mysteries, thriller, law-enforcement, procedural, abuse, abusive-spouse, psychopath, psychological, cooperation, multiple-murder, murder-investigation, framed, friendship, false-information, family-dynamics, family, due-diligence, duplicity, predators, England

DCI Sophie Allen has a law degree and a master's in psychology but is dedicated to police work. Her husband has charge of the maths department and they have two daughters. The first victim will have no chances for those things. Nor will her mother or the next victim. It's a hard slog for the joined departments to sort it all out and find the right killer.
I read #11 in series yesterday morning and then started this as audio in the afternoon!
Great story, inappropriate narrator (wrong accents). ( )

DARK CRIMES is the first in a series of police procedurals/mysteries featuring DCI Sophie Allen and DS Barry Marsh. Sophie has recently been appointed the head of the newly formed Violent Crime Unit in Dorset. When a young woman is found stabbed through the hearts, the team think this will be a simple case to close, until they begin to ask questions. Not only has she been stabbed, but it looks like she has also been beaten, and her mother was found strangled in her apartment. The more questions they ask, the more complicated this case becomes. Is there a psychopath running around Dorset. How many woman have been killed by this man? When he begins to threaten Sophie's family, he does not realize that he has unleashed the anger of a brilliant woman who is not only a DCI, but has a law degree and a master's in criminal psychology.

The books are set in the beautiful county of Dorset, which includes a stunning section of the English coastline. The plot is well-written, well paced and moves smoothly from one crime scene to another. The ending of the book moved quickly with some twists that I had not expected, but the crimes were resolved nicely. The characters in the police work very well together and the secondary characters, who may or may not become victims, are schmoozed by Sophie and easily answer her questions. Her team is made up of men and women of varying ages and temperaments who lend a lot of contrast to the story. They are able to gather the information she needs to piece together the crime and motives in order to find the killer. Sophie makes a great antagonist, she is strong, but not overbearing. She's extremely good at her job and lets no one stand in her way of seeking truth. When she needs to be intimidating, she can be. I listened to the audio book and once I got used to the accent and voice of the narrator, I did enjoy this story. I will definitely listen to more of this series and recommend this book to anyone who enjoys British Police Procedurals. ( )

A woman found dead on a footpath in a Dorset coastal town is the first case for a new DCI - Sophie Allen. I love the setting (Swanage) plus the other familiar places in Dorset, so I would read other stories for that reason alone. I liked the team and the way they worked together to solve the crime but although the villain did horrible things to the victims didn't really come across as frightening or menacing which is a pity and when arrested it was an anticlimax which left me thinking "is that it?" as the character did or said very little afterwards. A promising start and I shall look forward to meeting DCI Allen again! ( )

When a young woman is found stabbed to death on a footpath along the seafront in Swanage, DCI Sophie Allen is put in charge of the investigation. Set in Dorset in the UK, this is the first book in a crime series featuring Detective Allen. Happily married with two teenage daughters, Sophie Allen's family life is different to a lot of other detectives you find in crime fiction. But then again, she is totally fixated on getting the job done and manages her team with an iron hand just like plenty of other detectives out there in crime fiction land. I neither hated her nor did I particularly like her. She was just a bit bland for my taste.
The storyline was pretty interesting, but will appeal more to readers who enjoy well-researched crime procedurals rather than suspenseful detective thrillers. The activities of the police team were described in painstaking detail and entire conversations were provided leading to some repetitiveness. It is obvious that the author did a lot of research on domestic violence and psychopathic behavior. Anybody interested in these topics will find a solid basis of knowledge here. It was a bit of a slow burner for me. Because it was advertised as 'gripping' and 'full of suspense' and compared to Angela Marsons, Rachel Abbott etc. it didn't turn out as I had expected it.
The author did a great job creating characters that felt totally believable, and the entire storyline was meticulously plotted and felt incredibly authentic. Kudos for that. Anybody who enjoys detailed, credible British police procedurals with mainly clean language and little explicit violence or gore will probably really like this. I enjoyed reading it, but it lacked tension and memorable characters and thus didn't grip me enough to give it more than 3 stars.
I received an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. ( )