Visceral. Dark. Murderous. DI Monika Kennedy has to deal with a really nasty killer whose methods are rather too gory for me at times. Well written though and certainly, as with the first of the author's stories, evocative of the Highlands especially on dark, grey, dreich days. Can't give it five stars partly because of the gore and partly because of the thought of doing 100mph on a estate road, even in a fancy BMW or Audi - 30mph in a Land Rover and your teeth, let alone fillings, would be falling out on a typical estate road. There were also, I felt, problems with formatting with the narrative's point of view changing from that of Monika to that of Annabelle from one sentence to the next. This might be due to my reading a pre-publication version but at least a paragraph return would help smooth progress. Thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK, Vintage Publishing for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARC in return for an unbiased review.
As someone that stayed in Inverness for eleven years I was familiar with most of the places referred to in this book. Decent story with an apparent number of different threads that come together.
Thought this was a first novel by this author but turns out it is in fact the second in a series.
Not problem in reading this as a stand alone though.
Yet another welcome addition to the increasing number of Scottish crime writers/

Pretty scary and gruesome story. Makes you wonder about humanity....
Although the story is engaging and you want to find out what happens I was kind of happy to finish it.

A body of a man with severed limbs is found in a river. Soon another one is found and the race to find the killer starts, but not even the detectives are prepared for what the investigation will uncover.

It was a good read. I found the story captivating and intriguing.
I didn't realise it was the second book in a series, and although it read fine as a stand-alone novel, it kept me wondering what had happened before. This would normally be a good thing if it didn't interfere with me getting into the story at hand.
I liked the fact that it was set in the Scottish Highlands, although it might have put me off visiting the area!
I certainly wasn't expecting what turn the story will take, and that's a big plus.
The story follows Monica Kennedy, the detective inspector, and is interspersed with the first-person narrative of Anabelle, a girl who after a car crash finds herself held hostage by someone whose intentions get more and more sinister as the story evolves.
It is a dark and atmospheric story, but I didn't find myself as gripped as I'd expect to be. The investigative part felt a little slow, and I didn't feel the tension was building fast enough. Either way, it was a good, entertaining read, and if you're into dark and sinister novels then this one is definitely for you. 3 stars.

4-5 stars
I have to admit the author had my immediate attention not only with an intriguing and exciting start but also with the setting in the Inverness area where I have stayed several times. Annabelle is driving fast along a private road that connects Inverness with the west coast when a child suddenly appears in front of her car. In order to avoid her she has no option other than to swerve and hits a tree. When she regains consciousnesses she finds she is being ‘looked’ after by Marcus who makes reference to the mysterious Doctor. She cannot move, she’s terrified and believes she is underground but has no idea where. In the same area a dismembered body is found near the hydroelectric dam near Beauly. Are these two events connected in any way, if so, how? DI Monica Kennedy has taken a step back from MIT following the effect of a terrible case the previous year but is asked to investigate the death along with DC Conor Crawford and DC Ben Fisher. The investigation leads the team into dark and dangerous territory in this nightmarish tale. The story is principally told from the perspective of Monica and Annabelle but there are flashbacks to years prior to this.

The highland area is used to great effect in this atmospheric story. There’s a sense of claustrophobia provided by the forests, a semi deserted village which is very oppressive, and the labyrinthine tunnels for the dams where Annabelle is held, which resemble the gateway to hell. The plotting is good, it’s well written and gritty though perhaps not the the faint hearted! The storyline in places is gruesome, it’s eerie, at times it’s quite spooky and creepy with occasional elements of horror and the supernatural. We have some characters that are so scary and evil you almost want to take cover! I really like Monica and the team and Monica’s daughter Lucy is adorable. Lucy sleepwalks for a time and has ghostly dreams especially about her grandfather which provides an intriguing element to the story. The book build well and I like the two alternate storylines and their feelings are strongly expressed. The ending is a really exciting race against time and is powerful.

Overall, a really good read which keeps you intrigued from start to finish.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK, Vintage Publishing for the ARC.

A really dark story about a family living remotely in the highlands of Scotland and attacking travellers! I found it quite compelling, reading on to find out who is the murderer but it also contains really horrible details. The author must have a scary imagination.
If you like murder mystery and are prepared to read through the dreadful details of these crimes, then the book is recommended. It is described as a murder but it is not far from horror - in my view!

