TL/DR: So you have read the synopsis and now you are here for other peoples opinions. I get it. Let me begin by saying there is no lead up, the FMC, Caren, is thrown into the deep end, a baptism by fire if you will, on her first day on the job. She hasn’t even met her team yet and now her first case is a murder. There is a lot going on in this book and it will keep you entertained and guessing until the end. If you need more, please see below.

Caren has received her dream job, as a detective inspector of her own team, instead of just short term assignments. The catch is it’s in a different division which requires a move, so now she has rent as well as a mortgage to pay.

As if this isn’t hard enough, she lost her husband in a car accident a year ago and is now raising her son with the help of her parents. So yes, she has her dream job, but her son is her priority and she never wants him to feel like her job comes first.

While investigating the first murder, keeping her boss up to date and proving herself, there is another murder, and it is most definitely connected to the first.

I loved how we see Caren’s growth from the beginning of the book to the end. She is learning to connect with her team better than formal introductions ever could have and she is able to clearly convey what she expects from them.

There are a lot of twists and turns in the investigations and just when you think you’ve put it together, you could be wrong.

She is also pushing the solicitors of her husband’s estate to clear it and that comes with a few surprises of its own.

I definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys murder mysteries or suspense or even just a story with a strong female lead. I would like to thank the author, Highgate Publishing and NetGalley for a copy of this book. All opinions are my own and my review is voluntarily given. As always, I wish you happy reading!

Book 1 in the series. Read nook 2 first and made me want to read this one. Caren, a single mother in Wales is the new police detective. With her new team she works to solve a couple of murders left at a tourist attraction. Although the victims were drug dealers it still shows that they deserved justice. Liked this one a lot and would highly recommend this one.

This was a first for me by this author and a first in the series for DI Caren Waits.

Caren is an interesting character brusque, formidable, resilient, are a few traits that spring to mind.

As if juggling a professional career in a new team/newly promoted whilst balancing motherhood as a widow in a new town isn't challenging enough Caren hits the ground running by being thrown into a murder investigation on her first day of the job.

A good solid start although I must admit I was disappointed in the ending as it seemed finish abruptly which didn't fit with the detail and pace of the rest of the book.

Book 1 of Detective Inspector Caren Waits and I enjoyed every minute of it and can't wait to read the next book(s) in the series. When Detective Inspector Caren Waits starts a new job she is out to prove herself and so her first job throws her right into a murder(s) that will need her full attention.

This is a fast paced and thrilling murder mystery, a solid and intriguing story and plenty of twists and turns. Love Detective Inspector Caren Waits and look forward to reading more of her stories in the future. Love the clues that draw you in and keep you guessing throughout. A great read and one I highly recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and Highgate Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

A new author to me and a new / deveping character for them ( I will be looking out earlier novels).

A procedural crime drama with a county lines drug theme running through it.

Significant time is spent on the lead characters home life and the issues with being a single parent in a job with unsocial hours. I wasn't overly convinced by this, either she expects her parents to be constantly able to drop everything at a moments notice or had an unrealistic expectation of the DI role.

I didn't take to the characters if honest, that said though it is often the case with new characters in what is obviously set to be a series so I shall be interested to see the development.

On the whole I'd reccomend this as an undemanding crime novel perfect for summer.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC which was very much appreciated.

Ah well, that is another addition to the list of ‘must read’ authors., plus another character that I have taken a liking to.
A really enjoyable read and one you must try if you are into crime fiction. Highly recommended.

