A good read with interesting characters and an engaging plot. I didn't know this was part of a series until I started it. I think if I had read previous books this one would have been even better. Regardless, it held my interest and I will definitely read the author again.

Another Intriguing crime thriller from Charlie in Maddy Ives Series. This book was okay for someone who has read prior books in the series. After reading previous novel of this series, "He Will Get You", which features as the best thriller I've read in 2020, this novel doesn't exactly satisfied my taste. 
Maddy Ives and her team's investigation was as always excellent and the best part of this novel. Plot of the story, although strong, but is still predictable. Also, in terms of new characters, I couldn't relate to Linda Morris or Ian Hessey. Overall, an okay novel but a disappointment for Maddy Ives Series fans.

A fun fast paced fun thriller.  The motive leads much to be desired.  Good read for those who like James Patterson or mindless fluff to pass the time.  Characters that are believable and will keep your interests.  I'll definitely be checking out Charlie Gallagher's other works in the series.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the arc of this book.

4 stars an amazingly written thriller with many twists and turns it had be hooked and it was a page turner and loved it so much my first from Charlie Gallagher and wont be my last so impressed it was well written and great storyline.

I enjoyed all this Maddie Ives series and this was no exception. I love the relationship between the main characters of Maddie and Harry. An intriguing story that I didn't want to put down, one that is relatable in today's society albeit extreme lengths to go to. I would recommend this book but start the series from number 1 to get the background information.

Detective Sergeant Maddie Ives and her former partner, Harry Blaker, of Canterbury Major Crimes, have their hands full with a suspect who claims to have murdered a social worker found suffocated in an isolated warehouse. They don't believe his confession and soon find an even larger problem -- it seems that a protection program devised by the police and CPS has been breached. Families that have been hidden away from brutal partners may have been exposed by people who've been kidnapped and blackmailed into revealing their locations. Can they unravel this heinous plan and save those they've vowed to protect?

Even though this is the 6th book in the series, I would have never known. However, I now have added the other books to my TBR list. This book was excellent. It was a bit slow at first; definitely took me longer to read then most books - but I ended up loving it. I couldn’t put it down towards the end. It was fast-paced and full of action with the characters being similar to all of those in the detective/police procedural genre. The author is a police detective so has first hand experience with the methods. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Joffe Books for this e-book ARC to read and review.

Did not finish.....the story was very difficult to follow, it jumped all over from one person to another and I only managed to get as far as chapter 5. They premise of the story seems good but the writing style just wasn't for me

This is another case of "It's-not-you-it's-me." The premise was intriguing, but it failed to get my attention and keep me connected as the story went on. I didn't mind novels with slow pacing, but this one dragged on that it lost my appetite. I also wasn't a fan of the prose. (How many times have I read the word "scraped' or 'scraping'?) It's sad that this isn't my cup of tea.

Still, thank you Netgalley,

A new Uk crime author to me. 
Maddie Ives series book no6, so another series that I haven’t read in order. This wowed me. I highly recommend this book. I really didn’t want to put it down. 
What a great plot, I feel it’s very well written it  totally draws you in from the beginning. the tension is gut wrenching. The pace is fast, the writing style easy to read. 
On the cosy to dark scale I would say it’s passed the middle going towards the darker end of the scale,but nothing overtly grisly or gory. 
Maddie is a hard assed detective, using whatever she can to help solve a case, but she also has a caring compassionate side. 
The great news is, there’s not only 5 preceding books, but another series and several stand alone a too. 
A minor point the of acronyms need to be explained on the first use eg PolSA. Not explained until chapter 6, but appears in chapter 5. 
What is EGT’d?? Never got to find out 
Thanks to Netgalley for letting me read this book 
# netgalley #thedeadlyhouses

I have not read the previous books in this series so in order to truly review this book I think I will read the others first then reread this one to provide a more accurate review.  From what I did read I enjoyed so that was why I have decided to go back to the 1st book in the series.  I will update my review!

I’ve read all of the books in this series. I really enjoy the story lines and the characters. I like the relationship between Maddie & Harry. The author does a great job describing their personality throughout the book. It’s easy to build a picture of them in your mind.
I did feel this one was a little long. But still enjoyed it. 
Looking forward to reading more from this author.

