PC Philomena McCarthy is young officer called to a domestic violence disturbance. However the perpetrator is a police detective, and the call is made to disappear. Phil befriends Tempe and she entwines herself into Phil’s life. Phil also tries to keep quiet that her father and uncles are notorious gangsters.
There are many sub plots that are come together to form a much larger and dangerous story. I really like Phil as a character, full of enthusiasm to help those in needs lands herself into a lot of trouble personally and professionally. There are also a few dark characters that play key parts. Though it’s the quiet ones you need to watch out for sometimes!!
A really enjoyable read and keen to explore more by Michael Robotham.

What a fantastic read, face paced and flowed Really well! Kept me guessing through out as to what was going on, she really wasn't giving up on this case was she!

Philomena McCarthy has worked hard to become a police officer despite being the daughter of a London crime boss. She hasn't spoken to her father in years but other than that her life is great with a good job and an amazing boyfriend. All that changes when she and her partner are called to a domestic violence incident. The woman, Tempe Brown, is the girlfriend of a married top cop, Darren Goodall. Phil arrests the policeman after he attacks her too. But the incident is covered up and Phil is warned by the powers-that-be to leave it alone, something she can't do even if it means losing her job. Meanwhile she is determined to help Tempe especially after she realises they were at school together. But Tempe starts becoming more and more involved in Phil's life causing issues with her family and friends and making things rather creepy.
I enjoy Michael Robotham's books and this one starts well. The concept of a crime boss' daughter becoming a cop is intriguing. But the two stories of Tempe and Darren fitted together rather awkwardly for me. It also started becoming strange that Phil is oblivious to Tempe's behaviour and lets her in so easily. It felt like the story needed her to do so despite not being in line with how her character is introduced and set up so that's where the story went.
Thank you to Little Brown Group and Netgalley for this ARC.

This book gripped me from the very first page. I’ve read books about domestic violence and stalking before but Michael Robotham takes it to another level.

A brilliant, fast paced thriller with complex, well developed characters that kept me totally engrossed.

A compelling, intoxicating read with plenty of mystery, suspense, twists and turns to keep you glued to the pages.

I quite enjoyed this. I did think Philomena needed a bit of a wake-up call, fairly often, but it's quite shocking to read about what the 'all boys clubs' are actually capable of. I mean, we all know it (and really, a bully is a bully whether they are male or female) but reading about it sort of makes it more real. And also, the reality of how mental illness hides behind a smiling facade, or a sad/morose/concerned/sisterly/friendly facade, whichever your choice of words. A definite 3.5 stars from me, an engrossing and solid read.

Thanks to the publisher and author for my ARC.

A successful policeman manages to overcome a difficult childhood desperately trying to deal with the conflicting emotions of loving her family who were hardened criminals., The child of a broken marriage and a need to balance the books between law and criminality results in a intrinsic need to become successful and law abiding. Circumstances result in not only making this an impossible goal but drags her to the very edge of survival. A psychological story of toxic friendship. Relationships based on control and abuse. The ties of family, friends and lovers that either grow or destroy. Well drawn characters and storyline that leads the reader to a conclusion that ties up loose ends if in doing so a somewhat implausibly neat ending. My first book by this author although fully intend to explore others. Many thanks to author, publisher and NetGalley for ARC.

This is a very cleverly weaved tale. Just when you think you’ve second guessed it, you’re wrong again. A great page turner, Interesting and believable characters, I’m a big fan of Michael Robotham, this book does not disappoint. A triumph, most enjoyable, I recommend highly.
ARC copy.

This is the first book I have read by prolific writer Michael Robotham. Although he has written some series, this is considered a stand-alone novel although I hope it might become a series. I like his writing style and character development as well as colorful description of characters.

As one reads this book, which I couldn’t put down, you know that Phil is headed down the wrong path and continues to cause trouble for herself. I liked her and though she is strong and persistent, I did wish she was more savvy in reading people and their motivations.
There is a lot about justice and fairness here and it is to Robotham’s credit that
I felt a lot of anger about some of the injustices being perpetrated.

Fans of police procedurals, psychological thrillers, and twists and turns will enjoy this novel.

