I can absolutely see the skill and craft that went into this book, and the twists and turns kept me guessing, but sadly the characters really didnt land with me. Mix of modern gothic horror and police procedural, and nicely written.

This is a real thriller and very well written. When Heather's mother dies she discovers, through historic correspondence between her mother and a jailed serial killer, a commune on which the mother spent a lot of time in the early 80s. There's a trail of lies and deceit, people going missing in the woods near the commune, including newborns, and two (nursing) sisters. Throughout the book Heather discovers much about herself and her family, and she takes matters in to her own hands after betrayal from a newspaper editor destroys the link she had with the Detective investigating the current spate of copycat muders. Which turn out to be linked.
Parts of the story are told in stereo, with a Before (circa early 80s commune) and Present Day, and when these come to a head we find out why Heather's mother committed suicide and so much more. Much is discovered about her family past and present in a thrilling and tense ending.
Everything comes together nicely at the end, much is explained, but there is too much left to the end, with some earlier passages more whimsical and not making enough of the letters or prison visits. It's like there's no dawning, but a sudden switch from a dream state to being wide awake.
That said, and 3.5 (rounded up to 4) quite appropriate, it is a very enjoyable, gripping and thrilling read. A mix of thriller and horror that will please many.

I thoroughly enjoyed this dark and gripping thriller. I had a feeling that I knew where it was leading but there were still some twists at the end that surprised me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

This has a slow start and felt a little confusing at times, maybe even a little tedious and boring with some parts a little too drawn out for my liking but wow, what a book! It has an awesome plot and while it took me a while to get into I am so glad that I did, it was really one of the best reads this year.

The characters are mostly very strong, they have clear roles and are relatable even if you don't necessarily want them to be but there are a couple who make such a brief appearance that they don't really add to the story and could probably have been removed.

It flips between today and past views, is gripping and creepy but a completely compulsive and yet horrifying read when you get into it, definitely deserving of its five stars!

This is a brilliantly crafted read from Jen Williams. It's dark, compelling and very disturbing! I really liked the main character of Heather and the descriptive passages but I failed to connect with Michael and the scenes of animal cruelty left me feeling chilled. Overall, a good read. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

'Dog Rose Dirt’ is the first crime thriller by Jen Williams, known for her adult fantasy trilogies ‘The Winnowing Flame’ and ‘The Copper Cat’. As a fan of ‘The Winnowing Flame’ series, I was curious how her writing would translate into crime fiction – and the answer is with aplomb. ‘Dog Rose Dirt’ is a gripping, dark crime thriller full of twists and atmosphere. To those familiar with the genre, many of the twists are predictable, but they’re brilliantly written, leaving this a fast-paced and enjoyable read.

Heather Evans has been almost estranged from her mother, Colleen, for years – but when her mother unexpectedly commits suicide, she’s forced back to her childhood home to put her affairs in order. There, she makes an alarming discovery – stacks of letters from the serial killer Michael Reave, otherwise known as the Red Wolf. Reave has been in prison for decades – but the letters take on a more sinister turn with the appearance of a copycat killer, borrowing Reave’s tableau of removing his victims’ hearts and decorating their bodies with flowers. Determined to figure out how her mother knew Reave – and why she might have committed suicide – Heather teams up with DI Ben Parker to interview Reave. However, he only talks in riddles. The more he says, the less Heather understands – and as mysterious things start happening at home, Heather starts to wonder if approaching the truth is putting her own life in danger.

Heather is a bit of a mess. Once a journalist, she’s been fired from her job and picks up odd bits of work as a freelancer. She has friends, but no serious relationships – and all her friends are worried about her. She’s self-centred, rash, and has terrible coping strategies – but she also has moments of brilliance, a keen wit that must have served her well as a journalist, and a knack for knowing when others are lying. She’s not necessarily a likeable protagonist, but she’s an intriguing one, and she feels incredibly real. Its hard at times to see what her friends see in her – she asks a lot without giving much back – but then, with her mother’s death, the loss of her job, and all the other upheavals going on in her life, its understandable that she sometimes forgets that everyone else has a life and responsibilities to.

The story is mostly from Heather’s perspective, with occasional cutaway chapters showing the victims of the new Red Wolf. This works well – it makes the atmosphere darker, humanising each victim by showing snippets of their lives. The cutaway chapters increase in frequency later in the book, adding to the sense of urgency in solving the puzzle and identifying the killer.

