All Fall Down by MJ Arlidge is the ninth book in the continuing Helen Grace series which follows the cases of a British DI with a proven track record when it comes to hunting down serial killers, and in this instalment she is on the hunt for a man who seems to have returned from the grave.
Successful businessman Justin Lanning is about to head home one evening when he gets a chilling phone call telling him that he has just one hour to live. Dismissing it as a prank turns out to be a terrible mistake however, and the next morning sees Grace inspecting the crime scene where his strangled corpse was found. The case soon becomes something of a media circus since this was not the first time that Justin was the victim of a crime. He was one of a group of five teens who were held captive by a killer when they accidentally found themselves in his home and only barely managed to escape with their lives following a night of beatings and torture. When another of the group receives a similar phone call and turns up dead, Grace begins to fear that the monster from their past has returned to take care of his unfinished business.
This is a competent and pacy thriller with several points of view , as well as Grace and the victims we also get the perspective of a journalist hot on the trail of what would be the biggest scoop of her career, and Grace's latest romantic interest who happens to be one of her colleagues. I liked the way that we got the backstory of what happened to the group of teens, it was presented as a series of excerpts from a book written by one of the survivors. I will admit to guessing the outcome a little past the halfway point, but I was still engaged enough and enjoying the story enough to continue to the end,
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

I have read all the DI Helen Grace series, so was very excited to read this new one. A few years ago 5 teenagers on a D of E expedition were held captive and tortured in an old farmhouse. One of them was murdered and the others managed to escape. The perpetrator, Daniel King, was never apprehended, but it was believed he killed himself. The case has been brought back in to the public eye with the publication of a book written by one of the youngsters who got away. When 2 of the others are brutally murdered after receiving a phone call telling them they have one hour to live, there is a clear link to the old case. Is Daniel King back to finish what he started? This is another great read from M J Arlidge and will keep you on the edge of your seat til the end. Thanks to NetGalley for a preview copy.
Copied to Goodreads.

The 9th novel and definately back on track

After receiving an anonymous call stating he wil die in an hours time Justin Lanning is murdered and as DI Helen Grace and her team soon learn he is just the 1st in a series of murders

As well as tracking down a killer our favourite DI has her private life to deal with and with so much going on in her team can she hold everything together

Another super fast paced, thrilling instalment of Helen Grace. I love the back story of the imprisoned teens and the repercussions that it brings. Once you pick up one of these novels it stays picked up. Brilliant.

Oh my word. This book was incredible. Possibly my favourite. Di Helen grade is back and his is the creepiest story yet. Amazing x

I do love a Helen Grace thriller! What is not to love, it is always twisty, exciting and unpredictable. This is book 9 in this fantastic series but can certainly be read as a stand alone. I do highly recommend that you read the others so that you get a better opines of all the characters and their backgrounds.

Helen is a complex character. She is strong, stubborn women but deep down she cares about those around her. Her relationship with Charlie is testament to that. She doesn’t like to be told no and can be a bit hotheaded and impulsive. But that is what we love about her. She has her demons and we see a lot of her personal life in this book which is nice.

The case is a messy and complex one. Justin Lanning has done well for himself after a traumatic childhood. He is rich and well known in the Southampton community. The opening chapters are scary and really make this book hard to put down. Justin receives a call telling him that he has an hour to live. He puts it down to a prank, but an hour later he is dead. Next morning Helen and her team are at the crime scene trying to put the pieces together. There is soon an second murder, and the victim is linked to Justin.

This book is just fantastic and it kept me up late last night to finish it. All worth it though.

Thanks to Orion Publishing and Netgalley for my advanced copy of this book to read. All opinions are my own and are in no way biased

Another cracker of a book from the DI Helen Grace series. This time Helen is made a little vulnerable which is not normally has she comes across. The plot was very good, a group of kids were abducted years ago and escaped, now adults someone is killing them off but who and why?
As always this is a strong book in the series but nothing is said that wouldn’t make is a great stand alone as well. I think you warm to the characters more by reading it from book one.

Oh how I love a DI Helen Grace story. It's fast paced, gripping, thrilling, tense and will have you gripped until you turn that very last page.

Young and successful Justin Lanning gets an phone call which will change his life forever. The caller tells him "you have one hour to live". A mix of emotions go through Justin and he brushes it off as a crank call. An hour later he's dead....

