I am a fan of Matt Brolly’s DI Louise Blackwell mysteries, and this is the beginning of a new series featuring DI Liam Kilshaw. Liam is a former Marine with PTSD from a near-drowning experience while in the service. When Liam and his fellow lifeboat volunteers recover the body of a young man drowned along the Cornish coast, it is the beginning of an investigation into the web of intrigue surrounding the county lines drug trade.

Well plotted and multilayered, there are twists and turns in this suspenseful read, along with a touch of romance. Brolly’s novels are atmospheric and gritty at times, but not graphic. A fast read, I liked some of the new characters introduced and, in particular, the working relationship between Liam and his colleague, Maya.

This is your opportunity to get in on the beginning of a new character-driven police procedural mystery suspense series.

I really enjoyed this book. Easy to get into and relatable characters. Good storyline too. Thanks to Netgalley for the advance copy. I will be looking out for the next one in this series

Matt Brolly really does write good main characters, making me really care about what they are going through. In this one, we meet DS Liam Kilshaw, still dealing with trauma from his past careers in the Royal Marines and in the Special Boat Squad, as well as the childhood loss of his father. He is ready to move on in his personal life, helped by the amicable relationship he has with his ex and mother of his child. As the title suggests, this book centres on county lines drug gangs and cuckooing with the threat of fentanyl implosion in to Cornwall. It focuses more on the victims to begin with, so you build empathy and sympathy for them and really want the police to succeed. I can't say a lot about what happens without spoilers suffice to say that it impacts on every aspect of Liam's life as he investigates. It is not just a book about drug gang infighting, there are many layers and the plot moves quickly and interestingly.
I was happy to read that this is the first in a new series involving DS Kilshaw and I look forward to reading more.

4.99* Well written, well plotted, with the biggest baddie a shock and a betrayal.

This is pretty fast moving, with a tale that felt all too true and believable in 2025 - Anywhere, not only UK. If Fentanyl really is the threat it's made out to be, it's freaking scary that it could be on our shores this easily (not done the research, 2025 is directly enough).

The cop side of the tale works well, with a bunch of competent cops, even if the lead character - I've already forgotten his name - is kind of faceless. I recall his alopecia, that he came near to drowning and has issues with open water, has a kid with an ex, but he didn't stand out like a lead does, although that kind of made for a better tale for me, as I concentrated on the latter, solely. Yes, there's cop politics, and something that's been in the UK press about past police operations reared its head, again done so well, I couldn't figure out if I was seeing a baddie, a good guy turned shades of baddie, or a broken good guy. The ending, although there'd been hints of what transpired, felt believable, and there wasn't any sympathy to be had. The personal betrayal was a shocker, but blaming stuff on 'he was born a sociopath' felt a tad too much suspension of disbelief and didn't get enough page time, so it felt the tiniest bit...convenient. It didn't ruin anything but for me, more of an explanation was needed.

That the romance aspect of the tale wasn't scuppered by what happened in the penultimate chapter (or possibly the last) surprised me. I fully expected the lead to get dumped, and tbh, the tale would've worked well without it, but it's nice that he's getting a life. Definitely worth reading, and I'm up for books 2, and the rest.

ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Thomas and Mercer for my reading pleasure.

I always look forward to the next Matt Brolly book, and this one certainly did not disappoint. It was very informative about how drug gangs take advantage of vulnerable people. The storyline and characters were well constructed and believable. I would thoroughly recommend this book

A fabulous new series from the brilliant Matt Brolly. Certainly not one to disappoint, new people with his usual insight into their demons, good people, bad (very!) people. Adventures that make your heart race leaving you not wanting to put the story down and a very satisfying ending that warms your heart. Oh, and it’s all set in Cornwall - What’s not to love? Next in the series please!!

Thank you to Netgalley the author and publishers for an arc in exchange for an honest review

One of my favourite authors so I was pleased to get the opportunity to read book 1 of a new series! A very fast paced book with lots of characters, though easy to keep up! Really enjoyed reading about Liam and is life before and now! Hoping for his romance to flourish. An enjoyable book that had be guessing!

Another excellent book by Matt Brolly and hopefully this one turns into a series! Great main character that you could get into and the other police officers seemed good characters too, especially his boss. The storyline was very good and kept you captivated while you tried to work out what was going to happen next.

