Long Time Dead by T. M. Payne is an absolutely superb crime novel that grabs you from the very beginning and won't let go.
Payne expertly devises a story that is full of suspense, twists, surprises, and cryptic clues. The character of DI Sheridan Holler is wonderfully complex and relatable, as are the supporting characters. The setting of the police station is realistic and believable, and I even learned a bit about England along the way.
The twists in the story, which is told from various points of view over various time periods, are shocking and yet make sense, causing you to wonder how you didn't see them coming. And just when you think all of the twists have been revealed, a few more come along and shock you all over again.
The ending wraps up nicely, and leaves you wanting to read more by this phenomenal storyteller.
I sincerely hope that this gets picked up for a crime series. I'd definitely tune in!
I am so happy to have received an ARC of #LongTimeDead from #NetGalley and I look forward to book two in the series.

When a cold case resurfaces, DI Sheridan Holler and her team find themselves embroiled in a complex and shocking investigation. This is the first book in a new Liverpool-set police procedural series that features a determined, likeable lead detective whose overarching backstory is the unsolved murder of her young brother. Ideal for fans of no-nonsense crime fiction with straightforward storytelling. With thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an early copy in exchange for an independent review.

A highly recommended 5 star and more read !
What a fantastic start to a new series I can’t wait for the next one and I’m sure this is going to be one of my all time favourites going by the first book. From the very start I just fell in love with this read it kept me guessing all the way through and has one of the most satisfying end I have read. The characters are all superb and so well crafted , the humour is just spot on and had me laughing a lot especially the very lovely Maud !
The book is filled with unpredictable twists that I didn’t see coming and when you read a lot of mystery thrillers as I do that always a big bonus. I just can’t fault the read in any way and my only sadness is I have to wait for the next to find out what is going to be happening next.
My thanks to TM Payne…. well girl you did yourself proud this is an amazingly good read and one that’s not to be missed, please write the next one soon.
My thanks also to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for giving me the opportunity to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

As I say often, I love a debut, and this doesn't disappoint. Very well structured it keeps you guessing, the characters are very well developed, you get to know them. Overall, excellent throughout, very well written.

I couldn’t put this book down it down, Well written and excellent development of the characters. I was kept on tenterhooks to the very end. Well done on your first novel, hopefully not the last!

From the prologue to the very last page I was engrossed in this novel.
The prologue begins with a shooting in a supermarket car park, fast forward seven years and DI Sheridan Holler is still trying to discover who killed her brother Matthew twenty seven years previously. But when a decomposed body is discovered and later revealed as John Lively, the man suspected of supermarket crime, her time and effort moves to that case.
With lots of characters you could be forgiven for wondering how they are all linked together but by the end of the novel all the threads come together to a satisfactory conclusion. I look forward to more in the series

DI Sheridan Holler is used to solving crimes on Liverpool’s streets, but after a decayed corpse turns up in a cemetery, she finds herself reopening not one but two cold cases. Seven years earlier, two women were gunned down and the only suspect, small-time drug dealer John Lively, was never seen again. Case closed. Until the body in the cemetery is identified as his.

This is a great, well-written, and paced story. The characters are three-dimensional and believable and the book is an easy read. I like the short chapters and it flows well and is easy to follow. Plus, it’s a terrific ending that twists and turns until the very last page.

. This book was brilliant I couldn’t put it down, I just needed to know who had done it! I kept suspecting different people but in the end it was not who I thought it was. The writing style is easy to read and keeps you guessing.

Long Time Dead is the first in what will hopefully be an ongoing series featuring DI Sheridan Holler.
When the long dead corpse of a small time local drug dealer John Lively is found in a Liverpool cemetery this leads to the reopening of a murder case.

I really enjoyed this police procedural, the plot moves along at a good pace, the characterisation is good and I felt involved with DI Holler and her team. There's a good cast of supporting characters, especially Holler's colleague Anna and enough of her back story to leave room to develop this further. Holler's own personal life is explored including the murder of her brother when they were teenagers which was the motivation for her to join the police force. There were a few twists which I enjoyed and I sped through this over the course of 24 hours. I would recommend this and really look forward to meeting Sheridan and her team again. The novel is set in Liverpool which is a city that I know and I felt that apart from name checking a few places I didn't get a sense of the city which was a shame. Hopefully this can be developed more in future novels.
Recommended.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC.

When the body of John Lively is found in a graveyard, DI Sheridan Holler has to find his killer. As Lively was chief suspect in the shooting of two women. one a police officer, seven years earlier there will be no shortage of suspects. However, new evidence confirms that Lively could not have shot the women. Sheridan suddenly finds herself investigating both cases and having to go back to the start. With her team backing her up they uncover evidence that could lead Sheridan into more danger than she could ever expect.
This is a twisty thriller, with a great plotline and strong characters that will grip you from the start. With moments of natural humour amidst the darkness. Sheridan Holler is a brilliant addition to the female detective genre. She is strong, intelligent, and kind and I can’t wait to read more featuring her.

I need to stop thinking I’m going to start a new series. I rarely like recurring characters and find the books focus too much on creating buy-in for them rather than a plot.

This is the first book I have read by TM Payne. It captured my attention from the very start and had me hooked.