DI Helen Grace and DS Joseph Hudson are first on the scene. As the Team are looking into his life another body is found and the death seems curiously similar. What's the connection? Charlie, Helen's friend and colleague is heavily pregnant and so is mainly investigating from the office which suits ambitious DS Hudson down to the ground. He's determined to make something of himself regardless of who he hurts on the way there...

Journo, Garantina turns up and soon has someone from the Team on her side (looking forward to the fireworks when Helen finds this out!) The Team find the connections that they are looking for and the race is on to find the culprit before it's too late.... And of course the killer was someone I hadn't expected at all! An absolutely brilliant read and that ending! WOW Roll on book #10.

I am a big fan D.I. Helen Grace series, and All Fall Down is another fantastic book in the series.
When Justin Lanning gets anonymous call saying she has an hour to live he first thinks it is a prank or a wind up. But virtually an hour later he is found dead. D.I. Helen Grace of Southampton Major incident Team zooms up on her motor bike, with colleague and partner DS Joseph Hudson they are assigned to the case.
When another body turns up killed in the same way as Justin. The team are on the trail of why are they being killed and what is the link between the two bodies? The Link is that when they young they belonged to a group of teenagers who were doing the Duke of Edinburgh award. They were abducted and tortured by a sadistic killer. But, four managed to escape but one died. The major incidents team are on the hunt for the killer before they strike again.
All Fall Down is a brilliant, fast paced but gruesome thriller that like the others in series it does not disappoint. It has a great story line and so addictive. I love the character of Helen, her feisty character, her no care attitude, even putting herself in danger to get the job done with her excellent team. I have followed and loved this series from the first book and this one does not disappoint. M. J Arlidge is one of the reasons I got reading crime novels especially psychological thrillers. Even though this is the 9th book in the series you can still read it as a standalone. I highly recommend.

Another incredible read in the life of Helen. I love this series, the characters become like old friends dad and it’s just like catching up sometimes. This one I read in one go because I just didn’t want to put it down. I also didn’t have a clue as to who was responsible right up until the author wanted me to know! A brilliant read as usual M J Arlidge doesn’t let us down!

Thanks to #NetGalley for the chance to read this book. I am a huge fan of this series and this is another example of a thrilling mystery with ups and downs, twists and turns and as always left waiting to see how things will progress in the next book. Highly recommended reading #AllFallDown

I love the DI Helen Grace books and was thrilled to be given the opportunity to read this latest one, All Fall Down.

"You have one hour to live."

Those are the only words on the phone call. Then they hang up. Surely, a prank? A mistake? A wrong number? Anything but the chilling truth... That someone is watching, waiting, working to take your life in one hour.
This is one of Detective Graces toughest cases. She will need all her strength and courage to solve this crime. Thrilling all the way through with an outstanding finale, I can't recommend this book enough.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for the opportunity to read this amazing book.

So, Helen Grace sweeps in on her motorbike, dressed in leather and ready for anything ... no change there then ... except ... she's in a relationship, her usual sidekick is heavily pregnant, her boss is hiding something and one of the trickiest cases she's ever confronted kicks off, putting Helen bang in the spotlight with her delightful nemesis, journalist, Garantina, gunning for her as usual.
An exciting, well executed narrative that had me hooked from page one ... what more can a girl ask for?
Well, helter skelter springs to mind! I'd waited a while for my Helen Grace fix, but when I started reading All Fall Down, I was immediately thrust into an adrenalin fuelled tension.
All Fall Down kicks off with a tense opening and from there on in it's a bit of a rollercoaster culminating in one of the best chase scenes I've read in a while.
With Helen in top form professionally, it's interesting to see a different side to her explored in this one - a more personal side, which as you'd expect has many surprises to it too.
The concept of the novel - a group of survivors being targetted one by one years afer their abduction is enough to send chills down your spine and I loved the way the story unravelled, slowly bringing us closer to the truth.
I did fleetingly consider the killer as a suspect early on, then moved away from that idea, when a few red herrings got in the way.
What I love most about these books is the strong female protagonist and Helen Grace is as kick ass as they come. Looking forward to the next one already.

Another fantastic instalment in the D.I Helen Grace series.

I absolutely love this crime series and this instalment was no different from the rest, such a fantastic story.

These crime thrillers, are always really fast paced and have very short chapters, which I love so they are really easy to fly through.

I love D.I Helen Grace as a character. She is really interesting, three dimensional and very independent/ a strong willed woman.

These crime thrillers are really dark and very violent, which I absolutely love. If you love a good dark thriller, you will absolutely love this series.