Now this was a addictive book. I love this author. The new characters were so good. I thought the story was well written. A few twists and turns
5****

Former marine turned copper DS Liam Kilshaw is an interesting character and the rugged Cornish coastline was the perfect backdrop for this tense and exciting thriller.

The Lines is well plotted with good characters, a fast paced storyline and a few surprises I didn't see coming.

Its always good to discover a new character (and for me a new author) that you want to read more about and DS Liam Kershaw hits the ground running in this, the first of a series. I look forward to reading the next one.

Due for publication Nov 25 - My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the early read, all opinions expressed are my own.

I’ve been lucky to receive an ARC of The Lines by Matt Brolly, the first book in a new series set in Cornwall. The main character is DS Liam Kilshaw, a former marine, who is also a member of an RNLI crew. He is involved in investigating two suspicious deaths at sea where the bodies have zip-tie marks on their wrists and ankles. This leads to links with an OCG who are trying to infiltrate Cornwall with supplies of fentanyl, but who is the ruthless leader of this gang? It’s a very fast paced book with lots of twists and turns and some unexpected surprises. A cracking read and I’m looking forward to the next one in the series.

I absolutely love reading Matt Brolly's books and this one is definitely a favourite of mine.

So well thought out and written and really highlights the problem of drug gangs taking over vulnerable peoples homes.

Love the new copper of Liam and his baggage and storyline is really well done.

Looking forward to more of this new series.

Always look forward to a new Matt Brolly book and great to see a new series. Compelling new character in Liam Kilshaw, and a great story with lots of twists. Love that this us set in Cornwall. Can’t wait for book 2!

A new detective novel from Matt Brolly featuring a new detective, former marine DS Liam Kilshaw and set in idyllic Cornwall, Kilshaw who suffers from PTSD when it comes to water is trying to track down who is flooding the streets with Fentynal I found it didn't have the same pace as the Louise Blackwell series and it was a bit of a slow burner, its probably to early to say whether its a series i would rush to read.
the Story itself was okay but lacked that wow factor.

Once you cross the wrong lines, there’s no turning back. For DS Liam Kilshaw, a former marine who almost died on a mission gone wrong, returning to the sea was meant to help combat his PTSD. But when he’s called out with the lifeboat crew off the rugged Cornish coast at night, the dark danger of the waves comes crashing back. The body of a young man is floating in the water, and the zip-tie marks on his wrists show this is no tragic drowning, it’s murder! Great start to what’s going to be a fantastic series! This book had thrilling suspense, chilling murders, mystery, intrigue, action, fantastic characters, and a few jaw dropping twists! The storyline was very interesting! I can’t wait for more! Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for sharing this book with me!

Another cracker from Matt Brolly.
Great characters and an enthralling storyline made this a pleasure to read.
Cant wait for the next DS Liam Kilshaw book.

An easy read which I read in a day, Liam a detective in Cornwall is working with his colleagues to stop the County lines infiltrating their area especially as people are turning up dead, as a part time Lifeboat assistant he is also fighting his PTSD following a near drowning experience when in the forces.
A bit of a slow burner but the end was really and fast paced and one I hadn't seen coming as to who was the leader and who was Stacey

Wow, this book what a great read! I literally couldn’t put it down. I was immediately pulled into the characters my favourite one was Jo what a terrifying ordeal!

There was so many twists and turns. You will want to keep picking it up every free moment you have! The twists and turns left me guessing over and over again. The ending was beyond riveting I DEFINITELY. did not see that coming! 

This book had a bit of everything and I was glued to my Kindle! A massive ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars!

Another excellent read from this author.
It drew me in immediately with the story of the victim and I was hooked from then on, so had to finish.
Highly recommended.

DS Liam is called out as a volunteer with the lifeboat crew to retrieve a body. He has PTSD from his time in the military where a diving mission went terribly wrong, but the men with the lifeboat crew have been very helpful. The police believe that this death and an earlier one are connected to some drug dealers "cuckooing," or taking over the house of a reclusive person. There are some brutal murders by the drug dealers who have brought fentanyl to Cornwall, and Liam is concerned that they will exact revenge by harming someone close to him. A shocking revelation causes Liam to look closer to home for the villains. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.