Fantastic read! Fast paced, scary, emotional and thrilling, Charlie Gallagher has delivered a brilliant read once again! I love all his books and can’t wait for the next chapter for DS Maddie Ives. #NetGalley#THEDEADLYHOUSES

The sixth book in the series and in my opinion the best one yet. I say this every time this author has a new book released but it is true. His books are that good. From the first page I was hooked, I was there in the story. This book had me constantly sat on the edge of my seat and tapping my kindle like a demented wood pecker. This book blew me away, the plot was original, terrifying and full of tension and suspense. As for the climax OMG my heart was in my mouth. This is why this author is a master of this genre. Loved loved IT!!!!
Thanks to Joffre Books and Netgalley for the ARC.

This is the sixth in the Maddie Ives series but it can easily be read as a standalone, although I would recommend reading a few of the other books in the series just to get a fuller picture of the characters.
The deadly houses is a dark and at times quite scary read with plenty of pulse pounding moments.

A man shows up confessing to a murder which Maddie Ives isn’t convinced he committed. Her new boss won’t hear her out and wants the murder all wrapped up. In desperation she turns to her old boss and friend Harry Blaker. When they dig deeper, the case becomes a lot more sinister that it first appears.

As always with all of Charlie Gallagher’s books, it’s cleverly written with his experience as a police officer shines through, adding the air of authenticity to the novel.

I did feel the middle of the story lost a little bit of steam but the emotion and tense ending made up for it.

The Deadly Houses is both an emotional yet at times quite chilling read that had me thinking about it long after I’d finished it.

This is the sixth book in the series featuring DS Maddie Ives and DI Harry Blaker based in Canterbury, and it is the best yet! At the very start of the series DS Maddie Ives had been working undercover in Manchester for years until disobeying orders meant that she had to move right across the country to a Major Crimes posting in Langhorne in the south east, leaving behind a lover she wasn't even supposed to have due to his connections to a criminal gang. Then a nasty shoot out injured her boss DI Harry Blaker and put him out of action for months and her back into CID, and once reunited they have since worked some nasty cases. The last story ended in tragedy and left everything on a bit of a cliff hanger, and as soon as this book began I was already missing Harry and PC Vince Arnold with no news of their whereabouts. This story begins rather strangely. A man arrives at a disused building and films his discovery of a murder victim. It's no surprise for him though, as he has been told what he will find and what to do. The man then walks into Canterbury police station where Major Crimes are based and confesses to the murder. DC Rhiannon Davis is on night duty and takes his statement to hand on to Maddie in the morning when enquiries have to be made as to whether the man is telling the truth or winding them up. When the body of a woman, a local social worker, is indeed found where he claims it is, an arrest follows. Maddie's gut tells her something is off about the whole confession. Major Crimes has been landed with a new DI, a dreadful bitter man by the name of Tristan Stepney. He has recently been demoted, amidst much speculation, and is only interested in taking any glory that happens to be going. He is eager to sign off the case and with no help or support from her DI, Maddie turns to the only person she can rely on - Harry Blaker. After a wonderful moment where Stepney gets what he deserves, the status quo is restored, and Maddie and Harry can get on with doing what they do best. With hostages held in chains and all manner of threats being made, it looks like those people really responsible are deadly serious about achieving whatever plan they have made, and are ruthless enough to carry it out. After five previous books, the main characters have been very well described, and they get ever more likeable as the series moves on. Harry still growls a bit, Maddie is her usual tenacious self and a certain other officer is back on form. Once again the plot is clever and exciting with a nail biting ending that even then isn't truly over. I loved the last chapter! It is another excellent and enthralling read from a very knowledgeable author. Highly recommended and I can't wait to see what comes next for Maddie. 5*

I love books that grab you from the beginning. This was a crazy story of four families that were destroyed due to abuse. It was a page turner as there was a lot of action. One person involved in putting the men behind bars was found murdered. Three others were taken and given tasks with the guise that they would be murdered if they didn't follow through. Detective Maddie slowly unfolds what is going on when someone mysteriously shows up and confesses to the murder. She knows he isn't the killer.

Overall great book, page turner!

I thank the publisher and Net Galley for allowing me to read this book before it was published. This is my first book by this author and I look forward to reading more in the future. I had no idea this was a book in the middle of a series, but it didn't feel like I was missing anything by not reading them in order. I love to read any book that has the word dead in it. You know there's going to be a good plot ahead with a sense of mystery wrapped in it. Not often does someone come to the police station to confess to a murder. I would be suspicious also if I were the police, as this is a rare occurrence. I loved the twists and turns of this book and plan on reading many more by this author in the future.

