s superior officer. Ridpath really started something on the day his was involved in a near traffic Accident on the M60 fortunately for Ridpath he managed to stop in. Time, without giving spoilers away, not only called the accident in, he saw something that no one else seemed to see even his colleagues doubted what he saw, this started a chain of events that could lead to a gangland war like Manchester hadn’t seen for many years. It’s took me a few days to read it, in all honesty I genuinely didn’t want to put the book down, it’s was just unfortunate I have a bad case of the flu. Otherwise this book would have been finished a good few days ago in one sitting. How the plot of this book keeps twisting leading in one direction only to be thrown in another, Ridpath tried to explain to Clare Trent and Charlie what he had found out each more of less dismissive of him. Oh boy, never would I have guessed who the sister was, of Ronnie Wilson. With that it’s definitely down to you ALl mystery lovers to read it. Trust me truthfully you will definitely not be disappointed. One of the best I have read in awhile, believe you me, there’s some damd good books coming out soon, I have said about a couple being the best I have read, I meant it although they come under the myster thriller style. We all know there’s so many many styles come under that label, police procedures with misers, serial killers, gangland, and a few more. Seriously the authors are just getting better and better all the time, I have been a big reader for over 45 years, this ones going to go down as a book to remember love it, read it promise it’s a fantastic read

Coming Soon! April 11, 2019
The second novel in the Intriguing, edge of your seat suspence series starring DI Tom Ridpath!

"He chewed the rope once more despite the pain, twisting his mouth so his canine teeth came in contact with it.
He would escape, he wasn’t going to be trapped here for the rest of his life. Soon, the family would realise he was missing. His father would come looking for him, wouldn’t he?
His mouth was dry, all spit absorbed by the rope. He stared at his wrists. A few fibres were sticking out from the rope but otherwise it looked untouched.
Why was he so thirsty?
He stared at the slime-covered wall in the light from above the door. Could he lick it again? Anything for a few drops of water to moisten his dry mouth.
He was about to lean forward when the green slime darkened, vanishing from view.
What?
What was happening?
Were they going to let him go?
A shadow covered the door. The handle was turning, the click of a key in the lock. The smell of cigarette smoke filling the room.
A man framed in the door, silhouetted by the neon light.
‘It’s time we had some fun.’"

********
Where the Dead Fall by M.J. Lee is the second novel in the addictive DI Tom Ridpath series and it was as thrilling as the first one!
This is my second book by M.J. Lee and I'm very glad to have been introduced to him!
DI Ridpath is an engaging, big as life character who I grew fond of in book one and I couldn't wait to see what he was up against next. He's a dedicated man who refuses to give up until he gets to the truth even putting himself in harms way, not once, but multiple times!
The storyline in this book continues from the first book, Where the Truth Lies, so to get the most of this book I recommend reading this series in order.
Both books were highly enjoyable and I hope there will be a third in this series as I'd love to see what Ridpath gets up to in the future!

With Thanks to NetGalley, Canelo publishing, and M.J. Lee for giving me this advanced digital copy to read and review.

Where the Dead Fall by M J Lee
I think M J Lee is becoming close to being one of my favorite authors of British Murder Mystery/Dectectives stories. This is the second DI Ridpath book I have read and both I have thoroughly enjoyed and they come under the 'hard to put down' category.
Based in Manchester, which Lee brings to life, Ridpath is a fully formed all rounded character, where all his faults and flaws are apparent and he tries to build his crumbling personal and work life after struggling to overcome cancer.
In, Where the Dead Fall, Ridpath is determined to put a 100% effort into coaxing his wife and daughter back into the family home, but on setting out for a family day, he is caught up in an road incident, making him late, but also getting him personally involved in the case. As a hunter of the truth and a lover of inconsistences he carries on determined to find the truth while stepping on everyone's' toes along the way.
Due to his ill health and recovery, he has been seconded to the coroner's office to help, but he finds his work crosses over between the detectives office and his own. Lee is a craftsman for hunting down the truth.
Now, after praising Lee and Ridpath for their skills and brilliant story telling I have to mention the thing that to me was a negative. The ending. It left me hanging and trying to get to the next chapter. I think it was totally unnecessary. After a great story I put my kindle feeling flat and disappointed. It needs a new ending. for this reason I am giving it four stars.
I thank NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Driving along the busy M60 in Manchester, DI Ridpath is forced to brake when a young man wearing only a pair of boxer shorts runs in front of his car. Ridpath manages to stop just in time, but the man sets off running again, straight into the path of a lorry, and in addition to this horrifying tragedy, Ridpath saw another man behind the barrier who was clearly in pursuit of the now deceased young man, and the assailant was pointing a gun - the problem is, nobody other than Ridpath saw the man with the gun!

