Endgame

I am lost for words, I just can’t tell you how exceptional this book is and the brilliant Daniel Cole has written yet again a book which has everything you could wish for in a novel !!
I have loved this series from the beginning the plots, the humour and the wonderful characters have made it a series that’s top of my list in all time favourites and I’m so happy to see see that although the trilogy is done we have more to come and I just can’t wait to see just where and how book 4 will take us and I think we can rest assured that it’s going to be one hell of a ride just as all the previous stories.
I laughed so many times while reading and when you read a fantastic story that’s what you want a bit of everything humour, good plot, believable characters and Daniel Cole just has the knack of getting it all spot on and for that I just can’t praise the book and the series enough.
Well it seems I wasn’t as lost for words as I thought and all I really want to say is read this damn book , in fact if you haven’t read the whole series because they all are something special and I loved everyone of them. So don’t miss out on this it’s a big 5 star plus read and a massive thanks to Daniel Cole for giving me such enjoyment it reading it.
My thanks also to NetGalley and Orion Publishing Group / Trapeze for giving me the chance to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Oh my, what a book!! I was waiting for this book for a long time and I was so happy when it came onto NetGalley and I was ecstatic when Orion fulfilled my request. And I read my books in order of their publishing date but all of it went out the window the moment I got this book. I knew I had to read this book and boy what a book it is!! What a brilliant way to finish the Ragdoll Trilogy. I just devoured this book. This book was hilarious to start from and the funny bits just kept on coming throughout the book. But my favourite part of the book was, to quote Daniel Cole, "This is not the end of Ragdoll, not by a long shot.... I already have the bones of book four in place, and I'm incredibly excited about this and the fresh direction which the series is heading." That my fellow readers is music to my ears and I would safely assume would be to anyone who is a fan of Wolf and Baxter. Overall a brilliant book and a wonderful way to end this magnificent series. Can't wait for the next book and can't wait to see how this series progresses, And to quote Daniel Cole again, "Uncage the Wolf'!!!! And finally a big thank you to NetGalley and Orion Publishing Group, Trapeze for giving me this wonderful ARC in exchange of my honest review.

What a brilliant book. This book has a fantastic story line, excellent characters and is just wonderful. I would highly recommend this book to anyone and I enjoyed it immensely.

I loved Daniel Cole’s first two novels in this series and was thrilled to get an ARC of this book. I don’t really like detective stories and police procedurally - I’m much more interesting in domestic thrillers - but something about the characters and the storyline gripped me and now the series is over!

First thing first, you NEED to read the first two books. Too much has happened for this to work as a stand-alone. Also, they’re awesome books, in particular I liked Hangman more so.

You can tell Daniel Cole has worked in TV. His books read like they could be easily adapted for the screen; something about the characters and they way they interact, I can picture it as a BBC police drama for sure.

I liked this book a lot, it tied up loose ends and gave the storyline closure. However, there are a lot of inside jokes and Easter eggs in the book which come across a little cheesy at times. If my life was at stake I don’t know if I’d be making some of these jokes!

On the whole, this was a really enjoyable book, although I don’t know if the title Endgame is going to help or hinder reactions based on the recent Avengers movie...

One thing regarding this ARC - some of the chapters were a bit strange and there were gaps where there shouldn’t be and run on lines when it should be a new chapter etc. It needed better formatting! Sometimes it was really confusing who was speaking...

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is great, can be read as a standalone or as a follow on to his other books.

Its just as gripping as Ragdoll and i enjoyed every page.

This book was absolutely amazing. This was such a well written story, i raced through it. Baxter was a brilliantly well written character and i loved her continued friendship with Edmund's, they are a wonderful duo and you can really see that they care about each other. It was fast paced, exciting and i can't wait for the next one.

Omg, I've been waiting for this, this is brilliant, there were times I nearly spat what I was eating out, not because of anything grisly though, because I was laughing, surprise huh, this is a great book, everything I wanted with a few laughs thrown in as well, I'd highly recommend if you love a good police procedural book with plenty of twists

My first encounter with Wolf has happened in book 3 of a trilogy it would seem! However, that said, the book read excellently as a stand alone and although the "Ragdoll" case is alluded to on a number of occasions as is Wolfs backstory, this did not detract from the readability of Endgame for me (and in fact has already sent me scurrying to amazon to buy the first 2 books to catch up on!)
Wolf is a tortured soul on the fringes of his old life, disgraced within the force and left working in the shadows to solve a crime that precious few others believe is a crime at all.
His methods are perhaps a little eccentric and his working relationships are often strained but he is tenacious and will get his man!
As his investigation proceeds and he digs deeper it turns out the victim and a senior colleague are tied up together with a past event that has come back to bite them. Without wanting to give away the plot all I can say is this book will hook you in from the opening lines to the very end and leave you wanting more!
In retrospect I would probably read the other 2 books first, not because it is strictly necessary, but because as you will want to once finishing this one it makes sense to read them in order if you can!

After finishing Endgame, I highly recommend the Ragdoll trilogy. All three books are outstanding and stand on their own. Endgame is a solid conclusion with a fast-pace and that same humour we've come to expect throughout. If you're looking for a good thriller trilogy to check out. this is the one! Daniel Cole has certainly made a fan out of me.