I think that I'm getting a bit jaded with so many detective stories focussing upon historic abuse these days. Whilst this was well-written with strong characters and plenty of twists and turns it didn't quite hit the button for me.  Thanks to NetGalley and Joffe Books for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Abusive men do not like it when they are kept from the families they think they own and control. Some of them are so angry about it, they decide to take matters into their own hands. 

Detective Sergeant Maddie Ives and her former partner, Harry Blaker, of Canterbury Major Crimes, have their hands full with a suspect who claims to have murdered a social worker found suffocated in an isolated warehouse. They don't believe his confession and soon find an even larger problem -- it seems that a protection program devised by the police and CPS has been breached. Families that have been hidden away from brutal partners may have been exposed by people who've been kidnapped and blackmailed into revealing their locations. Can they unravel this heinous plan and save those they've vowed to protect? NO SPOILERS.

Although this is the 6th in a series, I've only read one previous book -- the first -- but I didn't feel that I'd missed much coming in at this point. The plot of this reminded me a bit of THE CHAIN by Adrian McKinty. It was fast-paced and full of action with the characters being similar to all of those in the detective/police procedural genre. The author is a police detective so has first hand experience with the methods and tactics in how Maddie and Harry approach this investigation. I enjoyed it and may be looking for the next installment.

Thank you to NetGalley and Joffe Books for this e-book ARC to read and review.

I loved The Deadly Houses, I thought it was like nothing I’d read before and coming from someone that reads 10+ crime / thriller books a week that’s quite the accomplishment!

Fantastic characters, I don’t normally go for a crime based thriller but this definitely was a good change for me! I thought Maddie was perfect. I love a copper with a good nose who refuses to accept the easy story as the real story! So many surprises, I was left gasping. 

This isn’t fast paced, it isn’t action on every page but it’s worth the slow burn! I did find myself getting frustrated with how slowly the plot moves but it all comes together! Just stick with it! 

If you’re looking for a unique thriller that ticks all the boxes then you need to read The Deadly Houses!

Wow what a book ! Best thriller of the year by a mile! Clever thought out plot that is unique and intriguing mixed with a believable theme of police work it left me spellbound. Had not read a Charlie Gallagher book before but I can’t wait to read another if they are half as good as this one. Don’t miss a chance to read this book if you do you will really regret it.

I read this book without realising it was part of a series. While it works well as a standalone, as with any series, there were parts where it would have been good to have read previous books. I've added them to my wish list. Storywise this book was a bit confusing at the start but it soon got going and captured my interest. Definitely recommended but probably after reading more of the earlier books in the series.

This book had me enamored from the first chapter. Intense reading does not even began to describe this book.
Detective Mattie Ives and her team have landed one of craziest cases I have  ever had read in a book.
The story was intense, heart wrenching and so very disturbing. 
The thought of this really happening keep me up for days.
So if your are looking for an intriguing, thought provoking this crime procedural  is for you I feel weird saying I loved,  but I really enjoyed this unique read.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy of the book. 
#netgalley 
#deadlyhouses

I love a book with a lot of layers, and The Deadly Houses by Charlie Gallagher probably fulfills that more than any other one I’ve read recently. I just finished this one, and honestly, I think I’m still processing it.

Plot Details
This is Book 6 in the Detective Maddie Ives series by Charlie Gallagher. I’ve actually never read any other books in the series! I picked this one up on NetGalley because it sounded like a great crime story. Maddie is surprised by a case that should be open and shut, but it’s just TOO easy. A killer that just shows up at the police station and confesses to a murder, giving the police all the details? It’s just way too cut and dry. Maddie aims to get to the bottom of what is really going on as the connections just continue to pile up.

My Thoughts
A UK police offer wrote The Deadly Houses, so he definitely knows what he’s talking about, and it shows. There are a lot of characters at play in this book, but they all have equally interesting stories. At first, I found it a bit hard to keep up, trying to pull all the stories together. But it soon became a bit clearer what was at play here. Like I said, this one has lots of layers, and I appreciated that. If you like police or detective type procedural TV shows (think Criminal Minds or NCIS), I think you’d definitely enjoy this book.

I’d have to say that I probably enjoyed the middle of this book the best. That was my “hard to put down” time when reading it. The beginning was a bit confusing just because you don’t really know at first what’s going on, and there are several characters and scenarios at play. But once you get up to speed, it’s easy to get very interested in finding out just what is going to happen next. I thought the ending was just a bit slow to play out once you figure out what’s coming. However, the characters are definitely very well developed, and I loved the plot! It seemed very unique to me, not quite like anything I’ve read before.

