Smorgasbord Book Promotion – Book Review – #Crimethrillers Shallow Waters, Made to be Broken, Fighting Monsters by Rebecca Bradley

On my recent break, I decided to raid my TBR for a box set I have waiting in the wings. This set contains the first three books in the Hannah Robbins crime series by Rebecca Bradley. Extremely good value for three excellent books.

About Shallow Waters (Detective Hannah Robbins Crime Series Book 1)

When catching a killer isn’t enough…

The dumped body of a girl is found in an alleyway, forcing Detective Inspector Hannah Robbins into the darker side of Nottingham. The scene is brutal, demanding Hannah bring closure to the girl’s media-hungry mother.

When Hannah arrests the killer it becomes clear that all is not what it seems. This was not a single act of violence. There is a long shadow being cast and a larger problem. And someone wants to stop Hannah from finding out the truth.

All the while a member of her team is hiding a life-changing secret that could have serious repercussions for the investigation. But Hannah is too distracted by the case to pick up the cues.

Things take a disturbing turn when Hannah finds evidence that indicates a killer is only a hairs-breadth away from claiming his next victim.

Just how far is she willing to go to save the next girl?

About Made To Be Broken (Detective Hannah Robbins Crime Series Book 2)

A rising death toll. A city in panic.

When a previously healthy woman is found dead in her home, Detective Inspector Hannah Robbins finds herself set against a father driven by his anger and whose grief knows no bounds.

Six months after their last big case, Hannah is still haunted by the events of that night. As her team struggle, Hannah’s leadership skills are questioned.

With the body count climbing and the city of Nottingham in social meltdown, the team finds themselves in a deadly race against a serial killer determined to prove a point.

About Fighting Monsters (Detective Hannah Robbins Crime Series Book 3)

Where do you turn when you can’t trust the police?

Detective Inspector Hannah Robbins is called out to the murder of Simon Talbot. Local gang leader who only the day before was released from court a free man, found not guilty of the murder of police officer, Ken Blake.

Now, he has a bullet in his head.

And witness details on his person.

Hannah is up against the clock to find Talbot’s killer, and locate the bystander before it’s too late.

But as Hannah delves deeper into the past, she begins to question the integrity of the whole operation.

Could the killer be closer to home than anyone would like?

My review for the books March 18th 2023

These three books in the series establish not just interesting lead characters, plots that have plenty of twists and turns, but also a realism stemming from the author being a former police detective.

This is not a fantasy, and the reality of our world today is that there are monsters, vulnerable victims, damaged men and women who see violence a valid response to their agendas, and psychotic individuals who have no redeemable qualities.

It is no wonder that there is so much pressure on the police to solve crimes, particularly when heavily regulated to not just ensure justice is done, but that there are no loopholes in a case going to court. The paperwork alone adds a huge burden on a team trying to catch a killer, but to then make sure they are convicted. It is no wonder that the members of this team are under extreme pressure, not least having to witness the depravity of others.

The author pulls no punches when describing the crime scenes and also sharing the point of view of some of the victims caught up in unimaginable suffering. It is hard to read at times, but we cannot ignore that this is the reality for so many.  The detailed account of the process of solving all three cases in these first books is reassuring, and also highlights how traumatic it is for those on the front line. It is not surprising that the characters portrayed are not perfect and in many cases their stress results in complex relationship issues and breakdowns.

One one side are the perpetrators and victims, and on the other ambitious and demanding senior officers who want answers and results to keep even more senior ranks off their backs. The team in the middle is between a rock and a hard place. Then there is the media, who have only one agenda, making news and placing blame wherever it will result in the most outrage.

I was highly impressed at the attention to detail, the character development and the well paced storyline, leading to some unexpected climaxes. 

If you love an authentic, realistic and well written thrillers, then you well love this series. I can highly recommend and will be reading the rest of the books over the coming months. I can certainly recommend this box set which is a terrific introduction to the characters and the author at an excellent price.

Read the reviews and buy the box set or individually:  Amazon UK – and:  Amazon US

A small selection of other books by Rebecca Bradley

Read the reviews and buy the books: Amazon UK – And: Amazon US – More Reviews: Goodreads – Website/Blog: Rebecca Bradley Crime – Twitter: @RebeccaJBradley

About Rebecca Bradley

Rebecca Bradley is a retired police detective. She lives in the UK with her family and her two cockapoo’s Alfie and Lola, who keep her company while she writes. Rebecca needs to drink copious amounts of tea to function throughout the day and if she could, she would survive on a diet of tea and cake while committing murder on a regular basis, in her writing of course.

She writes the DI Hannah Robbins police procedural series, the DI Claudia Nunn series and has also released two standalone novels, Dead Blind, about a cop who acquires prosopagnosia, also known as face blindness and Perfect Murder about a crime writer who wonders if she could commit the perfect murder so sets out to see.

 

Thanks for dropping in today and I hope you will be leaving with some books.