what a cracking read Helen Fields is one of my favourite authors and the ‘Perfect’ series is one of my favourites, so I was interested to see how this standalone novel compared . Well, it was one of the best listens/reads I’ve read in a long time ! An addictive storyline from the first page to the last and a cast of strong characters that I would love to see develop and so wish this would become a series! It is quite a dark novel in places and both narrators brought the characters to life and so the little touches of humour balanced this out ! I can not speak highly enough of this book 📚 highly recommend

Brilliant! A fast paced story that will keep you on the edge of your seat.. So cleverly written. You should feel sorry for the Shadow Man but at times you empathise for him and the life he led. An original plot that I could not put down.
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A brilliantly gruesome book! I found the main subject of the story so fascinating that I actually had to look it up online as I'd never heard of it before, that subject is Cotard's syndrome and is a mental health condition in where the person believes they are dying or actually dead. A fantastic book that starts with a missing women and goes on from there. I totally recommend this one!

Fields' novel is built on a very unique premise, which created a great amount of payoff at the climax. The two investigators had a good rapport, bouncing off each other well. Meanwhile the killer was suitably sinister, with an edge of unpredictability that kept things interesting. A thriller that will definitely chill you.

A very strange kind of serial killer!

I have not read anything from this author before but would like to go back and read some of her previous books that were all set in Edinburgh, one of my favourite cities. However, I hope there are not too many more shadow men around!

I think the whole concept of the killer was very terrifying, he suffers from Cotard’s Delusion which means he thinks he is dying or sometimes feels he is already dead and when anyone has no fear of death I always think it makes them even more sinister as they feel they have nothing to lose.

Fergus Arriss is such a person, before he finally dies he wants to have his perfect family around him. He is a stalker who chooses his ‘new’ family with care. He abducts the perfect wife, Elspeth Dunwoody, the perfect daughter, 12-year-old Meggy Russell and a brother for her, paraplegic Xavier Coghill. However, despite his surveillance of his victims, they are all slightly different from what he had assumed.

We are introduced to DI Brodie Baarda who has been seconded from his London post to look into these kidnappings. He is teamed up with Dr Connie Woolwine who is a young, brash American and a brilliant psychologist. They are opposite in character but somehow they work well together.

Connie seems able to get into the head of the kidnapper and is the only person who connects the seemingly unconnected 3 kidnappings. The plot is fast-moving and with many twists and turns. It is also unlike any type of thriller type stories that I have ever read before. We even can feel a twinge of pity for the killer when we discover his background.

I am hoping that Brodie and Connie may become a more permanent partnership both at a working level and a personal level, they work so well together.

Dexter

Elite Book Group received a copy of the book to review

The Shadow Man follows Detective Inspector Brodie Baarda and Psychological Profiler Dr Constance 'Connie" Woolwine as they try to find a high profile missing person. Helen field does not pull any punches when writing thriller/ crime novels and this one is no exception a really good read. The novel has compelling characters , hard hitting crime scenes and all set in Edinburgh . What’s not to like…..

Three people are locked in a flat. They don't know where they are ... and they don't know why they were taken. What they do know is someone called The Shadow Man has taken them ... and unless they can escape, he will never let them go.

The Shadow Man is a mentally deranged man who frequently changes his name. He experiences severe delusional episodes in which he abducts and murders people he's targeted. If he doesn't kill them outright, he collects them.

Connie Woolwine is a Forensic Psychologist consulting with DI Baarda of Scotland to profile and catch this serial killer who seems to be able to kill and escape capture, leaving no clues behind. Woolwine and Baarda are absolutely sure that all these crimes are connected .. but how .. and why?

The backstory of the killer is amazingly creepy ... understandably so as his history is related. It's fast-paced with suspense starting on the very first page and holding steady until the unexpected explosive conclusion. The characters are solidly drawn. I was drawn into how well Woolwine and Baarda worked together. Hopefully, this is not the last we see of them.

Many thanks to the author / Avo Books UK / Netgalley for the digital copy of this pulse-pounding crime fiction. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

I love Helen Fields' Luc & Ava series, so I was eager to read this standalone and I was not disappointed!
A really dark thriller, with a truly walking corpse as the bad guy... it was gruesome and I loved it!
Connie and Brodie were also great characters... maybe this is not a standalone after all, but a start of a new series? Fingers crossed! Another great book from Helen Fields.

I would like to extend my gratitude to the author, publisher and NetGalley for sending me this advanced reader’s copy in return for a fair, frank, and honest review.

