3.5 stars rounded up. I am in the minority on this one. First let me say I love this author and loved "Little Black Lies" and "Daisy in Chains". I didn't hate this one but didn't love it all that much either. Everyone loved that hot air balloon scene at the beginning while I found it a bit weird and gruesome. The rest of the book didn't hold my attention. Not sure if this is considered a spoiler or not, but beware to those who may be reading, this book took a weird different turn with nuns, illegal immigrants and organ trafficking, all of which are subjects that do not interest me. After having said all of that, the ending of this book was great! Like I said, I am in the minority on this one, this book is getting rave reviews so do not let my review deter you from reading, Sharon Bolton is a great author and I look forward to reading her next book. A big thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me an advanced copy of this book!

This was another great read from one of my favorite authors. Set mostly in Northumberland, it begins with a hot air balloon full of tourists witnessing a murder down below. As the murderer realizes he is being watched, he begins the hunt to do away with all the witnesses. Full of fast-paced action and some pretty great twists, this is a great summer read that will keep you guessing and on the edge of your seat.

I don’t care. A hot air balloon ride is still on my bucket list, although Sharon Bolton did her best to disabuse me of the idea in her thrilling Dead Woman Walking. The title alone tells you the balloon does not stay aloft for long. This doesn’t matter for as is usual with Bolton she sucks you in immediately with her writing, her plotting, her characters, and her settings.
Jessica Lane has decided to treat her sister, Isabel, a nun, to the birthday treat of a hot air balloon ride. The dawn ride above the haunting and desolate landscape of Northumberland near the Scottish border quickly turns to terror and tragedy.
The occupants of the balloon witness a murder below them and the killer, Patrick Faa-his name is reveled early on, this is not a whodunnit but a whydunnit and whoelsedunnit. Faa, member of a large gypsy family, is well aware of being observed. He does his best to make sure no witness to the murder survives the outing. The chapters on the chase of the balloon and the ensuing crash are some of the most harrowing chapters I’ve ever read.
The balloon crash doesn’t kill them all and one of the witnesses goes on the run. The witness has her own agenda refusing to contact the police and trying to make her own way to safety. After playing defense, she decides to go on the offense. There are alternating chapters of past and present, woman being chased and her various chasers.
Bolton explores the themes of obsessive love and the recurring theme in her books of the exploitation of the ‘other’. She also reminds us that although gypsies have been part of Great Britain for centuries they are still considered ‘others’.
Bolton is well known for her twisty turny books. As always there are some surprises, but what is most fascinating is how she pulls them off without a bit of cheating. She is the master of sleight of hand, but only in the service of the story, never for shock value.
Bolton is dark. I found Dead Woman Walking to be her darkest yet. To give balance there is lightness, humor and love provided by a small silent order of Carmelite nuns at St Wynding’s Priory, where the nuns certainly make good use of the short time permitted for talking. One of the nuns, Sister Belinda (really?) announces to the convent, “…it would appear the filth have us surrounded.” This goes on my top ten quotes list.
Bolton doesn’t pull her punches and in the last quarter it is one punch after another. The last chapter was jolting in its emotional intensity of loves found, terrible mistakes rectified, and opportunities forever lost.
Bolton still easily wears the crown of "Queen of Rural Gothic."
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This book is getting great reviews and I look forward to reading it soon. I am loving suspense novels lately! I can’t get enough. Here’s what you need to know about Dead Woman Walking by Sharon Bolton:

Just before dawn in the hills near the Scottish border, a man murders a young woman. At the same time, a hot-air balloon crashes out of the sky. There’s just one survivor. She’s seen the killer’s face – but he’s also seen hers. And he won’t rest until he’s eliminated the only witness to his crime. Alone, scared, trusting no one, she’s running to where she feels safe – but it could be the most dangerous place of all…

When I skim through reviews and see words like “compelling” and “atmospheric” then I know this is going to be a five-star story!

This was an awesome suspense with a plot that had many twists and turns that kept me guessing. Enjoyed the book and the writing style of this author.

Billowy clouds on the horizon. Wafting air on a crisp September day. Sun-glassed passengers enjoying the breath-taking views from that air balloon high above the trees........