This standalone probably isn’t my favourite Michael Robotham book but it does raise some very topical issues such as domestic violence, police corruption and obsession. I became hooked on the storyline quite quickly but it did take me a few days to warm to the characters here as none of them were likeable! A good plot line that seemed to lose it’s momentum in the middle but pulled it back towards the end.

This standalone thriller from the brilliant Michael Robotham is superb! Although the theme of coercive control is somewhat overused in contemporary crime fiction, it is treated here in a fresh and engrossing way. Philomena is a police constable with the Met but she comes from a family of criminals, and this is continually held against her. When in the course of an inquiry she comes across a cop who is violent towards women, she is determined to find justice for his victims, even at the cost of her own career. The story-telling is taut and involving and never lets up. Excellent!

When You Are Mine is a compelling standalone psychological thriller about toxic friendships, hidden agendas, unbridled obsession and deadly secrets. Police Constable Philomena 'Phil' McCarthy is a promising young officer in the London Metropolitan police force. However, she is on the wrong side of history when it comes to her family and their illegal exploits if she is determined to play it by the book. Her father Edward McCarthy is a notorious gangster in the London organised crime underworld and her 3 uncles have each served time so she's already had to fight to earn her place and be trusted among colleagues. She was just making some leeway, but everything changes when she is called to the scene of a domestic assault alongside PC Anisha Kohli. Unbeknownst to her, the abuser is a decorated detective, DS Darren Goodall, and Phil's efforts to protect his girlfriend, Tempe Brown, who was not only terrified but battered and bruised, too, from violence, resulted in Phil being unjustly struck from the force. In the fallout, Phil begins to teach Tempe self-defence and they strike up a tentative friendship. Tempe is thoughtful and sweet, and within a matter of weeks, the two women are inseparable - talking, socialising and confiding their deepest secrets in one another. But something isn't right.

Sinister things keep happening and, when a body is discovered, Phil realises that Tempe is hiding deadly secrets of her own. Secrets she is willing to kill for. And Goodall may have had a hand in something worse than an abusive relationship - a murder. Michael Robotham is one of those masterful crime writers who can always be trusted to pen a pulse-pounder and that's what we have here. It's a compulsive and complex thriller that addresses patriarchy, toxic masculinity, domestic violence and power, pivoting in unexpected directions and moving at quite a pace. It's intense, exciting and scintillating from page one and abundant with twists and turns, intelligent feats of misdirection and is simply ripe with suspense and tension. The old boys’ network is certainly alive and well and the corruption and sweeping under the rug done for those in power not only reflects the ugliness and truth of reality but boggles the mind. I particularly loved the fact that in Phil’s time of need when those who claimed to be seekers of truth and justice have alluded and shunned her that her criminal family are the ones to pick up the pieces. A riveting and absorbing read with a complex array of plot strands that converge for the epic conclusion. Highly recommended.

I think that there were two really good stories in this book. Firstly the enigma that is Tempe, and the way that she insinuates herself into Phil's life. Secondly Phil's background and the subsequent conflict this creates between family loyalty and her role as a policewoman. The two overlap when Phil responds to a domestic abuse call. I would have actually liked to see the two stories separated into two books, because I didn't feel that the characters were developed as well as in the previous books of his I have read.
Overall it is a fast paced read, with themes of domestic abuse, mental health, obsession, loyalty, women's role in the police force and how whistle blowers are treated. It will be interesting to see if there are further books featuring Phil and her family, and I would like to see how these develop going forward.

My thanks go to the publishers and NetGalley for the advance copy in return for an honest review.

A stand alone thriller by Michael Robotham and a hugely enjoyable one overall.

Our main protagonist is Philomena McCarthy, a police officer new to the job, with a family of villains that she is estranged from.

When she is called to a domestic dispute she finds a woman - Tempe with bumps and bruises and looking very frightened.
The man is extremely uncooperative and aggressive and Phil has to use her martial arts training to subdue him and arrest him.

Unbeknown to her, the man is a decorated police officer and a hero. He is also married with two children and seems to have friends in high places as the charges are immediately dropped and Phil is suspended for assaulting a police officer!

