I haven't read a Detective Kim Stone novel for far too long but I loved being back in the fold! Angela Marsons has created characters in Kim Stone and her team who feel like family, and I loved catching up with them. I love the banter and the friendship between Kim, Bryant, Kev and Stacey and I love that they are such well developed characters with arcs that have continued across the series.

Angela Marsons knows exactly how to get my pulse racing! Her writing is snappy and fast paced and I was gripped from the very beginning. She does spend a bit of time laying the groundwork for two separate cases, but this doesn't slow the story down in any way and it is worth it when all the clues come together as I was in awe at how cleverly it was done. I loved the tension, particularly towards the end.

Although Broken Bones was published in 2017, the issues that Angela Marsons raises in the novel are still very relevant seven years later. Whilst I was reading, i immediately felt sympathy for the victims, both for the struggles they had encountered in life and the horrific nature of their deaths. Most of the suspects also made my skin crawl. My reactions to these characters made the issues seem much more real to me and I was hooked as everything unravelled, hoping that the perpetrators would be brought to justice.

I've got a lot of catching up to do and I promise I won't leave it so long until the next one!

Let me tell you, I'm a big fan of this series and the author, and this seventh book is no exception. Ms. Marsons knows how to hook you right from the start with a gripping story - a young girl falling from a roof, an abandoned baby, a murdered prostitute, and a man left to die in the cold. Christmas may be in the air, but D.I. Kim Stone and her team have their hands full with these chilling cases.

Why in the world would someone leave a well-fed baby all cozily wrapped up at the police station? And who would stab a prostitute without takin' her bag of cash? The mysteries keep piling up, and Kim's team has to delve into the gritty world of prostitutes and a suspicious local factory to find the truth.

It's great to see Kim and Bryant back together, a real dream team with a solid understanding of each other. And let's not forget Stacey and Kev, they're making quite the duo too!

This book is a great addition to the series, each book is getting better and better.

Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing a copy.

Thank you for the opportunities to read this book. I have attempted it on a number of occasions but unfortunately I haven’t been able to get into it.

So here we are at book 7 in the Detective Kim Stones series and as always all current reads are discarded (my bad) to let me get curled up in my reading corner the usual bits are gathered my fluffy blanket, some chocolate and a cuppa.

As soon as we open this book we're smack bang right in the midst of the plot or should I say plots, we have prostitution, people trafficking not to mention an abandoned baby. Kim and her team are working on these cases simultaneously, although I'm not sure that Kim would have let an outside team take over. Obviously having so much on their plates the decision was made to split the team, obviously Kim & Bryant were together with Stacey back out there in the field working with Dawson.

One of the things I appreciate about Ms Marsons is that she's not afraid to delve into topics that we hear or read about in the news, the supposed "nastier/seedier" side of life. It's obvious that the author takes time to gain knowledge about the subjects before putting pen to paper. It's written in such a way that you are able empathise with the characters, that we can see how they are where they are in life and how often times it's through no fault of their own.

I've yet to read an Angela Masons book that I haven't given 5 stars and this one was no different! As always I suggest that you start at the beginning with Silent Screams, there's a wealth of information about the characters, their relationships both personal and working that I think you need for maximum enjoyment.

Thanks to the author Ms Marsons, Netgalley and Bookouture Publishers. All opinions are mine and mine alone.

I love this series by the talented author, Angela Marsons. Every book in the DI Kim Stone series I've read has grabbed me from the beginning and hasn't let me go until the end.

Illegal immigrants, prostitutes, an abandoned child and human trafficking all vie for your attention. The cases are handled simultaneously creating even more tension. And a character we met from DI Travis's team in a previous book is brought in to assist.

Looking forward to the next book!

