A Killing in Paradise is the second book in the Dylan Kasper series by Elliot Sweeney and like the first book it is a fairly dark crime novel with more than the usual level of violence and gore etc.

However, the main underlying & supporting storylines are good and well told which makes this a good book but maybe not for everyone.

A Killing in Paradise by Elliot Sweeney

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to NetGalley and Wildfire and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

A young man has been murdered on the notorious Paradise estate in London. The police have their assumptions; out-of-work private investigator Dylan Kasper, more than familiar with the neighbourhood, has his own.

Kasper takes it upon himself to get to the bottom of the killing. He soon discovers the reason the boy was killed that the police will never find - or want to find. A highly incriminating piece of evidence tying an illegal production company to the government and police alike.

But this is just the beginning. Kasper has made a name for himself getting under the skin of the most brutal killers in the capital. When those dearest to Kasper are suddenly thrust into view, he will have to make an impossible choice. Will the inhabitants of Paradise feel safe at last, if the price must be paid in blood?

My Opinion

This is the second book in the Dylan Kasper series but I have read it as a standalone, I feel that enough information on the backstory was provided to allow this. This is a psychological thriller that is packed with drama. Kasper gets involved in quite a dark investigation so this book is not going to be for everyone. Will Kasper be able to solve the case before anyone else gets hurt?

I'd hesitate to say that this was an enjoyable read due to the themes, but it was a well-written gripping thriller.

Rating 4/5

This is the second in Elliot F. Sweeney's gritty and hard hitting London based series featuring the guilt ridden PI Dylan Kaspar, still grieving the loss of his daughter who committed suicide, living with retired former psychiatrist, Dr Steiner. I both read and listened to this on audio, narrated reasonably well by Elliot Fitzpatrick, and which is 11 hours and 40 minutes long. I should warn readers that this is a particularly gory and upsetting addition, with a too high dead bodies count, and takes in the horrifying filmed murders of young women for the purpose of snuff movies. It all begins with Mani taking Kaspar to a women's boxing match in a community hall, it turns he has an ulterior motive, as he introduces him to the talented and promising winner, the boxer Patience.

Patience lives in the poverty stricken and troubled London council estate of Paradise, she has suffered the loss of her father, and her 14 year old brother, Kwame Mensah, has been recently knifed to death, a crime that attracted no police investigation, and apparently witnessed by local crook, drug dealer and cafe owner, Terry Kinsella, his account raising suspicions. Patience shows Kaspar the truly disturbing and macabre film on a camcorder stolen by Kwame which suggests the real reason behind his murder. Patience is in no position to be able to pay, and Kaspar initially agrees to do a day's work for free, only to find himself unable to drop the case, so desperate is he to catch the 2 men committing such heinous crimes. However, he underestimates the criminal power and ruthlessness of those he is up against.

Those close to him are in danger, targets to ensure Kaspar complies with villainous demands, and he finds himself under the kind of dangers and case that will test his moral fibre and change him for good, along with others too, such as DS Diane McAteer and Suzanna McGovern, and there is a shocking final reveal at the end that is to underline the morally ambiguous territory he has now entered. There is an unevenness to the storytelling, plotting, and in the character of Kaspar in the way he handles the most gruesome of cases. After reaching the end, I was left wondering where the author will take Kaspar in his next outing. I would not recommend this to the faint of heart, and do recommend the audio and the book. Many thanks to the publisher for the ARC and the ALC.