this book was ok, interesting enough in the moment but forgettable. It was somewhat predictable and one note.

For a British police procedural, this book has a very good pace. The story is well written and the characters are believable. The plot, however, is not that believable, but this is fiction and good entertainment.

This! This book kept me up wayyyy past bedtime! Detectives working around the clock for an abducted attorney, I. Couldn’t wait to get to the end! Definitely will look for more from this author!

crime-fiction, thriller, suspense, British-detective

Intense psychological thriller filled with suspense and some really good writing. The publisher's blurb is really good, but the story is even better. My only complaint is that it kept me up reading until almost morning!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Joffe Books via NetGalley. Thank you!

This is the first installment of the Clara Pascal series who gets kidnapped in front of her daughter.
The twists and turns will keep you guessing.
Worth a read

That was really rather well done, especially considering this is a debut. The author gives us a classic piece of misdirection to hamper our efforts to work out whodunit in this gritty crime thriller.

Lawyer Clara Pascal is abducted as she is dropping her nine year old daughter, Pippa, at school. The snatch happens in broad daylight and Pippa witnessed the whole thing but cannot provide much detail as she is too traumatised. Police are at a loss to know who has taken Clara - is it a disgruntled former client, or adversary, is it related to the upcoming trial of crime boss Cassavettes who is currently on remand, or is it something completely different? Anxiety for Clara’s safety soars as the body of another woman is found in a river bearing bruising indicating she was grabbed in a similar way to Clara, as described by her daughter.

We also get Clara’s POV as she sinks into despair wondering what the man has in store for her, and the abductor himself. The book also highlights the dilemmas that lawyers face in defending ‘alleged’ criminals and the potential pitfalls of the justice system itself. Although I am ready to read something in which women are NOT victimised I did enjoy this book and would happily read another by this author. Thanks to Netgalley, Joffe Books and Margaret Murphy for my review copy.

Darkness Falls - Margaret Murphy

4*

The first book in a duology based in Chester, one of my favourite British cities, Darkness Falls had me hooked from the first page. Murphy's writing flowed, her characters were well-rounded and believable, her background research was clearly thorough, and as an avid reader of crime fiction the plot line was right up my street. There were more than enough puzzling events and twists and turns to keep me burning the midnight oil simply because I needed resolution before I could sleep. I will definitely be reading the second book in the series. Not only has the author created in me a need to know what happens next, but I am also looking forward to finding out what else flows from her creative mind.
Horrocks
@sunnybookreviews who received a free copy in exchange for an honest review

Dark thriller with lots of twists and turns before all becomes clear. Characters are very well described and believable.

First encounter with Clara Pascal, Margaret Murphy’s main character. An interesting read with an interesting storyline involving round a hostage situation which had a somewhat surprising reason for it. Looking forward to reading her second book Weaving Shadows featuring Clara.

This is the first time that i have read a book by Margaret Murphy and cannot wait to read more. 'Darkness Falls' was a well written book, full of twists and turns. Loved the characters. Although i never write what a story is about as i prefer one to read the book for themselves, i do recommend.

My thanks to Netgalley and the Publishers for my copy. This is my honest review, which i have voluntarily given.

On the whole, this was a really interesting read.

I loved the way we jumped from story to story, observing through various character's eyes, my favourite being Clara. Clara has been abducted and there are no clues as to who took her, every lead takes them to a dead end. A defence lawyer, there is no shortage of potential abudctors, but as days continue to pass and the trail gets colder and colder can they find her alive? The insight into her time in the darkness and the mental and physical torture she goes through was something I hadn't read before and helped set this book apart for me.

At times the book strayed into giving a little too much police procedural information, but this was rare. It gave Darkness Falls an air of reality and these tidbits of information made the read all the more interesting for a crime buff like me.

The only thing that put me off - the glaring sexism. With this being written by a woman, I thought, for once, we might escape this but that was not the case. I found this put me off and I struggled to see past these occurrences and focus on the actual book, it was little things that irritated me the most; Clara's husband not knowing how to use a washing machine, helpless women, and the line: 'There are no victims, Cath. Only volunteers.'

However, I did get the sense that these 'weak' female characters were growing in strength and by the end seemed more like the female representation I wanted. Hopefully, it will be this representation of women that continues through the series.

All in all it was a good read, I'd certainly pick up the next book in the series!

This is a new author to me and I did feel that this novel started quite well Clara getting ready for work child to take to school and also child's birthday a lot going on first thing in the morning. Pippa the little girl wants mummy to take her to school as mum never does it's usually the husband or nanny?.however today Clara does take her but she is early and told Pippa she must stay in the playground and wait for a teacher as she was the only one there because she was early, but when she gets to the school drops her child off and as she gets in her car she is abducted, and Pippa comes out running and tries to help mummy get free to no avail. Hence the police called, husband, not off the list of suspects and also looking to see what high-class felon she has got off recently as she is very good at her job as a lawyer. I'm afraid the novel went downhill after a good start, the police seemed al over the place not well organized, it seemed no one knew what the other one was doing, no interviews to talk off, and I did put a? mark against the nanny as I went back over the beginning to make sure who she was, could have been the husband's bit on the side turns out she is the nanny, insults being thrown around degrading women most of the time, and Clara in a dark cell bunker and no reason as to why one can only think is to do with her work but it makes you wonder if the story is about the terror Clara feels at the time, will she be saved, and another story thrown in of a criminal already in custody serving time that seems to have got his heavy mobs to find out where Clara is that the police could not do and uses it to try and get parole while awaiting trial, all very messy, took some sorting out and I nearly gave up not something I like doing especially as I was given an ARC copy from Joffe Books at Netgalley for review, I don't like giving negative reviews as I am usually a good judge of books especially thrillers, but thought 3*'s for effort.