Thanks, Bookouture and NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Once again Angela Marsons has shocked and surprised me with this story. The topics covered in this book: prostitution, slavery, human trafficking, loan sharking all while hiding behind paid lackeys and loopholes in the legal system are all happening to various degrees all around the world. This story begins with two incidents, an abandoned baby and the suicide of a prostitute. As Kim and her team try to find the mother of the abandoned baby and figure out who is killing prostitutes, they come up against a criminal kingpin that has been able to stay on the streets, even though everyone knows what he is doing, proving it is another matter. Will they find out who is behind these crimes and whether or not they are tied together?

This was another gripping story that I thoroughly enjoyed. Once again Jan Cramer brought this book to life for me with her wonderful narration. As always, the characters are the front and centre. Reading this series in order has allowed me to see the growth and development of the characters and the family this team has become. The crimes are all those that could and do happen everywhere and the frustration of the police with their hands tied is palpable. Kim Stone has gone through a lot in her life and finding justice for the victims is the most important thing to her, although saving someone is something she will risk her life for. I love seeing the team working together. They do not always get along, but they manage to do what is right and being in the right place at the right time, often pays off. In this story, the innocents are used and preyed upon. Although Kim can't save them all, she definitely tries. There are so many twists in this book, I couldn't stop listening to this one. The steps taken, the risks taken and the way the clues are put together will keep you glued to this book. There are some difficult topics, so it these are hard for you to read about, you might want to give this one a pass, but if you enjoy a taut, dark, police procedural, then pick this one up.

Angela Marsons can do no wrong! She is one of the best crime writers out there. When I stumbled across Book 3 in the series quite by accident, I loved it so much I bought all the others in the series (6 at that time) and back-to-backed them. Fantastic series!

A young prostitute is found murdered. A baby is left outside the police station, abandoned by its mother. Broken Bones, the seventh D.I. Kim Stone novel, runs along a dual plot line.

Kim splits the team up with Dawson and Stacey covering the abandoned baby case. Stacey is ready to come out from behind the desk, after a previous trauma, and prove herself in the field.
Stone and Bryant are partnered on the murder case. I loved their natural banter and ribbing and how their personalities complement each other. Kim, headstrong and impulsive matches well with Bryant’s calm manner.

Broken Bones has themes of manipulation and abuse. The abandoned baby case brings us face to face with illegal immigrants. How they are used for cheap labour and what they have to endure for a chance at a new life.
The murder of the prostitute is handled with compassion. A story of online grooming and coercion, Marsons goes behind the act to show us vulnerable girls and how they become entrapped.

We are reminded occasionally of Kim’s past, fully explained in previous books, which keeps the reader on track as to why Kim is like she is. Her motivation.

Broken Bones is a gripping and utterly addictive serial killer thriller. I was hooked from the start.

aThank you Netgalley and Bookouture Publishing for allowing me to read "Broken Bones" for an honest review.
First I need to read all of Angela Marsons books.
An abandoned baby and murdered prostitutes take center stage in Broken Bones. This installment of the DI Kim Stone series sheds light on the ugly underworld of human trafficking. This is a dark, gritty read, with some surprising twists and turns.

I truly believe I have found a new author to love, thank you so very much for allowing me to read this wonderful book.

Broken Bones - Angela Marsons

Angela Marsons just keeps getting better and better. She just keeps upping her game and has firmly cemented herself as one of my personal favorites, and very close to the top of the heap. I am convinced that Marsons could take a bad story and a bad plot and turn it in to a nail biter that I could not put down. I believe that she could write herself out of any corner. To illustrate what I am saying, I was taking a narrative literature class in college and humbly was doing quite well. The professor was a very affable, quirky fellow who wore Bermuda shorts, plaid shirts, and a striped tie to class every day. He also had a local television show with movies of the 1930’s and 1940’s and did commercials. He summoned me to his office one day and I was wondering what in the world for? Anyway, I walk to his office and sit down. He puts down this halloween witch that has been carved out of a Coors beer can. He asks, “Could you write a 300 word essay describing this witch?” I reply after thinking a bit, “Yes, but it seems sort of pointless.” He said that is what I thought. Well, he was thinking of making this a final for one of his other English classes.

