Dying Truth by Angela Marsons #BookReview @WriteAngie @Bookouture #MustReads

I can’t believe I’m now reviewing the eighth book in the Kim Stone series, Dying Truth by the extremely talented Angela Marsons, which has given me a dilemma as I have loved every book in this series (I should mention it’s a series that gets better with each book she writes) I’m not sure I can come up with anything I haven’t already said, so forget my review and just buy the book. Here’s the book description to whet your appetite, followed by my review (hopefully I’ve managed to come up something original(ish).

Book description

How far would you go to protect your darkest secrets?

When teenager Sadie Winter jumps from the roof of her school, her death is ruled as suicide – a final devastating act from a troubled girl. But then the broken body of a young boy is discovered at the same school and it’s clear to Detective Kim Stone that these deaths are not tragic accidents.

As Kim and her team begin to unravel a dark web of secrets, one of the teachers could hold the key to the truth. Yet just as she is about to break her silence, she is found dead.

With more children’s lives at risk, Kim has to consider the unthinkable – whether a fellow pupil could be responsible for the murders. Investigating the psychology of children that kill brings the detective into contact with her former adversary, Dr Alex Thorne – the sociopath who has made it her life’s work to destroy Kim.

Desperate to catch the killer, Kim finds a link between the recent murders and an initiation prank that happened at the school decades earlier. But saving these innocent lives comes at a cost – and one of Kim’s own might pay the ultimate price.

Oh my giddy aunt Angela Marsons never fails to amaze me after reading every book in the series I have always said “it’s the best one yet” and guess what Dying Truth is definitely “the best one yet” . Here’s an author who has an incredible knack of making each book read like a “first” with heart thumping, exciting story lines that get under your skin, which stay with you long after you reach the last thrilling page. One word I never expect to use in a crime thriller read is “emotional” but Angela Marsons latest read broke me, I ended up a sobbing wreck not a pretty sight let me tell you!

Dying Truth deals with some very distressing themes such as teenage suicides and bullying so I think it’s only fair to mention that some readers may find this book a difficult read, but the actually plot is sheer genius on the author’s part, a multi-layered mystery with many a heart thumping moment. Detective Kim Stone is called to what is believed to be the suicide of a teenage girl at a prestigious boarding school. It soon becomes clear to Kim that these deaths are not tragic accidents but something far more sinister. The cloistered environment of a boarding school is an imaginative setting for a crime thriller, shrouded in secrets and initiations, the author creates a sense of foreboding that makes this an impossible book to put down.

It’s great to see Kim and her team back, Angela Marsons has an unique knack she breathes life into characters, and as this series has progressed not only has Kim’s character evolved but her work colleagues too, the sense of camaraderie is evident, the dark humour, the teasing, each have their own niche in the team that bond them together. Each member of the team leaps from the pages, you can’t help investing in them, you share their despair, the highs and lows of the on going investigation. You want to offer words of comfort as they travel troubled waters, they aren’t just characters they are the heart of Dying Truth.

Dying Truth made for an intense, disturbing and gritty read, I thought I had a good idea where the plot was heading, but boy did I get it wrong! there was one of the best “OMG” moments I’ve ever read in a crime thriller, it felt like I had been hit in the stomach with a sledgehammer. Dying Truth just goes to show you don’t have to write a crime thriller full of gore, violence or serial killers to engage the crime thriller lover. I actually loved it more as it was so different, it’s an electrifying crime thriller but it’s also one full of raw emotion and unexpected moments, and one of the best crime thrillers I’ve read this year. I’m not sure how the Angela Marsons is going to top Dying Truth, but one thing I’m certain of she will, and I just hope we don’t have to wait to long for the next instalment. Now I’m off to lie down in a dark room I have the biggest “book hangover” ever and that’s testament to the author’s incredible writing skills.

I’m sure it will come as no surprise to read I’m giving Dying Truth the very prestigious Gold Star Award Rating. It’s given to a book I feel is particularly outstanding, a book that covers every aspect of what I look for in a read, an original plot, great characters and a storyline that draws me in from the first page and keeps me in its grips until I reached the very last page.