Another brilliant book in the Roy Grace series.
Book 17 and you really need to read these in order to get the most from the storylines.
It was like catching up with old friends with Grace and Branson and I soon became absorbed into the book.
There’s a few shocks in store in this one and even the crime isn’t straight forward.
Eden is reported missing by her husband but when there’s no trace of her, it’s hard to charge the husband with murder even though they all think he’s guilty.
The story develops through the book and things are definitely not what they first seem to be.
This book has everything in it that I’ve grown to love about this series - humour, crime solving and emotion. Oh and justice....
I highly recommend this book and in fact the whole series.
Thanks to Pan MacMillan and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

I have read this in three days, I couldn't put it down.
Initially told from the perspective of Niall, he is waiting outside Tesco for his wife. When she hasn't returned within half an hour, he goes into the store, only to discover she has disappeared.
Now the story is told from the police perspective. It seems true to life, detailing the procedures without ever being boring. I guessed at what had happened but the plot had more twists than expected.
A good cast of characters, thoroughly enjoyed.

When Niall Paternoster's wife Eden goes missing on Sunday afternoon at a local Tesco to buy some cat litter Neill wonders what the hell is going on. Yes him and his wife bicker especially today as he wanted to return home to watch the end of the Belgian Grand Prix and a bike ride before his shift as a taxi driver.
Having gone into Tesco in search for his wife and after returning home to see if she was there Niall decides to let her sulk thinking that she will return when shes ready.
After returning home late and still no sign of his wife by the following morning he phoned round Eden's friends and family but no one has heard from her since the previous Thursday and now is Monday morning.
Niall contacts the police when the police arrive they become suspicious of Niall and put in a call to DS Roy Grace and his team.
Grace immediately knows that things aren't adding up but how can you find someone that has gone missing without a trace?

After a few disappointing Roy Grace novels which I felt were becoming rather mechanic in format and where Grace was getting more and more po-faced, for me Peter James is back on form with this one.

We see more of Grace’s personality surfacing and, for reasons which will become obvious as you read the book, his depth of emotion. He had always seemed to me to be a bit of a cold fish but finally James has let us into him mind, and I very much liked this Roy Grace.

The story is beautifully presented and we are taken on a fairly circuitous path to its conclusion which turns out to be very satisfying.

Thoroughly recommended and I’d like to thank the publisher for allowing me to read this ARC.

Another great read from Peter James.

This book is packed to the rafters with detailed police procedure which I am assuming is very true to real life. It’s good to see Inspector Roy Grace finally make it onto the small screen but it did mean that while reading this new book I couldn’t help but picture John Simm as Grace. This didn’t distract from the story which sees Neil Paternoster drop his wife at Tesco to pick up some cat litter on their way home from a pleasant day out. When she doesn’t return it starts a train of events that leads to Inspector Grace starting a murder investigation, but pretty soon Roy realises that all is not a straight forward as it seems.

Another Roy Grace mystery from Peter James. Not sure how many he has written, featuring the Brighton detective but I suspect he just gets better and better.

Loved this one, had me scratching my head trying to work out what was going on, really good. Roy Grace with his friend and colleague Glenn Branson are faced with a conundrum. Eden Paternoster goes shopping leaving her husband Niall in the car. She never returns and just goes missing with nobody seeing her or on any CCTV .

Great mystery and police procedural . But not only is work a problem with Roy's boss Cassian Pewe on his case but Roy has loads of personal issues which just cloud everything going on at the Major Crime Centre .

Great story ,lots of intrigue and pace lets have another one please.

I have been a fan of the Roy Grace novels from almost the very start. But even I have to admit that for various reasons, the last few have fallen a little flat. Most recently I criticised the last novel, Find Them Dead, because whilst I very much enjoyed the story, it often felt as though I was reading a stand-alone legal drama, with Grace and his police colleagues relegated to the sidelines.

This time though, they're brought right back into the main focus.

