Neil White

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Available now from Sphere

Thank you for the lovely review copy. Yay.

Joe Parker is Manchester’s top criminal defence lawyer and Sam Parker – his brother – is a brilliant detective with the Greater Manchester Police force. Together they must solve a puzzling case that is chilling Manchester to the bone…
Danger sometimes comes in the most unexpected guises. The Death Collector is charming, sophisticated and intelligent, but he likes to dominate women, to make them give themselves to him completely; to surrender their dignity and their lives. He’s a collector of beautiful things, so once he traps them he’ll never let them go.

Firstly this is book 2 in this particular series – whilst it can be read as a standalone novel quite easily I would recommend you read “Next to Die” first if you havent already, if for no other reason than I can be pedantic about these sorts of things and it would make me feel better. Plus you would have two in a row then and that would surely make you feel better.

In this instalment the brothers deal with a miscarriage of justice, a new murder investigation gone awry and a dangerous killer that may be closer to home than they think. Some magnificent plotting once again, added depth to brothers Joe and Sam, at least one of Neil White’s trademark compelling death scenes and some edge of the seat moments made for a superb read once again. I literally bit my fingernails at the possible outcome for one character I loved dearly – Mr White has killed me once before when it comes to horrific outcomes,  no way I was falling for safe mode again or making any assumptions.

Tightly woven and absolutely addictive, completely authentic because its coming from a place of knowledge – of the systems, of the people who inhabit that world – and it shows, there were absolutely no downsides here for me, I was in it all the way. I still havent made up my mind which of the brothers I love the most, they are so very different and yet alike as brothers are, perhaps I should do the parent thing and say I love them both equally. The main point is they are very real and you want to follow along with them, in fact you can’t help it.

Crime fiction is one of the biggest markets and it is often difficult to see the gems in the myriad of choices out there – since I read Fallen Idols and fell in love with the writing I have avidly devoured everything Mr White has written and have never once been disappointed. Each one has been better than the last, this is no exception – Next to Die kicked off Sam and Joe’s story, this one improved and expanded on it and I can only see good things to come. If I could have the next 5 or 6 books now that would be fantabulous – where IS the Doctor when you need him…

I’ve been humerously accused of being Neil White’s biggest fan quite often – its a title I’d wear proudly and  not in a Kathy Bates kind of way either although I’m sure he would like to hide sometimes. There is a reason for this – its because the books are brilliant. Great writing, great stories, great characters, great mysteries. Every time. Whats not to love?

5 bright shiny stars and a Unicorn for this one.

Happy Reading Folks!

 

Next to Die HiRes Vis

Coming 26th September from Sphere

 

Luckily I got my hands on a beautiful copy of this book before I imploded – Thanks Mr White and his publisher for the advanced copy. My chronic impatience was satisfied at last….

Joe Parker is a criminal defence lawyer with a reputation. Sam Parker is a detective on a mission. Years ago they suffered the loss of their sister to a violent crime – a burden they both dealt with in different ways. Now their worlds will collide again when a fresh set of murders hits the city – on opposite sides of the fence what will come first…the law or family?

Its no secret that I’m a huge fan of Neil White’s crime writing – each one has been better than the last and this one is no exception. For pure story flow and engaging with the reader its the best yet. We see the story unfold from several perspectives, Joe and Sam mainly with another voice in the mix. They are rivals the two brothers, that rivalry tinged with respect for each other that comes across very well. You may well fall in love with these two – I certainly did. Perhaps Joe more than Sam but hey, thats all in the eyes of the beholder. I did spend a fair amount of time yelling at them (in my head of course, my daughter cured me of the tendency to do it out loud some time ago!) to just TALK to each other in order to prevent the approaching mayhem and yet we move inexorably towards what may not be the happiest of endings. One thing Mr White does extremely well is create uncertainty when it comes to the chances of survival of those characters you become attached to…no-one is safe.

Another thing this author does extraordinarily well is the death scenes. Heck I love a good death scene – any avid reader of Crime Fiction does…and the clever thing about the way they are written here, and in previous novels, is the ability to make them both gruesome and heart wrenching. Sob. Not that easy to achieve.  It doesnt matter if the character doing the dying is someone you’ve only read two lines about or someone who has been there through it all – you are still going to feel the loss. It all adds up to make a great reading experience.

So. Great story, well told, a yarn, a tale, a wonderful thing. Fun and disturbing, yet another great addition to the Crime genre and one you don’t want to miss. There are crime books and there are CRIME books. This one is definitely the capital version.