I read an e-arc of this, which I was very grateful for. However, I'm not sure if this will be in the final copy but some of the chapters had mutiple perspectives in which blended in to each other. This made it difficult to read as there was no break/header to distinguish between the perspectives.

This book had me guessing all the way through, I was completely hooked. There was never a point where I was bored and I definitely didn't see the ending coming.

Overall, I thoroughly recommend this book and the rest of this crime series

TW: violence and murder

Helen Grace is back in this novel and I loved it. It was creepy, and twists and turns as her books tend to do. She is more vulnerable in this story which is nice to see and makes me want to read the next one in the series to find out what happens next.
The crime was unusual and tension increases throughout. It lacks the fear factor of the last one in the series but is still well worth the read.

I really enjoyed the story and the authors way of writing . Entertaining and twisted , everything I love In a book !!I would like to read more by this author !!

Who loves MJ Arlidge? And everyones hands go up! Well mine do anyway – I absolutely love the Helen Grace series – and was delighted when a new edition was added to the ever growing world of Grace!

We find Helen Grace to be as fierce and confident as ever. In charge and not letting anyone forget about it! Battling through life, on the edge of what is acceptable within police guidelines, but always on the side of the victim and the vulnerable.

The story itself was good – not as strong as previous novels – but still of a high standard of telling. Many twists and turns – with high octane scenes to make your toes squirm!

There is one character who fascinates me – when you read this book you will know exactly who I mean. They are creepy, secretive and down right off the grid. They represent all true crime fans – picking up the thread of societies interest in all things criminal, whilst the interest still being unsavoury. I really wish we could have heard more from them. I was truly fascinated by this individual. Please can we have a book about them?

You get a phone call saying that you have one hour to live but that can’t be true can it? Or is someone watching and planning to murder you? And if so why? This is the puzzle set for DI Helen Grace at the start of this 9th book in the series. The book follows the investigation of Helen and her team as this tale twists and turns. As the case progresses the search is for links between victims. If there is one can it have a bearing on current events?

Helen and Charlie are back working on another “edge of the seat” case. They do make a good team and their relationship is an aspect of these books I enjoy. Emilia - the local reporter - is also around although whether that is a good or a bad thing only time will tell. The guy who was the new DS in the last book - Joseph Hudson - is back again too. There are the usual blind alleys and the like however this holds together well as a story for me.

Helen Grace has long been one of my favourite UK police characters. She is edgy and vivid. She manages to be thoughtful as well as very much an action person. As I’ve come to expect from this author we have a tense and pacey tale once again. He does manage the writing of stories extremely well.

I confess I was a little disappointed by the author’s last two books (one in the Helen Grace series). That said even an indifferent Arlidge book is far better than some of the run of the mill ones. This one is definitely a return to form for me. The tension and uncertainty about the outcome is well sustained. The end when I got to it was good enough and a surprise! Ultimately it looks like I can look forward to another Helen Grace story next year which does please me! I would always suggest that this series should be read in order. The first books are very good indeed and the way the characters build and develop is good too. Fans should love this one I think.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Orion Publishing Group for an advance copy of All Fall Down, the ninth novel to feature DI Helen Grace of the Southampton Police.

Justin Lanning receives an anonymous call telling him he will die in an hour’s time, then he is murdered. DI Helen Grace and her team are assigned the case and soon find that Justin will not be the only victim and the past has a long reach.

I thoroughly enjoyed All Fall Down which is an exciting, tense read with some good twists, as we have come to expect from Mr Arlidge. The novel is told from various points of view but, yippee, not from the killer’s so the reader (i.e. me) can investigate and speculate to their heart’s content along with the detectives. I got totally caught up in events, guessing some right and getting others completely wrong but that’s all part of the fun. I should, perhaps, have guessed more of it as, while not derivative, I have read some of the scenarios in other novels. This is not particularly important as the author puts his own spin on it and delivers a high octane read, culminating in a spectacular action scene.

It’s all go on the personal front as well. Helen is having an affair with one of her deputies, DS Joseph Hudson, and her friend DS Charlie Brooks is 8 months pregnant. With Helen nothing goes smoothly so be prepared for fireworks. It’s interesting and I love her strong attitude through it all. It’s aspirational.

All Fall Down is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.

Really fast paced and enjoyable read in this series. I like the way the author doesn’t rehash all the past events, and assumes you’re aware of the storyline. I find that very frustrating so it’s a relief; it’s just a few we’ll known characters solving crime and getting on with it. The main character always feels slightly American to me, no idea why. Great read, highly recommend. Thanks NetGalley.