Holly Kemp was the fourth victim of The Roommate Killer and her body has only just been discovered, several years after Christopher Masters strangled three other women. But there are questions that need answered about Holly’s death and DC Cat Kinsella has plenty of them. Working with DCI Steele and Steel’s former colleague and mentor, the team must reinvestigate exactly what happened all those years before. Because Christopher Masters is dead and cannot answer their queries. Suddenly the team need to look at this case in a different way, and no one is prepared for what they uncover. I sailed through this because I love the author’s work and her creation of Cat Kinsella. As you’d expect everyone has their secrets and in this particular novel, Cat’s are even closer to the surface. A brilliant read.

I previously read Sweet Little Lies, and I was looking forward to catching up with DC Cat Kinsella in this latest police procedural by Caz Frear.  The novel follows the investigation into the murder of a young woman, Holly Kemp.  At first it is assumed that she was killed by the now deceased ‘Roomate Killer”, but Cat and her team start to question the similarities in the case and whether Holly’s killer is still on the loose.

Shed No Tears is well written, with engaging characters and a pacy plot.  As you’d expect from all good thrillers, there’s an unexpected twist at the end.  I’m not a huge fan of police procedurals, but one thing I particularly enjoyed about this book was the characters.  Despite the serious nature of the job at hand, there is plenty of humour and personal drama that is brought to life though Cat and her colleagues.

Thanks to Netgalley for the preview of this book.  This is the third one in the series so I was delighted to get a copy of it. I loved it & it is my favourite one so far . I love the credible & realistic way in which Frear writes & how the storyline never gets too far fetched   Another great book from this Brilliant writer

Everyone has a price. I truly believe that.

Except the price isn’t always money. It’s just a damn sight simpler when it is.
Well, while not quite everyone in Caz Frear’s third novel featuring DC Cat Kinsella, Shed No Tears, can be seen to be on the take, certainly a large percentage of the characters are either corrupt themselves or in the business of corrupting other people. The question is how do you tell the difference between the two.

When Holly Kemp’s body is found in a ditch in Cambridgeshire the discovery reopens a case that the Met thought they had put to bed six years previously. Holly had been assumed to be the fourth and final victim of Christopher Masters in what was known as The Roommate Case. However, while the bodies of the other three victims were recovered at the time, Holly’s body had remained missing. Masters himself, now dead, having been killed in prison, vacillated between claiming her murder as one of his and denying any knowledge of it. The discovery of the body only adds to the confusion as there are very obvious differences between Holly and the other three women, most particularly, while the latter were strangled, Holly has been shot through the head.

When Cat and her partner, DS Luigi Parnell, report back to DCI Kate Steele it is to find that she has made contact with DCI Tessa Dyer, a highflying contemporary of Steele and tipped for great things. Dyer was the SIO on the original case and hers was the decision to go ahead and charge Masters with Holly’s death despite there being no body. Still, apparently, convinced that Holly was Masters’ fourth victim, Dyer reminds the team of the rock solid evidence given by a teacher, Serena Bailey, which placed Holly on the killer’s doorstep at the very time she was known to have disappeared.  Re-interviewed, Bailey still insists that she saw Holly on the afternoon that she vanished, but something about her evidence doesn’t ring true to Cat and thus begins the unwinding of the case that made Dyer’s name and provided the foundation for her subsequent career.

Meanwhile, Cat has her own difficulties to face. Daughter of a man who has a more than shady background himself and who is still associated with people that it is better Cat’s colleagues and superiors know nothing about, she does all that she can to keep her family at arm’s-length. However, when her father is taken into hospital with a broken arm which he claims to have been the result of an accident with a beer barrel, her more practiced eye recognises the beating he’s been given and she is forced to question just what he may have become involved in and consequently where her duty lies, especially, knowing as she does, that he is paying the price demanded in return for Cat herself being left alone. Coupling this with the news that her brother, Noel, always a thorn in her side, has been released from prison in Spain and is likely to be returning to London, the offer her boyfriend, Aidan, has had of a twenty-two month contract in New York suddenly seems a rather more tempting proposition than had previously been the case. Cat and Aidan seem to be the ideal couple, but their relationship is not without its own difficulties. Unbeknownst to Aidan, Cat’s father was peripherally involved in the murder of Maryanne, Aidan’s sister and Cat is terrified of what revealing that knowledge to him would unleash.  Moving to New York would remove her from the immediate threats her family poses but would also mean leaving the job that she loves. What should she do?

