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kaz_loves_books's review against another edition
5.0
In Mexton, early one morning, an elderly lady received an unpleasant delivery on her doorstep. It was the decapitated head of her husband George Wilkins who she hadn’t seen for about four years. She took the head in the box to the police station so they would investigate her complaint and take her seriously. DC Melanie Cotton took her statement and checked if there had been any strangers or people hanging around but Ellen Wilkins couldn’t think of anyone. Mel got as much background from Ellen on George as she could then made sure she was safely escorted to her daughter’s.
Martina had been a working girl in Glasgow in 1999 but had managed to escape from there under bad circumstances and managed to rebuild her life to where she was now. A successful business woman. She had opted for cosmetic surgery so looked totally different whilst now living in Mexton, twenty years later. She still had some unattended business to finish but she could see her plans coming to fruition and one target was in sight. She was out for revenge! There was just another person to locate.
There were two people from her past in Mexton working together as well, so let the fireworks begin….
It was an absolute pleasure to read. A fantastic story covering the twenty years with a plotted and strategized revenge plan by concerned parties. The police aspect was terrific with them being able to track it back making the writing amazing with the amount of plotting and intriguing twists and turns involved. I so loved this book, one of the best I have read this year. This is a debut not to be missed and an author I would like to continue to follow. Hopefully there will be more DC Mel Cotton books.
Martina had been a working girl in Glasgow in 1999 but had managed to escape from there under bad circumstances and managed to rebuild her life to where she was now. A successful business woman. She had opted for cosmetic surgery so looked totally different whilst now living in Mexton, twenty years later. She still had some unattended business to finish but she could see her plans coming to fruition and one target was in sight. She was out for revenge! There was just another person to locate.
There were two people from her past in Mexton working together as well, so let the fireworks begin….
It was an absolute pleasure to read. A fantastic story covering the twenty years with a plotted and strategized revenge plan by concerned parties. The police aspect was terrific with them being able to track it back making the writing amazing with the amount of plotting and intriguing twists and turns involved. I so loved this book, one of the best I have read this year. This is a debut not to be missed and an author I would like to continue to follow. Hopefully there will be more DC Mel Cotton books.
amothersmusings1's review against another edition
4.5
“Fatal Trade” is the debut novel by Brian Price in the DC Mel Cotton new crime drama series, published by Hobeck Books - an independent family run publisher.
- Glasgow, 1999. Reaching the point of no return, forced sex worker, Martina is ready to make her move. After years of being the victim, it’s now time to turn the tables.
- Mexton, 2019. A small grey-haired woman enters a police station, dragging a tartan shopping trolley containing her husband’s head. Freshly promoted to CID, DC Mel Cotton is excited by this disturbing and mysterious case – her first murder investigation as a detective. But there’s far more to this case than a gruesome killing and Mel’s skills and courage are about to be tested to the limit.
I was very impressed by this debut novel - an opening prologue which sets the tone and a first chapter involving a severed head being brought into a police station. This had me gripped instantly and my intrigue initiated and I knew I was in for a quality read.
I liked Mel and her gutsy demeanour, I can see her going far as the series hopefully develops further. The whole team worked well together and even though Mel was the main protagonist, I thought DI Fiona Gale was a decent leader who equally deserves praise.
There was many a twist and turn, some predictable some not and I enjoyed following the team as they tried to capture the criminals. Due to the layout of the story we are privy to what’s happening before or during events which makes this an interesting read seeing it from both sides. I was shocked by the final revelations of the smuggling operation and saddened by the fact that this does actually happen in the ‘real’ world. The author has obviously carried out a huge amount of research for this novel and imagine him drawing on some of his own knowledge to ensure the story remained realistic.
Excellent and engaging writing, well plotted and with good narrative (and some dark humour to boot) - “Fatal Trade” also has an excellent debut main protagonist in Mel Cotton, which will see me reaching for the next in the series for sure.
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