Release date: November 13, 2020

Publisher: Bookouture

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Amazon

Blurb:

You have to stop me from hurting anyone else. I don’t want to do these horrible things. Help me before I’m forced to do it again. And I will do it again because I have no choice. I’ve never had a choice.

In a busy shopping centre, a little girl clutches a teddy bear, clinging to it in the absence of her mother, Katrina. Hours later, Katrina’s body is discovered in an abandoned building. For Detective Kim Stone, it looks like a quick, functional kill. But Kim’s instincts tell her there’s more to this senseless murder than meets the eye. What was the motive for killing a young mother out shopping with her child?

Days later, a second victim is found in a local park, her neck broken just like Katrina’s and her six-year-old son missing.

With her colleague, Detective Stacey Wood, working on another unsolved crime and a member of the team grieving the loss of a close relative, Kim is struggling to make inroads on what is fast becoming a complex case. And when a handwritten letter from the killer lands on Kim’s desk addressed to her, and pleading for help, she knows time is running out to bring the little boy home alive.

With the support of a handwriting analyst and profiler, Kim and the team begin to get inside the mind of the killer and make a shocking discovery.

Some of the victims have scratch marks on their wrists.

But these are no random scratches. The killer is using them to communicate with someone. The question is… with whom?

And if Kim doesn’t find them soon, another innocent soul will die.

Review:

This is book thirteen in the beloved Kim Stone series and there is absolutely no sign of slowing down, each book packs a powerful punch and I can honestly say that each of the thirteen books is strong in its own right. Sometimes a series can have a few books that are just ok but I can assure you there are no duds here. Per usual this installment had me firmly in its clutches from the first chapter and I had a difficult time setting it down when real life beckoned. I feel like this series should be pictured under the definition of the word gripping in the dictionary, you seriously cannot put a Kim Stone book down easily!

As soon as I finished this I spent some time contemplating what made Deadly Cry such an incredible read for me. Is it the amazingly well drawn characters that I talk about like they’re my real friends? Yes, but it’s more than that too. Is it the fresh and exciting cases that the team are trying to solve? Definitely, I always learn something new and am captivated too. Maybe it’s the humorous writing style mixed with brutal depictions of crimes that creates a perfect balance for me. But what I really think sets it apart for me personally is that I really feel like I’m working alongside Kim and team to solve a case, that’s how vividly I can picture what’s going on. There is just something really unique and special about the authors writing style that draws the reader in and makes you feel like you’re inside the story with the characters. It’s quite the experience and as odd as it may be for me to say about a crime novel, it’s a special experience as well and one that I cherish each time I get to read a news book. As always, highly recommended by me!

Overall rating: 5/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.