Harry and Freya dreamed for years of finding something priceless buried amongst the tat in a car boot sale. It was a dream they knew in their hearts would never come true..until it did. They buy a drab portrait for twenty pounds for its beautiful frame, planning to cut the painting out. Then they discover there is another painting hidden underneath. When they look into it further it could even be a lost 1770 masterpiece worth millions. Harry and Freya are about to discover that their dream could quickly turn into their worst nightmare.

Peter James' Roy Grace series is one of my all time favourites, however I have dropped the ball and was two behind so in anticipation of James' new release next month I was determined to catch up. Picture You Dead is book 18 and I was delighted to quickly immerse back in both Grace's life and his latest case. Whenever I recommend this series..and I do often I always say start at the beginning because of the important thread that runs throughout however if you wanted to dip your toe into a long time series before committing then this could be the book for you as it could be read as a standalone. One of my favourite things about these books is that the police cases focus on normal people unwittingly falling into the criminal underworld. It always highlights that an every day plain sailing can take a turn for the worst by a bad element bubbling just under the surface. Harry and Freya are like many of us in that they want to discover a hidden gem among the rubbish at a car boot sale and end up on the Antiques Roadshow! Unfortunately when the impossible happens it puts their heads above the parapet and draws unwanted attention.

Peter James knows how to write a page turner with heart. Picture You Dead is a realistically thrilling read because it could actually happen..but it won't..but it could! If you haven't met Roy Grace yet what are you waiting for?

I'm a long time fan of the Roy Grace and have mourned at the end of each book for having finished it and having to wait a long time for the next one. I also enjoy the TV series. But this is a series I'd drop a current read for to start the next Roy Grace.

This one takes Roy and his team in the art world where they discover forgeries, ruthless dealers, people who's stop at nothing to obtain masterpieces (or even forgeries). I regret though that, in this one, I didn't really have any sympathy for any of the shady characters.

I'm also very invested in Roy's personal life and the lives of the regular characters to and didn't feel much progress in this title. Whilst I enjoyed the book, it's not one I've written a singular review or recommendation for as it fell short of my usual expectations of the series. I do however highly recommend the series overall to every other reader in my circle. It's a 3.5 from me really. But I'm still excited for the next one!

This is part of a long series. This is so well written. This is a great police procedural filled with well developed characters and plenty of twists. It can be read as a standalone

I really enjoyed this Peter James book, I've read all the previous books in the Roy Grace series and enjoyed the different topic of paintings and forgeries in this book. Who knew that the world of classic paintings could be so ruthless.

Peter James is an accomplished storyteller and with "Picture You Dead" he delivers another entertaining crime novel. This is book 18 in the Roy Grace detective series and while I have not read all previous titles I have read about 6 in total. I do believe you can read it as a stand alone as there is sufficient detail and description to never feel lost on the series threads that appear.

Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, is back at it again with a deep dive into the art world where missing art and a merciless art collector combine into a web of violence, crime and murder. As always I love the police procedural part of this and Peter James does this part so very well. His characters are strong and the storyline has enough twists to keep the appeal going to the end.

In Picture You Dead, readers, and Roy Grace are plunged into the dark, murky side of the art world, in-particular that of fine art, a world that makes for a great backdrop to crime fiction and Peter James mixes the two with aplomb.

Harry and Freya are just ordinary people leading ordinary lives and one painting could alter it all in unexpected ways and far from how they would want it to change. This is what leads D.S. Roy Grace and his team into territory that is unfamiliar to them, which leads them needing expert help in this area and come across the perfect match in the tv world, quite a stalwart. From there, it becomes more intriguing.

Picture You Dead is a highly engaging and enjoyable read!
It can be read as a standalone and the books can be read in any order. 

Grace is a major tv drama series on ITV, currently at time of writing this review has had its 3rd series with John Simm playing Roy Grace and is currently touring in the UK with Wish You Were Dead, with George Rainsford as Roy Grace and also stars Clive Mantle.

Thank you Pan MacMillan and Netgalley, another great read from Peter.
I am a long-standing fan of Peter James books, and they just keep giving. I have read all so far and will keeping going - please keep writing! .

A series i have thoroughly enjoyed. The author is a very talented writer who knows what his readers want.
Another superb story a book i was engrossed in.
Book 18 in the Roy Grace series.

For me personally I would say these books are best read in order. Yet you could read this as a stand alone.

An enjoyable and compelling murder mystery that centres around a missing art masterpiece bought by an unsuspecting couple at a car boot sale. The discovery leads them into dangerous territory and to individuals who will stop at nothing to profit from the discovery. The twists and turns along the way and the highly relatable storyline which combines the best and worst behaviours of the Antiques Roadshow crowd make it a very enjoyable read.

With thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this detective novel.

It was lovely to be back in the world of Roy Grace, a character I was introduced to by a lovely new neighbour nearly ten years ago. When she moved in across the road from me with her English teacher daughter, they both had an extensive library. So, she asked me over for a cup of tea and to look through their boxes of duplicate books, she’d noticed I had quite a library of my own when she popped round to introduce herself. This unexpected rummage through their library brought both Elly Griffiths and Roy Grace to my notice. Luckily they both had a full set of Grace novels so I was able to spend a few weeks slowly working my way through his entire story. I managed to get access to Peter James’s latest through Netgalley, but have been a little late in writing up my review.

This time Grace’s case takes him into the world of art collecting and finds that when a collector wants a particular painting, they might pursue it using any means at their disposal, even murder. Everything is set in motion by a couple called Harry and Freya Kipling, an ordinary couple who work as a builder and a teacher. On their weekends they like nothing more than browsing car boot sales for bric a brac and on one particular day Harry brings home a hideous painting of an old hag. He explains to Freya that he bought it for the ornate frame, hoping they could use it for a different painting. He leaves it in the conservatory, but on a sunny day the heat coming through the glass starts to burn the painting. That’s when the couple notice there’s something completely different underneath and after asking an expert Harry cleans the picture with acetone. Underneath is a fêtes galantes style painting of a couple in a garden that looks like others by Fragonard. Of course Harry doesn’t imagine for a minute that it’s worth anything, but for fun they attend a local filming of the Antiques Roadshow. As they queue up in front of the painting expert, they’re shocked to be taken aside and told the expert would like to do some quick research on the their picture before filming. He then tells them that this painting could be a missing Fragonard, the Spring painting in a series on the seasons. Alone it’s worth upwards of a million pounds, with the others in the series it’s worth much more. They treat the painting almost like a ticking time bomb, something that worsens when their episode of the roadshow is televised. Now everyone knows they own this painting, including people who want it and will stop at nothing to obtain it.

This is an incredibly tough time for CSI Grace and his wife Cleo, he has only just lost his son Leo in a tragic accident and they are preparing for his funeral. Leo had only lived with Roy and Cleo for a few months, after his mother Sandy’s death in Munich. Sandy was Roy’s first wife who went missing early on in his career, causing so many problems and putting Roy in a position as suspect in her disappearance. He hadn’t even known Sandy was still alive, let alone he had a son, so it’s been a rollercoaster of combined grief and joy. To find out he had a son was shocking and to lose him so soon afterwards has been terrible. Now Cleo is close to giving birth to their second child together. His DI Glen Branson is at loggerheads with his fiancé over her job as a journalist, specialising in crime. Her ambition can mean criticising the force, something Glen is very sensitive about. With all this at home Roy and Glen are looking at a cold case, the murder of an antiques and art dealer on his return home one evening. He was killed in his car on his own drive, as he waited for his electric gates to open, by someone who knew his movements very well. When the Kiplings have their house broken into, with nothing taken, it seems certain to be linked to their appearance on the Antiques Roadshow. Then when another body turns up, this time outside the home of renowned art forger Dave Hegarty, the coincidences start to pile up. As Roy’s team work their way through the collectors of Fragonard, will he find one who’s willing to kill to complete their collection?

This is a very different world to the one Roy’s team usually inhabit, but as always where huge amounts of money are involved, people are ruthless. The author is an absolute master at giving us moments of personal joy and anguish, alongside extreme tension and fear. One section of the book has a home invasion that’s absolutely heart-stopping! Then next we’re at Leo’s funeral, an incredibly personal moment where we’re taken into Roy’s anger over Sandy’s disappearance and guilt about his relationship with his son. Alongside this is the anticipation about the birth of his second child with Cleo, due in the next few weeks. The case is fascinating and I fell completely into this world of art collecting, from those who can afford the real thing to the world of forgeries where being as good as Dave Hegarty can bring plaudits and plenty of cash too. I felt so bad for the Kiplings, who had simply bought a painting at a boot sale and didn’t deserve any of the horror and stress that followed. It was good to be back with the team, with Tanya showing her usual organisation and Norman’s terrible jokes from the 1980’s really bringing the reader back into their world. Then of course there’s Brighton, with the usual mix of the seedy and strange that comes with Roy’s job and how it contrasts with the quieter rural life he’s chosen for his family. I only hope from here on there’s less turbulence for a character I’ve come to enjoy so much.

