By M.J. Arlidge
A woman’s body lies in the road. At first, it looks like a tragic accident. But when Helen Grace arrives on the scene it’s clear she’s looking at a cold-blooded killing. But why would anyone target a much-loved wife and mother?
Across town, a shopkeeper is killed while his customers are left unharmed. But what lies behind the killer’s choices?
Who lives? Who dies? Who’s next? The clock is ticking.
If Helen can’t solve this deadly puzzle then more blood will be shed. But any mistake and it might be her own…..
Official Summary
Love Me Not is the seventh book in the Helen Grace series.
This contemporary thriller is set in Southampton and has the local police force chasing a pair of serial killers. While this is a multiple viewpoint novel, it is told mainly from Helen Grace’s perspective. Helen, who has been arrest for murder by one of her underlings in a previous book has only recently returned to work after being exonerated. As a result, this book starts with a lot of tension between Grace and Sanderson as well as the rest of the team who assisted Sanderson with her investigation.
The story features all the usual characters, DS Joanne Sanderson, DS Charlene “Charlie” Brooks – Helen’s closest ally in the department and of course, our love to hate journalist Emilia Garanita. Helen Grace remains a perfectly imperfect character. She rushes into situations without any thought to procedure or protocol and repeatedly risks her life without a second thought. This series is not a realistic crime story, but it remains very entertaining.
The action occurs for one jam-packed day. The police identify one of the killers less than a third into the book, and the other less than halfway in, leaving the rest of the book as an extended chase scene with the police struggling to get a step ahead.
If you enjoy a good chase, knowing exactly who you are chasing then this book will keep you turning the pages. Love Me Not left me feeling like Helen Grace is starting to lose a little bit of speed. When I started reading the books in this series, I enjoyed the books and could not wait to get my hands on the next book. However, after reading Love Me Not, I have decided to give the series a bit of a break.
Author: M.J. Arlidge – ISBN: 9781405325655 – Publisher: Penguin Random House – Pages: 345 – Source: Private Copy
Helen Grace Series in Order:
- Eeny Meeny
- Pop Goes the Weasel
- The Doll’s House
- Liar Liar
- Little Boy Blue
- Hide and Seek
- Love Me Not
- Down to the Woods
- All Fall Down
- No Way Back
- Running Blind
A Proud, NetGalley Professional Read
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Author bio sourced from Penguin Random House SA website
M.J. Arlidge has worked in television for the last fifteen years, specializing in high-end drama production, including prime-time crime serialsTorn, The Little Houseand, most recently, Undeniable. Currently writing for the hit BBC series Silent Witness, Arlidge is also piloting original crime series for both UK and US networks. In 2015 his audio exclusive Six Degrees of Assassination was a Number One bestseller.
How many of the Helen Grace books have you read? Leave a comment below. Thank you for reading my review,let me know what you are reading right now.
Happy Reading…
I have read some of his other books – looking forward to getting my nose into this one!
Sure you will enjoy it.