This was a fairly good -but not great read for me .. The main character - Beth Adams forensic pathologist -still recovering mentally from a brutal attack a couple of years ago - is called to the local cemetery.. .A body has been found during the exhumation of another body -stay with me .- which prompts the search for a possible serial killer in the Lake District area..
I felt this was all a bit cliche and it was a story I had heard many times before in different guises and whilst I finished it- I it didn't leave me wanting more . If you like your books not too taxing -this is for you .

Thankyou NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

DAISY on the COVER does not mean that this is a bright, cute, and cozy book. It is although a very intense crime drama with many twists and turns that challenge Beth Adams - - the Forensic Pathologist. LOOK FORWARD TO This Series Continuing. Beth's home life is that of fear, security gates, and constant anxious episodes. But... when a teen girls body is located under an exhumed coffin; Beth cannot let this one stay buried without answers. Phifer has a host of characters that keep the reader flipping pages because of their fleshed out personas. Any Fan of the OLD QUINCY TV show will enjoy this too. "A copy of this book was provided by Bookouture via Netgalley with no requirements for a review. Comments here are my honest opinion."

Wow, what a great read started this late one afternoon read until early hours of the morning then picked it up as soon as I woke up. The opening chapter had me feeling claustrophobic just from reading it, the same again later in the book. Slightly different to have a forensic pathologist as involved in an investigation.

Forensic Pathologist Beth Adams has previously survived attack herself which nearly cost her her life which we learn more of throughout the book. She went on from being a Dr in A & E to train to be a pathologist. She has so much security in her house and has taken up self defence but is it still enough to keep her safe. Her friend Detective Josh Walker had saved her life the first time and now he is trying to save other women after a body is found buried in a graveyard underneath another coffin only after the original coffin is exhumed from the burial ground when someone queries how the person had died. From then on it’s a rush to find who killed the young girl buried and another one that is reported missing. There are lots of suspects to keep you guessing.

This was an absolutely thrilling read from start to finish definitely worth a 5 star review. Can’t wait to see more of these characters. Will also be looking out for more books by this author.

I am a huge fan of Helen Phifer, but I’m sorry to say this novel did not grip me. I wish I could be more helpful and explain why, but I can't. I just kept losing concentration while reading. The plot was first-class. It was written in my favourite format in the third person, chronologically, and straightforward like a classic, and just as I like it. It’s also set where I used to live, which gave it impetus. BUT it was despairing slow-moving. The detectives were dozy and slow-thinking, like in the film “Fargo.” I’m no super-brain, but it took a third of the book for the detectives to figure out a detail that was glaringly obvious in the first chapter. Perhaps, there were too many characters for me. I know I had to keep back-tracking and make notes to keep ahead of them all. On the good side, Beth and Josh are very likeable characters, and I thoroughly enjoyed the inclusion of forensic details despite its gruesome nature. It won’t put me off reading any later books in the series. Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture.

3.5* Decent enough police procedural, but far too many characters and in need of a good edit.

I agree that there need to be red herrings in tales such as this, but this just had too many characters to keep track of, and too many too-obvious red herrings, i.e., bigging something/someone up that then results in nothing is a BIG giveaway, and it got muddled. Add in characters called Jack, Josh, James, Jodie and Jason, Claire, Carl, Chantel and Chris, Alex, Ashley, Andrew, Audrey, Annie, Abe and Amber (plus one with an A-surname), Pete, Paton and Phil (plus two more with P-surnames) and Sam, Sykes, Sue and Steve (plus at least one more with a S-surname), quite a few of whom got quite a bit of page time, and this adds to the muddle. Both Josh and Jack were cops and Claire and Carl were CSI (though in the UK, CSI techs are called SOCO - scene of crime officers, but hey, let's just Americanise the tale for no reason) and Josh and Jodie were married, and it made no sense to have so many same-alphabet-at-the-start names names. Seriously, an editor worth his or her salt should have pointed this out.

That aside, Beth Adams is a bit of a Tempe Brennan figuring things out and brooding over stuff. In fact she likened herself to another fictional character, Kay Scarpetta, which did make me huff, not laugh, a little. I knew she wouldn't be able to keep her nose out of things, and for the most it did work.

I liked that the tale was set in the UK, but disliked the added Americanisms that we don't use (like CSI and Ms). It wasn't a bad intro to the author, though Beth had a TSTL moment at the end and delivered herself directly into the bad guy's arms. Seriously, cautious-to-the-point-of-paranoia Dr Adams jumped into the arms of the bad guy and let herself be taken off by him, I kid you not.

It could do with a good edit to weed out all the filler and all the unnecessary characters who were clearly only there to obfuscate, with their same-alphabet-at-the-start names adding to the confusion. What was the editor thinking?

ARC courtesy of Bookouture and NetGalley, for my reading pleasure.

This was an engaging police procedural. A really interesting mystery that kept me reading on. Really like the main characters too and thought they were really compelling. Overall a really good read.

I so enjoyed this book Helen is one of my fav authors never disappoints Beth is one sassy lady . Beth is fighting her own demons and she is a pathologist a runaway teenager is found in someone else ;s grave she is called in buy josh who is in charge of the case but someone has not finished with Beth yet will say no more its a must read so recommend

The Girl in The Grave by Helen Phifer is a great first book in a new series featuring Forensic Pathologist Beth Adams and DS Josh Walker.