A perfect day's outing turns deadly as this once aloft air balloon loses power suddenly and heads full-tilt toward the power lines. And now so close to Heaven for each and every one of them.

Jessica Lane has planned an exciting birthday gift for her sister, Isabel. How splendid would it be to rise above all the riffraff of the world? Once aboard, these passengers would later be eyewitnesses from high above to a murder happening from far below as a young girl is beaten and chased into the woods by a madman with a gun.

In the tragic aftermath, one individual remains with breath in her body. Jessica clings to the branches of the treetops and the impact of this realization sends her into shock. From her on high position, she spots the madman and his dog going through the wreckage. He saw her face as she was taking photos of him from her lofty position in the balloon. Dead men tell no tales, but there's certainly a live one here as he's counted the passengers before the crash.

Sharon Bolton presents another stellar thriller here with cat and mouse on steroids. Her characters, as always, are well-defined and played out like a well-shuffled deck of cards.......holding back some of the crucial ones out of the deck for later. Just as you think you know what the other players have in their dealt hand, you most certainly don't. The wind shifts constantly here creating much emotional chaos like the remnants of that ill-fated balloon trip. As we all know, you can run, but you can't hide. Someone is always watching.

Bolton locks down her storyline with plenty of well-crafted police procedures and investigations. She's also layered the story with unconscionable practices, unhinged families, greed, and relentless behavior. Jessica Lane becomes a character that you won't soon forget. And neither will that madman with the gun. Told in chapters of past and present, Dead Woman Walking holds quite the zap of electrical charge much like those deadly power lines.

I received a copy of Dead Woman Walking through NetGalley for an honest review. My sincere appreciation to Minotaur Books and to the extremely talented Sharon Bolton for the opportunity.

I'm a fan of Sharon Bolton so I was anxiously anticipating this one and it did not disappoint. A horrifying hot air balloon crash at the very beginning sets the scene for the terror that follows, leaving eleven people dead including one sister and the other who becomes the "dead woman walking." Before the crash she witnessed the death of a young woman at the hands of a killer whose face she saw and captured on her phone so she is on the run before he finds her. Alternating back and forth between present and past, Bolton weaves the story of the sisters and the plot they uncover that will eventually bring the confrontation between good and evil. Taut and lyrical, the novel moves along and begs to be read in one or two sittings.

I run for any book published by Sharon Bolton publishes. I find her exotic United Kingdom settings intriguing. In DEAD WOMAN WALKING, most of the action takes place in Northumberland National Park, near the border with Scotland. Jessica treats her sister Isabel to a surprise hot air balloon ride for her birthday. The rides becomes a nightmare when the 13 passengers witness a crime and become the prey of a killer. Jessica escapes from him and runs for her life. Many of the characters are not who they seem and the plot offers as many twists and turns as a runway balloon.

Wow!!!! I just loved this book and love Sharon Bolton! Dead Woman Walking is filled with twists and turns, ensuring that the reader is constantly second guessing (wrongly in my case!) everything that is happening. Bolton has crafted a brilliantly complex crime thriller, which is exceptionally plotted out that had me on the edge of my seat throughout and at times holding my breath and a bit scared to read on...just fantastic! Sharon Bolton was already close to the top of my must-read author list and this outing has established her at the number one spot. If you haven’t read any of her books, where have you been? You really don’t know what you are missing. Pitch perfect plotting and dialogue that seamlessly integrates with the characters and situation means that the readers are treated to a read that they won’t forget in a hurry.

A group of people enjoying a hot air balloon trip then they all witness something they shouldn't have, and so begins an insane cat and mouse roller coaster ride. After reading those first chapters I have been put off hot air balloons for life! Jessica is the only survivor and she ends up in a complete and utter nightmare situation. I was pretty much holding my breath the entire way through this book and just willing for Jessica to get to safety. My absolute favorite aspect of this book, which also added a bit of humor to the tale were the nuns and their crime busting theories. This was a great touch and stopped the book being too dark. They don't know why Jennifer made no effort to contact the authorities – perhaps she's badly hurt or has a concussion and confused. So the search is on. But the killer also knows there's a survivor, and he's determined to get to her first. But maybe she has reasons for not wanting to be found.