Now, I was not trying to be smug or arrogant with the above example, no, far from it. Moreover, I was not suggesting that Angela Marsons has written any bad material. What I am implying is that wherever the story takes Marsons, she is extremely apt at writing a way out. And, in my limited experience, there are few who can write this style better than Marsons in this genre, IMHO. And, I find this talent very impressive. (Boy, I sure did struggle writing myself out of that corner.)

Angela Marsons’ seventh Kim Stone novel, Broken Bones, is a fine piece of writing that puts to test Marsons’ powerful writing skills. I have to admit that when I first began reading this ebook, that I did not think that I was going to like it all that well, compared to other Marsons works that I have read. But, oh no, Marsons would have none of this. Not only did I come to really like this book, but I really had a hard time putting it aside.

Kim Stone has to be one of the best protagonists in this genre. Marson has really created a fabulous, first-rate, likable character with Kim Stone. It seems that some of the Western Europeans have much stronger and more likable protagonists. There is Tana French’s The Dublin Murder Squad, Ian Rankin’s Inspector John Rebus, Mel Sherratt’s DS Grace Allen, and SJ Bolton’s Lacey Flint. It seems that many of the American protagonists all have problems - PTSD, alcoholics, single-parent homes, etc.
This is a point to consider. And, Stone is re-united with Bryant as a partner in Broken Bones. Bryant is the glue, the gel, that holds the department on course and tow the line. Bryant and Stone have a tremendous amount of respect for one another, and both would not be what they are nor as accomplished as they each are with out this working relationship.

Two cases are brought in on this particular day. Someone drops a young baby off at the police quarters. Kim and her squad must determine who dropped this baby off. Also, a prostitute turns up murdered. It is going to be busy around the station. Then, in short order, several other prostitutes turn up murdered. Next, another murder happens and lead DC Stacey and DS Kevin Dawson down a terrible chase into an illegal immigration smuggling ring and slave labor. Stacey’ and Dawson’s contribution in Broken Bones is considerably more, and this is a good move by Ms. Marsons. Their friendship and special relationship is very well written.

Angela Marsons is extremely good at character development and she has had seven fine Kim Stone novels to work at this. Moreover, Marsons can lay down a track a plot and storyline with the best. It is something to behold, and I really enjoy reading Marsons and observing these two aspects and how she goes about accomplishing them.

There is one other important side to Angela Marsons’ writing. That is, Marsons will write subjects that border, or include, some of the current social problems or issues. She makes the reader think about these issues as they read, even if they are not aware of thinking about the issues. This is really not the amazing part, however. The manner that Marsons takes these issues and subtlety leaves them hanging around out there. She artfully discusses or dances about social issues having the reader thinking without being dodgy about it at all. What an amazing writer Angela Marsons is.

I believe that almost everyone could thoroughly enjoy Broken Bones. It is a fine book in an outstanding series that I need to finish out also. And, don’t worry, I will. I can’t leave these without a good reading. Broken Bones is hard to rate, but I feel that it is somewhere between 3.8 and 4.2 stars. I will give it a 4-star review.

I wish to thank NetGalley, Bookouture and Angela Marsons for an ARC copy for an honest review.

Oh no! Why hadn’t I read this before.

I do have a legit reason. Honest I do.
I received this from Netgalley and wanted to complete at least book 5,6 and this one together.
But alas, I’d lost them on my kindle. I looked to make sure I’d downloaded them before archive and NG says I did.
So....
I went to my Amazon documents but am still unable to locate them.

I meant to purchase them but thought I’d do that at a later date....
And here we are.

This is such an exciting read. I enjoyed every moment of it.
The plot was good and strong. I so enjoyed the flow of the writing.

The blurb gives exactly the amount of detail to get you intrigued.

I need go backwards on this series

I did not write a review of Broken Bones, however, like all of Angela Marsons' books this one is 5 stars!!

Riveting. Emotional. Suspenseful. Truly a MUST for your TBR list!

*I received a complimentary ARC of this book from NetGalley & Bookouture in order to read and provide a voluntary and honest review, should I choose to do so.