Usually I would finish a review by saying “If you havent read this author before you need to start…..” but in this case, as this IS the start of this particular series of books, you can just read this one if you like! And you will. Then you will have a lovely back catalogue to work your way through as well.

If you would like to learn more about Neil there are several options – He will be joining me for favourite authors week next week and on the 24th September there will be a Q&A on the blog  to celebrate the release of Next to Die. Can’t wait that long? Honestly you lot and your Chronic Impatience!

Clickety Click here http://www.neilwhite.net/

Follow Neil on Twitter here https://twitter.com/neilwhite1965

 

Happy Reading Folks!

 

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Fallen Idols was the book that brought me right back into a love of Crime Fiction and added a new author to my list of must read favourites. A first outing for Reporter Jack Garrett and DC Laura McGanity, this is some of the best Crime Fiction out there at the moment. The seemingly random shootings of two premier footballers plunge us into a world of Fame and fortune and all that comes with it. What would YOU do to achieve the fame you so desperately crave?  Jack and Laura (two of my favourite characters in crime fiction these days) wade through the red herrings and general shenanigans with aplomb until they finally reach the solution and their developing relationship is well written and involving hence why they ARE two great characters to follow along with. I read everything Mr White writes these days and really it just gets better and better. But start here…because its the beginning!

 

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So, the second book in the Garrett/Mcganity series and one that clarified for me that Neil White was absolutely going to be one of my favourite authors, not only in the crime genre but overall. Children are going missing and returning a few days later, seemingly unhurt and with no idea of where they have been. Meanwhile, a woman is found murdered in a most gruesome manner (I DO love that Mr White is not backwards with the old gore – a lot of crime novels are SO namby pamby these days as if the reader can’t cope with a bit of blood!) and Jack meets a man who seems able to predict the future….

This novel solidifies the relationship between Jack and Laura – two people you will care about – and also offers us a terrific mystery to get our brains around. Writing wise there is not a foot put wrong – hey when a writer can WRITE its always a good sign that you will have a joyful reading experience. The resolution is surprising and clever and well, as soon as I had finished this novel my chronic impatience set it and I was ready for the next.

 

 

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For me this was a brilliant read that I simply could not put down. I would highly recommend reading Fallen Idols and Lost Souls before reading this if you want to get the full effect of the story and a proper feeling for the main characters. The story moved along well. Some of the descriptions may not be for the faint hearted, but for me that added to the fear you felt for Sarah and the urgency to turn the next page and discover her fate. As with all of Mr White’s novels, it left me wanting more, and I am looking forward to the next in the series out soon.

 

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The fourth book in the Garrett and McGanity series does not disappoint. A cracking mystery, with its origins in the past, the story moves at a great pace towards a stunning conclusion. Will you guess the truth behind what happened to Claude Gilbert and his wife? I dare you to try! If, as I do, you already know and love Jack and Laura this novel moves their story along nicely without ever detracting from the current tale being told. If you are coming into this as the first Neil White novel you read, it is still highly enjoyable as a stand alone murder mystery. I would highly recommend you read them all in order to get the full impact of how the main characters are affected by what is going on around them,however this is not a necessary thing for you to thoroughly enjoy this particular novel. Highly recommended.

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Another first class tale in the series, this finds Laura investigating the deaths of two women, one of whom is the daughter of a gangland boss who will stop at nothing to bring the killer to his kind of justice. As the links between the two murdered women start to surface, Jack and Laura find themselves facing danger once again.

Perhaps slightly less gory than previous books in the series (which matters not one iota – its the story that is the thing!) this is a fine addition to  Jack and Laura’s ongoing tale and to date their last adventure (although I am reassured that they will be back!) As usual I almost got papercuts in my rush to turn the pages and find out what happens next – and as usual as soon as I was done that old chronic impatience set in! I really would recommend that you read all of these, in order if possible, because trust me. Once you start you won’t stop until you are done.

 

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Another brilliant story from the pen of Neil White, this, his first stand alone novel is both intriguing and thrilling. With the well drawn characters I have come to expect from one of his novels, and a clever unpredictable storyline, I barely put it down until I came to the end. Take a terrifically evil villain, a couple of rather ineptly brilliant heroes and some absolutely marvellous peripheral characters, mix them up and there you have it. A book to enjoy and savour. Well done sir, more please.

 

 

 

 

 

One Response to Neil White

  1. Judith says:

    Thanks for this page Liz, I love Neil White’s books and didn’t realise that he had done a stand alone novel!

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