Caz Frear is one of a number of up-and-coming women crime writers who are making a real mark on the scene. I have read both of her previous books with pleasure and this did not disappoint in any way at all. Because of the complicated family history involved, if you haven’t read the earlier books, Sweet Little Lies and Stone Cold Heart, then I would suggest you start there before allowing yourself the pleasure of reading this, the latest in what I hope is going to be a long running series.


With thanks to Bonnier Books UK and NetGalley for the review copy.

‘Shed No Tears’ sees the return of the inimitable DC Cat Kinsella for the third in the series.  Even though it is one of a series it could easily be read as a stand alone for those who haven't read the previous books.  Having said that, I am getting to know the characters and am finding this adds to my enjoyment. This is yet another excellent read.

The remains of a young woman, Holly Kemp, are found in a field in Cambridgeshire, covered by twigs and logs.  The body has been there for some years and it is identified as the fourth victim of a serial killer who is in prison for the murder of the other three women.  He was not convicted of this murder as the body hadn’t been found and there was no definitive proof.  

There are several inconsistencies with the other three murders so an investigation begins to ensure that it is the killer of Holly Kemp who is behind bars.

Serious questions around the evidence, witness statement and police methods are raised and Cat soon believes all is not as it seems.  Following the plot with all the twists and turns of the storyline the reader is taken into a deep, dark and dangerous place where gangsters (something Cat knows about first hand) and police are working hand in hand.

Cat is one of my favourite fictional detective characters. She has inner demons and a sense of humour which keeps her going.  Sometimes she opens her mouth when she shouldn’t and I am now wondering what the next instalment will bring. 

Thank you to NetGalley, Bonnier Books UK and Caz Frear for my ARC of ‘Shed No Tears’ in return for my honest review.

Another must read for any fan of crime thrillers.  Highly recommended.

I have really enjoyed this book, despite being part of a series I have not felt as though I have missed anything. This has been a great read which has kept me guessing from start to finish. I have loved everything about this book, it has been a great read which I found impossible to put down.
I have been completely pulled into this book, I love the author's writing style and have found this to be a a good solid detective mystery book. A superb read by an extremely talented author.

This is the third in the series featuring DC Cat Kinsella.  Having not read the previous books in the series, I'll admit to being a bit lost with the back story of Cat's family and the members of the police team - I think this is probably one where it is best to start at the beginning of the series.

The book opens with the discovery of the body of Holly Kemp, a young woman who was supposed to be the fourth and final victim of a serial killer.  Cat Kinsella and her team are called in to investigate what seems to be inconsistencies in this cold case.  What they uncover raised some serious questions about the previous police investigation.

I really liked the character of Cat herself and the touches of humour in the book.  However, I didn't find it that compelling - maybe it's the nature of the investigation as a cold case, but it never really felt very thrilling or pacy and I found it a bit slow-going in places.  

I'd say this is a solid police procedural and will be a good addition to the series for those who have followed it from the start.  However, for new readers it probably isn't the best place to start.

Thank you to NetGalley for gifting me this ARC in exchange for an honest review. 

Three women were strangled by 'The Roommate Killer' and the case was closed.  Then the remains of a fourth victim are found and DC Cat Kinsella and her team are called in to investigate and questions are asked. The problem is The Roommate Killer, Christopher Masters, is now dead so is unable to answer them. 
This was the first book in the Cat Kinsella series I have read and I enjoyed it, though I think I would have benefitted from reading earlier books to understand the relationships between characters and their backstory. 
As a fan of thriller/crime stories I will continue to read this series by Kat Frear

When Holly’s body is found it should have been case closed. Celebrations for those who worked the case and peace for those waiting for answers. That is the case until closer examination reveals that this body has a few more secrets of her own.