As her relationship with Tempe grows as she tries to protect her, they become friends and soon Tempe is organising Phil’s upcoming wedding amongst other things. As their relationship progresses, all is not what it seems with Tempe and also the police officer she arrested is involved in much more sinister activities that seem to involve a network of officers that may go right to the top.

This was a hugely enjoyable read overall. It more or less has a 3 story arc which work well for the most part, a little unfulfilling perhaps to nit pick, more there to move the story forward than be fleshed out fully.

Phil is a likeable if somewhat gullible character and her interactions with her not so nice extended family do add a nice dynamic to the story.

This flies along with tension throughout. The story arcs are well thought out as they all add to the telling of the overall story. I really enjoyed the writing style. No dips or lulls at all in the book.

The strength of the writing of the characters does vary but overall we have a very believable ensemble which makes the whole thing good fun to read.

A recommendation from me.


Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Philomena 'Phil' McCarthy is a police officer working for the London Metropolitan police when she is called to a domestic assault incident. At the scene Phil removes the victim of the assault, Tempe Brown, from the flat and when Tempe's boyfriend, Darren Goodall, strikes out at Phil she defends herself. After accompanying Tempe to a shelter, Phil returns to work and is stunned to be called into her superior's office, where she is told to drop the case. It turns out that Tempe's boyfriend is not only married but a decorated police officer, but Phil knows there is something darker about Goodall's behaviour, but her official investigative attempts are blocked and she is ultimately suspended from duty. Meanwhile Tempe has befriended Phil and wants to show her gratitude by helping Phil and her fiance, Henry, organise their wedding. What starts off as innocent help though starts to turn into an intense friendship, and Phil catches Tempe in several lies, and alongside the harassment from former colleagues and her criminal family past, Phil is unsure who she can trust.

This is a great suspense thriller with lots of twists and turns, which certainly kept me reading. I thought Phil was a fairly sympathetic main character, although she does make some strange decisions as a police officer, but I suppose these are to keep the plot moving. The plot itself has several angles; the police and crime angle, domestic assault and abuse and the way that the system can traumatise victims, toxic friendships, plus how Phil and Henry's relationship is affected by everything. I thought it was a very good read which kept up a fast pace, but the pace meant that when logical thinking was required from the main character, it was cast aside for emotional reactions instead. Overall I liked it and would recommend to anyone who likes fast paced thrillers.

TW: domestic abuse/assault, sexual assault, child abuse (violence).

Thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Little, Brown Book Group/Sphere, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

Well... I had an absolute blast reading this book. It definitely blew the cobwebs off! Delivering punch after punch as it hit the ground running from page one, not letting up on the tension and intrigue until the very last page. Kept me on my toes throughout too, trying to guess and second guess what in the heck was really going on...
We first meet Philomena (Phil) on a day that changed her life. A day that made her determined to make the most of a life that could have so easily been wiped out at an early age. A day that set her on a path to being an officer in the Metropolitan Police. Not an easy task being as her family is, well, lets just say they walk on the wrong side of the law on occasion...! It's a job that she has had to fight tooth and nail to get and indeed keep, and there are still those who resent her and would easily rejoice in her downfall. But she's nothing if but determined and is ticking along nicely until one day she is called to a domestic by a neighbour. A young woman, Tempe, is being abused by her boyfriend. Phil steps in to protect Tempe little knowing that this act will eventually see her suspended from the force. It seems that the abuser is "one of their own" a decorated cop no less. And one with, well, lets's just say "connections". But it doesn't stop there as Phil takes Tempe under her wing as they both continue to be harassed and threatened.
And so begins a cat and mouse high octane psychological thriller as Phil and Tempe try and regain what they have both lost without losing more...
Wowsers. I have read a few books by this author, including his Cyrus Haven series, so I knew the standard of what to expect but I never thought he would not only reach this but completely smash it! The characters are wholly believable and easy to connect to - and there are a couple of cracking extras in this book to complement the main ones. Suspense, intrigue and tension are established early on and well maintained for the duration, ramping up to the final act. Which, I hasten to add, was completely satisfying and wasn't quite all what I was expecting.
This is billed as a stand alone but I really can't be the only one sad to have to say goodbye to Phil at the end of the book. Such a cracking character as her really deserves another outing in a sequel maybe, or could this be the author testing the water with a start of another series... Either way, I'm in... But, in the mean time, I'm going to fill in my gap in his back catalogue and give the Joseph O'Loughlin series a whirl.
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

This is the first book I have read by this author but it won’t be the last. It had an enjoyable unique storyline that kept me hooked and I read it in two sittings. Will definitely be reading more by this author in the future.

