Exciting, engaging, well written and researched. That makes this an excellent book well worth the time and trouble to read.


I have enjoyed the previous Nick Belsey thrillers and whilst it helps to have the back story this can also be happily read as a standalone book.

Based in Mexico he falls into the hands of a deadly drug cartel and must use all of his wits to extricate himself.

I read this in one sitting and thoroughly enjoyed it.

More please!

4+
Nick Belsey #4

Nick Belsey arrives in Mexico his life as he knew it is over, he has little money and survival here depends entirely on his wits. He soon realises after sequence of events that he cannot escape who he is, that he has unwittingly stepped into something very big as he finds himself in the clutches of a cartel. Meanwhile, in London DI Kirsty Craik of the Organised Crime Command finds herself drawn into the drama which involves the whereabouts of large quantities of cocaine and in which Nick is embroiled and possibly at the centre.

What a cracking read, no pun intended. Oliver Harris always writes really good, intelligent thrillers with plausible and well thought out plots which are exciting and addictive reading. There are some great settings which add to the building intense story and gives a frisson of atmosphere. The characterisation is really good, especially the elusive and audacious Nick but all well portrayed adding menace or someone to root for.

Throughout you have big questions about what Nick is up to as the plot tumbles and turns with the tension and suspense growing immeasurably. Fingers are pointed, rumours and legends abound. The danger is immense, walking a tight rope style with one false step spelling disaster. It’s exciting and shocking in places, there are some jaw dropping discoveries, it’s violent in certain sections with a rising death toll. As for the ending, phew, it’s a high octane adrenaline fuelled tense drama and aren’t sure how it will play out until the last minute. There is a wry smile from me at the ultimate end.

If you like thrillers with believable brisk plots which are crisply written with nothing unnecessary cluttering things up then look no further than Oliver Harris!

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Little Brown Book Group for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

It's a while since I "saw" Nick Belsey and goodness me is he in trouble! Arriving in Mexico to "get away from things", he immediately disappears off grid, but, thanks to one of those serendipitous events, he's captured by a drugs cartel and has to use all his guile and tricks to escape the cartel's clutches.

Meanwhile, back in London, Kirsty Craik, former colleage and one time lover, gets caught in the fallout and as ever more ouytlandish rumours about Belsey swirl around, she finds herself in a world of mirrors and betreyal, not just trying to make sure she's safe, but that Belsey doesn't get unjustly "fingered" for something he didn't do. Not sure why Belsey seems to iunspire such loyalty, but he does!

Excellent novel - great pace, constant surprises and some humour - I couldn't help chuckling at the crazy rumours circulating about Belsey, as well as his cheeky resourcefulness, and constant ability to dodge and weave his way out of trouble. There's plenty of tension and some really punchy action too, with an international dimension to both crime and law enforcement adding an extra layer of complexity to the plot

Final verdict - get this whether you've read the previous Belsey books or not. It works great as a standalone, although I think you might appreciate Belsey better, if you've read the other books first. Having finished this one in an amazingly short time, I'm tempted to go back to "The Hollow Man" to get another bit of Belsey, from the start of his story.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for an advance copy of A Season in Exile, the fourth novel to feature former DC Nick Belsey of The Met.

Nick is in Mexico, broke and on the run, where he settles in a coastal village. His peace is shattered when unknown men turn up asking for him by name. In London DI Kirsty Craik receives a phone call telling her she’ll be dead by Christmas if she doesn’t find her former lover Nick Belsey.

I thoroughly enjoyed A Season in Exile, which is a tense thriller with some good twists. I have not read any of the previous novels in this series, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. At first I felt at a bit of a disadvantage because I didn’t have the background on why Nick was on the run, but acceptance soon became a way of life in reading the novel, because realism isn’t a thing.

It is not a long novel, so there is nothing wasted in the narrative after the initial scene setting. It is full of developments that urge the reader to turn the pages to find out more, with many of the reveals left to the latter stages. I was itching to know how it would turn out and the final showdown delivers in a most satisfying way.

The narrative is split between the morally ambiguous Nick Belsey and more, but not totally, law abiding Kirsty Craik. He seems to be able to wheedle his way out of any situation, whereas she is smart enough to work the angles before getting into the situation. It’s an interesting comparison and works well. I would gladly spend more time with Kirsty, not so sure about Nick, who appears to be some kind of superhero with the gift of the gab and ability to escape death on a regular basis.

A Season in Exile is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.