DI Cat Kinsella is faced with a decade of lies and deceit to unravel whilst dealing with some pretty unsavoury leads.

This book is incredibly hard for me to review not because I didn’t enjoy it but more that it was a helluva task to try and read it. As grateful as I am to have received my ARC from NetGalley and Bonnier Books I had to contact them both to explain how the formatting of my copy had gone completely askew. Rouge double spaces in words, typos, soft returns and unexpected hyphens everywhere. I’d say if anything the fact alone I managed (and wanted) to finish this book earns it extra praise!

For me the first half of the book was a bit slow particularly in physical movement and uncovering of evidence. But the second half more than makes up for it. It’s full of little twists and lighthearted humour. The characters are not as easy to develop a relationship towards because (I think) a lot of their individual backstories and relationship to Kinsella were covered previously. That said, I didn’t feel like I had missed out by not reading the previous books.

I have to admit I did guess pretty early on the major plot twist but I thoroughly enjoyed the journey and I look forward to the next instalment.

Thank you to NetGalley for my copy of this novel. I hope that you are able to fix the issues in the kindle download for Caz prelaunch.

Where to start with this one, eh? It’s starts in inimitable Cat Kinsella/ Caz Frear style, typical Cat and Parnell interplay. Didn’t see the twist coming when it did, loved it a lot. Raced through it in fact, every character was fleshed out, nobody was two dimensional. I cared about the fate of them all, to a degree even the baddie, when it was revealed. I’m afraid I can’t say much more than that; needless to say. Go and buy all of Caz Frear’s previous work. You won’t be disappointed!

Unfortunately I've not read all of the books in this series but I have dipped in and out over the years so had a good idea of who the characters are. While I'd never recommend reading the newest book in a well established series first I do think it will just about work as a stand alone novel.
I love the characterisation and humour throughout this series which continues despite a very complex, twisted case. I'm intrigued to see what happens next.

Can Fryers best yet. Gripping, well paced, a great thriller. Looking forward to Finding out what is in store next for Cat Kinsella.

I have really enjoyed Shed No Tears and the other two police procedurals by Frears featuring DI Cat Kinsella. They're well plotted with great twists, but never too eye-rollingly far fetched (which is the holy grail in crime and thrillers), and the politics of being a woman in the Met is well handled.

I have not read any of the previous books in the series and I wonder if this would be important for other readers to do first, as I imagine there is some back story that is covered in these books. This book was a game of two halves for me, I really enjoyed the plot, but found the writing style did not gel with me. It felt exhausting at times reading it, I have struggled to find the right word to describe it and the only one I can come up with is 'jerky' - which isn't helpful at all! However, perhaps starting from the first book would have felt different so I would encourage that as the plot of the book is a good solid detective mystery.

The third instalment and possibly my favourite. The main character Cat Kinsella is awesome  as always. Another fantastic book in the series xx

Wow brilliant book. Cold Case at its best. three deaths case closed. Then a fourth body is found case reopened. Loved that i got the privilege to have a copy via Net galley. Cant wait to read another one

Three women were strangled by 'The Roommate Killer' and the case was closed.  Then the remains of a fourth victim are found and DC Cat Kinsella and her team are called in to investigate.  Questions come up over the manner of the victim's death, but The Roommate Killer Christopher Masters is now dead so is unable to answer them.  DCI Tessa Dyer, who led the case in 2012, lends a hand, as does DCI Steele's old boss and mentor Detective Chief Superintendent Oliver Cairns who is now retired.  Every lead has to be investigated again to find out what really happened.  Could someone have got away with murder all those years ago?

A good story with a captivating plot and interesting characters.  Worth a read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of the book in return for my honest feedback.