I loved this book and it was an apt follow up to his first book Death Under a Little Sky.It features, Jake the retired detective and his partner Livia, the vet. Jake lives at Little Sky, remote and cut off from communication with the world. It is beautifully written, with some excellent descriptions, that you feel you are seeing the countryside through Jake’s eyes. The storyline had me hooked from the beginning, full of twists and turns, making it a very exciting read. Looking forward to the next one. If you are new to Stig Abell I would thoroughly recommend you read the books in order. Although this is a stand alone story you would be missing the back story.

The second novel in the Detective Jake Jackson series. The first being Death Under a Little Sky which I really thought a refreshing change from the normal detective thriller genre. Death in a Lonely Place does not disappoint. Jake Jackson living almost off-grid, a Yeti type figure with his long hair and Rasputin-like beard must cut a figure only his mother could love. Whereas in reality he is in a rather steamy relationship with the local vet, Livia. It is not a conventional relationship as both people really value their independence and when they are not busy getting it on together, they live separate lives. From what I have written so far you might think Jake is working undercover but following an inheritance he has left the police to live The Good Life in the sticks. Trouble always seem to lure Jake away from the rhythm of the countryside and a missing girl case brought to him by Detective Watson tests his resolve. This brings back to Jake's mind a missing boy case when he was back in the force. A child called James, one which he could not bring to conclusion. Following certain developments there appears to be a shadowy outfit called No Taboo. It appears they run a 'fulfillment' company for the rich and powerful, allowing them to live their depraved dreams in real life. It's a gripping tale and wonderfully set in a snowscape. Stig Abell describes the changes in weather and temperature beautifully, think an effusive Laurie Lee without regard for succinctness. This backdrop achieves a degree of menace and isolation, which really makes the novel, pop. However, he can also make the odd faux pas like describing a Land Rover Discovery as sleek.
In the epilogue I would like to have known if the misper James was ever found, additionally the consequences of killing someone, albeit someone who was trying to kill Jake, could have been explored.
A very good thriller which I heartily recommend.

This book has a debate feeling which kept me reading to find out what happens next with Jake. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book.

So much for moving to the countryside for a quieter life. An old case has followed Jake Jackson, and bang goes his peace and quiet.

Who can he trust? And how far will people go to protect their secrets?

For me the book started a little slow but once it going I was very interested to see what would happen and where the story would lead. I also liked the style of writing

Former Detective Jake Jackson initially believes that he has found what he was looking for in the rural idyll of Little Sky - peace, quiet, and isolation from the stresses of the modern world, as well as a new life in an inherited home where the only excitement is related to his torrid relationship with his girlfriend Livia, who's a vet. Speaking of which, the latter shenanigans feel a little excessive at times...

Nevertheless, Jake seems unable to stay out of trouble. And when an earlier case raises its head, he soon finds himself tangled in with a ruthless group of people who are totally amoral and make a very lucrative living by supplying the super rich with whatever they desire - however illegal that "product" may be.

This is a well written and intriguing story, which holds the reader's attention fairly effortlessly. It may require a slight suspension of disbelief at times, but is a cracking read.

The return of ex detective Jake Jackson and the isolated but charismatic Little Sky.

This is the second in the series and is of a similar nature, Jake out in the wilds called on to help DI Watson with an unsolved case. Despite promising his girlfriend Livia he won’t put her or her daughter’s life in jeopardy again, Jake can’t resist the lure of the criminal classes.

Intelligently written, this is a well crafted though far fetched and predictable novel, that I did enjoy. However, there’s an overwhelming offering of icy, snowy landscapes, wild water swimming, not to mention the Mills and Boon love/romance angle (cringe). It’s too much! No, I’m not a prude but Livia is supposed to be a VERY busy vet yet calls at Little Sky on a whim, or is available when Jake comes calling in the village (poor Cyprian having to witness all that 😱). Knock this on the head and it would be a much better book.

The denouement was very tongue in cheek, but take it with a pinch of salt and enjoy it!

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Collins UK.

Another brilliant novel from Stig Abell!

This is Abell's second novel and the second novel featuring former detective Jake Jackson. For those who aren't familiar with the series, Jake is a former detective who inherited his uncle's home in the countryside and decided to leave the police for (what he thought might be) a quieter life.

However, despite being relatively cut off from the world, no phone, no internet, no TV, Jake keeps getting dragged back into crimes affecting his new rural community. In DIALP, Jake is tracked down by a police officer who is looking for assistance in a missing persons case. In assisting in this case, Jake uncovers links to a powerful, wealthy community with very few morals who can deliver whatever their wealthy clients want - drugs, sex, death, children. But its clear that this group will do anything to keep Jake quiet, including hurting those close to him.

