I am so over the "bad-talking, angry, mixed-up, vulnerable yet sexy woman crime warrior who all the good guys adore and the bad guys challenge" trope. There's as much time spent on this in this book as on the gruesome crimes and the increasingly incredible causes of them. This, not to mention the completely implausible capacity of the "good guys" to fight on through physical trauma and the obvious and early pointers to whodunnit, meant that I heaved a sigh of relief after persevering through to the end. Doubt that I'll be completing the trilogy.

*** 3,5 stars ***

3.5 stars

Sooo….book #2. A daunting task, particularly when the first one was a huge hit. But this author really upped the ante by leaving out his popular MC William “Wolf” Fawkes & switching the focus to another character.

That would be DCI Emily Baxter. She worked the Ragdoll case with Fawkes & is still reeling from the fallout. To make matters worse, her professional life is a nightmare. Fawkes is AWOL, former colleague Edmunds transferred to Fraud & she got promoted. She just wants to forget it ever happened but it seems the universe has other plans.

FBI Agents Curtis & Rouche land on her doorstep with news of a copycat murder in the US. It’s a double homicide designed to attract maximum attention & they want her help. They don’t know it yet but it will be the first of many in New York & London as they join forces to find the mastermind behind the carnage.

So here’s the deal. I loved Ragdoll. From the first page, I was firmly in its grip & became seriously cranky if interrupted. Alas, I can’t say the same about this one. I think part of the reason was how much I enjoyed the black humour served up by Fawkes’ character. It gave the reader little moments of humorous relief from the grisly tension & I keenly missed his presence here.

Baxter is a compelling character but she’s also a physical & emotional hot mess. I desperately wanted to take Thomas (her doormat…er…boyfriend) out for a chat over a pint. She & Rouche spend the majority of their time haring around New York & London as a legion of bodies pop up on both sides of the pond like some macabre game of Whack-a-Mole. Bruised & bloody from multiple attacks, it’s defies belief they’re even breathing let alone leading a multi-agency manhunt.

One thing that hasn’t changed is Cole’s ability to come up with new & inventive ways for people to die. Practice your “ewwww”…you’re gonna need it. I was happy to see Edmunds return & enjoyed his input as Baxter secretly keeps him in the loop. But i just didn’t find Baxter to be fleshed out or layered enough to be the star of the show. Without a strong MC to hang the story on, it became a succession of frenzied action sequences until the final chapters revealed all.

As always, it depends on what keeps you turning the pages. For me there was a certain spark or something that was missing. But if you’re a fan of full on action, grab this & settle in for a fast paced read.

Totaal over the top hier een daar, maar wel heel entertainend. Vast nog beter als je eerst deel 1 in de serie leest...

Very different from the first but I really liked this one it felt like it had more to the story was interesting

I wanted to like this one as much as Ragdoll but it just didn’t cut it for me. Baxter kept wearing on my nerves & it just didn’t seem as edgy as the first book. I will probably read more in this series just to read more about Wolf.

A brilliant second installment, I was relieved that it lived up to the first book. A great mixture of dark humour and inventive gore. Definitely becoming one of my favourite crime authors, I love reading about the dark depths of mankind whilst chuckling at the well balanced levity.