I have never read any books by this author so was looking forward to finding a new detective, crime mystery novelists. Additionally, was based in Edinburgh which is my nearest city. I enjoy books where I can literally follow the story. It was a fast-paced thriller, with many twists and turns throughout. This was a book that I read in one sitting. The ending I could never have predicted. Definitely will be reading more of her books.

After reading the perfect series by Helen fields I was looking forward to reading this one. Although some characters were mentioned in this book from that series it was still very much a stand alone book.
I enjoyed the storyline and how it was fast paced throughout.
Helen fields is an author that I will continue to look out for her new books in the future.

#TheShadowMan #NetGalley I love Helen Fields DI Callanach series so I was excited to read this standalone novel by the same author. A gripping thriller, that was extremely gruesome in parts (I don't mind this at all!), it told the story of Maggie, Elspeth and Xavier who have been abducted by the shadow man. And the race against time for DI Baarda and Dr Connie Woolwine, an American profiler, to discover where they are before its too late. Plenty of action, with many twists and turns. I liked the more unusual circumstances relation tp the shadow man and I also liked the relationship developing between Baarda and Connie - so much so that I wondered whether they might be a sequel to this after all?! A great read from a great author.

Quite a dark, albeit enjoyable read. I had enjoyed this author's DI Callanach series, I can attest that her attention to detail and the story telling abilities have transferred over to this work.

Anyone familiar with my taste in books knows I prefer my thrillers a bit on the darker side.
Careful what you wish for…this is one over-the-top, wicked read!

“Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of man? The Shadow knows.”

The shadow man has an agenda. He’s on the prowl for the perfect victims to meet his objective. What is that you may ask? Come on now, you know I can’t tell you...that would spoil the fun!

Connie is a forensic psychologist brought in from the US to aid the local Scotland police. Connie is no wall-flower and her methods are let’s just say, out of the ordinary. But yet I loved her! She’s tough as nails and won’t hesitate to go toe-to-toe with anyone.

Can her expertise help find The Shadow Man before time runs out?

This was my first read from Helen Fields and jumped at the chance to read this one. I am thoroughly hooked and planning to go back and read her series which looks equally chilling!

Even though I usually don’t like detective fiction, this was actually really good!! The Shadow Man follows forensic psychologist Connie and detective Baarda to find a the latest kidnap victim. This book was SCARY

A 30 some year old man who thinks he is dying goes on a kidnapping spree to find his perfect family and leaves them locked up in an old farmhouse. The reader cringes as a woman is forced to vow marriage to him in an old wedding dress. He stinks, his teeth are falling out, and his character is quite nightmarish. I admired the determination of the 12 year old girl as she became more of the adult and tried to help them escape. He also kidnaps a handicapped man in place of the brother that he lost at a young age. Once he determines that his "new wife" has been cheating on her real husband, he takes it personally and decides they all need to be together in a final resting place. As the police look for where he may have took them, they live through the biggest nightmare yet and the reader cannot help but imagining the horror they all live through. Great suspense filled story line, even greater, likeable characters, and the chance at finding real happiness at the end. I really enjoyed this book, although it felt kind of sluggish at times.

This book had an element of supernatural to it which added a different genre to the book. The pace of this book didnt stop. Suspense was electrifying . This was my first by Helen but I will definately be reading more.

I love it when you know who the baddie is from the very beginning because the author gives you their information and yet the author still manages to take you on a roller coaster ride with twists and turns at every corner.

Meggy is a bad a**, I think her character is awesome! Connie's character was also fantastic; I love that she is an achromat and has a foul mouth. I would probably have a foul mouth as well if my job was to help hunt down serial killers! Although truth be told I don't hunt serial killers and I already have a foul mouth, ha!

Highly recommend this book to anyone that wants to take a wild ride.

This is a character driven fast paced thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat! The writing is superb as the mystery cleverly unfolds. The pacing was perfect with an ending that had me shook! I definitely recommend this to all thriller addicts! Thank you NetGalley and Harper Collins for my copy.

A very interesting thriller. Elspeth, Maggie and Xavier are stuck in a flat together being held captive by the Shadow Man who calls them his family. I liked to see how all three behaved differently while in captivity. I liked the shadow man’s POV

I enjoyed reading The Shadow Man by Helen Fields. It is an original story, at least I haven't come across anything similar so far.
It is a dark story, and does involve violence against women and children, so that might be something some readers will want to avoid. It describes a certain illness (that I have no idea if it actually exists or not) that is very disturbing.
I unfortunately did not enjoy a few aspects of this story, and I was frustrated with the description of the antagonist and his complete power over others. I also found the ending unbelievable and a bit of a let down.

It certainty is a unique story that will draw the reader in and have you wanting to read more.