Yet another great British author
This book is what I call a good old-fashioned crime caper with loads of action, thrills and violence which is fast paced and well written and I thank the publisher, Random House UK Cornerstone, for providing me with a copy via NetGalley in return for an honest review.
This is the second book in the Max Wolfe Series and although I have got the first one (The Murder Bag), I am ashamed to say that I forgot about it so haven't read it but after reading The Slaughter Man, I won't do that again as I would quite like to get to know the main characters a little more.
The book starts with a bang and doesn't let up. The fast pace and continuous action together with an easy writing style makes this hard to stop reading. The story was gripping, compulsive and plausible and the characters were complex, interesting and believable. DC Max Wolfe was likeable but his daughter, Scout, even more so - the sections devoted to their relationship were a welcome relief from the sometimes harrowing details of the crimes and investigation. These details were however very interesting. I particularly enjoyed the sections about The Black Museum and the description of the process of death, although grim, was just excellent.
There were a few things that I found a little odd - like how Max acted and was treated like he was a much higher rank than his Detective Constable (he needs a promotion) and how he and his colleagues put themselves in danger so easily when entering the house of paedophiles and when visiting the travellers site - I just don't think this would happen in real life but then, this isn't a non-fiction book so I just went with it and it did make for exciting reading.
Overall, I enjoyed this and would recommend to anyone who enjoys a good crime thriller with twists and turns aplenty which will keep you on your toes and enthusiastically turning the pages.
Yet another great British author to keep my eye out for in the future.