DI Sheridan Holler joined the police force as her brother had gone missing when he was 13 and his body was found in the woods near their home- Sheridan was determined to find out who had murdered her brother but she kept drawing blanks.

Sheridan loved her job and her team. They got a new case when a body was found in another persons grave. The body was identified as John Lively who had disappeared after the murder of a police officer and the serious injury of another woman. John Lively was thought to be the one who had committed these crimes but further investigation cast some doubt on this.

I really enjoyed this book. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an advance copy in return for an honest review.

3* Decent tale, but very much told, not shown. Flashbacks weren't organic and slowed down the story towards the crescendo.

This is my first book by this author, that reads like her first book. Pacing is off, the tale is veey much told, not shown, and at 70% gone, it should have been ending. But, at that point the author started delving into Sheridan's brother going missing, into the baddie's past and thoughts and machinations, and feelings, and everything slowed right down. It took me out of the take at this point, and a couple of times before.

What I didn't get was how there wasn't a hint of Scouse in anyone's speech. This tale is set right bang in the middle of Liverpool and there's no way that at least one character wouldn't have been speaking that way. Even without the accent, there'd have been local expressions, but the only thing there was, was 'butty'. I know the author's a Brit, but I'm not sure she wrote an authentically Scouse-set tale. I mean, EFC and LFC barely featured!!

It is readable but it needs weeding out, details need to be sharper and less round the houses, and sorry, but it needs a good editing and the pace needs picking up. I'm not sure if the care home owner grabbing something mysterious and going to London on a train will lead to events in book 2, or if the author's totally forgot about her and her Xmas visit to family, as by the time the tale ended, it was April, I think, or at least, March. This author has potential but where detail about people was needed, she skipped it, and where things needed to be galloping towards the finale, she slowed things down and introduced things that jarred, from 72% onwards.

ARC courtesy of Thomas and Mercer and Netgalley, for my reading pleasure.



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This was a good story which kept me turning the pages throughout the night. Great mystery, writing and plotting will recommend to all my friends who love this genre.

I always like a police procedural with a strong female lead, a genuine knowledge of the way the police work and a style that pulls you in from the start. This book has it in spades. Sheridan Holler is an amalgam of a lot of police officers, caring, dedicated and hard working. It’s action packed, has lots of twists and surprises, and ultimately a good ending. As this is book 1 in the series I’m hoping we find out more about Sheridans brothers murder, and also more about her colleagues, particularly Anna. I also really liked Maud, the cat.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Thanks to Thomas Mercer Publishing, NetGalley, and T.M. Payne for the chance to review the advance copy of Long Time Dead. The story begins with a drive by shooting and then seven years later our action picks up when a very decayed body is unearthed during a routine grave digging operation at a local cemetery. The body is definitely not the woman that should be there and his body was only found because her husband died and was to be buried with her.
Investigation shows he was someone who had been suspected in killing a fellow officer seven years ago but signs show he was already dead. The only chance to find the real culprit after all this time is to question the lone survivor who was shot in the head and has been in a nursing facility all this time.
I’m leaving it there so I don’t give anything away but I do highly recommend this book. Wonderful characters and well written plot and world building.

I really enjoyed this book and romped through it! When a man's body is found in a grave which has been opened up for a husband to be reunited with his wife, Detective Sheridan Holler finds herself opening up a cold case where a police officer was shot dead. She is also constantly looking for clues in the murder of her young brother many years ago. The short chapters keep the story moving along quickly and I really liked the characters. This is a real page turner that will keep you on the edge of your seat to the end. Can't wait for the next in the series.
Thanks to NetGalley for a preview copy.
Copied to Goodreads.

This is described as the first book in a series featuring DI Sheridan Holler.
It is often difficult for an author to produce a pacey narrative in the first book of a series.

HoweverT.M.Payne has managed to introduce a group of Liverpool detectives, who I look forward to following in future novels. Within this fast paced murder thriller.

I like the way that the author has created and developed the characters in this book. I also like the use of short chapters which allows the multiple facets of the story to unfold.

I won'go into detail about the plot for fear of spoiling the story. Suffice to say that there are plenty of twists and turns, alongside a few red herrings before the truth emerges.

I give my thanks to Netgalley and Thomas and Mercer for a copy of this book in exchange for this review

I love finding a new police series with a strong female lead. And that’s exactly what we have here with Sheridan Holler. The writing is excellent, the plotting is tight and twisty, the pacing is perfect, and I raced through to the end with no clue how the author was going to tidy things up. What an ending! A very satisfying conclusion to an adventure for Sheridan and her little band of friends and colleagues.

A body found in a grave opens up an old case and things turn out to be not as simple as they seemed. But there are no cliches here. It’s a very clever story about assumptions and manipulation. In many forms. And it’s great fun as well as angsty.

There are no spoilers here but the ending clears up the original mistaken murder investigation while leading us through the current one. We also learn about Detective Holler and her colleagues private lives to ‘flesh’ out their characters. Holler is a really interesting character with the heart of gold soft core beneath a strong shell. We see both sides of her and I’m already looking forward to the next outing for Sheridan and her team. Though maybe Ms Payne could let Sheridan have a couple of weeks in the sun first 😁

I was given a copy of this book by NetGalley

A brilliant book that has you gripped with suspence, mystery and murder this book has a great story with characters that make it so real excellent.