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3.65 AVERAGE
3.65 AVERAGE
Wow - this one's certainly a winner! This book has it all: great plot, superb characterisation, genuine suspense and gritty realism. "Dark Game" revolves around 36-year old DI Kelly Porter, recently transferred to Cumbria from the Met in London, with a chequered career history which has gone unexpectedly awry through no fault of her own. She is landed with three cases - two current and one a 5-year old cold case. The investigations soon reveal some common threads as the same names keep cropping up, revealing Cumbria's seedy underbelly of illegal immigrants, cash-in-hand employment, gambling and prostitution.
Here's what I loved about this book:
Characterisation - a wide cast of interesting and well-developed characters, ranging from nice and well-meaning to downright evil and sinister. Some of the minor characters - Kelly's mum and sister for example - provide welcome light relief.
Plot - it's a great plot, hard-hitting with 'true to life' crimes. There are no punches pulled when it comes to the violence, or the bleak situation of the trafficked victims and I admit I did squirm on a few occasions. There is just the right blend of police procedure and action, and back-story for the characters.
The writing: the writing is engaging, intense and interesting with just the right amount of dialogue. The characters talk like real people, have doubts and make mistakes, just like in real life. The point-of-view does change to follow several characters and sometimes the reader knows more than Kelly Porter, which makes it a very suspenseful read.
So would I recommend this book? You bet! And I'll be watching out for the next in the series.
Here's what I loved about this book:
Characterisation - a wide cast of interesting and well-developed characters, ranging from nice and well-meaning to downright evil and sinister. Some of the minor characters - Kelly's mum and sister for example - provide welcome light relief.
Plot - it's a great plot, hard-hitting with 'true to life' crimes. There are no punches pulled when it comes to the violence, or the bleak situation of the trafficked victims and I admit I did squirm on a few occasions. There is just the right blend of police procedure and action, and back-story for the characters.
The writing: the writing is engaging, intense and interesting with just the right amount of dialogue. The characters talk like real people, have doubts and make mistakes, just like in real life. The point-of-view does change to follow several characters and sometimes the reader knows more than Kelly Porter, which makes it a very suspenseful read.
So would I recommend this book? You bet! And I'll be watching out for the next in the series.
I read some amazing thrillers last year featuring female detectives/leads and it looks like 2018 is going to be the same. Rachel Lynch has created a fantastic character in Kelly Porter, struggling to adjust living in her childhood home after leaving London under somewhat of a cloud.
Moving back in with her mother and dealing with her older, bitter sister Kelly is also looking into a cold case that turns out to be linked to her current case involving one of the area's most prominent businessmen, found dead in one of his hotels. The cold case involved a ten-year-old girl who was brutally murdered and her father was the only suspect at the time. Now, Kelly is determined to bring the child's mother some peace but doesn't realize just exactly what she's about to become involved in.
In the beautiful and seemingly quiet surroundings of the Lake District, you certainly don't expect to find drug running, illegal fights, people trafficking, and crime bosses, but this is what Kelly uncovers and somehow it all ties into Lottie's disappearance and death.
It was, quite literally, a case of 'up all night' for me when reading Dark Game. I picked it up before bed expecting to read a couple of chapters but four hours later I was turning the last page, having become completely immersed in Rachel Lynch's wonderful writing and gripping plot. Kelly Porter is not without her fault. She left London after being accused of being too reckless but this is exactly what these two cases need to get to the bottom of them both, to find justice for one and hopefully save lives. You get to see the darker side of one of the most beautiful places in the UK, where nothing is as it seems and if you scratch the surface, don't be surprised at what you find underneath. Rachel Lynch has created a compelling and engrossing main character and I can't wait to see what DI Kelly Porter gets up to next!
Moving back in with her mother and dealing with her older, bitter sister Kelly is also looking into a cold case that turns out to be linked to her current case involving one of the area's most prominent businessmen, found dead in one of his hotels. The cold case involved a ten-year-old girl who was brutally murdered and her father was the only suspect at the time. Now, Kelly is determined to bring the child's mother some peace but doesn't realize just exactly what she's about to become involved in.
In the beautiful and seemingly quiet surroundings of the Lake District, you certainly don't expect to find drug running, illegal fights, people trafficking, and crime bosses, but this is what Kelly uncovers and somehow it all ties into Lottie's disappearance and death.
It was, quite literally, a case of 'up all night' for me when reading Dark Game. I picked it up before bed expecting to read a couple of chapters but four hours later I was turning the last page, having become completely immersed in Rachel Lynch's wonderful writing and gripping plot. Kelly Porter is not without her fault. She left London after being accused of being too reckless but this is exactly what these two cases need to get to the bottom of them both, to find justice for one and hopefully save lives. You get to see the darker side of one of the most beautiful places in the UK, where nothing is as it seems and if you scratch the surface, don't be surprised at what you find underneath. Rachel Lynch has created a compelling and engrossing main character and I can't wait to see what DI Kelly Porter gets up to next!
