I'm beginning to think that it's impossible for Bryndza to write a book i don't absolutely love and give five stars too. Once again he's crafted and incredible story full of twists, turns and red herrings. I loved learning more about Tristan and his friendship with Kate continues to be a highlight for me. Peter Conway while not as big a player as in the first book is a menacing presence throughout, something i think Bryndza was able to achieve superbly. It reminded me of Hannibal Lecter in Silence of the Lambs. A small amount of screen time but a huge impact.

A gripping thriller that introduced me to Kate the private detective and Tristan her research assistant. They each have their own issues which makes them all the more interesting .-along with a great story line
Would definitely recommend !
Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest review

Shadow Sands is the second book in a series featuring Kate Marshall, an ex-police officer turned lecturer turned private detective, and her sidekick, Tristan Harper. I’m glad that I read the previous book, Nine Elms, as it established the backstory to Kate’s character while being a thrilling page turner in its own right. However, I think Shadow Sands is a better book than its predecessor, as the graphic violence appears to have been toned down this time in favour of more of a creepy, suspenseful atmosphere.

As Kate and Tristan pursue their hunch that a serial killer is operating in the area, with bodies possibly being dumped in the local reservoir, there’s also a race against time to find Magdalena, a university colleague who’s the latest young person to have gone missing. There are also elements of a possible cover-up involving the local police and a powerful wealthy family.

There are many scenes in Shadow Sands involving darkness and fog, creating a genuinely unsettling atmosphere and a sense of menace lurking around every corner. As with the previous book, I would say Shadow Sands ventures into thriller/horror territory at times, and I think the story would lend itself to a fairly exciting and scary movie.

The characters of Kate and Tristan continue to develop nicely in Shadow Sands, and we get to know Tristan in particular better than we did in Nine Elms. I found Shadow Sands to be an engrossing and compelling read.

I thoroughly enjoyed Nine Elms, the first in the Kate Marshall series, but I was rather underwhelmed by Shadow Sands. Kate and Tristan are likeable enough but I find him to be an unlikely candidate for a research assistant at a university (maybe he has the necessary qualifications but I don't think they have been mentioned), and despite Kate's prior role as a police officer I am surprised that she is given so much access to murder sites etc,

The problem with this story is that I didn't particularly feel that we were "rooting" for any of the characters; nor could we "hiss and boo" the villain as we had no idea who he/she was until the rather underwhelming denouement. Without knowing the villain it was impossible to figure out any motivation for the actions taken, and I still don't think it was properly explained even when the book was finished.

Having been quite critical though, I did enjoy the book and will no doubt read any subsequent novels in the series.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

It wasn’t quite as good as the first one in the series but having said that I did enjoy the story and I think Kate and Tristan are good together the story was exciting but could have been better.

I loved this book, the second book in the Kate Marshall series, thanks to netgalley for this ARC. I couldn't put it down and read it in two days only putting it down to sleep. We follow Kate and her research assistant Tristan on their journey as private detectives. I can't wait to see what Kate gets up to nect

As with all of Robert Bryndza's crime thrillers - WOW! I struggled to put this book down and go to work.

Characters - believable; story - gripping, with just the right balance of gruesome; two points of view which eventually come together to solve the crime.

I was sure I knew where the victim was. Was I right though? Definitely being led in a direction. And you are so rooting for Magdelena to make it!

Just brilliant and I can't wait for the next in the series.

Another great book from Robert Bryndza. It was good to meet the characters of back in to Kate and Tristan again, back in with another gripping read. Your attention is grabbed right from the off, and the well-written chapters from different characters’ perspectives keep you intrigued. The characters are very well written, making them real, engaging and relatable.

After reading book 1 in this series and being utterly blown away by it I was so excited for book 2. Well yet again I have read an absolutely fantastic detective thriller. This book had me hooked from the very beginning . I was holding my breath at times whilst reading this book. Robert Bryndza has yet again written a superb book.

With thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the arc, which I have enjoyed reading.
This is the second book in the Kate Marshall series by Robert Bryndza and Shadow Sands is an interesting and entertaining read. I enjoyed reading this book and particularly, like the character of Kate Marshall, who is a former police officer, was involved and gave birth to the son of a serial killer and a recovering alcoholic.
We again meet her side kick Tristan, who again like Kate has issues but is her trusted assistant when she investigates the missing professor, Magdalen, from the university where they both work. The storyline is very clever and well thought out and involves a reservoir and a family estate and another serial killer.
The storyline and characters are well thought out and makes an interesting and enjoyable read.
Highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for this ARC.

After reading the previous book I had high hopes for this one. I’m not sure if I expected too much after the 1st book which I loved, but for me this book fell a little short. I thought it started off fairly slowly, and it took me a good while to properly get into it. Once it began to pick up pace I started to enjoy it more. It just didn’t wow me. I loved the twists and turns in it, and am finding Kate and her assistant Tristan are really growing on me as characters. I would read the next book in the series. The last 25% is quite action packed and had me on the edge of my seat. Even though I enjoyed the first book more, I would still recommend this as a good read. 4 stars. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Better than the first of Kate and Tristan stories. An academic and her research assistant are certainly better at sleuthing than academia so good to see that they may be heading that way next. Please do. This time they are involved when a body turns up in a local reservoir and the local 'Big family' get involved. A thoroughly nasty lot they are too. A single body leads them to more and a serial killer is assumed. As well as police aspects, oh dear more bent or slightly out of shape police, Kate now has problems with her son and his murdering father currently in gaol. Tristan has his own family issues too. Convoluted in many ways, but well written and readable. Look forward to the next story. Thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Another brilliant instalment in what is shaping up to be a great series.
The dynamic between Kate and Tristan continues to develop well and their plan to become full time private detectives hopefully means lots more cases for them and readers to explore.