1990’s Manchester was a violent place following turf wars amongst opposing gangs desperate to control both the drugs scene and Manchester’s many clubs. Things have been quiet for decades now though, with the rival gangs calling a truce, happy to control their own areas, but events are about to take a very nasty turn following the death of this young man, and police are bracing themselves for a return to all out war amongst these violent criminals.

This is the second book in the DI Ridpath series, but there is sufficient backstory, meaning it reads well as a standalone. Ridpath is such an easy character to like, sidelined from his job with the MIT, he’s in remission from cancer and is currently working in the Coroners office - a fact which added interest to the proceedings. The plot twists and turns, the characterisation is good, and the atmosphere of Manchester’s gangland wars is well drawn. The characters are certainly plausible and drive the novel to a compelling conclusion!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me an advance copy for an unbiased review.

I was so intrigued by the synopsis that I decided to read the first book of this series first. I am so glad I did! It allowed me to understand the background to DI Ridpath. This allowed me to appreciate this second book in this new series.

DI Ridpath is still seconded to the Coroner's office and trying to return to his previous position.

No spoilers but drawn in from the start. Well written and absorbing. I also loved finding out about his family life which is threatened by his dogged pursuit of the truth. I enjoyed all the main characters and identified with them.

Looking forward to book 3 immensely

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the opportunity to read this book. I deliberately took my time reading this book as I didn’t want to miss any of it. Ridpath is absolutely brilliant, I love his character, polly not too much, she gives him a hard time. The storyline and other characters where brilliant. This is my second book on ridpath and it didn’t disappoint. Very well written intense story that had me wanting more. Good twist at the end, that was very well done. Definately worth 5stars.

It’s not often that I see a tagline on the cover of a book and agree with it 100%. Actually it’s quite rare! So, imagine my own surprise when i realise that i wholeheartedly agree with the ‘an unputdownable crime thriller’ on the front of this book!! Someone get me a fire extinguisher as my nerves are fried!!

What a fantastic, high energy, gripping, twisted novel! Poor DI Ridpath doesn’t seem to have luck on his side, bless him. His health is a bit iffy and his professional life seems to be throwing more questions up in the air than anyone has any answers for. Are his health issues lowering his capability to work? Is he able to keep up with the rest of his team as they try and find the answers to the latest investigation?

Personally, DI Ridpath’s colleagues need to have a bit more faith in him. I can see why they were a bit unsure given the nature of his eyebrow raising decisions, yet maybe if he had the right people believing in him, he may have not needed to go about things in the way that he did.

I was totally blindsided by the storyline, especially the conclusion. Very, very, VERY clever. I was in shock because there was a lot of other things which I felt were more important, holding my attention, that I missed focusing on who actually should have been in the firing line.

I really enjoyed ‘Where the Dead Fall’, and I loved the twisted nature of the authors brilliant and intense storytelling. I hope we get to see more of DI Ridpath due to that ending, I mean come on!!!

A brilliant, high end, dark and addictive read which kept me on the edge of my seat. Can’t reccomend this enough!

My thanks to Canelo for an eARC via NetGalley of M.J. Lee’s ‘Where the Dead Fall’, in exchange for an honest review.

This is the second in his DI Ridpath series and I was very pleased to find that it was even stronger than the first, which I read last October and awarded five stars.

In ‘Where the Truth Lies’, DI Thomas Ridpath (called just Ridpath by everyone including his wife) had returned to work after a health related absence and was temporarily assigned to investigative duties with the Coroner’s Office. Here he continues in that role though often seems to be pulled into his former boss’s offices anyway.

I am wary of saying much about the plot as in my experience it is more satisfying to read crime novels and thrillers without too much prior information. I will say that it is extremely intricate and very cleverly plotted.

Again, I loved it and was totally glued to my settee from start to finish. The characters are strong and Ridpath especially is a very likeable protagonist dealing with a very serious health issue.

Certainly another five stars!

What will happen next? I am counting the days until Ridpath’s next outing.

Excellent crime fiction: this is the second novel featuring D.I. Ridpath, a Manchester detective. I haven’t read the first novel but this works well as a standalone. However, who you don’t want to know who the guilty party was in book one, read it first, as it is given away in this one.

D.I. Ridpath is having a hard time, he is in remission from cancer but fearful it will return and he is estranged from his wife and daughter. He has been seconded out of the Major Incident Team to work for the Coroner’s Office and it pretty hacked-off about this turn in his career. I liked the fact that involving the Coroner’s Office put a slightly different slant on a police procedural.

Ridpath is driving along the M60 on his way to a long promised visit to his daughter, when a man, wearing only boxer shorts, runs out in front of his car. Whilst Ridpath avoids a collision, an articulated lorry doesn’t and the man is killed. Out of the corner of his eye, Ridpath is convinced he saw an armed man chasing the victim. He earns the wrath of the traffic division for closing the road on a match day, the frustration of the armed response unit who can find no trace of his gunman and the disappointment of his daughter for missing their date. Basically he is in a lot of bother and is told to keep away from the investigation into what the police believe is a suicide. Naturally, that doesn’t stop him and he begins to piece together links between the accident and other murders/deaths which have recently occurred.