Darkness Falls by Margaret Murphy
Clara Pascal #1

Have you ever had a day that looked promising only to have everything start to slip and slide away from you? You are ready and eager for work, not expecting to drop your daughter off at school and definitely not expecting to be kidnapped. And, that is just what happens to Clara Pascal...she is snatched from the street and carried away, put into a dark place and treated abysmally for days. All the time she wonders who took her, why she was taken and how she can get away.

This book has more than one thread to be followed:
* Clara’s time in the dark
* Police Procedural aspects
* Glimpses of how Clara’s husband, daughter and the nanny are doing
* Side story relevant to one of her cases
* And a few others

What I liked:
* The intensity of the part dealing with Clara’s experiences in the dark
* The why of the taking of Clara
* Clara’s insights
* Pippa – Clara’s nine year old daughter
* The twists and turns
* The slow revelations
* The real feel of it all
* The psychological insights some experienced
* The resolution

What I did not like:
* The evil people I was meant to dislike
* That justice wins – sort of
* The slow revelations – sometimes too slow for me
* The police procedural part sometimes lost me
* The sexism, female degradation and such

Did I enjoy the book? Eventually...almost gave up in the beginning
Would I read more in this series? I think so
Why? Because by the end of the story I was invested and wanted to see what would happen in book two of the series

Thank you to NetGalley and Joffe for the ARC – This is my honest review.

3-4 Stars

When a prominent local barrister is kidnapped outside the gates of her daughter's school and her daughter as the only witness the police must dig deep into her list of clients to discover who is responsible

Thoroughly enjoyed this novel and the author is one i have not read before and has now been added to the list to keep a check on new books by her

I didn’t realise when I requested this title that I had read it before, in fact it was the first book I had read by this author and subsequently read the following ones upon release and also her books written as Ashley Dyer.
Darkness Falls is a well written police procedural in the vein of Peter James. Good cops bad cops, sexual harassment in the force and the dogged determination to get their guy.
Cara is a high flying barrister. On her way to work, while dropping her daughter at school, she is kidnapped. She is held in an underground cell, deprived of food and warmth, chained to the wall. Her captor refuses to answer her questions and she tries to think through who would want to harm her.
DI Steve Lawson is in charge of her case and is working through probably scenarios. She was due to try a case of a powerful criminal. Is he behind this or is it someone else she has come across in her job.
Lots of good characters here and I can assure you the authors books from here on in get better and better.
#netgallet #farknessfalls

This is an excellent book. I don't think I've ever read a crime novel that captures quite so much of what it's really like to work on a significant investigation – the teamwork, the endless small tasks that add up to a bigger picture, the sheer scale of the whole operation. The camaraderie and banter between police officers. The author's research and attention to detail is seriously impressive.

The plot is also gripping, taking in several interweaving strands and building to a tense finale. It touches on wider questions such as the morality of the legal system, and as a result is a lot more nuanced than many crime novels I've read; most people can't be classified as either good guys or bad guys.

I predicted one fakeout from quite early on (not everything is necessarily how it seems at the start) but this didn't spoil my enjoyment of the story. I really liked how it all came together.

Definitely recommended.

Darkness Falls, first published in 2002, is the first instalment in the Clara Pascal series and it turned out to be a lot more captivating than I initially thought it would be. Clara is a prominent local barrister for the prosecution but when she drives her daughter Pippa to school one morning she is abducted outside the school gates in broad daylight with only Pippa as a witness; she was forced to stand and watch as her mother was bundled into a vehicle and she could do nothing about it. We learn that the kidnapper had this planned for a while proving she was the target and that it was not simply a crime of opportunity. Chained to the wall in a cold, damp cellar Clara can't keep from wondering who could've done this. There are many suspects and she likely had made lots of enemies as a prosecutor although it may be worth looking a little closer to home. The police have few clues and only Pippa’s hysterical description of the white van that took her mother.

This is a superbly plotted, absorbing and totally riveting read with a plot that grips you early on. It starts off at quite a pedestrian pace in order to introduce the characters but it soon picks up and has you racing along turning the pages. It is a terrifying and chilling psychological thriller that plays with your mind and is written in a gritty and gripping fashion to ensure you're engrossed from start to finish. There are many twists some that were shocking and others that we're foreseeable but it didn't detract from the storyline one bit. Ms Murphy takes the time to develop the cast of characters meaning you really care about what happens to them and even the settings are wonderfully described. Clara is a fascinating character and I hope to learn more about her and see her evolve over the next instalments. If you enjoy menacing and tension-filled stories with killer climaxes then give this a try. I guarantee you won't be disappointed. Many thanks to Joffe for an ARC.

Margaret Murphy. Ashley Dyer. AD Garrett. Three fine crime novelists, a single person. Whatever guise she uses, Margaret Murphy always produces the goods, and this is yet another fine novel to add to her impressive oeuvre. Superbly written, well-plotted and with both setting and characters beautifully drawn, this tale of a kidnapped barrister is gripping and enthralling from the start. More please.

Clara Pascal #1

Clara Pascal is a high powered barrister. She is also a wife and mother. It's her daughter Pippa's birthday and she persuades Clara to drive her to school. But outside the school gates, Clara gets abducted and Pippa is the only witness. The abductor had planned Clara's abduction but we don't know why. She's kept chained to the wall and deprived basic needs. Clara tries to work out who her abductor could be ut she can't think of anyone. Clara's husband is a suspect along with Casvettes, the man Clara was in the process of prosecuting.

The pace is slow to begin with but it does pick up. The story has a couple of good twists. There is a lot of characters to try and remember. We meet DI Steve Lawson and DS Barton, the officers in charge of finding Clara. This is a 1uite good psychological thriller.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Joffe Books and the author Margaret Murphy for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.