When You Are Mine is a thriller about possession. Possession by domestic abuse, possession by an obsessive friendship and possession by a protective family. Michael Robotham skillfully weaves these themes together in a compelling, haunting mystery that will stay with you long after you read the last page.

Philomena (Phil) McCarthy has perhaps chosen the wrong career. Although she has long wanted to be an officer with the London Police, she’s the only child of crime lord Edward McCarthy. She doesn’t have a lot of friends on the force and she has fewer after she arrests Detective Darren Goodall, a decorated hero, for domestic abuse. Against orders, she stubbornly pursues the case and at the same time becomes involved in a complicated friendship with the victim, Tempe Brown, and with Alison, Goodall’s wife. Phil is also balancing her career with her relationship with her father and her uncles, all of whom are now trying to appear respectable. Phil has to make difficult decisions about her family, friends and work and her choices will not always be the right ones.

The characters in When You Are Mine are vividly described. Phil is driven to help others and that determination costs her so much. Edward loves his daughter but doesn’t know how to help her. Tempe does everything she can to make friends and goes too far. Alison’s fear of her husband is palpable. Each character is trapped in a different way. The plot is driven by these characters and moves deliberately slowly but concludes with a surprise you won’t see coming. 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, Little, Brown Book Group UK and Michael Robotham for this ARC.

I’d like to thank Little, Brown Book Group UK and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘When You Are Mine’ by Michael Robotham in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

From when she was eight years old Philomena ‘Phil’ McCarthy has wanted to join the police force and despite being the daughter of notorious London gangster Eddie McCarthy she’s finally accepted into the Metropolitan Police. When she’s called out to a domestic incident she rescues the woman Tempe Browne but makes an enemy of the boyfriend who assaulted her, Detective Sergeant Darren Goodall, who has friends in high places and sets out to destroy Phil. But the longer she befriends Tempe the more she realises the young woman is telling lies and is manipulating Phil for reasons best known to herself.

When I started reading ‘When You Are Mine’ I thought there would be more written of PC Phil McCarthy on duty but by the time I was three-quarters into the book I realised the author has got it just right. This is such an exciting psychological thriller that I’ve been unable to stop reading and have finished it in half a day as my need to know what’s going to happen to Phil has grown greater. It’s exceptionally well-written with drama, suspense, intrigue and tension that only increases the further I get into the story. This is the first thriller I’ve read by Michael Robotham but it definitely won’t be the last as I’ve thoroughly enjoyed reading it and it has my recommendation without a moment’s hesitation.

Another total best seller from Michael Robotham. This novel rocketed along and kept me gripped every step of the way. The characters were brilliantly drawn and realistic. One hell of a read.

Intense, full of twists, and definitely a book I found hard to put down. Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to read this prior to publication.
Philomena McCarthy comes from a background that she is keen to escape. Her father, Eddie, was a criminal who was well-known for his exploits before turning ‘good’ and she recalls visiting her uncles in prison. While she has fond memories of him, Phil has turned her back on her family in order to train and serve as a police officer. This struck me as unlikely, but she has an exemplary record and things are looking good for her.
Until the day she is called to investigate a disturbance. She finds a young woman, beaten and bleeding. She arrests the man believed to be responsible...only he is a decorated police officer. From that moment on, Phil cannot let it lie. She pursues Goodall, convinced he is a serial abuser, even though it puts her at risk.
You really could not predict how bad things get. Suspended from work, at risk from the stifling presence of the woman she rescued, Phil ends up in a very dangerous situation. Though she resisted it, determined to uphold the law, she finds herself making use of her family connections to try and rescue herself from the depths.
From start to finish I was struck by the recklessness of this young woman. She does things for the right reasons, and you want her to succeed, but she is the proverbial bull in a China shop. Caught in a situation not entirely of her own making this has explosive consequences for her.