There are two strands to the storyline. The first is the case that Grace has to investigate. A man reports his wife missing, in circumstances eerily similar to the disappearance of Grace's own wife Sandy many years earlier. And then, just a few short chapters later, Grace himself is hit by a personal tragedy.

It's this second part of the story where James really excels. The writing is sensitive and powerful. Some of the imagery conveyed is heartbreaking, but the support that Grace receives from his colleagues - his odious boss Cassian Pewe excepted - is uplifting, while Norman Potting's wisecracks provide just the right amount of light relief.

And as ever, the attention to detail is second to none. But at no point did I feel like I was being lectured to. Every single detail is relevant to the story in some way, and therefore has its place.

That's really about all I can say without giving away some big spoilers. So I'll sum up by simply saying that Left You Dead is, for me, the best book that Peter James has written in quite some time. I therefore have absolutely no hesitation in giving this long-awaited return to form a well-deserved five-star accolade.

My thanks to Netgalley for an ARC of this book. I will post my review on Goodreads now and on Amazon on publication day.

The seventeenth book in the DS Roy Grace series, though the first one I’ve read (I’ve watched John Simm in the ITV adaptation and was impressed). Roy must juggle personal and professional problems in his latest outing, not least of all making a life-changing decision that’ll affect more than just him. Crime wise, Eden Paternoster has disappeared without a trace, and her husband Niall looks decidedly shifty. He swears his wife went to pick up cat litter and never came back… but what’s the real truth? Roy thinks this could be the strangest of cases yet, coupled with familial duty that’s pulling him back to his loved ones. I like the pace of the book and the way the police work in terms of sourcing information, separating the red herrings, appeals – meaning I’d want to read the back catalogue of Roy’s investigations.

My first Peter James novel and I love DS Roy Grace. A brilliantly written book that investigates the possible murder of Eden Paternoster. So many twists and turns and great characters.
Wonderful book that I could not put down. Won’t spoil your read by saying too much.

Roy Grace #17

Niall and Eden Paternoster start their Sunday the same way they always do - with a long drive, a visit to a country house and a quick stop at the local supermarket on the way home. But this Sunday ends differently - because while Niall waits in the car park for Eden to pick up supplies, Eden never returns. She's not at home, and none of her friends or family have heard from her. When Roy Grace is called in to investigate, it doesn't take him long to realise that nothing is quite as it seems.

I can't quite believe this is the seventeenth book in the Roy Grace series. There's quite a lot going on in the book and Roy and Cleo are going through some tuff personal stuff. This part is quite hard to read and you might need some tissues. The case of missing Eden Paternoster is intriguing and it has a different angle to it. With no body and littler to go on, Roy Grace soon thinks that Niall's story is a cover up. Even Cassian Pewe has his own problems. The pace is fast and the twists kept coming. This is now my favourite Roy Grace book, knocking Dead Simple down to second place.

I would like to thank #NetGalley #PanMacmillan and the author #PeterJames for my ARC of #LeftYouDeadi in exchange for an honest review,

Superb! Peter James has crafted another truly credible crime with characters you know so well you’ll almost feel you’re part of the investigation team! I loved all the details which were discretely explained. The main plot kept me on edge analysing all evidence, while alongside the crime an emotional private drama erupted.

Left You Dead is another barnstormer of a book from Peter James. There's all the hallmarks of a classic DI Grace story, with multiple viewpoints and excellent police procedural. But there is nothing similar about this novel; in the same vein as the other books in the series, Peter James gives you another thrilling ride.

The action starts with a seemingly happy couple, stopping off at a supermarket on the way home from a day trip out. But when the wife does not reappear from the store, the story unravels.

Alongside the main narrative, there are continuations of the storylines from previous books, involving DI Grace and his family and colleagues. This takes more of a focus in Left You Dead, but without distracting from the main action.

Left You Dead is another great read, and a great extension to the DI Grace drama.

I really enjoyed Left You Dead, the seventeenth book in the Detective Superintendent Roy Grace series.