Overall, I enjoyed this one. I’m rounding up to 4 stars from what I’d probably give a 3.5. I really enjoyed the characters and all the layers in the story, and I’d be interested in reading more about Maddie Ives and Harry, so I might have to check out more of this series.

The Deadly Houses by Charlie Gallagher is the sixth book in the Maddie Ives series. Charlie is a serving Police Detective and let me tell you, it shines through. Every book I read from Charlie is always the best and I never think he can top the particular book I amnreading at that time...then, BAM, out comes another corker! 
This instalment begins with a flashback to eighteen months previously where the police are doing a house raid and all the while a small traumatised young boy is beating his drum to block out the noise of his dad battering his mum. Fastforward eighteen months and a man presents himself at the police station in order to confess to murdering a woman, he has all the details of where and when. DC Rhiannon Davis isn't certain this is a hoax or what and DS Maddie Ives, when she arrives the day after is the same. Maddie feels he may be covering for someone else, but that remains to be seen.
Charlie has chosen a topic that is still as rife as always and a very touchy subject, domestic violence  and has dealt with it perfectly within the storyline.The authenticity  with which he writes makes it feel so real and it gripped me from the prologue.I love Maddie anyway from previous books she has starred in but, boy this book has made he a shining star in my eyes! Another fab book, can't wait for her next outing. Thanks to Jill Burkinshaw and netgalley for the copy of The Deadly Houses for the blog tour today, it was my pleasure!

I have been a fan of Charlie's books for a little while now.  I love the way in which he writes hard hitting, crime novels that have an added authenticity to them when you consider the fact that Charlie is actually a serving police officer himself.  I have read, reviewed and loved every single book that he has written to date.  I read the synopsis for 'The Deadly Houses' and it certainly sounded like another amazing read from Charlie.  I was spot on because 'The Deadly Houses' was a fantastic book, which I thoroughly enjoyed but more about that in a bit.
I loved the character of Detective Sergeant Maddie Ives and took to her from the start.  In fact by the time I got to the end of the first couple of chapters I felt that I had reunited with an old friend in Maddie.  Maddie is a feisty and tenacious young woman.  She is also a dedicated police officer, who is a bit like a dog with a bone when she is allocated a case.  By that I mean that she will not rest until she has investigated every clue, chased down every lead and apprehended the perpetrator.  Maddie comes up against a new police officer, who needs a refund from whichever charm school he went to because he obviously failed the course.  I ended up thinking that if Maddie didn't sort him out then I would.  Maddie works closely with a small team, who seem to get on really well with each other and they each have the others' backs.  The investigation as described in the synopsis is going to test Maddie and her team as they have never been tested before.  Will Maddie and her team apprehend the perpetrator?  Well for the answer to those questions and more you are just going to have to read the book for yourselves to find out as I am not going to tell you.
Oh my flipping word, 'The Deadly Houses' has to be my favourite book of Charlie's to date.  As soon as I sat down and started to read, that was it.  I was immediately drawn into the story and I found it impossible to put my Kindle down.  There was that much going on that I feared missing out on something if I had put the book down.  My Kindle wasn't exactly glued to my hand but it might as well have been because it travelled everywhere with me.  The more of the story I read, the quicker the pages seemed to be turning and the more desperate I became to find out how the story concluded.  I soon worked my way through the book.  All too quickly I reached the end of the story and I had to bid farewell to Maddie Ives and her team.
'The Deadly Houses' is superbly written but then I have come to expect nothing less from Charlie Gallagher.  As I indicated above the fact that Charlie is a serving police officer means he can draw on his own experiences and put some of them in his books.  Charlie certainly knows how to grab your attention from the start and he draws you into the story.  For me , 'The Deadly Houses' started with a bang, hit the ground running and maintained a fast pace throughout.   He takes you on one hell of a scary and unpredictable rollercoaster ride through a complex investigation. There were more twists and turns than you would find on a 'Snakes & Ladders' board.  Just when I thought that I had figured out who was doing what and why then Charlie threw the odd curveball in to send me down another path entirely.
In short, I absolutely flipping well loved reading 'The Deadly Houses' and I would recommend this book to other readers.  I will certainly be reading more of Charlie's work in the future.  The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.