There isn’t so much an overarching plot as several closely intertwined threads. There’s the mystery of Heather’s mothers’ death – why such a seemingly stable woman would commit suicide. Then there’s the copycat killer – or possibly even the original killer, if Reave is as innocent as he claims. Finally, there’s Colleen’s relationship with Reave, and to what extent this ties into everything else. This all works seamlessly, moving at a rapid pace and remaining engaging throughout. Many of the twists are genre tropes, lending them an air of predictability, but the way they’re done is skillful and fits the story well. It would feel unnatural if they weren’t written that way.

This is a dark story. The atmosphere is one of the highlights – there’s a constant shadow hanging over every scene, a sense that things aren’t quite what they seem. There’s a lot of foreshadowing – too much in places, with twists that may otherwise have been a surprise becoming obvious – but it lends a sense of foreboding, the reader realising secrets that Heather hasn’t clocked yet. Those sensitive to graphic violence, death, desecration of a corpse, incest, coercion, and child abuse may want to avoid this, although it handles its subject matter well – never glorifying it, and never glossing over the impact.

Overall, ‘Dog Rose Dirt’ is an excellent entry into the crime thriller genre and showcases Jen Williams’ versatility as an author. Recommended for fans of dark, atmospheric crime thrillers, messy characters, and complex family relationships.

Heather returns to her childhood home following her mother's death by suicide. What she finds is very disturbing as it appears that her mother had lots of secrets. This is a spooky read with twists and turns and I really enjoyed it. Heather's experience upon returning home to a house full of secrets is so well written and had me checking under the bed before sleep!

It's very well constructed as the book takes you both on Heather's personal journey as well as her interactions with a serial killer who has always maintained his innocence and both the writing style and construct maintained my interest throughout.

Overall, a strong 4* read and thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the opportunity to preview.

Brilliant!!! It's one of those books that takes a while to draw you in but when it hooks.you it does with force. Poor Heather doesn't know her mother at all so after her suicide Heather embarks on a mission to find out more about her and why she wrote to a serial killer. Who is this man who was a part of her mother's life? An intriguing story, gripping ànd brilliantly written.

Heather returns home after her mothers suicide to sort through her things and prepare to say goodbye. Whilst looking through she finds letters from her mother to an infamous serial killer and Heather begins to research how and why her mother is linked to this man. A slow burning thriller, easy read and kept me interested all the way through. I love a cat and mouse story and this reminded me of shows like The Fall.

If you have to read this creepy thriller in the evening make sure all the lights are turned on, curtains are closed and you have checked very thoroughly under the bed first! I loved it.
Thank you to netgalley and Harper Collins for an advance copy of this book

Dog Rose Dirt by Jen Williams will be published in July by Harper. This is a solid murder-mystery thriller. The story revolves around Heather, whose mother has just killed herself - and while tidying up her affairs, Heather finds a bunch of letters her mother had been exchanging with a convicted serial killer. But despite him being behind bars, new victims are being found in the same distinctive manner... Heather is pulled into the investigation whether she wants to or not, as she is innately connected to the mystery at hand. I found the story compelling, relateable and compulsively readable. However, some twists were very predictable - I saw some parts of the ending coming from very early on in the story and was just waiting for the resolution to happen. It's not a perfect book, but a very solid one for fans of the genre. Worth a shot if you like twisty murdery books!

Requested this eArc on the recommendation of a booktuber and I'm really glad that I did. I don't often read thrillers but when I do, I really enjoy them if they're well written and this one definitely is! From the first chapter, I was pulled in to the story and it really set the tone for the rest of the book. It was really well done and I would definitely read more from Jen Williams in the future.

A excellent read.
I was a little unsure at first because of the title.
A slow burner,dark secrets slowly being revealed. A simmering tale of family secrets and lies. A throughly absorbing tale.

This book is a seriously good dark thriller. The first chapter sets the scene for the whole book, and has you hooked right until the end. You might see some bits coming but there are so many brilliant revelations along the way that you definitely won’t expect. I love the main character Heather as she is perfectly flawed, and just such a real and believable person.

Dark and atmospheric and totally compelling. Heather’s mother has committed suicide and Heather is left to find out why and cope with the strange secrets she uncovers along the way. Why would her mother have been writing to a serial killer all these years!? That’s the biggest mystery.
I loved how Heather braved being in the old house even with its creepy effects. The thought that there was someone out there who really had it in for her and was trying very hard to terrify her and maybe murder her, actually seemed to spur her on.
The reveal, at the end, wasn’t totally expected by me and I felt that there was at least a chapter missing or a more in-depth epilogue as it seemed to come to an abrupt end and it left me with lots of questions! Unless that was a deliberate ploy, ready for a sequel?
Thoroughly engrossing story, even caused me a couple of nightmare type dreams. Well worth reading even so.