This story follows Eden and Niall Paternoster. They started their Sunday like any other. A long drive to visit a stately home then a trip to the supermarket on the way home for cat litter. While Niall waits in the car park for Eden, she never returns and never arrived back home. None of her friends or family have seen her, she has disappeared without a trace. Niall is arrested for murder even though there is no body. DS Roy Grace is brought in to investigate and he quickly realises that all is not as it seems.

This is a great police procedural that kept me hooked to the end. Thank you to NetGalley, Pan Macmillan and the author for the chance to review.

I have read all of the Roy Grace series in order of publication so follow the story closely. So far, it has been excellent and this is another brilliant instalment.

The story starts out with Eden and Niall Paternoster spending their Sunday as they usually do by visiting a country house. On the way home Eden insists they stop at the local supermarket to buy cat litter as they have run out.

Niall is annoyed and waits in the car but Eden does not return to him. He tries to find her in the supermarket but there is no trace of her anywhere around the shopping complex. He expects that, because they have argued, she will have gone home, but there is no sign of her there and none of her family and friends know where she is.

Eventually calling the police, it isn’t long before he is suspected of her murder and as the story unfold there are twists, turns and some tremendous shocks. Alongside this clever storyline there are a couple of major changes in Roy Grace’s work and personal life.

I enjoyed this read, possibly more than usual for this author’s novels, because I had recently seen the TV adaptation and had the picture of those actors in my head as I read it.

Thank you to NetGalley, Pan Macmiilan and Peter James for my ARC of Left You Dead in return for my honest review.

Not to be missed. Highly recommended.

So now I’m up to date with this series.

This book presented us with a very clever and engaging mystery that shape shifted every time we looked at it. Niall Paternoster reports his wife missing the morning after she disappeared. They were on their way home from a day out visiting a stately manor when Eden, the wife, wanted to stop on the way for some kitty litter. An argument ensued but they finally stopped at a Tesco superstore and Eden dashed in while Niall looked for a parking space. When she had not returned after 45 minutes he first searched the store then went home thinking she may got a lift with someone else. She wasn’t home either so Niall finally went to bed thinking she’d gone off in a huff as she had done once before. In the morning he went to the police.

Normally the police would not look into an adult missing person who was not vulnerable until after 24 hours but the attending officers thought there was something a little off with Niall so they start to look for Eden. Niall is questioned again and again and is eventually arrested for suspicion of murder but later released. There was, after all, still no body! This was a very thorough investigation but Niall’s story didn’t add up. Unfortunately a lot of other things didn’t add up either and the landscape kept shifting. Answers to some questions only threw up more questions.

It was actually very interesting to read how modern policing can learn so much about a person’s movements and activities, Mr James does his research well. It’s probably not a good idea to plan to murder someone these days! Yet our cast of characters are not as they seem and many dark secrets are still to come to light.

This was a very twisty and complex story, which I love. The ending was spectacular with a desperate cliff top situation where several lives are at extreme risk. The police characters are, as usual, wonderful and professional although, in this story, something terrible happens and someone will suffer a terrible loss. The characters related to the case are mostly pretty unpleasant people although it is hard to pick a “winner” here. The information that Detective Superintendent Roy Grace got at the end of the last book that would get rid of his nemesis comes into play - but nothing is happening with it. Until it does.

All in all another excellent addition to the series. My one small gripe, which prevents it from being a 5 star read is that it could have been a bit shorter. There was quite a bit of repetition as the team went over the case details again and again. Nevertheless I highly recommend the book. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This isn’t my first Peter James novel but it is the first I’ve read in the Roy Grace Detective series. Firstly, don’t be put off that it’s the 17th book in this series if you haven’t read any before...I found that it really didn’t make a difference! Everything was easy to follow & any reference to previous storylines may have gone over my head a little bit certainly didn’t deflect from the story or confuse me. So feel free to dive straight in! This was a great book, the story was intriguing & the writing felt familiar. I LOVED the level of detail involved surrounding police procedure too.

