Heather Evans, a former journalist, is forced to return to her childhood home because her mother, Coleen, from whom she has been estranged for many years, has jumped to her death from a cliff. Apart from the unpleasant and unwelcome memories evoked by the house, there are also mysterious happenings in the house centered around a trapped bird and the appearance of bird feathers in odd places. These bring back memories of a fight with her father which might have precipitated his death. Searching through her mothers effects, she finds a stack of letters from Michael Reaves, ‘The Red Wolf’, who is currently in prison for the serial killing of young women. It would appear that her mother and the killer had a relationship going back to a time in the Seventies (or perhaps early Eighties, there is an ambiguity about the timescale) when her mother had been a member of a hippy commune.
A copy-cat, also styling himself as the wolf, has recently begun a killing spree using an MO which contains similar elements to the earlier cases which had never been released. Heather agrees (partly wearing her journalist hat) to meet with Reaves in the hope that he might shed light on the new version. Her search into the history of these connections leads her on a trail to a final bloody conclusion.
The plot overall contains many of the tropes which characterise psychological murder mysteries and handles them fairly well, though not with any great originality. The descriptions of a few of the murders are well handled and not egregious. That is, of course, a two edged sword since many readers of this type of fiction want a lot more gore. The reader may be thrilled but is unlikely to have sleepless nights.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.

Heather returns home after the suicide of her mother. While going through her mothers things she discovers letters from her mother to a convicted serial killer. Heather contacts the police when copycat murders begin, and she starts her own investigation into why her mother would have had a relationship with a serial killer.

Dog Rose Dirt was a great read, it kept me wanting more, and gave me the creeps...what else do you need!

When Heather returns to her family home following her mother's suicide, she finds letters that paint her mother in a very different light to the front she presented to the world. These are letters from a serial killer. One jailed for over 20 years. What is the connection between the Red Wolf and Heather's mother? And if he's been jailed for 20 years, who has started killing again with the same pattern as the Red Wolf?

A slow burning psychological thriller, with plenty of twists and turns, we're immediately drawn into Heather's world - as well as that of imprisoned killer Michael. Heather has plenty of clues to follow in her pursuit of the truth, which get increasingly disturbing and dark as we reach a high octane finale. It's atmospheric and tense, and genuinely made me shiver at certain points in the story.

I do think there are a fair few too many red herrings and tangents that feel a bit pointless, and there's a lot of information to process (particularly in the beginning) however on the whole this holds its own as a solid entertaining thriller.

An interesting book. It raises the old question of nature over nurture. Was Michael basically a good person? He wanted to protect Heather. If he had been fostered/adopted by a caring family would he have been a totally different person? Some of Heather's decisions seemed wrong. I did however enjoy the crescendo of the ending

This is really creepy. After her mother’s suicide, heather discovers that she has been corresponding with an imprisoned serial killer. I didn’t find it an easy read but it’s very well done. From the very start there’s an air of malice and I felt I wanted to keep looking over my shoulder or put my head under the covers. On balance, I enjoyed this but a bit creepier than I like.

An odd thriller yet full of twists and turns that made me keep reading. A good début novel from a author I would like to read from again.

After her estranged mum’s apparent suicide, Heather returns to her childhood home to wrap up her affairs. Little did she know that she would become caught up in a tangled web of old and new murders, serial killers and a commune from the 70s where things weren’t as they seemed.

Shortly after arriving home, Heather discovers a stack of letters from notorious serial killer Michael Reave, known as The Red Wolf, to her mum. Unable to believe that her mum had a life she knew nothing about, she decides to investigate. Michael has always proclaimed his innocence and when the murders begin again, while Michael is still in prison, is he really innocent, or is a copycat taking up his mantle? And what is his connection to Heather’s mum?

Who seems to be following her, leaving little messages and “gifts” including feathers and notes? Is there a connection to Michael? To the strange commune she’s discovered her mum lived at for a while?

Dog Rose Dirt is an exceptionally well crafted serial killer thriller which keeps you guessing until the very end. The strands of the plot are deftly woven until they come together to what can only be described as a perfect conclusion.

It’s exciting, and gripping and you won’t want to stop reading until you find out the answers. It’s satisfying, doesn’t leave you hanging, and ties things up beautifully.

The characters are really well written; Heather is both annoying and infuriating at times, but also stubborn in a good way and determined, and so very relatable, especially when we find out how she lost her job. Williams also manages to get you to care for Michael, while at the same time questioning yourself for doing so as he’s a serial killer, right? Should I like this character? What does it tell me about killers and how we perceive them? What does it tell us about how the media shapes our perception of people?

It’s a creepy, eerie, exciting read, that you’ll love and deserves the highest praise! Looking forward to reading more from Jen Williams 😊

5 Stars 😊

Thanks to Harper Collins and Net Galley for the e-arc.

Dog Rose Dirt by Jen Williams is the writer's first foray from the world of fantasy into crime/horror.
The book begins with Hannah Evans, a writer sacked from her employment as a journalist returning to her childhood home to arrange her mother's funeral. Hannah's mother has taken her own life and left a note which confuses and intrigues Hannah.

