This book was an enjoyable read and kept me guessing till towards the end. A police procedural book and throughout the book you saw how the team worked on connecting and coming back together as a unit.

Another excellent title, which will challenge readers and writers alike. Excellent choice of protagonists and plot line that will engage all.

The first in a new detective series. This is Eve Hunter's first case on returning to work after an extended absence, and where not everyone is pleased to see her. She has her own demons to manage and, the guilt she feels is really drawn out in the language. Set in Aberdeen, the visual descriptions also really add to this sense of Eve's personal trials, as well as the brutal crimes being investigated. As the plot develops, Eve struggles in the full glare of the media and you can really feel the tension coming from the pages. A great start to a new detective series and I look forward to the next ones!

Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

This was a real edge of your seat thriller, with so many twists and turns, you wont know which way is up! Fantastic and gripping read! a new author for my list :-)

A great read, full of twists and turns and highly gripping. Looking forward to reading more from the author in the future!

This is one of those books that will have you reading 'just one more page' until it's suddenly 2am, you've finished the book and have no idea what has been happening in the world around you.

DI Eve Hunter is back from sick leave following a major accident which left her partner paralysed. Carrying a lot of guilt, she has no time for self-recrimination because a serial killer is on the loose and she's tasked with finding them.

While there are things in this book which fall into the arena of predictable, overall, this is an exciting, gripping book which might be a little too gory for the more faint hearted reader, but which I thorougly enjoyed.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC without obligation.

When reading the review for this book I was intrigued and wanted to read it. It’s all about DI Eve Hunter who has just returned from sick leave following a severe work related accident where her partner was left paralysed. She’s back carrying a lot of blame and is thrown into another serial killer case.
It became slightly predictable at times leaving me feel like I knew how it would turn out although persevered and found some small differences at the end.
A good book in all although a bit grim and gory at times.

A gripping read full of suspense. I loved this book. A brilliant debut novel. Looking forward to reading more by the same author.

This is a fantastic gripping read that had me hooked from the first to the last page. Can see why this book won Bloody Scotland Scottish Crime Debut of the year. This is the type of book that you can read in one sitting. Where you call a takeout for tea because you are too busy reading to cook tea.

Set in Aberdeen. A young ladies body is discovered with horrific injuries and newspaper cutting pinned to clothing. A serial killer with nothing to lose and a detective trying to redeem herself. Yet another fantastic Scottish fictional detective that is instantly likeable.

If you like crime, murder, police procedurals then this book is a must-read.

Excellent twist to this standard psychological thriller.
Was interesting to read the back story of Eve and hope the characters of her, Mearns, Cooper and Ferguson appear again.

I enjoyed the plot and the characters. While I guessed some aspects of the story, the writing kept me interested enough from start to end.

Fantastic debut novel that had me hooked from the outset.

Set mostly in Aberdeen, this was a gruesome thriller and perhaps not for the faint hearted.

The developing storyline of DI Eve Hunter is one I'm hoping will be continued with a further instalment in the series.

4.5 stars

Great debut novel: twisty, grim, thrilling. DI Eve Hunter is a brilliant character with plenty of scope for development as the series progresses, and it’s good to have a crime series set in Aberdeen, where the granite — both figurative and literal — adds to the atmosphere.

Excellent debut novel. Gritty and gruesome with dark well drawn characters and a satisfying twisty plot.

Wow, this was a brilliant book. A brilliant start to a brilliant new series. I loved this book from the very beginning to the very end, The story starts off with a revisit of an old crime followed by DI Hunter's backstory before her returning to active duty. The book is interspersed with narration about past events from the murderer's perspective and then back to the real-time story. In most books this style of writing can go one of two ways, either it's horribly done and making no sense and in essence adding no value to the story or it can just glide in seamlessly adding value to the story making it brilliant. And it was the second way for this book. Overall the story was brilliantly written with breadcrumbs of clues all over the place but al with never ending twists. A brilliant book that I wouldn't hesitate to recommend. And I can't wait for the next book (I've requested it already!!). And a big thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishers for giving me this book in exchange of my honest review.

This is a great debut novel by Deborah Masson.
Eve Hunter is a D.I. in Aberdeen’s M.I.T. She has just returned from 6 months leave and is thrown in at the deep end of a gruesome murder even though she is not fully recovered.
The location of the granite city and its problems adds to the tension of the story.
Eve and her new team are trying to settle in and work with each other, despite some mistrust and problems along the way. Their relationships will progress in future stories and hopefully that will also lead to them making faster progress in their investigations.
There is a lack of pace and a bit of repetition in the first part of the book but things move faster towards an unexpected climax.
Overall an enjoyable thriller.

I really enjoyed reading this book which involved DI Eve Hunter. It had a hard hitting, gritty storyline. The story comes together really well and it will keep you wanting more. Definitely an author I will look for in the future.

Very dark and compelling. This is my first book by author Deborah Masson, I absolutely loved it. It’s the first in a series of detective novels and I’m thrilled there are more! I loved the slow build up of crimes and the investigation and will be buying more for a lockdown binge!
4/5 on goodreads

Wow-what a fabulous debut. I was hooked from the start. A fast-paced thriller set in Aberdeen featuring DI Eve Hunter. The setting is atmospheric, and the plot well thought out. I look forward to reading more from this author. Recommended.