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3.27 AVERAGE
3.27 AVERAGE
I'd categorize this as a step up from a cozy village mystery because the main character is in law enforcement (instead of a shopkeeper, writer or retiree!) but it isn't a thriller. The premise of a 12 Days of Christmas serial killer was intriguing but the book dragged a lot for me.
I didn't care for the change to first person in the moments leading up to the victims' demise. I get that it was a way to describe the crime so the reader gets the details without lengthy crime scenes. It just didn't work for me.
I'm curious to see how this book can evolve into a series. There aren't many villagers left to become recurring characters. Almost everyone in the book is murdered, elderly or a prime suspect, aside from DI Walker, his wife and her uncle.
*I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher and I am required to disclose that in my review in compliance with federal law.
I didn't care for the change to first person in the moments leading up to the victims' demise. I get that it was a way to describe the crime so the reader gets the details without lengthy crime scenes. It just didn't work for me.
I'm curious to see how this book can evolve into a series. There aren't many villagers left to become recurring characters. Almost everyone in the book is murdered, elderly or a prime suspect, aside from DI Walker, his wife and her uncle.
*I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher and I am required to disclose that in my review in compliance with federal law.
A fun and festive mystery that keeps you turning pages and guessing until the end.
This was a good first book to a series. I like that so many suspects were considered and I was trying to figure out who else could have been killer but I was so surprised. I look forward to future books in this series.
Oy. I was just bored and it was so choppy and it takes forever for someone to die!
This is the first book in the DI James Walker series by Alex Pine, and is baed in the Cumbrian village of Kirkby Abbey. We have mysterious threats, using the 12 days of Christmas as the backdrop. This is a perfect winter read and I really enjoyed it. It is well written and is a good pace, there are some good plot twists with a great reveal at the end, and all I will say is there were some great red herrings and I was certainly not expecting that! I would definitely recommend this and I can't wait to read the next in this series.
No, just No.
First, it takes forever to get to the first death in what is marketed as a SERIAL KILLER MYSTERY, then the obvious answer is ignored until the last 10% and has to get explained in the minutest details before the main detective even tries to claim that he's figured it out?? No way.
I had the theory (that turned out to be correct) very early on in the book, and so, it was mostly waiting for confirmation on my theory which was becoming more plausible and more probable the longer I read.
The writing style was very choppy and repetitive (sorry, I don't need to read basically the same conversation three times, and then a recap of them twice more in reports to supervisors), and most of the characters lacked any depth at all.
I'm thankful I had the audiobook for this one, or I probably wouldn't have finished it. Although, in all honesty, I'm not entirely sure if it was worth finishing it.
Oh well, I got there in the end, was very disappointed, but relieved that it's done and I don't have to pick it up anymore.
I was going to rate this 2 stars, but in the process of reviewing it, I realise now how much I actively dislike this book. So, 1 star it is.
First, it takes forever to get to the first death in what is marketed as a SERIAL KILLER MYSTERY, then the obvious answer is ignored until the last 10% and has to get explained in the minutest details before the main detective even tries to claim that he's figured it out?? No way.
I had the theory (that turned out to be correct) very early on in the book, and so, it was mostly waiting for confirmation on my theory which was becoming more plausible and more probable the longer I read.
The writing style was very choppy and repetitive (sorry, I don't need to read basically the same conversation three times, and then a recap of them twice more in reports to supervisors), and most of the characters lacked any depth at all.
I'm thankful I had the audiobook for this one, or I probably wouldn't have finished it. Although, in all honesty, I'm not entirely sure if it was worth finishing it.
Oh well, I got there in the end, was very disappointed, but relieved that it's done and I don't have to pick it up anymore.
I was going to rate this 2 stars, but in the process of reviewing it, I realise now how much I actively dislike this book. So, 1 star it is.
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
-.5 star for occasional potty mouth, -.5 for too many clues, but +4 Stars for the Epitome of Heathen and the attempted red herrings :D