Just Read… Fighting Monsters, By Rebecca Bradley

24 hours after he walked away from court a free man, cop killer and gang leader Simon Talbot is found murdered. In his possession; the name of a protected witness from his trial. 

For DI Hannah Robbins, it’s a race against time 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.

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

I’m delighted to be part of Rebecca’s blog tour for the launch of her third Nottinghamshire based DI Hannah Robbins novel, Fighting Monsters. I’ve previously reviewed Rebecca’s debut, Shallow Waters here (which is currently free on Kindle at the moment – click here), and the next Hannah Robbins novel, Made to be Broken, here.

With Rebecca’s background, you can count on a feel of authenticity in her police procedurals, and Fighting Monsters is no different. But this is not a story bogged down in technical detail; Rebecca weaves procedure skillfully into the story.

As it says in the book blurb above, Simon Talbot walks from court a free man, much to the surprise of everyone, not least the family of the dead policeman, and his ex-colleagues. In fact, the only person who doesn’t seem surprised is Talbot himself.

Hannah and her team have to entertain all possibilities during the investigation into the murder,  including turning their gaze towards their own. And when more bodies turn up, things get increasingly frustrating for the team.

I enjoyed the story, which is perfectly paced to keep you reading. It was good to be reacquainted with old characters, and a couple of new ones bring an extra dimension. Pasha, for example, is dealing with some unique issues herself, while trying to ingratiate herself with a team who really miss the team-member she’s replacing.

Fighting Monsters was published yesterday (19th February 2018) and whilst it can be read as a standalone, there are some plot lines (and even a named killer) which would be spoilers for Hannah Robbins first two outings, so you may want to pick those up first. And with Shallow Waters currently being free, why wouldn’t you?