Blood Lines by Angela Marsons

30^th July 2023.

In another tense and riveting murder enquiry, DI Kim Stone is once again facing her nemesis, Dr Alex Thorne in another epic battle of wills. It starts with the murder of a top level manager in Social Services. A single stab wound was all it took. A second murder of a drug addict, again involving a single stab wound, leaves Stone and her team with no links between the victims and few leads.

Enter chilling sociopath Alex Thorne, plotting and scheming from her prison cell, determined to engage and defeat Stone. Playing dark, dirty and dangerous, Thorne manages to manipulate both wardens and fellow inmate to do her bidding, forcing a confrontation with Stone.

As the battle of wills commences, there are more murders. Distracted by her private battle and demons, Stone struggles to make sense of the killings. By the time she makes the link, her own life is in danger.

Like the previous novels, this is an intense, thrilling story that moves along at a cracking pace. The characters are sharply drawn to give them a chilling depth at times. The camaraderie and relationships within the team provide an intriguing, and often heart-warming backstory to support the main plot.

But DI Stone is the charismatic star. Unsociable, focused and unorthodox, she never wavers or compromises. She also shows remarkable empathy and concern for those who have suffered like her and have to live with pasts they’d sooner forget.

This is exceptional storytelling and characterisation, which pulls you in and won’t let you go until it’s drained your emotions. It’s bruising, compelling, original and uplifting.

I need to rest before the next book in the series.

Description

How do you catch a killer who leaves no trace?

A victim killed with a single, precise stab to the heart appears at first glance to be a robbery gone wrong. A caring, upstanding social worker lost to a senseless act of violence. But for Detective Kim Stone, something doesn’t add up.

When a local drug addict is found murdered with an identical wound, Kim knows instinctively that she is dealing with the same killer. But with nothing to link the two victims except the cold, calculated nature of their death, this could be her most difficult case yet.

Desperate to catch the twisted individual, Kim’s focus on the case is threatened when she receives a chilling letter from Dr Alex Thorne, the sociopath who Kim put behind bars. And this time, Alex is determined to hit where it hurts most, bringing Kim face-to-face with the woman responsible for the death of Kim’s little brother – her own mother.

As the body count increases, Kim and her team unravel a web of dark secrets, bringing them closer to the killer. But one of their own could be in mortal danger. Only this time, Kim might not be strong enough to save them…