Blood Rival is gritty, bold, and completely addictive. Jake Arnott gives us characters that feel sharp and dangerous—you can’t trust anyone, and that’s exactly what makes it so good. Every move feels like it could blow everything up, and you’re just holding your breath waiting for it to happen.

The pacing is tight, the tension is constant, and the writing has that sleek, cinematic edge that makes every scene pop. It’s dark, it’s twisty, and it never lets you relax for a second.

If you’re into crime, betrayal, and power games where everyone has something to hide, this is your next obsession. Pure adrenaline in book form.

Set in the present day, the parallels to the infamous 1996 road rage killing near Swanley are quite clear. The story makes another connection to the perpetrator in question so the tone of the protagonists is quite clearly set out. With a power struggle opening up after a stabbing, there’s plenty of doubt about what really went down and, crucially, if anyone bore witness. The narrative skips along and does a particularly good job of getting across the insecurities that bedevil those who live on the edge of the law. I very much enjoyed the South London settings.

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC. I am leaving a review voluntarily.