Until her recent promotion to Detective Inspector, Caren Waits was a DS working in Northern Division for DI Ian Drake, well known to readers from another excellent series by this author. Now one year after her husband Alun was killed in a motor accident, she and their four-year-old son Aled have moved from Conwy to Carmarthen nearer her parents who will undertake much of her childcare as she starts a new posting in Western Division under Supt Brooks. There’s no time for introductions as the body of local lowlife Jimmy Patmore is found at the National Trust’s historic monument Paxton’s Tower in the Tywi Valley. The site was a favoured drug pickup point for the small-time dealer, but could the killer have been his mother’s ex-partner who wanted to muscle in on Jimmy’s business or his regular supplier who learned Jimmy was thinking of moving to a new source? As well as learning to find her way around the area, Caren also has a new team to get to know, consisting of DS Huw Margam and DCs Alice Sharp and Rhys Davies. She also hears rumours about her predecessor DI Sammy Evans who seems to have left under somewhat of a cloud but no one is telling her exactly why. As the investigation moves on, there are occasional glimmers of hope but nothing definitive that can pin the murder on one of their two very good suspects and it also looks like Jimmy’s brother has disappeared, whilst the English leader of the local neighbourhood watch is determined to make trouble for the WPS. Then another body is found by the Tower and the pressure is really on from all sides for Caren to prove she is worthy of her new position.
This is a great opener to a new series, a good solid police procedural with a clever plot and plenty of twists. Caren feels under immense pressure to be both a good mother and detective, and is gradually learning how to relax into the role, as the initial teething problems with the new team are ironed out as the story progresses. She even starts to make some good friends. I loved the initiative to get senior officers speaking Welsh, even though half the people she dealt with in this story had in fact moved from England, and learning Welsh myself I can empathise with her worries since it’s not the easiest language to master! This was a very enjoyable read and I am looking forward to moving straight onto book 2, The Tenby Harbour Murders.

What a wild ride. There were so many twists and turns. So much mystery. This book kept me hooked throughout the whole story. I couldn't put this book down.

The Paxton’s Tower Murders delivers a gritty, atmospheric murder mystery that pulls readers into a dark world of drugs, deception, and deeply flawed suspects. Stephen Puleston paints a vivid portrait of the criminal underbelly, crafting characters who feel convincingly raw and unsettling. The attention to detail in both setting and character adds a palpable sense of grime and tension that lingers throughout the narrative.

With strong pacing and a well-constructed mystery, the story keeps you engaged from the first clue to the final reveal. Puleston’s skillful storytelling ensures that every twist and turn feels grounded in realism, adding depth to the procedural elements of the investigation. A thoroughly enjoyable read for fans of crime fiction, this installment leaves you eager to see where the author will take us next.

This is a classic police procedural with a terrific main character, who finds herself in the thick of it before her feet are even under the desk. The author has created a strong character and world for her to work in and I enjoyed how the case advanced through the plot. The setting is well described and the author’s writing style is very engaging. For me, it had a sense of some of Joy Ellis’ creations.

I have previously read and enjoyed the Blake series and sk was intrigued to read the new series.
I found it really interesting and entertaining and I was eager to find out the conclusion. I would have liked more depth to the conclusion though.

there were a lot of hints to see where the series would go and I am looking forward to reading more.

Thanks to the Highgate publishing and Netgalley for this eARC.

Beneath the brooding shadow of Paxton’s Tower, where mist tangles with memory and secrets echo across the Carmarthenshire hills, Stephen Puleston spins a web of murder and melancholy that is as much psychological terrain as it is geographical.

In The Paxton’s Tower Murders, DI Caren Waits steps into a role that feels carved from the Welsh stone itself—tough, weathered, enigmatic. Puleston’s decision to place a female detective at the helm of this dark procedural does more than diversify the genre: it deepens it. Waits is a study in quiet tension, her personal life clinging to the edge of her investigative rigor like ivy on crumbling stone.

The murders are grisly without indulgence, their brutality tempered by Puleston’s restrained prose. And while the plot initially meanders like a winding country lane, it tightens with each revelation, leading to a conclusion both unexpected and grimly inevitable.

What elevates this novel beyond your average police procedural is Puleston’s ear for atmosphere. The landscapes are not mere backdrops—they haunt. From the unsettling serenity of rural farms to the looming presence of the tower itself, the setting pulses with a low, threatening heartbeat.

