Great story, thought I had it all worked out, turned out I hadn't. Throughly enjoyed it, once I got into it, did not see that ending coming. First book I have read by this author, won't be the last.

I would like to thank Netgalley and HQ for an advance copy of Last Seen Alive, the third novel to feature DI Isabel Blood of Derbyshire Police.

Anna Matheson didn’t come to pick up her son as arranged after a work party. This is most unusual as she’s a caring parent and a woman to keep her commitments. The police are quick to suspect foul play and investigate. Anna was last seen on CCTV leaving the party room at 11.11 pm but there is no sign of her leaving the building.

I thoroughly enjoyed Last Seen Alive, which is an engrossing police procedural with a tangle of relationships at its heart. I might be old fashioned in my reading tastes but this novel suits them exactly. It is told entirely from the investigative point of view with several officers contributing and not a cheep from the other side (hurray). It makes the novel a real mystery and allows the reader to speculate freely.

The plot is all about Anna Matheson and the secrets she kept. There are twists and turns, some more guessable than others and a few surprises. It held my attention throughout. There are a few instances when Isabel and the team are less than logical in their theorising, and, while it’s annoying, it is obviously designed to extend the suspense. The resolution when it comes is not, by then, particularly surprising, but I did enjoy the perpetrator’s depiction which seems realistic in its callousness.

I like Isabel Blood. She should probably be living off the fat of her police pension at 58, but she’s still fighting with her boss and getting stuck into her investigations, when she’s not trying to sort out her children.

Last Seen Alive is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.

Great story, plot and author. Kept me engaged and on the edge of my seat throughout. Recommend highly.

Where's Anna? She went to an office party and then poof! Everyone insists she never would have willingly abandoned her baby but DI Isobel Blood doesn't know what did happen. Yet. There's more to Anna than met the eye and more to her colleagues as well I'd not read the first books in this series so this was a standalone- and good one- for me. Isobel is, uniquely for the genre, happily married (even if she's struggling with her son). I found myself worrying about her dog. it's a good procedural. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. I'm going to look for Bettany again.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the advance copy of #LastSeenAlive by #JaneBettany
Detective Isobel Blood and her team are investigating the disappearance of Anna a young mother who didn’t turn up to pick up her young son after a works party. There seems to be no reason for the disappearance but then her body is found, and it’s now murder.
With no clues or suspects the team have to dig deep to find answers and one of the answers points them towards one of them.
A cracking read with great characters.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is a book which has captured my interest from the beginning. I love how this is written. It is filled with a mix of characters and has been a book I have been unable to predict.

This is a pleasant mystery/suspense novel, which is a word that I don't think I've ever used for a book in this genre before. The book follows the story line for a handful of police officers and the female DI in charge of them as they investigate the disappearance of a new mother at an office party.

At first there were so many different officers and detectives that I had no idea who was who and had to just hope none of them ended up being the villain because I would have missed crucial information. This is the third book in the series and you don't need to have read the first two at all, but perhaps I would have a better ability to remember which cop was which if I had.

DI Isabel Blood is a cool character, smart and capable but also dealing with real life like a grown son who's moved back home and not doing much to advance his life and a missing dog. I thought for sure the missing dog plot line would have something to do with the case but no, it's just a middle aged woman who gets really worried when the family dog gets out. Other characters are equally real, visiting their parents to find out about family history for the case, worrying about not being very good with people or babies, and so on. These little bits of humanity were interesting and did help the characters come to life for me once I figured out who most of them were.

The case itself was very... typical. This isn't one of those books where the bad guy was a long lost twin with Dissociative Identity Disorder posing as the mailman all the time. No, it's an actual realistic case. I guessed the twists and motives and such before they were revealed, but I still had a lot of fun time puzzling as I read.

I'd happily read more in this series and would even read them out of order since none of this book referenced things from other books in terms of other cases.

This is an easy, enjoyable, light read. It will be well suited for those who like procedurals and who like getting to know the characters. No depictions of graphic violence, sex or triggers. Cussing and references to violence are about it. Recommended.

I read a digital ARC of this book for review.

This is book three in the D I Blood series and the second that I have read in this series and for me it was unremarkable seemed slightly sluggish and predictable could have done with a few more surprises in my opinion,

This was an easy read with plenty of twists and turns that kept me engaged throughout. How is it possible for someone to disappear in plain sight? There HAS to be someone, somewhere that’s saw something. And why? All of these questions are more are answered as readers navigate through another installment of the DI Isabel Blood series.

Wow what a brilliant storyline so many factors Carry the reader through this intriguing story,so many different scenarios left me guessing the outcome.A well written and thoroughly enjoyable read congratulations to Jane Bettany for a great read.

I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read and review this book.

DI Blood was constantly being told to let her team do the everyday work, but she had a hard time keeping her hands out of the nitty-gritty of everyday police work. When faced with a missing person case, she and her team try to find the missing, single mother. With few clues and no evidence, they slowly try to solve the case.

This story had the usual number of people/suspects who are unable to tell the truth until the police had enough evidence to force it out of them. As usual, the police finally solve the mystery.

This is the 3rd installment of the DI Isabel Blood series. I haven't read anything from this author so I was going into this book blind as to characters and back story. Doesn't matter one bit, can be read as a stand alone. I loved the story and definitely will be going back to read the first 2 in the series

Not an easy book to review; having read previous in this series it's a solid, engaging continuation with the return of several characters and a strong plot. It's not the best book I've ever read, there's nothing spectacular about it but I didn't expect there to be...

Good book! This book had a bit of everything! It had suspense, intrigue, action and a good who done it! The storyline was Interesting and flowed nicely! I will recommend reading this book as it was worth reading! It wasn't one of my top favorites but still worth reading! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

A fast paced police procedural of a missing person. The plot was good but the conclusion was sudden and predictable. Lacks the twists of the first book.

This is the first DI Blood book I have read and I really enjoyed it. Fast paced, likeable characters, twists and turns, with an exciting plot.

The story throughout was good, just the ending came a little suddenly and was rushed, but did not spoil my enjoyment of the book.

A well deserved 4* read for me, and I would definitely recommend.

Thank you NetGalley.

This book was very good. Great storyline so many twists in each chapter. I didn't see the conclusion coming at all. Was so well written. Would recommend this book to others

LAST SEEN ALIVE presents with an ominous situation. All information portends a dismal outcome for a missing woman. The labyrinthine mystery becomes more baffling as the pages fly by. Every riveting chapter has twists and turns, increasing the perplexing conundrum until the final showdown, leading to a dynamite conclusion.

This was a new author/new series for me. It was easy enough to jump into without having read the other books. It was primarily told from the perspective of the police, the main investigator as they tried to find a missing woman. She doesn't follow the stereotype of the damaged woman, willing to risk it all to solve it. In that way it was more realistic than other books of it's type. There was some back story about her family, her son's inability to find a career and their missing dog, which brought her more human side into the picture, her grouchiness and her care. Overall a decent book

This is a new author for me and I really enjoyed this book. Plenty of twists and turns and suspense that kept me reading and I didn’t guess the ending which is a bonus. A great thriller that I highly recommend. I will look to read more by this author.