Another Kate Marshall mystery set in beautiful Devon.
Kate was a DC in the Met Police who was involved with the serial killer Nine Elms Cannibal, Peter Conway ( who is now in jail.) - He tried to kill her when she discovered who he was -something which drove her to the edge of insanity and alcohol addiction.
A young man’s body is discovered in a reservoir and initially treated as a drowning.
Kate discovers the body whilst diving with her teenage son Jake who has been staying with her for the summer.
Kate is now a university lecturer and is asked to investigate the young man’s death by his mother.
Kate and her research assistant Tristan Harper investigate and discover other disappearances and deaths linked to the area and a local wealthy family.
Magdalena Rossi is a new professor at the university and takes a liking to Tristan. After she disappears Kate and Tristan must uncover the truth and stop her from becoming another victim.
Another enjoyable thriller from Robert Bryndza with good pace and plenty of hooks to keep you reading.
4 Stars.

Kate Marshall is diving in a local reservoir with her son Jake when they discover a body. Simon Kendal had been camping on the banks of the reservoir with a friend when he went missing. The official verdict is that he fell into the water and drowned. Simon’s mum doesn’t believe this is what happened as he was an Olympic standard swimmer and asks Kate to investigate. Kate and her associate Tristan start investigating and come across several instances where young people have gone missing in the area and most are linked to a now closed nightclub. Then one of the Professors from the university, Magdalena Rossi, goes missing. Kate and Tristan are convinced that there is a link with he reservoir and a local land estate but the police won’t take them seriously. While the investigation is underway Tristan has to come clean to his sister and Kate about his true self and Kate has to come to terms with her son wanting to meet his father.

This is the second book in the Kate Marshall series. I really enjoyed the first, Nine Elms and this one didn’t disappoint either. Looking forward to the next installment.

Thanks to Netgalley, Little Brown Book UK and Robert Bryndza for the ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

We meet Kate and Tristan again two years after the events of surrounding the Nine Elms Killer. Kate's son Jake has now turned 16 and the story begins with Kate and Jake scuba diving in a local reservoir. Unfortunately as they are diving they discover the body of a young local man in the water. When his death is ruled a drowning, Kate's investigative instincts start to twitch. When she starts to look deeper, bad things start to happen.
I enjoyed this immensely, I read it straight after reading the previous book, Nine Elms, but you would be able to read it and enjoy the story without reading the previous book.

I’d heard lots of good things about Robert as an author so I was excited to have been accepted to read a copy of his newest book ‘shadow sands’ by NetGalley and little brown book group.

Once reading, it became apparent that this is part of a series so I was a little apprehensive as I haven’t read the books before. I needn’t have been worried, it was a perfect stand alone! And it’s made me want to go back and read previous ones.

It was a good storyline, murder, suspense, emotive subjects in between. The characters were great and I liked how the story developed.

It was quite a slow paced book, so took me a while to get stuck in and it has taken me a few reads to get through it but overall I enjoyed it.

I like the descriptions of scenes as it really helped me picture the scenery and scenarios.

Overall a fab storyline, very good writing style and it kept me hooked and In suspense!

This book introduced me to former police detective Kate Marshall and I wish that I had read the previous novel so that I understood a little more of her history. Following on from the imprisonment of her former husband, the notorious Nine Elms serial killer, Kate is now a university lecturer and part time private investigator.

The story starts with Kate and her teenage son scuba diving in a reservoir where they discover the badly damaged body of a young man. Because Kate does not believe the police announcement that the death is an accidental death ( the young man being an aspiring Olympic swimmer ) she and her graduate student Tristan embark on an investigation and discover that there are several people who have been reported missing. Some of the bodies have been found in the same reservoir . Whilst they are investigating ,a fellow academic, a Professor at the university where Kate is teaching, goes missing.
Their investigations lead them into danger and takes some surprising turns.

This book is fairly well written and a good page turner but I felt that the ending was disappointing and somewhat hurried.

Another great book from Robert Bryndza. I loved diving (pun intended) back in to Kate & Tristan's lives with another gripping read. Bryndza manages to grab you from the first chapter & keeps the interest throughout with short, punchy chapters following all the different characters involved. His characters are brilliantly written, with the right amount of issues to make them real & engaging. I thought he did particularly well portraying the victim (I won't say more - spoilers).

If you've read Nine Elms you'll know what you're in for, if you haven't, why not? Get it & then this!

The second book in the Kate Marshall series revisits Kate and her son who are have rebuilt their relationship following her recovery from addiction. Kate, who used to be a police officer, solved the case of a serial killer in book 1 - Nine Elms. Although there are elements of her history included in the book, it can easily be read as a stand alone. Kate is now working at a university, and is learning to scuba dive with her son, on a practice dive they find a dead body trapped underwater. The boys mother does not believe it was an accidental drowning and knowing Kate’s history in police work asks her to investigate. Feeling a connection to the case Kate reluctantly returns to detective work with her assistant Tristan. I really enjoyed the development of Kate and Tristan’s relationship in this sequel. Both characters have demons that they are fighting and I really engaged with them as a team. When a lecturer at the university goes missing near the local reservoir, the coincidence seems too much and both Kate and Tristan are pulled into a murky world of police corruption, family secrets and one killers efforts to keep his deadly obsession from the world. I would recommend this book for anyone who enjoyed Nine Elms, and fans of a police procedural with a clever plot lines, intrigue, characters with depth and twists that you won’t see coming.

Thank you to Robert Bryndza, the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in return for an honest review.