Mark Billingham has once again delivered a superb thriller in the ever excellent DI Tom Thorne series.Again he teams up with DI Nicola Tanner to look into the suicide of a woman which Thorne finds suspicious and then a murder in Kent is linked and the hunt is on to find the killer.As ever Phil Hendricks offers his unique take on every thing concerning Thorne's life and yet again what you get is another unputdownable 5 star thriller from the ever excellent Mark Billingham.If you enjoy this genre of books then I urge you to start this series of Tom Thorne books you won't be disappointed !!

Oh I love Mark Billingham

This one is fab as usual kept me up turning the pages

Great storyline which keeps you guessing

Highly recommended

This is my first book from Mark Billingham which meant that I struggled with some of the characters as I had not read the previous books. However the writing and plot are very strong which meant I could quickly get into this book. It’s a dark, clever crime novel that I enjoyed.

Phillipa Goodwin's life is ended under a train, there is zero doubt it is suicide. DI Tom Thorne is on the case and won't just let it go. Someone is responsible for what Phillipa done and with a little digging Thorne has a name. A conman who is well versed in his trade and Phillipa isn't the first nor will she be the last. When he escalates from conning women to violence/murder can Thorne convince anyone and will he catch the bad guy?

I haven't read Billingham for ages and not in sequence, he is a good guy, married to the job and see's his personal relationships suffering. This book has small links to relationships outwith the job but the main focus is on the case and hearing from the bad guys. The conman targets women and is pretty callous in his approach and endgame. Nothing is out of bounds to use, for a sob story, to get these woman to give him what he wants. Just when you think he can't stoop any lower.....

The book gives us a few view points, the cops, their personal lives, the case/investigation and we also hear from the bad guy and what is happening on their end. The opening chapter is quite graphic, not in extreme details but what we are given is enough to give a vivid picture, suicide by train :( it kicks off from there and drags you into a story so off the scale you can't help but wonder where it will go next. I have read Billingham before, I will read him again 4/5 for me this time, it was nice to catch up with Thorne and I really need to go back and read the books I have missed.

When Tom Thorne is called to a suicide at a tube station it seems straightforward but when he finds out that the victim has been defrauded by a conman he wants to know more. Sarah seems a normal mum, doing the school run daily, but when she is picked up by Conrad both their secrets emerge.
In terms of an idea this is great. Playing on the psychology behind murderous duos, Billingham creates a non-stop exciting story which stretches the bounds of the imagination but still remains at heart a terrific police procedural. Billingham's characters are carefully put together without the excessive 'backstory' that often mars detective novels. this is an example of a master at work.

How is this the 16th book already?! Madness! But it just gets better and better

I recommend this series to everyone regularly!

Thanks to Little, Brown Book Group UK for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Mark Bellingham continues to please with ‘Their Little Secret’, which includes all the elements of a good crime thriller: ingenious plot with a few twists and turns; hints and clues that enable the careful reader to narrow down options; enough false trails to also keep the reader guessing; and - critically - fluent writing and a compelling narrative. The story revolves around a con artist, who preys on vulnerable women, but eventually meets his match in a woman with more than her fair share of psychological disturbances. There is a satisfyingly authentic feeling police investigation that, thankfully, doesn’t strain credulity, with welcome appearances from DI Thorne’s colleagues introduced in earlier books in the series. There is action aplenty, but the physical action keeps sufficiently distant from gratuitous violence to avoid a sour taste, and a denouement that - whilst leaving a few issues unresolved - does not disappoint. Readers familiar with other DI Thorne novels will not be disappointed. Highly recommended.

really enjoyed this book. great story line and great characters. look forward to reading more from this author.

Thank you so much Netgalley and the publisher for this one, I was waiting for it with baited breath.

I have read every Thorne book so far and all of Mark's other books and this was one of the hardest cases Tom had to face.

You know who the killer is and it is all how and when will they be arrested. The case at first should be a case for the fraud squad but Tom has a feeling on this one..

I wasn't sure about this book to start with but once I got into it I found it very hard to put down. Another excellent novel from Tom please keep them coming.

Also reviewed on Amazon stowv55

First time in a while that a book has had me so engrossed.
Dark intriguing storyline, ongoing tales of Thorne & his team. What’s not to like?
So looking forward to the next instalment.

loved this offering from the author. Following the life of Tom is like catching up over a pint with an old friend, one you don't see for ages but you can pick up the conversation where it left off with no problem. I love the interaction between Tom and his friends as life sees them getting older and more tired of the world of crime they inhabit. Tom unfortunately for him has love issues to deal with , a human side of him we have followed over the years. It would be great to see him settle down full time but his love for his job will never allow that to be realised. For the reader that's a great wish to follow even if we never see it happen its a good theme to thread through the books. As always a polished , thrilling , well paced book by an accomplished author.

