Very dark mystery with seemingly unrelated victims kidnapped treated appallingly and then released. The investigation led by DS Aiden Corcoran assisted by criminal psychologist Marie Palmer are seemingly a new couple for this genre. The tale races along at breakneck speed with red herrings galore all leading to a lengthy bloody climax. An interesting start to what I hope becomes a series!

I never repeat the blurb. I thoroughly enjoyed this latest offering from Ed James. I'd read several of his books before and this is set up beautifully for a sequel which, if it appears, will be top of my 'to read' list very quickly.

Senseless by the prolific Ed James is a cracking start to a chilling new series starring 2 intriguing new protagonists in DS Auden Corcoran and criminal psychiatrist Dr Marie Palmer.

When a young woman’s body is found dumped on the side of a road, hours from death, suffering from what seems to be starvation, the 2 new protagonists are brought together to investigate. As more victims turn up suffering similarly twisted fates the race is on to find a seriously disturbing criminal mind.

The story is for me a return to more familiar Territory for Ed James , following my last 2 reads from him which were the Max Carter books set in Seattle USA and for me this book feels like he’s more at home here. It’s a chilling , macabre, twisted book that will get under your skin. It’s a little bit of a scary premise.

The 2 new characters are excellent and the Chemistry bubbles away nicely to the final line of this tale.

It’s a fast paced read, rarely letting you up for air as you race through to the end.

A gripping , darkly entertaining start to a great new series packed full of potential.

Highly Recommended

5🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

DS Aiden Corcoran and Dr Marie Palmer are the main characters in Senseless which is a fast moving, action packed page turner from Ed James.

A young woman who has been missing for a number of weeks turns up nearly starved to death and then a man is found who has also been missing but he has clearly been mentally tortured. And then a third person reappears.

What is the connection and who is behind it are the questions facing Corcoran and Palmer.

This was a very enjoyable read and a book I would definitely recommend

I would like to thank Netgalley, Headline and Ed James for giving me the opportunity to review this book.
The opening of this book gets you hooked as it is a chilling read with a great plot. The story has a great pace with really good characters there are lots of twists and turns to keep you guessing. I have not read an Ed James book before but it will definitely not be the last one. Can’t wait to read his next one.
The story starts with a woman found close to death naked, half crazy and starved on the side of a country road in Oxford. Then a while later another missing person reappear this is where DS Concoron and Dr Palmer need to start finding clues.

This has got to be one of the most chilling and well paced thrillers I have read this year.

I've enjoyed all of Ed James' novels but this one gripped me in its jaws immediately and shook me around! I love Ed's clear style of writing that always just grabs you and doesn't let go.

Told through the POV's of Aiden and Marie over 3 days, interspersed with each victims own story.

A plot full of twists and turns, shocks and real heart pounding moments that are expertly brought together with a clear 'no loose ends' ending. The tension throughout had me hooked, once I started reading I don't think my eyes left the page!

The characters are fantastically written, you feel compelled to get to know them better. Their stories are intricately weaved in a way that comes together magnificently.

One thing I really liked was the 'everyone is damaged' take to the story. It shows that's actions can have serious consequences.

A superb police procedural plot, I can't wait to see where Ed takes these new characters to next!

4.5*

Massive thanks to netgalley and Headline for the ARC.

I loved the start of the book, the scene was set quickly and the characters seemed interesting,and it was all good.However the pace and action really slowed up about half way through and I started to find it rather dull.I wanted to know what happened but found the change of pace to be odd and it spoiled it for me.I am however an impatient reader and other readers with more patience than me may enjoy it more.

I absolutely loved this book, great characters, who I can’t wait to get to know better. A gripping plot, engrossing and engaging storyline, what more could you want.

DS Aiden Corcoran still feels guilty for not catching a serial killer before he had killed his last two victims, but he had caught him, he had also sustained a hip injury at the same time. He just can’t seem to accept the fact that he hadn’t stopped the killer sooner. Now he has moved away from his old job and has been demoted. When a young woman Sarah Langton is dumped on a roadside, emaciated, barely clinging to life, she had been missing for 6 weeks, but where had she been? Aiden is assigned the case by his boss DI Thompson. When he finds he has to work with Marie Palmer a Criminal Psychologist he is not impressed. But as they work together on the case, they begin to get along better and develop a mutual respect for each other. A day after Sarah is found another person is dumped, Howard, he had been deprived of sleep, and made to listen to the same song over and over, he had been missing for two weeks. On day three of the investigation another person is dumped, Matt doesn’t even know if he is real, he has been missing for 5 months, has been put in and out of a tank of water, practically eradicating everything he knows, he can’t even remember the name of what was his month old son, when he had disappeared. When a forth woman is taken, it’s up to Aiden and Marie to try and put the pieces together, to work out what these people have in common if anything. What links them? They all come from different parts of the UK, they don’t know each other, but they all seem to have been held in the same block of cells.