I'm a massive Helen Phifer fan so I was super excited to read this one, thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher Bookouture for the ARC.

A bit of background. Beth used to be an emergency room doctor but after being attacked in her own home she lost all confidence and starting living her life in fear. She pretty much shut herself away from society and retrained as a forensic pathologist. Now she deals with the dead who can't hurt her. Her only real friend that she lets get close is DS Josh Walker who saved her life on the awful night she was attacked. That’s all I'm going to say on that because I don't want to give any spoilers away.

I loved this book, the characters were so likable straight away I wanted to know more about them. Helen has a way of writing that sucks you in on the first page and doesn't let you go until the climatic end. The plot was fast paced and interesting, full of tension and suspense which kept me hanging on to every word. I truly had a hard time putting this book it was really good.

I totally recommend this book it was excellent, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I don't hesitate in giving it 5 stars it deserves it.

This is a solid start to a new series featuring Beth Adams, a forensic pathologist. She’s called to investigate a body buried under an exhumed coffin. Phifer’s storytelling and characters are realistic and quickly engage the reader. Some parts were a bit overdetailed, and there were a few secondary characters who didn’t seem to have a real purpose. This caused a bit of a drag as they didn’t really go anywhere. A bit of editing could have tightened it up a bit, but there were some unexpected twists.

This is an outstanding example of how a police procedural should be written! This is the first in what I am hoping will be a long series and then a TV show. Well plotted, gripping in the true sense of the word and a real thriller. This story grabbed me from page one and held me all the way through. One of my favorite summer reads to date! Thank you NetGalley for the advanced readers copy for review.

The Girl in the Grave is a humdinger of a Crime Thriller that grabs you and draws you in from the brilliantly written and powerful opening scene to the nail biting, butt clenching finale.

Dr. Beth Adams , a forensic pathologist is called to a cemetery when an exhumation reveals that an extra body has been discovered in the same grave.
Beth was happy that DS Josh Walker was the officer on duty at the time, a man that above all others she trusted and admired.
But who is this other person, why is she in there and above all who on earth killed her and put her there !!

So begins a fabulous first in the series, tightly plotted, gritty narrative and very believable, engaging characters - loved both Beth and Josh- made this a thoroughly enjoyable and hard to put down read.

I look forward to more in the series - loved it and would certainly recommend.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for an ARC for my honest review.

I loved this new book by Helen Phifer! Always enjoy get started on a new series by a established author, and now to wait patiently for the second book. The story was gripping, I could hardly pit it down. The main character, Beth Adams is extremely interesting and her back story is heartbreaking. The story flowed smoothly and the characters are enjoyable. If you enjoy police procedurals that are twisty and unpredictable be sure to check this out.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for advanced copy of the book.
#netgalley
#the girlinthegrave

This is a great first book in a new series. Phifer introduces us to Dr. Beth Adams, a forensic pathologist with a history of being the victim of a violent attempted murder. Beth suffers from anxiety and is extremely cautious about security. She only really trusts one other person, DS Josh Walker, who saved her from her attacker. The opening scene involves an exhumation of a body. However, when they get the casket out of the grave, they discover another body partially covered by the dirt at the bottom. This begins the chase to find the murderer of the unknown corpse. Beth's examination of the exhumed body shows no foul play, and the quest to find who had suggested foul play is just another part of the murder case. Meanwhile, another young woman goes missing, and Josh and his team race against time to find her alive. The suspense becomes almost unbearable as Beth is also abducted. Will Beth be able to save herself this time, using the self-defense skills she has learned? Will Josh get there in time? I anxiously await the next Beth Adams book.

I am so glad that I got the opportunity to read this book, thank you netgalley
I love the characters in this book and especially Beth, she is a strong female character who I'm sure will have plenty more excitement ahead of her.
The twist at the end really got to me, I did not expect it.
I have read Helen Phifer books before and thoroughly enjoyed every one of them,

Dr Beth Adams is called to an exhumation where another body has been found in the grave. DS Josh Walker is in a loveless marriage and harbours feelings for Beth. She is recovering from at attempt in her life and it seems that this new killer wants Beth involved. How far will he go? Oh wow! This is such a gripping read, I was hooked from the first page. Helen has a way to entice the reader and blast them with drama and such a thrilling read.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

This book has a brilliant story, great characters and I would highly recommend this book to anyone and I enjoyed it 5*

What a brilliant book. This book has a fantastic story line, excellent characters and is just wonderful. I would highly recommend this book to anyone and I enjoyed it immensely.

Having enjoyed Helen Phifer's Lucy Harwin series I had high expectations for this book but unfortunately it didn't quite live up to them. While I enjoyed this book I thought that it was a little disjointed in places. Without giving away spoilers I thought there were too many characters and found it hard to keep track of who everyone was. There also seem to be parts of the plot that didn't really go anywhere, there were suspects who disappeared and several peripheral characters who had no real bearing on the story. I would probably give a second book in the series a try but don't know that I would recommend this book to friends or family.

The Girl in the Grave is a excellent thriller that will keep you flipping the pages. Great characters and well written. I would read more by this author.

The Girl in the Grave is an intriguing story that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Lots of twists that will keep you guessing. The characters are well developed and interesting. Getting down to the wire will keep you turning the pages to see if the murderer is stopped and how.