Mark Billingham is undoubtedly a master storyteller and in his own words has a twisted imagination. This latest Tom Thorne book is a testament to his skill of weaving an unputtdownable story like no other. I loved this book with it’s unexpected twists and turns, the only downside is having to wait a year for the next one.

Another great read from Mark Billingham. Totally gripping and it had such a fantastic plot and I look forward to reading more from mark.

8/10

I'm not up to date with the series having read the first 10 and then not managed to read further, but I saw this on NetGalley and couldn't resist a chance to give it a try as they're pretty much standalone entries. Or so I thought, there were quite a few reveals about what happened in the previous couple of books which means I'll probably wait a while before picking those up.

The story revolves around a seemingly routine suicide case that causes something to stir within Thorne who then tumbles onto something deeper around a con man. This then coincides with numerous murders that are cropping up. How does it all link together. As usual, this is a really quick and enjoyable read. The chapters fly by and it was fun to get back with the characters (even if some were a little new to me). Thorne is a likeable character, his gruff nature seems to resonate with my gruff nature. His dogged approach makes it entertaining reading as he puts his nose in places where he probably shouldn't but in order to solve the case.

The series as a whole is really good and this is a worthy entry and would be fine as a standalone too unless you were wanting to read the previous books too. I'm not going to let it put me off though and I'm going to try and read the 5 books I've not tackled yet before the next book in the series is released which is presumably a years time.

I received an ecopy of this book from netgalley.

This is the latest in the Tom Thorne series but reads equally well as a stand alone novel.

A unique plot with seemingly authentic police action which will quickly reel you in. It is a chilling tale in so many of it's aspects but you will not be able to out it down.

When you do get to the end you will be left wanting to know so much more.

Thoroughly recommend to anyone who enjoys a sinister police drama.

Another great book by Mark Billingham, as all his Tom Thorne books are. I like to read them in order, but they are just as good read as standalone books. This book was a little more twisted than normal, but it’s the twists that make these thrillers so un-put-downable.
Great for thriller lovers - thanks for net galley for the ARC

Mark Billingham has produced another great Tom Thorne book. Taking the path of most resistance through his life and caseload, how would any other policeman have even noticed there was a case?

This is the latest in the Tom Thorne series of crime novels and in my opinion is proof of why the author is one of the best crime writers in Britain today! This story revolves around a woman named Sarah, who at the very start of the book appears as the next victim for a con artist named Conrad, but is actually so much more than that. In parallel with the Sarah and Conrad story is the ongoing struggle of DI Thorne to have a life outside of the Job. His fellow officer, Nicola Tanner, plans a key role in the story and her name now features in the series title......bring on the next one!

Their Little Secret – Mark Billingham

Picking up a Mark Billingham book is like meeting up with a friend you haven’t seen for ages. I find it so hard to believe that this is number sixteen in the DI Tom Thorne series, these really do get better and better. DI Tom Thorne is a curmudgeonly old so and so at times but I just love him, I really would like to see him settled and maybe a wee promotion.

I literally finished this today and couldn’t wait to write this review even though I don’t want to give away too much of the plot by writing a detailed synopsis of the story. I just wanted to recommend to any fans of Angela Marsons, Carol Wyer, and Stuart MacBride to give this author a chance but please start at the beginning with Sleepyhead. I have to admit to being jealous of anyone with that luxury available to them.

The whole gang are together again Hendricks, Tanner and Tom, each in their relevant slots, doing what they do best working all the hours’ god sends to catch the deviant (s) held within these pages. Taking us through their relationships with each other and others, each in a different place/space. I’m so happy that Hendricks is sorted but my heart is sore for Tanner and Tom. The relationships that the main perpetrators and victims have are a kind of 50 shades of twisted meets love story, I’ll leave that right there.

The old saying ‘Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive’ is somewhat relevant in this story. All of the protagonists have secrets and tell lies not only to themselves but also to others. Oh and let us not forget the three amigos own little secret. When we are introduced to one particular character it’s quite a sad lie, one that at some points is quite heartbreaking. I wonder if we may revisit this character again some time in the future.

I thought that I’d heard and read it all but this book pleasantly pointed out that I hadn’t. It shows us exactly how intoxicating and powerful love and money can be for some of the more vulnerable in society. This is a complexly convoluted tale kept interesting by the authors’ use of short chapters and his insights into the more fragile part of the mind.


Read for an honest review. Little, Little Brown Book Group UK. Little Brown

I have been reading Mark Billingham books for some time now and always find his stories to be of a high calibre. And this book is no exception. In fact I would go as far as saying that the plot is a great twist / “homage” to the Ian Brady/ Myra Hinckley actual murders. One cautionary note is that as the Thorne series progresses I had actually missed one - I do not know how - and that book “ The king habit” contained a story line that was continually referred to and to be fair formed an integral part of this story. That having been said Mr Billingham’s superb writing ability did cover most of the important points and I was only slightly miffed that I had missed - for the moment at least - reading that book.

Five stars - highly recommended