Hearing mysterious noises one night from the attic, Hannah ventures up there and finds a stash of letters, dating back years from a convicted serial killer serving his sentence in Belmarsh prison. Hannah realises that she really didn't know her mother at all and sets off to find out why her mother was writing to Michael Reave a.k.a. The Red Wolf for so many years.

In the meantime, another killer with the same distinct signature as The Red Wolf is on the hunt, brutally killing and displaying women's bodies. Hannah finds herself drawn into the police investigation as Michael Reave insists he will only speak to her about the new crimes.

Parts of the story are told in flashback from Michael's perspective, going back to his childhood and teenage years showing us the birth of a serial killer. One of the themes that the book attempts to address is are killers born or made? As with many things in life, Williams demonstrates that the answer to that question may not be so black and white as we would like to think.

The book also contains a folk horror element, interwoven with fairy and folk tales from the Brothers Grimm, Michael Reave is particularly fond of recounting some of these tales to Hannah, but is he helping her or hindering her?

As Hannah uncovers more of her mother's history she is led to Fiddler's Mill, an old manor house, surrounded by ancient woodland and now a spa hotel in Lancashire where Michael Reave once hunted for his victims. At Fiddler's Mill Hannah confronts her mother's past and uncovers the awful secret of the Red Wolf.

Dog Rose Dirt is a great book, it's pacy and tight. Hannah is a great lead character, aspects of her personality are slowly revealed and it becomes apparent that she is deeply flawed. I really appreciate an author who is brave enough to make their main character/hero into a bit of jerk. Hannah is a mess, both inside and out but she seems more human for it. She is not a pure maiden, leading the fight against the bad man, she is a wreck and she grits her teeth and gets on with it anyway.

Would definitely recommend this book for fans of crime fiction with a twist of Gothic horror.

This was a good idea for a serial killer book and I looked forward to reading it, especially as it was reasonably pacy.

HOWEVER.... (Major Spoilers):
I felt the author was trying to be a little bit too clever and mysterious, throwing in loads of symbols, clues and little plot points that went nowhere. Hearts, birds, feathers, flowers, fairy tales, girls in red coats, incest, wolves, pied pipers, lost babies... meaning it was too convoluted with no real pay off. I'd have preferred less red herrings and one or two interested paths to follow and really explore.

And there were so many plot holes and questions left after the rather abrupt ending that it was a little unsatisfying, for example the grand architect of the whole thing (the old man with the glass eye) what was his motive? What was his story? Why on earth had he acted like this all his life and set up a big charity to cover it up etc. We were given his name and that's it! And would those two sisters really have been on board with such a strange deception for so long? What were their jobs? Were they paid to hunt down children from the commune to kill?

This was the book equivalent of the horror film that has you shouting at the screen 'why are you doing that???' as yet another idiot goes outside to see what that strange noise is. Because nobody acts realistically in this book!
I get that there has to be some dramatic narrative but the behaviour of Heather particularly was so strange - nobody would run around a dark wood in the middle of the night alone looking for a serial killer. Nobody. And nobody would ignore the fact someone has been breaking into their house and leaving creepy notes and dead birds. Nobody. And all the little clues she finds that could be useful to the investigation she neglects to tell the police about. Why?

The fact that she acted so stupidly and unauthentically really made it hard for me to believe her emotions and motives because they were just so off.

And Heather's mother... absolutely ridiculous behaviour, even if she felt compelled to handover her child at that time you would immediately call the police. Or when Michael went into jail you would try to find the child. The fact the letters were written to 'keep tabs' on her just didn't ring true. No real person would act like that especially as the strange killing cult had nothing on her. So that big reveal was ruined for me as I just couldn't believe it.

I would love to read a book where JUST ONCE the characters acted like we would in real life, but the horror still managed to get in... imagine that?

When Heather Evans returns to her family home after her mother’s suicide she is unsettled. With no clue to her mother’s state of mind she begins to sort out the house and discovers years of letters from a serial killer. Why was her mother writing to him and if he is still in prison why had a body turned up in the same fashion as the way he left his victims?
This is a dark twisty read and I really enjoyed it. Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

Dog Rose Dirt by Jen Williams
I give this book 4 stars

Once upon a time there was a red wolf. But this is no fairy tale. He was a killer........
A convicted murderer with a story to tell
A grieving daughter with a secret to unearth
A hunt for a killer ready to strike again

I love a good thriller and l was intrigued to get the chance to read something just a little bit different.The first chapter reeled me in and and l enjoyed how the story was told.Dark and creepy with a sense of unease throughout.There was so much going on! A new author for me and apparently her 1st thriller, so looking forward to reading more.
With thanks to Netgalley,Jen Williams and Harper Collins UK for my chance to read and review this book

This is my first Jen Williams book, and I enjoyed it.
Heather is a journalist, who has recently lost her job, and has returned to the family home following the suicide of her mother. While sorting through her mothers belongings she comes across a long correspondence between her mother and a notorious serial killer, Michael Reave, also known as the Red Wolf.
When she agrees the help the police by talking to Reave in prison, she sets off on a path of discovery, fraught with danger.
As she finds out more about her mothers past, she is drawn into a mystery which questions her very identity.
So many twists, so many well-drawn characters, and an atmospheric forest.
A great read.