Not my first time reading that author, I'm never disappointed.

Well written thriller, police thriller, well developed, interesting plot, many twists, it keeps you interested until the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book. This is my honest review. All opinions are my own.

It was my first book by Charlie Gallagher but definitely not my last. I cannot understand why it is not translated into German yet.I've been looking for a captivating thriller for a long time and when I read the blurb from this book I was curious. In addition, this book is still in English. Unfortunately it has not been translated yet, I hope that will change soon.

Since it starts with a case, you're right in the middle of it. The police arrest a violent man who has abused his wife and son. 18 months later, Maddie investigates a case when a man turns up and admits the murder. The case is closed for everyone, but not for Maddie. She feels that something is wrong with it and embarks on a dangerous investigation. She wants to protect another family from abuse. The reader also gets to know Linda Morris, who is a victim of kidnapping.

It is exciting from the first page and I trembled together with Maddie. It was exciting until the last page. If you think the author can no longer surprise you, he can do it with a new twist. It is a pure and first class page gymnast.

However, it is not for the faint of heart because it is cruel and sick. The book and the subject shook me all the more because the author himself was a policeman. This makes the story incredibly real and believable.

(German)Ich habe schon lange nach einem fesselnden Thriller gesucht und als ich den Klappentext von diesem Buch gelesen habe, war ich neugierig. Darüberhinaus ist dieses Buch noch auf Englisch. Es ist leider noch nicht übersetzt worden, ich hoffe das ändert sich bald.

Da es gleich mit einem Fall anfängt, ist man mitten drin. Die Polizisten nehmen einen gewalttätigen Mann fest, der seine Frau und seinen Sohn missbraucht hat. 18 Monate später ermittelt Maddie an einem Fall, als sich ein Mann stellt und den Mord zugibt. Für alle ist der Fall abgeschlossen doch für Maddie nicht. Sie spürt das daran etwas faul ist und begibt sich auf eine gefährlich Ermittlung. Sie will weitere Familie vor Missbrauch beschützen. Der Leser lernt auch Linda Morris kennen, sie ist ein Opfer von kidnapping.

Es ist von der ersten Seite an spannend und ich habe mit Maddie gemeinsam gezittert. Es blieb spannend bis zur letzten Seite. Wenn man glaubt, der Autor kann einen nicht mehr überraschen, schafft er es doch ,durch eine neue Wendung. Es ist ein purer und erstklassiger Page Turner.

Allerdings ist es nichts für schwache Nerven, denn es ist grausam und krank. Mich hat das Buch und das Thema um so mehr erschüttert, denn der Autor selbst war Polizist. Dadurch wirkt die Geschichte wahnsinnig real und glaubhaft.

Deadly Houses by Charlie Gallagher
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
Deadly Houses opens with a disturbing domestic scene, with the abuser being taken away, the mother and son are free and safe.
18 months and Maddie Ives is faced with a bizzare case, a man enters the station and admits to a murder... Everyone thinks its all sorted and closed up but Maddie has her doubts and investigates further and untangles a large web of lies and it is down to Maddie to protect a number of families from their abusers and also her colleagues who protected them. There are tragedies but there are victories too.
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I read this book via Netgalley. This book intrigued me from the beginning as I was eager to know how it was going to play out. There were many twists and turns to keep you turning the page, and the end scenes kept me at the edge of my seat, part of me wanted to jump in and help! Part of me wanted a slightly different ending but it all came together and ended well. I do recommend this read!
My only mistake was reading via kindle, as me and electronic reading do not get on 😂 if it was the book then I probably would have read it in a day 😂

Police thriller with lots of twists. A very clever plot with a bit of everything thrown in. A good read which kept me guessing.

Men who have physically and mentally abused their partners or children , and lost their families because of it, have banded together in this intricately woven plot to take revenge on the people they hold responsible.

They are working as a single entity against the police and against their families who dared to leave them and hide their identities and location.... and there's someone on the inside who is helping them.

Detective Maddie Ives and her team are working feverishly as this devilish plot comes to light. Bodies are piling up and no one seems to know anything. Until a man walks into the police department and confesses that killed a woman. He tells them how he did it and where he left the body. After verifying his story, she doesn't believe his story .... and her supervisor is ready to close the case.