This is a brilliantly plotted police procedural, I love the developing relationship between Aiden and Marie and look forward to see where that goes in the future. Told in a timeline over the three days, alternate chapters through the viewpoints of Aiden and Marie, interspersed with a chapter from each victim as they tell of their ordeal. I thoroughly enjoyed this read, if you like a good police procedural and are looking for a new series, with some new characters to get to know I would definitely recommend this one. The tension builds as Aiden and Marie race to try and find Dawn before time runs out.

I would like to thank #netgalley and #Headline for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest fair and unbiased review.

Hooked from the beginning
So fast paced, full of tension
Plenty of twists turns and red herrings to keep you on your toes
Couldn't put it down
Thought the characters where well written
Loved the ending and can't now wait to read the next instalment

This should be a film

Thank you netgalley, Ed James and Headlines for allowing me to read and review this book.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3260114220

Excellent read. Shame it’s a stand alone. Ed has the ability to really engage the reading audience with his characters.

I’ve never read one of Ed James’ books before though have listened to half of one which I enjoyed (and must go back to finish!). To begin with, I was hooked, an interesting plot and no idea who was responsible for the damage caused. I really enjoyed the story from the different perspectives and the idea of the senseless kidnappings. Overall though it didn’t quite come together for me, the long-held grudge didn’t seem to be strong enough or perhaps just not well developed enough to really fit with the story and the ending could have been a little better. Having said all that though if there was a sequel I wouldn’t hesitate to read it.

The two main characters, DS Concoron and Dr Maria Palmer, a criminal psychiatrist was very well developed and learning more about their relationship and its twists and turns were really enjoyable. A solid four!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for this ARC.

I’ve read books by Ed James and always enjoyed them so had high hopes for his latest one. I wasn’t disappointed, I really enjoyed this book. It began as a bit of a slow burner for me, and quickly picked up pace. The two main characters were very likeable and worked well together even though they were very different and opinionated. I thought the book had a great plot line, with so many twists and I had no idea about who was the villain or why. I would recommend this book and look forward to the next book featuring these two characters. 4 stars

Really interesting thriller. I really enjoyed it. Had me hooked early on. The first book I've read from this author, but it definitely won't be the last.

This book was an ok read for me it didn't grip me like I thought it would . It started off quite quick but the pace slowed down and I found my self loosing interest in it . I think I would have enjoyed it more if it wasn't so discriptive

This book had me hooked & I look forward to reading more by this author. Fantastic plot & amazing characters I would recommend this to anyone who likes this type of book.

It is amazing, it had me gripped throughout worth the sleepless night because I couldn't put it down.
I am looking forward to reading more in the future by Ed .

This Ed James book has a very different feel to his usual murder mysteries. From the first page the reader is trying to piece together scant clues about the links between apparently distinct kidnappings as tortured and bewildered victims turn up. The combined efforts of DS Corcoran and Dr Marie Palmer, a criminal psychologist, are needed in order to work out what may have driven someone to kidnap and torture people in different ways.
The pacing of the book is superb as the reader is barely given a moment to catch their breathe before the next twist to the story, or revelation. Some good characters and interesting back stories come together for a truly gripping page-turner.

I really enjoyed the beginning of this novel, finding it tense and slightly nerve wracking - enough so that I binge read this in a couple of days! I enjoyed the set-up, the different chapters being told from different characters perspectives and the 'senseless' kidnappings. However, for me, the story was incredibly cliched towards the end and it felt a little forced to tie everything up. The characters were interesting enough to keep you involved in the story but, due to the cliches mentioned, they appeared to act in ways that seemed out of character towards the end. A good little thriller with potential for growth if there's a sequel.

I was privileged to receive an early copy of this.

Oh Ed James, you’ve done it again!
Senseless is a new diversion, featuring DS Aiden Corcoran of the Thames Valley Police and Dr Marie Palmer who is a forensic psychiatrist. I won’t go into detail of the story because you can see that from the other comments. What I will say is that this story is a really great read. It’s gripping, fast paced, and the characters gel together well. Read it, or lose out.

I really enjoyed this book! A great story line that kept me hooked and excellent main characters. I would highly recommend this book.