Heather Evans knows she should have spent more time with her mum over the past few years, but they rubbed each other up the wrong way and once she'd left home there was always other things to do instead. Now though, her mother is dead, by her own hand, and everything she thought she had time for is lost. With a funeral to arrange and a house to empty Heather doesn't really know where to start but when she finds a box of letters hidden away everything changes and her mother becomes a stranger to her with secrets she could never have imagined.

Then a woman is killed and amazingly it seems Heather is the best person to help the police understand what's going on. She is happy to assist but has no idea what sacrifices and discoveries will have to be made along the way.

Parts of this book worked for me but not all. Heather didn't endear herself to me which was a problem and with some of the book in flashback neither did her mother. This is not a book for the overly squeamish or those who like a more optimistic undertone but if that's ok it may well be more suited to you than me.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers but the opinions expressed are my own. Unfortunately I didn't really enjoy this.

This is a very engrossing tale about a woman who returns to her family home after her mother's suicide. While going through her mother's belongings Heather finds a bundle of letters and is horrified when she realises that for decades her mother was corresponding with a convicted serial killer. While Heather is grieving and trying to come to terms with her latest discovery, women start disappearing, and when the bodies start turning up the murders seem to have an uncanny resemblance to the work of Heather's mother's serial killer.

This was a very fast paced murder mystery and family drama. I found it to be rather predictable at times but that did not spoil my enjoyment of the book at all. Very atmospheric with well drawn characters, and a novel that I would certainly recommend too all crime mystery fans.

So you like thrillers? Then enjoy this and sit back for a slow literary ride as Jen Williams takes us into the depths of a killers mind and a twisty telling of Grimm'esq fairytales, things that go bump in the night and evil often at its most depraved.
Dog Rose Dirt may well be a marmite novel - I enjoyed it, I kept with the pace, the ending was good but for some, the storyline may not fire them up? The main character, Heather, is hard to get to know but maybe that's the point? A stand alone thriller that slowly generates foreboding and anticipation at every turn of the page; just keep with it for a satisfyingly gory end!

I chose to read and review a free eARC of Dog Rose Dirt but that has in no way influenced my review.

There was no way on this earth I was going to be able to resist this book. The cover is stunning, the title is quite different to everything else out there so it immediately grabbed my attention, and the words 'serial killer' had me downloading a copy faster than you could say, well, 'serial killer'!

Heather Evans receives dreadful news which sends her rushing back to the town, and the house, she grew up in. Her mother, who Heather readily admits she hasn't really seen or spoken to for a while, has committed suicide. The note she left was confusing. Heather can't quite believe it's true but begins the unenviable task of packing up her childhood home. But sifting through the mundane, Heather finds letters going back years between her mild-mannered mother and the notorious serial killer known to all as The Red Wolf, Michael Reave. It makes no sense. But ex-journalist Heather is determined to find out why her mother has been sharing such personal correspondence with a convicted killer for decades. Particularly as the body of a woman has just been found, decorated with flowers, just as Reave used to do with his victims...

Heather's story and her search for the truth had me glued to the pages throughout this intriguing crime debut. How well do we really know those we're closest to? Probably not as well as we think! And that's one of the main hurdles Heather has to cross in the unravelling of her mother's life. Due to the recent bout of killings, which undeniably have a link to Reave in their similarity, Heather arranges to meet with the Red Wolf. She plans on using her journalistic skills to get the truth about her mother from the killer and discover more about their shared friendship, along with finding out her mother's state of mind before she took her own life and wrote that strange suicide note. But Michael is intent on only sharing fables and morbid fairy tales which confuse and frustrate Heather, along with the police team investigating the recent murders.

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. Dog Rose Dirt is a well-written slow burn mystery which I found to be a compelling page turner. Some aspects of the story I guessed from fairly early on. Others I didn't. This is the author's debut crime novel but she's an established writer in a different genre, which shows in the construction of the story and the narrative. Heather isn't the most appealing of central characters but she had a rawness and a realness about her which I really appreciated. I don't think you have to fall in love with a lead to become part of their story, I've said something along these lines many times before, but I was cheering her on. I wanted her to discover the truth, whatever that would be. I enjoyed Dog Rose Dirt and I would happily read more crime fiction written by this author. I hope there's more to come. Recommended.

I chose to read and review a free eARC of Dog Rose Dirt. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

I was immediately drawn to this book by the book description and this did not disappoint. An extremely gripping read full of twist and suspense. A brilliant thriller which will have you hooked from the first page.