Set against the gritty background of the Manchester organised crime scene where a delicate truce between gangs is just about holding up, this is a fast-paced thriller with some clever connections and smart twists. I really liked the character of Ridpath who is a difficult character but with a decent moral compass. His two bosses, the coroner, Mrs Challinor and DCI Charlie Whitworth at MIT are excellent supporting characters. This was a really entertaining read. For the author’s sake, I hope he isn’t intending to visit Liverpool in the near future! You’ll know what I mean when you read the book.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Canelo, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Once again a fantastic read in what I hope will be on the on going crime series featuring DI Ridpath.. This book follows directly on from the first in the series and so it does help to have read Where the truth lies first. The writing is very good and at no point did I guess who the murderer was until the reveal. I like that this series is based around the coroner's court as this is unusual but as someone who has been on the jury of a coroner's court it gives further insight into what goes on behind the scenes. As much as I enjoyed the first book I do believe this book is better and am eagerly awaiting the third please and am sure it will continue to get better and better. This is a well thought out crime story and I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who wants a gritty read and who has a few hours to spare because once you start reading you will find it hard to put down.

Thanks to Canelo & NetGalley for the ARC.

DI Ridpath is in remission from cancer, his marriage is in trouble and hes been sidelined from Manchesters MIT. What else could go wrong right now?

Well, how about an almost naked man running in front of your car while you're doing 70mph for starters?

Ridpath manages to stop but the truck driver in the next lane doesn't.
This sets in motion a series of events that threatens to take Manchester back to the dark days of the 90's when gang wars gave the city the nickname of Gunchester.

Ridpath, currently working for the Coroners office is convinced there's more going on than the MIT are willing to admit. His new role allows him access to the victims family and he sets about working on his hunch.

It becomes a race against time to solve the case before the outbreak of a full scale gang war.

Excellent writing with totally believable characters make this a riveting, page turning read.

I hadn't read the first novel in the series but that didn't matter. There's enough backstory here to catch you up and it can be read as easily as a standalone novel.

I will go back and read the first instalment now though.

Highly recommended.

Enjoyed this book and will definitely be seeking out the first book in this series!

another flawed detective? Do we really need one? I would say wholeheartedly yes - DI Ridpath is liekable and entertaining - would recommend this book wholeheartedly!

It’s a very well written book which just flows and easy to follow great for me, coming from Manchester. The story was gripping and really liked Ridpath and liked the coroner aspect of it as well. I definitely recommend this book and looking forward to reading the first one of this series

Ridpath is still on secondment to the coroners office and trying to get his marriage back on track.
When a man runs out of his car on the motorway, Ridpath just manages to stop and as he's staring at the man he sees a figure at the side of the motorway holding a gun. The man then runs off into the path of a lorry and is killed. When Ridpath looks again the man holding the gun has disappeared.
MIT are determined to write it off as a junkie playing chicken on the motorway and Ridpath can't convince them otherwise.
Then the pathologist finds that the man had no drugs in his system and his body showed signs of torture before death, added to the fact he was the son of one of Manchester's biggest crime lords, makes MIT think again. Maybe Ridpath was telling the truth and the man was being chased.
The son of another of the crime lords found. Is this the start of a major gang war or something else.
Ridpath is dragged into the investigation working for both the Coroner and MIT.
Still in remission from cancer working both jobs could well be the death of him but he’s determined to get to the truth.

This is a fast paced and thrilling piece of crime fiction from MJ Lee, featuring an interesting protagonist in DI Ridpath, suffering from cancer although currently in remission, with problematic personal and family issues. This is the second in the series, but my first, however, it works just fine as a standalong. Ridpath is working at the coroner's office but still linked with MIT, which has now acquired a new boss in Claire Trent, finding himself surrounded by ghastly organisational politics that targets him as a scapegoat. Ridpath is a compelling and such a likeable man although often refuses to prioritise what is best for his health as he begins to be consumed by his latest investigation. It all begins when he coincidentally finds himself in the middle of a horror of a motorway accident when he is on his way to see his daughter.

Ridpath sees a man in only his underwear running amidst the traffic seeking to elude another man with a gun. As tragedy ensues, Ridpath brings the road system to a halt whilst trying to find the gunman. He is to come under fire and undermined when no-one else appears to have spotted the gunman. For a considerable time period, Manchester's criminal gang scene has been relatively peaceful, but murder means all this is set to change, with the police fearing a return to all out gang warfare. Ridpath is to find himself in the most challenging and twisted of investigations as he seeks to uncover the truth of what is going on. Lee gives us great characterisation, a wonderful sense of location and gripping well constructed storylines in this tense and suspenseful read. I found this an enjoyable and engrossing read, which I think many crime fiction readers will find entertaining and exciting. Many thanks to Canelo for an ARC.