For fans of crime fiction that prioritizes mood and moral ambiguity over high-octane thrills, The Paxton’s Tower Murders is a brooding triumph. It’s a slow burn with smoke you can practically taste.

3.5* Ugh, it feels like the lead in this book needs basic manners as well as DEI training.

This is a pretty decent read featuring a newly qualified DCI who's been recently widowed; who's in a brand new job; and who by the sounds of it is on her way to being a bit of an alcoholic - I got bored pretty quickly of the mention of a few glasses every night once her child was in bed.

She lacks manners, sadly, without even a basic 'please' in her repertoire, especially when asking a colleague - clearly an underling in her eyes - to make her a coffee. Who does this in 2025 UK, or anywhere else?

Those niggles aside, the tale isn't a bad one, with scallies, a bit of intrigue but with a character who stood out a little too much for the wrong reasons, who overplayed their hand badly - not that the cops saw it - gave the game away.

I'd read more of this series because of the ending, which is likely to disrupt the DCI's world.

ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Highgate Publishing, for my reading pleasure.

It’s the first day at a new job for DI Caren Waits. A recent widow and a single mother, she is determined to be a strong leader for her new team. What she doesn’t expect is a the vicious murder of a small-time drug dealer, a case that will turn her first days at work into a 24-7 marathon. Caren must quickly get to know her new team, a new town and its hidden networks of crime.

The Paxton's Tower Murders is the first in a new series and I can’t wait for the next. Stephen Puleston introduces Caren and her team, all engaging, well described characters. Caren is intelligent and vulnerable as she tries to keep her tragic background a secret. Her new partner Huw has secrets of his own, DS Davies is charmingly ambitious while DS Sharp nurses an unpleasant attitude. Colwyn Bay, on the north coast of Wales near the Irish Sea is a lonely, atmospheric location and the well executed plot has a final twist that left me wanting more.
5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, Highgate Publishing and Stephen Puleston for this ARC.

First in a new series,police procedural.A new position for our main character and a new team. Good characters and a well developed story.

First novel I have read from this author and it didn’t disappoint. Enjoyed the first in the series of Caren Waits as a newly appointed Inspector. Plenty of twists and turns to keep me reading. Well rounded characters and very well written. Look forward to his next offering. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it.

This is the first novel in a very promising, well written crime thriller series, with a new lead character Caren Waits. I liked the background detail of Caren's home life and I do hope we will find out more about her personal life in a follow up. The setting is Wales and I loved the twists and the fast pace as Caren and her team investigated the murder of two young men involved in drug dealing. The team dynamics are good and the twist at the end surprised me but left me wanting to discover more and eagerly looking forward to another chapter. I am sure fans of crime thrillers will enjoy the read as much as I did. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

Rating: 4⭐️

The Paxton’s Tower Murders is an exciting start to a new crime series featuring Detective Inspector Caren Waits. Thrown into a murder case on her first day in a new role, Caren proves to be a capable and compelling lead. The plot is well-paced with enough twists to keep readers guessing, though it leans more toward procedural detail than fast-paced action.

Caren’s resilience and leadership shine throughout, and the atmospheric Welsh setting adds a rich backdrop to the investigation. While the ending may not be a major surprise, the story builds effectively and sets up the series well. Enjoyable read for detective fiction fans!!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC 🫶

This is the first time have read a book by stephen puleston for the 1st in a series i think its an excellent introduction i kinda had an idea who the murderer was th9ugh was torn between two and how they got there was interesting.

I lioe Caren she was really thrown in the deepend with her job but she handles the team and situations well

the end made you want to read the next one i cant wait to see what happens

Wow - what a fantastic read. I thoroughly enjoyed the pacing of this book: the timing of the two murders and the length of the investigation was seamless. The FMC, DI Caren Waits is a fantastic main character and I look forward to reading more of this strong woman! She handles everything thrown at her with grace and strength and is quite admirable.