A new DI Kim Stone is always an auto-buy for me, and I think Broken Bones (#7) is one of the best in the series. Bryant is my favorite, but all of Kim's team are great. I love the surprises and the twists and being freakishly disturbed. I hope Kim Stone is around for a long, long time.

Detective Kim Stone now on her 7th book in this amazing and up to the minute series by author Angela Marsons.

Broken Bones begins at Christmas time with an abandoned baby outside the police station. The infant is well dressed three month old and has clearly been cared for, so why has it been left on a cold winter’s night? Kim Stone is at a complete loss what to do with the small infant but fortunately others within the station have a few more nurturing instincts than Kim and the baby is looked after while they wait for social services to take ownership. The same night the body of a murdered prostitute is found and an investigation launched to find the perpetrator.

Angela Marsons has a knack of simplifying what is actually two simultaneous complex investigations making this book immensely readable and providing that ‘I must just read one more chapter feeling’ with ease. As expected there are a fair few red herrings with a large cast of characters to keep the reader entertained as we follow Kim down some blind alleys.

In many book reviews a large cast could be interpreted as you’ll never know who is who unless you take careful notes but not here. All of the characters are memorable starting of course with the sharp lead, Kim Stone and her side-kick Bryant – the banter between these two lightening the mood to avoid the book falling into a miserable read. As there are two different investigations the team are split up with Stacey getting to emerge from behind her desk to partner with Dawson as she takes her investigative skills out into the wild. The reader follows both sets of pairs along the way which really underlines the importance of the entire team with the focus not solely on our lead character. That said Kim is still as feisty and as driven as she has been in the previous books in this series which makes her one of my favourite detectives on the contemporary scene.

When I mentioned that this is crime fiction with its finger on the pulse I mean not only that it accurately takes those stories that make the headlines and puts flesh on the bones to digest, the author also emphasises through Kim as her mouthpiece that the victims are people too. The prostitute isn’t shorthand for a victim that no-one cares about and by association, doesn’t deserve the reader’s sympathy but a woman who perhaps has had to make choices that none of us would want to. In short the books are full of the details behind the headlines, yes of course they are entertainment but they also make you think without the ‘issue’ ever overpowering the storyline.

So we have an interesting premise (or two) a superb cast of characters from all walks of life but it seems to me that with each book Angela Marsons’ handling of the plot becomes ever more assured. There is no down-time in this book at all, Looking forward to the next Kim installments. Thank you to Netgalley for an arc copy.

*thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

4 stars.

I definitely found this book to get better and better as it went on. While I haven't read the whole series by this author, it can be read on its own. While I really enjoyed the story, I did feel that there were too many narrators going on at once so it's a book that you really need to sit down and read in large chunks or else I can imagine that you could get lost pretty quickly. Though that being said, it is my only negative in an otherwise positively good read!

What great solid book, This series was something I kept going back to . Kim and the team are great together , each one have there problems but all united to solve the case.

I loved the story of the teenager and how children are controlled .Kim trying to find the teenager and solve these murders. The ending was fantastic like always, but I was surprised by the killer identity .

I booked the next book from the library.

Can i say that i am not surprised at the way i feel! Amazing book Great series! I have been reading this series from the begining and it is fast paced, well thought out writting. kim stone is one of my favorite characters by far. thank you for the oppurtunity to read this book.

his is the 7th book in the highly successful Kim Stone series and whilst it can be read as a standalone, personally I love reading books in order so you can get to know all the main characters and the police team in more detail as the series progresses.

Yet another tough investigation for Kim Stone and her team when a young prostitute is murdered and a 3 month old baby is left abandoned on the steps of the police station on the same night. Within days 2 more prostitutes are murdered and the team are now frantically chasing the killer to stop the killing spree.

Angela Marsons had a knack of writing gripping story-lines, fast paced chapters and keeping the readers hooked and turning those pages eager to find out who, what, why and when. Another super book in this brilliant series and one I would happily recommend.