Knowing that Charlie Gallagher was a serving police officer for many years as a front-line response line officer, then as a member of a specialist tactical team and as a serious offense detective investigator, I expected a lot of credibility ... I was not disappointed.

It's an action-packed page-turner amid a plot filled with twists and turns. The characters are deftly drawn. Although 6th in the series, this is easily read as a stand alone. I do recommend starting from the beginning in order to see how these characters have grown over time and what they've had to deal with in order to be the investigator they are.

Many thanks to the author / Joffe Books / Books 'n All Book Promotions / Netgalley for the digital copy of this crime fiction. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

This one was not for me. I found myself not connecting with the plot or being able to get interested in it. I was super hopeful based on all the good reviews I’ve seen.

I would like to thank NetGalley & Joffe books for the ARC.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Joffe Books for an advance copy of The Deadly Houses, the sixth novel to feature DS Maddie Ives of them Canterbury Police.

Maddie is feeling a bit lost without her friend and mentor, DI Harry Blaker, who has transferred out of the Major Crimes Unit, when Adrian Hughes walks into the Canterbury station and confesses to murder. They find the body and confirm the details of what he has said but Maddie can’t shake the feeling that there is more to his story than he is disclosing, despite what her new boss says. She teams up again with Harry Blaker to investigate.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Deadly Houses which, as ever, is an exciting read with multiple twists and plenty of action. The narrative is essentially split between Maddie and Linda Morris, a kidnap victim. Personally I feel that the synopsis issues too many spoilers by mentioning the revenge motive as the set up of Adrian’s confession and Linda’s ordeal are enough to get any reader hooked and asking the who, what and why questions. Having said that, all it does is destroy a little of the early mystique and give the reader more information than Maddie has. It is still a densely plotted novel with Mr Gallagher’s trademark fast pace and action pieces. The tension is palpable throughout as Maddie rushes to save lives and solve the case.

It should be noted that as the unnamed perpetrators are domestic abusers they are cruel men. I think the novel is excellent in its portrayal of their mindset and the effort and calculation they are prepared to expend for their revenge. It’s sickening but not unexpected.

I am a big fan of Mr Gallagher’s writing as I think he inserts enough realism into his novels to make them interesting and believable and still offer an enthralling read. The Deadly Houses is no different so I have no hesitation in recommending it as a good read.

What a plot! Kept me guessing through the whole book. Action all the way through - go Maddie Ives.
Sensitive subject through the book, which I feel portrayed both sides of the story a little, but should raise discussions around DVA and the effect that it has on all concerned.
Had to concentrate a little at the beginning to work out what was happening, but once I had the characters it all flowed in a complicated web.

The Deadly Houses is the sixth instalment in the Detective Maddie Ives series set in Canterbury and written by a serving Detective investigating serious crimes. The fact that he is a member of law enforcement makes this book, and series, all the more compelling and credible and you get a real taste of the circumstances behind the crimes. It isn't necessary to have read any of the preceding instalments to enjoy this one. Adrian Hughes saunters into Canterbury police station and confessed to murdering a social worker; he even provides photographic evidence. DC Rhiannon Davis of Major Crimes is stunned into silence before taking him in for an interview. Later her superior DS Ives conducts her own interview and both come to the conclusion that it is doubtful that he committed the crime. His behaviour and mannerisms suggest he could be covering for someone so the team begin to investigate who the woman is and why she was slaughtered. The map he provided to aid the police in finding the body was accurate and they find the body wrapped in a tarp inside a dilapidated building.

This is a genuinely terrifying read so if you are easily creeped out this may not be for you but for the rest of the crime connoisseurs, this is a must-read. Charlie Gallagher is undoubtedly one of the best writers of police procedurals out there and his books continue to get better and better; this instalment is by far his most compulsive and gripping yet. Inspiration for these books likely comes from his police experiences and this added authenticity makes the story as realistic and believable as it can get. It is a complex read that jumps between two timelines at the start and there is so much going on that I was captivated and riveted throughout. Police procedurals don't get any more addictive and well-executed than this. The plot is full of exciting twists, turns and reveals and the tension and uneasy atmosphere can be felt at all times. From the moment I picked this up I raced through it and simply couldn't put it down as I was desperate to know what happened in the end. With many lives at stake, the team must race against the clock to save those in danger and this leads to a nail-biting conclusion. Many thanks to Joffe for an ARC.