My thanks to NetGalley and publisher Orion Publishing Group - Trapeze, for the ARC.
I have to admit I haven't read the previous 2 books in this trilogy so this review is of Endgame as a standalone.
So, having said that, it was a little difficult to begin with, diving into a story where characters and relationships had existed before, but if you can persevere as I did, then you are in for a treat - and kicking yourself that you hadn't read the previous 2!
Ex-detective William "Wolf" Fawkes' mentor and friend, Finley Shaw, apparently committed suicide a couple of months after retiring from the Force. Wolf, hearing the news, turns up at the house to comfort Finley's wife Maggie only to find himself arrested for past illegalities. Wolf is convinced his old friend would never have killed himself and, equally, convinces Commander Geena Vanita and Commissioner Christian Bellamy to give him a week to prove so - although he would technically remain in custody. (Cue lots of smiles.)

Working with DCI Emily Baxter, ex-detective Edmonds (now a PI) and Detective Saunders who investigated Finley's death as a suicide, Wolf follows his own investigation and begins to examine Finley's old cases.

The narrative takes us back to when Finley was based in Scotland to a particular and rather spectacular case involving a drugs bust and continues from then to present day alternately as the story unfolds.

I loved all the characters and great dialogue; there's humour as well as simmering animosity and I thought it was well-plotted. Like me, you can read this as a standalone if you can accept that all the characters had lives and relationships before you, the reader, ever met them. Of course it would be best to read the previous 2 books first for a complete picture.
Nevertheless, I loved it!

I love this series of books starring the enigmatic Wolf. This third in the series is as thrilling, twisty and fast paced as the first two. Fabulous 'sting' at the end that I didn't see coming. Highly recommended read.

Loved this one!
I’ve read the first two books in the Ragdoll trilogy and enjoyed them both. It’s interesting how different all three books are in tone and direction; this final book is no exception. I would definitely advise not reading it as a stand-alone, the character arcs run the course of the books and lots of plot elements interconnect, despite the new central investigations within each book.

This third book revolves around the apparent ‘suicide’ of a retired police officer. The narrative shifts between the past and the present leading up to the death and pulls in the central stain of corruption that soon becomes apparent. It’s then a race and a challenge to incriminate and bring the guilty to justice; this quest is headed by a determined ‘Wolf’.

I love the character of Detective William ‘Wolf’ Fawkes, he’s a monolithic wildcard of a detective and a brilliant creation by Cole. The great depth to Fawkes comes from his working and personal relationship with DCI Emily Baxter and in ‘Endgame’ it’s the heart of the story. I was really moved by their personal developments and for one moment actually forgot this was a crime novel genre. Sigh. But no spoilers..:

We see the return of characters from the previous books, again no detail as I don’t want to spoil anything. But to say it’s a really satisfying read.
I thought the plotting was smart, and yes it’s far-fetched at times but find me a thriller/crime read that’s not. As a reader I want drama and big thriller moments, so we have to push at reality to do this, but Cole never goes too far.
This book is also funny, Fawkes adds witty dialogue and there’s some nice comedy moments.
To use the common thriller descriptive, it’s twisty! Both nicely paced and plotted with style! I think it’s a great story concept and conclusion to the Ragdoll books; each one having it’s own personality and style ~ a highly recommended series!

Oh and the epilogue left me with a huge soppy grin.

Daniel Cole concludes his Ragdoll trilogy with this scorcher of a finale, a twisted locked room mystery and the tying up of ends from the previous two books. To get the most from this addition, you are going to have to go back to the beginning, otherwise you will be bewildered by the numerous references to previous events and the back stories of the main characters. One of the major highlights of this trilogy are its intrinsic comic elements, from the blackest humour to the slapstick. Retired police officer, Finlay Shaw has been found shot dead, with a gun by his side, in his home in a locked room, in what looks like a obvious suicide. Disgraced Detective William 'Wolf' Fawkes is back, Shaw was his beloved mentor and his gut instincts are telling him there is no way Fin would kill himself, for starters he would never do that to his adored wife, Maggie.
Unsurprisingly Wolf is arrested, but Wolf has information on a wanted drug lord to bargain with despite his ambitious Commander Geena Vanita's desire to put him away for good.

Five past and present cops, Wolf, Alex Edmunds, now a private investigator, DCI Emily Baxter, still in a bad way, a woman with secrets, Police Commissioner Christian Bellamy, once Fin's police partner, still his close friend, and Jake Saunders begin to poke into Fin's past, where they believe the answer to his death lies. Their focus takes them back to Glasgow in 1979, a warehouse fire and drug bust that made heroes of Christian and Fin, resulting in a front page splash with the famous photograph of the pair. They are to find the past is far from dead and buried, there are powerful forces determined to ensure the past does not come to light, with danger swirling close to the team. Relationships come under the spotlight, Wolf's fraught history with Emily, whilst his ex-wife, celebrity reporter Andrea Hall is looking to make amends for her past behaviour and plays a critical role in the case. With a narrative that includes the man that would not die, a wanted agent ending up in prison and betrayal, it all culminates in a unforgettable thrilling twisted finale.

If you enjoy explosive fast paced, well plotted, twisted and inventive crime thrillers with charismatic, flawed and fascinating protagonists then this vibrant, well written and imaginative trilogy is a must read. Daniel Cole gives the strongest of hints that he has the bones of an idea that will continue the series beyond this particularly trilogy, news which I am overjoyed to hear. Moreover, I think the trilogy would make for a brilliant TV series, with the right director and actors. This is a fabulously entertaining read, full of action, with brilliant characterisation that takes the reader on one hell of a thrill ride. Many thanks to Orion for an ARC.