I read the first half of the book so quickly but found the second half a little slower & at points a tiny bit predictable! Whilst I don’t want to spoil the book for anyone I do feel like the book should come with a very clear trigger warning for Child Death. Whilst I don’t think I’m usually that sensitive, in my current condition & as a mummy I found certain parts of the side storyline difficult to stomach.

Overall I really enjoyed this book & found myself telling plenty of people what I was reading because it had such a decent plot to it!! I’m also feeling pretty smug as I found on my bookshelf the 1st book in the series (Dead Simple) so can’t wait to pick that up soon 🙃

Thank you to @netgalley for giving me an e-book copy in exchange for an honest review.

Left You Dead - Peter James
Publisher: Pan MacMillan
Publication Date : 13/5/21

No SPOILERS

This is the 17th book in the Roy Grace series and I have enjoyed them all. Well researched, and heavy on police procedural detail, , they are always an interesting read. I wasn’t surprised by the outcome of the crime being investigated but there was a very unexpected twist elsewhere in the story. Looking forward to the next book to see where it goes from here.

I’d like to thank the author, publisher and netgalley for providing with this advance digital copy in exchange for my honest and unbiased review. Highly recommended.

I’m a huge fan of the Roy Grace novels and have read them all. I was delighted to be approved for an advance copy of the latest novel in the series. Thanks to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for my copy.

The story opens with a seemingly normal, petty argument between a young couple, Niall and Eden. Niall wants to get home to watch the Grand Prix, but Eden is insistent he stop at the shop so she can get some urgently needed cat litter. After waiting for some time, Niall grumpily goes to find Eden, only to find she didn’t enter the store and seems to have vanished.

The officers who investigate are suspicious, and Roy Grace ends up on the case. Initially, suspicion falls on Niall, but it doesn’t quite add up. Roy feels there’s more to the case than meets the eye.
A web of deception and meticulous planning is uncovered as the story goes on.

In addition to dealing with the case, Roy suffers terrible personal trauma. I found this part was very sensitively written and I felt just awful for him.

I absolutely love Roy Grace’s character and his partnership with Branson is great. It often brings humour to serious situations.
I didn’t warm to Niall or Eden, but still very much enjoyed finding out if my theory was correct. I had worked out some of it but not everything, and the last part is so tense, I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough!

As always, the novel is an absorbing and easy read. The chapters are just short enough that you think you’ll read “just one more” and in my case stay up far too late!

If you like the Roy Grace novels I recommend this one. I felt the last novel didn’t feature much of Roy, but I’m so pleased he’s back at the forefront.

A great page turner which I read in a couple of days. Can’t wait for the next instalment!

A complete triumph once again

Peter James does not disappoint!
I loved the slightly different angle of experiencing Roy’s POV more so at first, it gave a real insight into how he works.

It was well paced, has just enough support from Cleo and Glenn and unfortunately Cassian was there too.

A definite success.

This is my first Peter James book, which surprises me because I love the crime/murder/police procedural genre and I haven’t come across him before!

Eden and Niall Paternoster are a married couple, who seem to have not much love left for one another. They bicker and quarrel and one Sunday on the way back from their visit to a National Trust property. Eden insists they stop for cat litter which they have run out of and she nips in to the supermarket to get it ..................and disappears.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book and whilst I wouldn’t say, ‘I couldn’t put it down’, I did take every opportunity to pick it up and read a bit more.

I guessed the outcome very early on, which spoiled it a little for me and I was a bit sceptical/surprised that the Police would throw as many resources at a missing person as quickly as they did in the book? However, reading the thanks at the end of the book it would seem that the author has done plenty of research with the Police and I feel sure they would have said if it was anything less than realistic.

The characters certainly have depth and the sub-story going on simultaneously in Roy Grace’s private life was distressing. As I said, I haven’t read any of the previous DS Roy Grace series but it certainly seems that his private life has been covered in depth too. Am I tempted to go back to the start of the Grace series by this book, yes maybe! I’ll certainly be looking out for the televised version!!

My thanks go to the author, the publishers and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in return for an honest, unedited review.