Loved it

Absolutely love Doyle and Acton, perfect foils for each other. The storyline is excellent and the verbal foreplay glorious . Downloading the next book as I type.

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Loved the humor, intrigue and story

Looking forward to a great series with all the aspects of a good story and lovely characters aswell

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Intriguing story as much about human characteristics as murder

Intriguing and quite creepy given what is currently being reported about coercive control. Acton’s behaviour raised so many red flags that the intuitive Doyle failed to see. Love truely is blind.

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A British crime/romance series with a difference

As a long time fan of both romance and crime novels as well as British crime series on TV, I loved this. It took me a bit to get into the swing of the book as it starts with aspects of Acton and Doyle's working relationshio already established, but once I got my bearings I was hooked. Acton is a titled and respected DCI known for his brilliance and ability to solve tough cases. When he takes on Doyle, a newly graduated constable, people are left both jealous and scratching their heads. The novel starts about 3 months into their unusual relationship with Doyle still nervous and learning the ropes and Acton's idiosyncrasies.

When they're called to the homicide of a horse trainer, more bodies start dropping shortly after. Doyle is a gifted interrogator due to an unusual ability to read emotions, but when her close relationship to Acton pushes her to the forefront, they find she might be the next victim.

This book had some of the usual 'vibe', for want of a better word, of British cop dramas. The politics of the station is front and centre, especially since someone with Doyle's experience shouldn't be anywhere near a homicide. Tied up with the investigation is the complicated relationship between Acton and Doyle. To be honest, his behaviour would be classed as stalking and he defines it as such in the book. He'd had his eye on her for a while, taking an unusual and obsessive interest in her to the point where he'd revolved his life around hers. I'm talking background searches, GPS tracking and secret photos just to skim the surface. She's astonishingly accepting of this and once he takes a leap of faith, their lives are forever entwined and their relationship escalates at a rapid pace. This was a little unbelievable but as someone who like a possessive male in their romances, I loved this twist. He's obsessed with her and even though he tries to dial down his crazy, it's still blaring from the ramparts. The author's start of each chapter with a line or two from Acton's point of view well and truly rams this home.

While the stalking aspect won't be everyone's cup of tea, it gave the book a different feel to other crime dramas while also managing to keep the same flavour. Doyle will also be an acquired taste for some readers. She babbles and any random tidbit that comes to her mind is shared. She had a fixation on trying to expand her vocabulary so this was a quirk tied in throughout the book, using her inner monologue which the book is mainly told from. Some readers might find this too erratic and scattered for them but I loved her and found it strangely endearing. The two types of crazy just seem to work.

The who dunnit had some good suspense but the antagonist was a bit predictable as there weren't that many suspects to begin with. I would have like a bit more detail about aspects of the case and the wind up to the big reveal but I still finished the book satisfied. Acton kept a lot of information to himself and since the book is mostly from Doyle's point of view, some background is lost. I loved the epilogue and thought it was a great touch. The narrator did a superb job and I'm pretty sure I'm hooked. I'll be getting Book 2 for sure.

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Entertaining, but the narrator…

I love this series, so I was excited to finally listen to the audiobook. Unfortunately it wasn’t as good an experience as reading the books was. The narrator just didn’t get it right. Every time Doyle’s Irish accent popped up, in comparison to the English characters, it just sounded off to my ear (apologies if the narrator is Irish) and I just didn’t enjoy it as much as I’d hoped. Still I’ll be continuing on as I like the series and want to listen as I do chores, etc.

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Disappointing.

When you expect a murder mystery and get a story about a sex addict and naive young woman I was disappointed

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