This is the second novel in the series but, like most, you can read as a standalone but I do think you would be missing quite a significant backstory if you tried to jump into this one without reading Death Under a Little Sky. I would definitely encourage you to do so and then go and read this! You can thank me later.

Thanks to Netgalley and HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction, Hemlock Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

Stig Abell is fast becoming one of my favourite author.

I loved his first novel, Death Under a Little Sky, and this one continues the story of Little Sky, Jake and Livia.

A wonderful read, intriguing plot, and wonderful descriptions of the world around Little Sky, full of twists and unexpected situations, I found it hard to put down.

Highly recommend!

My thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for giving me the opportunity to read an advanced digital copy in return for an honest review.

This was my first book by the author, and i understand there was a previous book featuring the main character, Jack but this book read very well as a stand alone.
I liked that there were no multiple repeated allusions to events of the previous book which is something i have seen in other series.
I liked the main characters and i enjoyed the way Liv, Jack's love interest was written. She was brave, intelligent, ambitious and a no-nonsense single mother plus vet.
The storyline was reasonably good but not something that stuck with me after finishing the book.
Also i am shaving off a star as the antagonist was pretty obvious from a mile away and i knew where it was headed, but the author still tried to insert a red herring, perhaps in an attempt to create a pseudo twist where there was none.


All in all a good read and i finished it in one sitting
Might be tempted to continue reading the upcoming books in the series.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for an arc of this book.

Has this book been renamed. Was it originally "Death under a little sky"?

My review stands for that 1st book.

Really should have let us know about the renaming.

Wow! what a plot twister this second Book by Stig Abell is, it had me gripped all the way through as the plots & characters twist & turn , so just as you begin to think to know what's going to happen with the main Characters Jake & Livia your knocked sideways by another twist , so I truly highly recommend you read this : #NetGalley, #GoodReads, #Amazon.co.uk, #FB, #Instagram, # <img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/8a5b541512e66ae64954bdaab137035a5b2a89d2" width="80" height="80" alt="200 Book Reviews" title="200 Book Reviews"/>, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/ef856e6ce35e6d2d729539aa1808a5fb4326a415" width="80" height="80" alt="Reviews Published" title="Reviews Published"/>, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/aa60c7e77cc330186f26ea1f647542df8af8326a" width="80" height="80" alt="Professional Reader" title="Professional Reader"/>.

The second book in a series, this was another novel which I couldn't put down. Full of twists and turns I was hooked right to the final page.

This is a sequel I was waiting for, and it did not disappoint. Stig Abell is back with his beautifully descriptive writing, painting the picture of the countryside that we all would love to live in.

We are back at Big Sky, the beautiful and expansive retreat where former Detective Jake Jackson lives a very simple and physical lifestyle. One that is so very different from his former life in London working cold cases. He has Big Sky exactly as he wants it, he has a working relationship with the gorgeous Vet Liv and her daughter Diana. It is the nature-loving paradise he never knew he wanted, with his library of detective thrillers, and his Uncles record collection.

But out of nowhere, a child kidnapping brings back vibes from two of his cold cases, ones that he was never able to close, and have stuck with him for years. And once they are back open in his head, he is pulled into a twisting game of dark decadent deeds that leaves a string of victims in its wake.

The book is another amazing story, beautifully told, once again leaving me wanting more.

Stig Abell's Death Under a Little Sky was one of my standout books of 2023,with it's main character, ex-Detective Jake Jackson living "off the grid but finding not only love but also that serious crime isn't the sole preserve of towns and cities.

The sequel, Death in a Lonely Place still has the lyrical descriptions of Jake's remote and,to most, bleak,country home and continues the tale of his relationship with the lovely Livia but it missed the mark for me. Having lived in the countryside I could relate to the rural crime,tough life and tough people in places those from towns and cities see as rural idylls in the previous book and Abell's descriptions are often almost poetic. In this book however a major conspiracy centred around Jackson's (extremely) remote area ,repetitive descriptions of the winter weather,that I began to skim through all but lost me.

The feeling of reality was a big attraction to me of Abell's first book,this one misfired for me at least,it's almost like a half-baked Jason Bourne story with intermissions to describe the snowy landscape yet again and punctuated by Jake and Livia "doing the wild thing" seemingly at least once a chapter.

Sorry Stig,loved your first book, this one lost me.