Thanks to Netgalley and HarperCollins UK for the opportunity to read this book.

Heather is estranged from her mother when she learns of her suicide. This move appears completely out of character and Heather returns to the family home to deal with the aftermath.

Heather soon uncovers some hidden secrets that links her mother to a known serial killer, a fact her mother hid from her. The story becomes more involved as Heather tries to uncover the facts which drags her into a living nightmare of murder.

I really liked this book! It’s about a woman who’s mother dies and she finds some letters that raise some serious questions about her own life. There is a serial killer also on the lose and Heather sets out to find out how they are all connected.
Ended up a little confused by a couple of things at the end and wasn’t blown away by her mothers reason for writing all these years: so only 4 stars not 5.
Was a good thriller though that kept me guessing and would recommend

Signed up before I realised I actually read this book but with a different name!

Thanks to Netgalley and Harper Collins UK foe the ARC copy of this book.
At the start of the book I was very excited to read more as the reason for Heather’s mum’s suicide intrigued me but I’m afraid my excitement did not last. To me the book started to drag and the constant prison visits and “fairy story telling “ did absolutely nothing for me. I cannot imagine the police allotting time for these visits that were going nowhere at all. I did finish the book but again the ending was disappointing, Not one I recommend I’m afraid.

The story of a serial killer-

A riveting book that explores the potential motivations for wishing to kill. Whilst clearly a novel, with a good twisting plot, it also touches on consequences of our actions and child abuse.

An author I hadn’t read before
Recommended

Jen Williams is better known for her fantasy work, and her Ninth Rain books are a genuine five star epic that come highly recommended. This one marks a new direction, set in our here and now and sitting somewhere between crime and horror. The move towards realism doesn’t hurt the book, it’s fast paced and the pages keep turning. The main character is relatable, and the setup is intriguing, giving rise to some genuinely nasty scenes. My main grumble is that the book just isn’t long enough. The end comes quickly, and I would have liked it to run a bit longer with more of the backstory filled in. There’s a folk horror undercurrent throughout, around ideas of sacrifice, myth and the land, that isn’t quite teased out in the space available. It’s a very good readable dark thriller, but it just misses being the landmark it could have been.

US title : A Dark and Secret Place.

Heather Evans returns to her family home after the suicide of her mother Colleen, who leaves behind a puzzling, enigmatic note. Heather discovers some letters written to Colleen by the ‘Red Wolf’, serial killer Michael Reave and shortly after this discovery it becomes apparent a copycat killer is on the loose. DI Ben Parker and Heather investigate.

The novel starts in a very chilling way, pulling you into the storyline. What unfolds is a dark, bleak and creepy atmospheric tale which at times becomes sinister and claustrophobic as Heather steps into a nightmare. It sends ripples of unease down the spine as you sense danger but cannot see it’s source. The storytelling is intense, conveying the sensation that Heather is being watched which raises the hair on the back of your neck and makes you want to constantly look over your shoulder or check under the bed. Who is the unseen watcher? Who is playing mind games and more, who is the hunter and why is Heather the potential prey? It’s like a deadly cat and mouse game. Some of the most intense scenes are the meetings between Heather and the enigmatic Michael Reave. His fascination with fairy tales takes the storyline into thriller fantasy land and Heather learns that the monsters of fairytales are all too real. There are strong overtones in the plot of Little Red Riding Hood with wolves, red coats and so on which increases the sense of peril. The first half is an intriguing slow burn and the second half has a much quicker pace with some surprising and unpleasant twists with mystery deepening, there’s suspense and danger, interweaving the past and the present effectively. It’s graphic in places and the area of Fiddlers Wood where much of the storyline originates with a 60’s /70’s hippy commune what emerges is not a pretty tale with some deeply disturbing events having taken place.

My negatives surrounding the book centre around the character of Heather, whilst her complex feelings about her mother are very understandable, she makes dubious and poor decisions and at times is very spiky. Some of the dialogue especially towards the finale strike and off note. I’m also not totally convinced by the ending, it feels a bit like we strayed into a bad movie!

Overall, I enjoyed this despite the reservations. There are some sections that are extremely good, very powerful and original which justifies the four star rating.

With thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins, Harper Fiction for the arc for an honest review.

Really great premise and accomplished writing.
I was enthralled by the story and the different timelines.
However it became cliched and too fantastical.

Despite an enticing blurb and cover, this novel is undeniably flawed and predictable. The story arc falls flat and I struggled to regain real interest quite early on. It is a shame as the idea behind the title and narrative is good and could have birthed an incredible book but alas it never happened for me.