This book was received from the publisher in return for an honest review
I really enjoy a good thriller and last year I had the pleasure of reading several that were published by Canelo so when Ellie got in touch and asked if I’d like to take part in a blog tour for the first book in a new crime series I jumped at the chance, and Dark Game certainly didn’t disappoint.
DI Kelly Porter has left the Met Police under a cloud after a case went wrong, returning to the Lake District where she grew up she’s now trying to find her place in the squad room in Penrith. Dark Game sees Kelly taking the lead on her first cases since returning, starting with a cold case that had shocked the area several years before, she also finds herself investigating an abandoned baby and his mother who seem to have been smuggled into the country illegally, finally she finds herself taking the lead in a suspected robbery after a local businessman is found dead in one of his own hotels minus his expensive watch and a roll of money. As Kelly delves further into each case she soon discovers her three cases might not be as separate as first thought
Once I started Dark Game I couldn’t put it down, making my way through it in one sitting. I took an instant liking to DI Kelly Porter, she’s one tough cookie, determined to regain her confidence after being scapegoated and losing her drive in London. Kelly is clearly a competent detective, and is getting her professional life back in order, we also discover a little about her personal life, back living in her childhood room she struggles to connect with her mother and is the polar opposite of her sister which leads to tension. I think this insight into her personal life really helped me connect to the character, it was certainly something I could identify with. While Dark Game focused heavily on DI Porter as the lead character we were also introduced to a number of secondary characters who work with her, I’m looking forward to them being developed further in the following books.
The plot caught my attention and didn’t let up until I’d finished, it’s not a book for the fainthearted though, it deals with some difficult topics including people trafficking, prostitution and child abduction, and Rachel doesn’t shy away in her descriptions, there are some brutal murders and graphic descriptions, so Dark Games won’t be for everyone but for those who don’t mind their crime fiction more on the gritty than cosy side this book is for you.
Would I Recommend?
Yes, Rachel Lynch does a wonderful job of combining the dark underworld of drugs, prostitution and trafficking with the picturesque setting of the Lake District. The settings are described in detail, so while it’s an area I’m not familiar with I’m sure anyone who knows the Lake District will be able to picture the scene clearly. I may now know more about Darren’s gut than I ever needed to know Dark Game is a wonderful introduction to a new series. One that I will be eagerly following waiting for the next instalment.
I really enjoy a good thriller and last year I had the pleasure of reading several that were published by Canelo so when Ellie got in touch and asked if I’d like to take part in a blog tour for the first book in a new crime series I jumped at the chance, and Dark Game certainly didn’t disappoint.
DI Kelly Porter has left the Met Police under a cloud after a case went wrong, returning to the Lake District where she grew up she’s now trying to find her place in the squad room in Penrith. Dark Game sees Kelly taking the lead on her first cases since returning, starting with a cold case that had shocked the area several years before, she also finds herself investigating an abandoned baby and his mother who seem to have been smuggled into the country illegally, finally she finds herself taking the lead in a suspected robbery after a local businessman is found dead in one of his own hotels minus his expensive watch and a roll of money. As Kelly delves further into each case she soon discovers her three cases might not be as separate as first thought
Once I started Dark Game I couldn’t put it down, making my way through it in one sitting. I took an instant liking to DI Kelly Porter, she’s one tough cookie, determined to regain her confidence after being scapegoated and losing her drive in London. Kelly is clearly a competent detective, and is getting her professional life back in order, we also discover a little about her personal life, back living in her childhood room she struggles to connect with her mother and is the polar opposite of her sister which leads to tension. I think this insight into her personal life really helped me connect to the character, it was certainly something I could identify with. While Dark Game focused heavily on DI Porter as the lead character we were also introduced to a number of secondary characters who work with her, I’m looking forward to them being developed further in the following books.
The plot caught my attention and didn’t let up until I’d finished, it’s not a book for the fainthearted though, it deals with some difficult topics including people trafficking, prostitution and child abduction, and Rachel doesn’t shy away in her descriptions, there are some brutal murders and graphic descriptions, so Dark Games won’t be for everyone but for those who don’t mind their crime fiction more on the gritty than cosy side this book is for you.
Would I Recommend?
Yes, Rachel Lynch does a wonderful job of combining the dark underworld of drugs, prostitution and trafficking with the picturesque setting of the Lake District. The settings are described in detail, so while it’s an area I’m not familiar with I’m sure anyone who knows the Lake District will be able to picture the scene clearly. I may now know more about Darren’s gut than I ever needed to know Dark Game is a wonderful introduction to a new series. One that I will be eagerly following waiting for the next instalment.