Dark Waters, what a thriller! The brooding menace in the Scottish forests got me thinking of the film Deliverance and I was quite expecting a couple of pipers to break out in to Dueling Bagpipes. Then it got even more sinister with the Doc in the caves. For some strange reason an old gag came to mind, ‘A towny leans on a farm gate looking at a pig in a field. He says to the farmer, “That pig has only three legs”, to which the farmer replied, “Well, you wouldn’t want to eat it all at once!” ‘
I do have a couple of issues with the plot and it relates largely to do with the abandoned garage and the quarry scrap heap. Firstly, the grisly discovery in the garage seemed very at odds with where the victim ended up. I would have expected all ‘procedures’ to have been carried out away from prying eyes and ears. Secondly, if the garage was abandoned where did the lifting tackle come from to stack the scrap cars in the quarry?
Niggles aside, a fantastic thriller, one which will be hard to beat.

This was a gory surprise! Set in the stunning Scottish Highlands close to Inverness, the horror seems all the more deadly. A girl is involved in a car accident tin a forest and kidnapped. We follow her story as she tries to get out of the box someone puts her in.

Meanwhile Monica returns to the murder squad after time with the traffic division. Bet she wishes she'd stayed there to be honest. The novel then takes on a rather horror and gory tone. There are some BLEAK parts here and the switch betweeen the two women (the one who is captured and Monica) made the reading choppy which added to the overall feeling of sickness I had reading it.

This wasn't just a crime novel but it was a serial killer search, a horror and a supernatural twist appeared as well. Interesting characters which brought the novel back to me, but the gore and the horror didn't make me love it.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Random House UK, Vintage Publishing for an advance copy of Dark Waters, the second novel to feature Inverness based DI Monica Kennedy.

After their last case Monica has been on a transfer to the traffic division but the discovery of a mutilated body sees her back on a murder investigation.A second body is found days later and the team realise that they are hunting a depraved killer.

I enjoyed Dark Waters which has a, strong, engrossing plot and some likeable characters. I was not, however, as enthusiastic about the format which I found confusing at times and extremely choppy. The narrative mostly switches between Monica and Annabelle, a young woman held captive in mysterious circumstances. Both have compelling tales to tell, especially Annabelle whose story is scary, tense and horrifying, but some of it gets lost in the ever changing point of view, because the author constantly switches, even within chapters and from paragraph to paragraph. It is confusing suddenly having to switch perspective and recalibrate. I think the novel loses something with all this jumping about.

The plot has something of a horror novel about it. I’m not going to expand on that as it would reveal too much, but suffice to say it is not for the faint hearted or squeamish. There is also a hint of the supernatural with Monica’s daughter Lucy knowing things she shouldn’t. There are rational explanations for most of it but the idea hangs around. It’s not my bag and seems a touch contrived but who am I to comment?

I like Monica Kennedy. She struggles to parent her four year old and hold down a full time job with irregular hours which gives her an everyday appeal as most of us can understand it. I like her relationship with her mother whom she loves but finds annoying, something I can empathise with! I think she’s a bit untethered, still trying to find the right balance in her life, and my heart goes out to her. All in all she’s a normal woman doing a difficult job.

Dark Waters is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.

Exciting book to read. Creepy characters to give that edge. Keeps you on the edge of your seat. Good read with plenty going on

This was a brilliant book although I'm not sure where the author got their ideas for the storyline which was original and pretty gruesome. The chapters with Annabelle contrasted very well with the day to day murder enquiries by Monica and her team. Crawford and Fisher were excellent, well rounded characters, you knew little about them but what you did find out was interesting and very real.. Once I was two thirds of the way through I was eager to reach the conclusion and when this didn't arrive, even as far as 80% through the book, I knew that more revelations would appear. The police trio reminded me of another book I read recently with Weaver and Ross. Some of the characters were certainly scary and Annabelle's captivity was played out to such an extent that you could feel yourself in that lonely room unbelievably frightened that you would never be able to escape. I look forward to reading more from this excellent author.

DI Monica Kennedy has two mangled bodies in her case load. Still dealing with her own personal demons from the last case which saw her and her young daughter, Lucy, in danger can Monica be focused enough to solve the crimes?

A young girl has been in a car accident and wakes up being held captive and she starts to fear for her life and before long Monica has more in her plate to deal with.

I absolutely loved the first book but this one was even better. Very savage and dark, exploring how crazed some people are! Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

A well written novel with a clever plot and intriguing characters, wasn't too keen on the mythical elements but an enjoyable read. Works well as a stand alone as I've not read the previous book and didn't find that an issue but it would be useful to know what the previous case was.

A very interesting read with some creepy sounding characters in it and some very strange ones, had a slight his have eyes feel to it