This is an interesting story, full of twists and turns. Tom Thorne, it turns out, is a good detective, but also a flawed character (aren’t they all?) having to deal with a broken marriage and some ‘bent’ coppers on his team. He’s also trying to juggle the case with his interest in following the Euro football championships - where England are performing remarkably well.
As the investigation and story develop we get to meet some interesting and questionable characters - not to mention several red herrings.
It is a story that will drive you on as you become more desperate to know whether or not the young boy is found alive, who committed the killings and their motives behind their actions.
All in all, Cry Baby is an interesting and enjoyable read that makes me want to read more DS Thorne books.

Great to hear a full cast on this production really made the story feel more real. Great book, so many twists and turns i never saw coming

This is definitely a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 without a doubt.
I will first say how this was my first thriller audiobook. I have always thought that I couldn’t listen to a thriller / mystery book as it might give me nightmares. However that was definitely not the case and I think I may have started a new obsession. 🥰

Secondly why I haven’t read any of Mark Billinghams books before this. This is a gripping story about a missing child and the police investigation to find him. Mark Billingham has an amazing way of telling his stories that makes you suspicious of every single person and leaves you guessing until the very last question! I would have loved to have said that I guessed right as to what was going to happen however my mind changed every single chapter!

Thirdly the fact this book has an actual CAST for the audiobook I find absolutely amazing. Every single character has their own voice which means it is easy to tell who is speaking and when. But also makes the story so much more heart wrenching. Multiple times I have made excuses to hang up the phone whilst on hands free so I could get back to listening to this book. This will definitely be one of my best reads of 2021!

I want to apologise to myself because I said that I was on a book ban and wouldn’t be buying any books for a while due to my extensive TBR however I think that it may have just got 16 books longer.

The audiobook form really heightened the experience of the novel, particularly as the main narrator was Mark Billingham himself. It was a full cast production, with different actors as each character, and this really added to the novel’s intrigue, as the characters came alive.

The novel begins with the disappearance of a child and as the plot develops Billingham manages to direct suspicion at once in one direction and then another. Like all good crime authors, he is the king of misdirection, and even though I pride myself at guessing the suspect in all crime novels (through years of absorbing Christie) I did not guess the ending.

Billingham brilliantly balances the modern growth in psychological crime, through an exploration of what it’s like to lose a child, with the lightness of touch and humour of whodunnits. The marrying of these two sub genres makes this novel intensely gripping, with a real feeling of investment in the outcome, but also a delightful puzzle, turning the reader into a detective.

The novel is set in 1996, and the culture references really bring the period to life. Billingham isn’t too heavy handed with these references however, and achieves the rare feat of making the reader aware of the period without shoehorning in obvious temporal references such as constant discussion of tv shows, music and old chocolate bars.

I was not aware that this was part of a series before I began, but like all good series, no prior knowledge was needed. No previous plot line is referred to and if I hadn’t found out it was part of a series, I wouldn’t have guessed it was.

If you are in need of escapism at the moment (and honestly, who isn’t?), then I highly recommend this.

The story has up and down throughout trying to guess the outcome. I loved the questions/prompts asked as it makes you think outside the box as to who the next suspect could be. The ending i didn't guess correct which i was glad. It shows a good storytelling from the author. This was the first for me by this author and not my last.

Wow this book was brilliant! A really gripping British crime drama . The chapters were short , the pace was fast.

I was so lucky to be gifted an audiobook copy from Tandem collective UK !

This was my first audiobook and with the author narrating and a full cast it was truly brilliant and kept my attention!

I enjoyed this book so much that I've been looking for more books by the same author!

Cry Baby is Mark Billingham’s 17th novel and this seasoned author knows exactly how to tell a story. Full of twists and turns and superb red herrings, I was convinced that I’d solved the case half way though.. needless to say I was way off the mark! As the story unfolds, and through multiple points of view, we learn who the culprit is, and the narrative chases the plot at expert pace through the climax. There are a good few ‘oh my goodness!’ moments, not least when the killer is revealed. The 1996 setting took me back to my teenage years, the cultural references were spot on and this time-before-tech era allows for good old fashioned detective work. The audio version is narrated by Billingham and also features a brilliant full cast.

If you like gritty British crime, you’ll like this a lot, and if you’ve not read the DS Thorne novels I think it would be ok to start with this since it’s the prequel to Sleepyhead (Tom Thorne novel #1). If you’re already a DS Thorne fan, this is when Thorne meets Hendricks 😉

I only have one word... WOW.

This is my first Mark Billingham read and I can safely say it wont be my last. I actually listened to this alongside some amazing readers and we really enjoyed discussing each prompt.

I had absolutely no idea of the suspect until I got to about 80% and even then the suspect had never made it on to my radar. I suspected everyone else apart from this one.

An amazing introduction into Billinghams work and I cant wait for more.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This was my first audiobook thriller and it was great! I was sucked in from the very start. I loved that there were different voices for each character, really added to the audiobook experience. It was gripping and a total twist on the ‘who dunnit’! Will be interested in reading more of Mark Billingham’s novels.

Was lucky enough to listen to this audio book on a tandem listen-along and I am so glad I was given this opportunity because it was brilliant.

I love crime fiction but I usually avoid detective series (mainly due to my fear of commitment to long series due to the size of my to be read pile) so had I realised this, I wouldn’t have signed up to review however I am really really glad I did.

I was hooked from the first chapter. Speaking about the book and plot first, it was fast paced, clever and really well written. From the audiobook aspect, I’m relatively new to using audiobooks and this was my first ‘full casted’ one. I can’t express how much better this was and how much it enhanced the listening experience, rather than one individual person narrating and putting on different voices.

If you’re into crime and thrillers, then definitely consider this book. I’m definitely looking to buy more books from the Tom Thorne series now.

Thank you Tandem for the opportunity to joint your read along in exchange for a completely honest review