BLOG TOUR,BOOK REVIEW - Dead Inside by Noelle Holten

Dead Inside is the first in a new series of what looks like are going to be very dark and gritty thrillers/police procedurals featuring DC Maggie Jamieson.She has recently been seconded to a police unit in Staffordshire called DAMU (domestic abuse and homicide unit). Fortunately for readers like me,there wasn't pages and pages of introductions to
the police characters and Maggie getting to know her new colleagues.She quickly fitted into the team who all appeared to be a friendly group,there wasn't any unlikable characters or backstabbing that you get in a lot of police procedurals. It was fortunate that she did settle in quite quickly because she soon found herself investigating the brutal murders of three domestic abuse offenders.

Although Maggie is the main character,the investigation into the murders is the secondary aspect of this thriller as the story mainly concentrates on the lives and relashionships of various other characters including both victims and perpetrators of domestic abuse. One of the victims was probation officer Lucy Sherwood who spent her working hours dealing with perpetrators of domestic abuse and then ironically went home to Patrick, her violent,abusive husband. It is also ironic that because she is connected to all the victims through her job,she becomes a suspect in the murders after her horrible husband is murdered. Throughout the book,we got insights into the thoughts of both victims and perpetrators of domestic abuse and insights into why victims of abuse stay with their abusers. It was difficult to read this book at times,the perpetrators degrading thoughts about women,Patrick's abuse of Lucy,how charming Patrick was during his interactions with Shell,his behaviour with her being completely opposite to how he treated Lucy were shockingly realistic. There was no way that anyone could feel any sympathy for the murder victims,they were truly horrible,nasty but unfortunately very realistic and believable individuals.

It is obvious that the author has drawn on her many years in the probation service whilst writing this dark,gritty,utterly compelling thriller. It was fun reading about characters who were named after real life bloggers who I interact with on Twitter and Facebook. Because Maggie was basically a secondary character throughout most of this story,we only learnt a few basic details about her character but we will have plenty of opportunity to get to know her properly in future volumes of this series. A brilliant start to a thrilling new series,a well written,tightly plotted debut that keeps the reader guessing. I look forward to getting to know Maggie better and reading more of her investigations. Very highly recommended.

                                                         ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Noelle Holten is an award-winning blogger at www.crimebookjunkie.co.uk.She is the PR & Social Media Manager for Bookouture, a leading digital publisher in the UK, and a regular reviewer on the Two Crime Writers and a Microphone podcast. Noelle worked as a Senior Probation Officer for eighteen years, covering a variety of cases including those involving serious domestic abuse. She has three Hons BA’s – Philosophy, Sociology (Crime & Deviance) and Community Justice – and a Masters in Criminology. Noelle’s hobbies include reading, author-stalking and sharing the #booklove via her blog. Dead Inside is her debut novel with Killer Reads/Harper Collins UK and the start of a new series featuring DC Maggie Jamieson.

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS....

Connect with Noelle on Social Media here:
Twitter: (@nholten40) https://twitter.com/nholten40 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/noelleholtenauthor/

Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Noelle-Holten/e/B07HZ685TL
Blog FB page https://www.facebook.com/crimebookjunkie/
Instagram: @crimebookjunkie

PUBLICATION DATE: 31st May 2019
PRINT LENGTH: 293 pages
PUBLISHER: Killer Reads/Harper Collins UK
GENRE: Women's Fiction/Police Procedural

PURCHASE LINK....

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dead-Inside-gripping-terrifying-thriller-ebook/dp/B07HNS6LYH/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3G2YL357ZXL7R&keywords=dead+inside&qid=1566317332&s=books&sprefix=Dead+inside%2Caps%2C211&sr=1-1

DON'T FORGET TO CHECK OUT THE THOUGHTS OF THE OTHER BLOGGERS WHO HAVE STOPS ON THIS TOUR