Love Roy Grace books and this one didn’t disappoint
Following Roy’s personal life and work life
The Rae plenty of twist and turns in this book
They just keep getting better
Thanks NetGalley

Peter James just keeps on getting better and better.

Roy Grace is top of the tree as far as Detectives go and it amazes me that James can keep coming up with new directions for him.

This book, once again does not disappoint. Grace delves into the world of art and antics with the usual aplomb. Enough detail to give you an understanding but not too much to have you digging out the dictionary.

A rollercoaster of twists and turns with plenty of mystery and suspense. A cracker of a book which had me gripped from start to finish.

A proper page turner and cannot wait for the next instalment.

Highly recommended, 5 stars from me.

4.5 Stars from me

Love love love love love the Peter James Roy Grace series of novels.

The books are like a comfy old pair of slippers - reliable, warm, cozy and perfect for a cold winter's evening. The TV series is fab viewing.

Picture You Dead is an entertaining forray into the murky underbelly of the fine art world, peppered with some first class knowledge among the seedy tales of common criminals. 

Harry and Freya are a delightful couple and knew all the way through how I hoped the book would end.

Another belter from Peter James, and highly recommended by me.

This is my 3rd Jólabókaflóðið post of the night this Christmas Eve :)

Another great story by Peter James: gripping and well written, a page turner that kept me reading. It's always great to catch up with Roy Grace and his team, follow the investigation, be on the edge and guessing till the last page.
Another winner I throughly enjoyed.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

Having been a long-standing fan of Peter James books, I was looking forward to this. I did feel that it was not the most dynamic of his Grace novels. It was ok and I read it, but I did feel a little bit disappointed.

I've read all of the Roy Grace novels as well as watching stage and tv adaptations do i was thrilled to read this before its release. Very interesting plot with the idea of is it isn't it the real thing ( a famous artwork)
Thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish.

When Harry and Freya spend £20 on a drab painting, they're more interested in the beautiful frame than the picture. In fact, they intend to cut it out and discard it. But soon they realise there's another painting hidden underneath. Thinking it could be worth a bit more than expected, they take it to a TV auction show. Where they find out it could be a long lost masterpieces worth millions of pounds. It feels like they've hit the jackpot. But their appearance on the show gets them some unwanted attention. Soon, the unassuming couple fund themselves caught up in a world of fraud, fakes, and foul play. The new beginning they hoped the painting would bring them could, in fact, be their end.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. It's got a villain who acts like a poor man's Bond baddie, a pair of twin goons who are almost comically incompetent (almost, their stupidity usual leads to someone's demise) and side characters that are Machiavellian in their double crossing. And of course, best of all, it has Roy Grace. Poor Roy. Things were going well for him, but a personal tragedy has left him struggling. But he gets welcome distractions with this case, which had my head spinning. Is it the real painting? Was it, but it isn't now? By the end I still wasn't sure but it was a helluva lot of fun trying to work it out. Easily my favourite Roy Grace book since the very early books.

Beware the car boot bargain!
An interesting Grace novel that focuses more on the murkier side of the art world. Meticulously researched as is the author's want with enough police procedural to keep the reader interested.
Peter James does it again with another must read in the long running Grace series.

This is book 18 in the Roy Grace series and Picture You Dead did not disappoint.

It was like catching up with old friends Grace, Potting and Glenn Benson are back again, ready to save Brighton from the many criminals that pass through the city.

This book jumps into the art world when an ordinary couple buy an old painting from a car boot sale. They buy it for the frame but once home they accidently discover a painting underneath which they take to be valued and are told this could be a genuine 17th Century masterpiece the real deal from century's ago worth millions.

Of course as soon as word gets out it isn't long before art dealers, criminals and forgers are falling after themselves to try and get hold it.

This is a great book with lots of action and the underlying storyline of previous books with Cleo and all the rest of the gang kept me turning the pages. I can't wait for the next installment.

I will be recommending this to others.

Wow! Peter James does it again!
Love this Series and eagerly await each new book. Although this is part of a series (no18) each book could be read independently due to James amazing writing.

This time we are whisked into the world of art, A trip to the antiques roadshow, a car boot sale and an art gallery of sorts, unravels the plot in the early parts of this book.

We get to meet some familiar faces along the way, not all welcomed of course.

Lovely to see the old team still bantering with each other and moving through life’s struggles.

The plot twists and turns and certainly keeps you on your toes! True James style!

Cannot wait for no 19…….roll on 2o23!

Huge thanks to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. Much appreciated.