The Deadly Houses is the sixth instalment in the Detective Maddie Ives series set in Canterbury and written by a serving Detective investigating serious crimes. The fact that he is a member of law enforcement makes this book, and series, all the more compelling and credible and you get a real taste of the circumstances behind the crimes. It isn't necessary to have read any of the preceding instalments to enjoy this one. Adrian Hughes saunters into Canterbury police station and confessed to murdering a social worker; he even provides photographic evidence. DC Rhiannon Davis of Major Crimes is stunned into silence before taking him in for an interview. Later her superior DS Ives conducts her own interview and both come to the conclusion that it is doubtful that he committed the crime. His behaviour and mannerisms suggest he could be covering for someone so the team begin to investigate who the woman is and why she was slaughtered. The map he provided to aid the police in finding the body was accurate and they find the body wrapped in a tarp inside a dilapidated building.

This is a genuinely terrifying read so if you are easily creeped out this may not be for you but for the rest of the crime connoisseurs, this is a must-read. Charlie Gallagher is undoubtedly one of the best writers of police procedurals out there and his books continue to get better and better; this instalment is by far his most compulsive and gripping yet. Inspiration for these books likely comes from his police experiences and this added authenticity makes the story as realistic and believable as it can get. It is a complex read that jumps between two timelines at the start and there is so much going on that I was captivated and riveted throughout. Police procedurals don't get any more addictive and well-executed than this. The plot is full of exciting twists, turns and reveals and the tension and uneasy atmosphere can be felt at all times. From the moment I picked this up I raced through it and simply couldn't put it down as I was desperate to know what happened in the end. With many lives at stake, the team must race against the clock to save those in danger and this leads to a nail-biting conclusion. Many thanks to Joffe for an ARC.

My first ARC review!!! The hugest of thank you's to Netgalley, Joffe Books (publisher) and Charlie Gallagher (author) for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

I'm a thriller buff. I can't resist a well-written thriller that draws me in and keeps me theorizing and guessing till the very end. This was a great read, and I'll definitely be picking up more books in the Detective Maddie Ives series (this is book 6, and the first I'm reading).

I love how this book blends a number of my favorite thriller elements in one book - a police investigation, a murder mystery, and the thrill of guessing and trying to solve the mystery (and being wrong a number of times LOL).

The team - Maddie Ives, Harry Blaker, Rhiannon Davis and PC Vince Arnold - in this book gets to work on what might just be their toughest and worst case ever. We see a lot of creepy and scary stuff in this book (be sure to sleep with your lights on).

It had a bit of a slow start, but once it picks up pace, you wouldn't want to drop it till you read the very last word. A man makes his way to the police station and admits to murder. He leads the police to the body, and when they get there, they determine that there is so much more than he is letting on. They discover that he was at the scene, but nothing there shows that he definitely committed the murder.

If you're looking for a great murder mystery thriller, I 100% recommend this book! With a great storyline and a largely unexpected ending, you'll love it!!!

Wow.
As soon as I started I knew this would be a real page turner. The kind of book that has you thinking about it all day.
This is part of the Detective Maddie Ives series, but the first I have read. It works very well as a stand-alone novel.

I loved the way the story was told from the different characters’ POV, this kept it fast paced while still being easy to follow.

Towards the middle I did feel the pace slowed a little, when, as readers we knew what Maddie and Harry needed to know and they seemed to be one step behind.

However, I found myself willing them on and screaming at them to “come on” as the took chase of the evil antagonist and I was pleased with the ending.

I believed in the characters, and am now eager to read the rest of the series.

Thanks to NetGalley, Joffe Books and to Charlie for providing me a complimentary copy of this book to review.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own!
Thank You NetGalley, Publisher & Charlie for this ARC!

The Deadly Houses is a Detective Maddie Ives Book 6 series.
Even though I have not read the other 5 books before this one. I really enjoyed it. It was completely a creepy read.... which are my absolute favorite!
I felt like I could not stop reading this one. It had me wanting to devour this book in one sitting so I could finish this one up and know what was happening at the end.

You will have no clue what is about to go down!
Now I am about to get on my Kindle to get his other books to read
Because I think I found my new favorite author!

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me a complimentary copy of The Deadly Houses by Joffe Books in exchange for my honest review

I do not get scared easily when reading books, but this one made me feel really uneasy. I hate the thought of being watched and stalked, so this book did make me uncomfortable at times. It was very well written as you could feel the terror from the characters.
This is a very fast paced book and you will want to finish it quickly as you want to know what will happen next.