Strongly plotted, fast-paced crime thriller fiction. The characters are believable and genuine and the development of the storyline keeps you hooked, with some fantastic twists and turns along the way. A MUST read!

I want to thank Netgalley, St. Martins Press and Sharon Bolton for the copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Great read! Looking forward to reading more by this author!

What starts as a birthday surprise on a hot air balloon ride quickly morphs into murder and policemen who are not to be trusted, but you don't know which ones. The author does a superb job of twisting the tale so you want to keep reading until you find out just what is going on. The happy surprise involves a nun, a police detective investigating illegal immigrants being brought into the country and a family of gypsies who have their own interests in the illegal immigrants. The action is fast and the dialogue is believable, although the ending leaves the reader hanging a little as to the decision about what Bella will do with her life. I highly recommend this book as it was so good that it was hard for me to put it down to read any of the other seven books that I am in the middle of. It is a highly complicated plot that will keep you guessing and at the edge of your seat, not sure what is happening at times and wanting to keep reading to find out!

4.5 stars

Jessica Lane has always depended on her big sister Bella. As children they stuck together through tough times until forced to go their separate ways. Jess was sent to live with an aunt & uncle & Bella became a nun.

Now Bella is turning 40 & Jess has the perfect gift….a view of the world beyond the abbey’s walls from a hot air balloon. What could go wrong? Jeeze Louise, where to begin….

If you’re a fan of this author, you know she’s (in)famous for sneaky knock-out punches you never saw coming. Half the fun is trying to figure it out before she drops you to your knees so I don’t want to give too much away. Suffice to say while Jess, Bella & 11 others are soaring over the Northumberland countryside, they witness a nasty crime in progress. Jess is shocked to realize the man looks familiar. And he’s staring right back at her. The last thing he needs are witnesses & by the time the dust settles, the balloon has crashed killing everyone on board. But as he picks through the bodies he only counts 12. Wait…where’s the young woman he locked eyes with?

Well, turns out the lone survivor is up a tree. When she comes to, all she knows for sure is she’d better run. It’s the beginning of a deadly game of cat & mouse along the Scottish border that grows increasingly complicated once the police are involved.

The overall plot is extremely complex & there are many side stories that flesh out a large cast of characters. Two time lines run simultaneously. In alternate chapters we go back & follow Jess & Bella as they grow up. We know something terrible happened when they were young & pivotal moments are gradually revealed & woven into present day events. It’s one of those books where the less you know going in, the better & I’m getting dangerously close to spoiler territory.

The story moves along at a steady clip thanks to short punchy chapters told from multiple POV’s. But to be honest, I had trouble connecting with the MC for the first third of the book. It’s obvious that a lot of information is being withheld & only slowly doled out as the story progresses. Because of that, I had a hard time understanding some of the character’s actions & motivations & it prevented me from being completely invested. But at the 30% mark a couple of big pieces fell into place. The lights went on & from that point I was well & truly hooked. All of a sudden I understood some of our heroine’s dodgy decisions & it became a full on page turner.

At the very end there is a twist that seems a little too neat but it’s a minor quibble after a couple of classic Bolton bombshells that will have your jaw heading south. The characters are very diverse & I particularly enjoyed Sister Belinda, an elderly nun who has watched waaay too much CSI.

The end is satisfying & evokes a range of emotions as the characters (and readers) finally get their answers. It may not be my favourite book by Ms. Bolton but she sets the bar so dang high, I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a smart, intricate thriller that will mess with your head.

A group of tourists takes a trip over Northumbria in a hot air balloon, among them, two sisters. When the passengers catch sight of a woman being attacked on the ground beneath them, they call out in distress, hoping to save the woman, but all they do is catch the attention of her attacker. After a brutal pursuit, the hot air balloon has crashed, leaving all but one of the sisters dead. Panicked, injured and on the run from the attacker, she hides, knowing there is no one she can trust. Bolton continues to surprise me, just when I thought I had this storyline figured out, she walloped me with not one, but several huge surprises. DO NOT MISS THIS BOOK!