This is the second book I have read by Jackie Baldwin and was enthralled until the final pages. Excellent! This novel features DI Frank Farrell and his team investigating deaths in Scotland and art forgeries.

I was drawn straight in to this book and was hooked after the first few pages.

The pace and writing style are spot on for this one, I loved how the story progressed and the ending was great- everything I was hoping it would be.

I enjoyed the characters, their development was brilliant and their interaction really made the story - Ferrell is a very strong character and this is a highly entertaining, gritty series and this book has the most perfect cover for the story!!

Four and a half stars from me for this one, rounded up to 5 stars for Goodreads and Amazon - I really enjoyed it!! Very highly recommended!!

I really enjoyed this book. It has great main characters and a really good story line. I would highly recommend this book to anyone.

This is the first DI Farrell book that I have read. Whilst I have thoroughly enjoyed it the only problem is that it makes lots of reference to events in previous book/s.
It is a great story line and if you like the area around Dumfries and Galloway it will definitely appeal to you.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and definitely recommend it. It was interesting and enjoyable and definitely recommended.

Review of Perfect Dead for Frost online magazine

As regular readers of this column will know, to my shame I don’t read many books. The problem being that when I’m in my own characters’ heads I don’t want to be in anyone else’s. And with a good book I like to totally immerse myself in the world that the author has gone to so much effort to create.

It speaks volumes for Jackie Baldwin’s Perfect Dead, set in a freezing Scottish winter, that I actually felt cold reading it during a Cornish heatwave. I saw the ice on DI Farrell’s windscreen, experienced the damp chill of the remote cottage where the murder victim, artist Monro Stevenson, is found. The setting was brought so vividly to life that I was actually walking through the streets of the little coastal village, the salt tang of the sea in my hair, and driving down twisting lanes to remote country houses.

I have to admit that crime fiction is not my usual genre these days, although I do rather love watching re-runs of Midsomer Murders (I won’t call it a guilty pleasure because I fundamentally refuse to accept that any pleasure should be guilty). Cosy crime. Count the murders, find out who did it, save the last potential victim in a dramatic crisis then all go home for a cup of cocoa. Perfect. But not Perfect Dead.

What I am never sure about is whether it’s a good or a bad thing to be able to guess the perpetrator. Writing mysteries myself, I know only too well how hard it is to seed the story with just the right number of red herrings and clues. And Baldwin has a superb red herring in Perfect Dead – one I didn’t see coming until right at the last moment and which adds an extra layer of emotion to what is already an intense and gripping story.

This is a book where the characters’ internal journeys are as much an incentive to read on as solving the crime. Not just DI Farrell, working with the pull of the Catholic church in and around him, but the issues in the lives of his various colleagues are beautifully drawn and you find yourself caring as much about how these work out as you do about having the murderer brought to justice.

Perfect Dead is the second book in the DI Frank Farrell series so the characters’ lives are bound to pan out over time. This, and the quality of Baldwin’s writing, would in itself be enough to bring readers back for book three and my one argument with the Perfect Dead is that a major strand is left hanging, and far from being intrigued it left me feeling frustrated and a little short changed.

There’s something else I’ve discovered about crime books during this process – it is almost impossible to write a review of any length without giving away spoilers. So I won’t. Read the book for yourself and find out what happens. I promise you it’s worth it.

For some reason it took me a while to get into this book but once I did it turned into one of those books you don’t want to finish because you just want to keep reading! This is the second book in a series and this time I actually think it would have been useful to have read them as intended. In the beginning there were quite a lot of mentions of things that had happened the year earlier which I assume was the first book but it didn’t suffer so much that it made a lot of difference. I loved the lead character Frank Farrell who is a DI and also an ex-priest. It seemed a funny combination but worked very well. It was easy to get a little tripped up in all the characters in the painting commune. All in all a great book with lots of attention to detail and interesting people. I would love to recommend this book to anyone and gladly give it 4 stars. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this book in the exchange for my unbiased review.

WOW what a great book. This is the first book by Jackie Baldwin I have read but it certainly won't be the last! This is the second book to feature DI Frank Farrell and although the previous story is referred to, it doesn't take anything away from this one. Highly recommended.

This is the first book in this series that I have read - but it will certainly not be the last! I found this novel to be extremely well executed (and very thought out in even the smallest of details). To be honest, I was a little concerned that with so many seemingly connected threads that there would be too much happening at once making it easy to get lost. However, with the way this was laid out it was easy to keep track not only of all the players and their parts in this, but also in what was going on and how it connected to the next thread.

Each character in Perfect Dead is unique and integral to the overall plot. DI Frank Farrell is one of the more interesting characters I've read in awhile. Obviously, I don't know the details from the first story (a fact I am hoping to remedy soon), but the fact that he was at one time a Catholic Priest speaks volumes. I loved his inner turmoil between his past, his present and where he wanted to go in the future. However, as I mentioned, he was merely one of many.

I found the plot of this novel to move along a a steady pace, but the details were added in such a way that it was easy to become lost within this world, working alongside these people as they diligently tried to solve these crimes. In fact, there were a few times where I did not expect the twists and outcomes that happened.

I do believe this is a solid police/thriller/whodunit novel that will appeal to fans of all those genres.

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

This book starts off by immediately grabbing the attention with the prologue. A young girl is heading to get a bus home when she meets someone who she knows and goes off with them instead. Before long she realises she has made a big mistake and "a last tear tipped from her eyes. She would never see her home again." At once I wanted to who was the person she went off, what had happened and why. Just what you need to hook you into a book.

Frank and the others in his team are looking into art forgery ring suspected to be working out of Kirkcudbright. A member of local art community, The Collective, who has recently been nominated for a major art prize is found dead in an apparent suicide. Human remains are found on the hills above the town, Could they be the girl who disappeared three years ago after leaving The Collective? With the art connection, are the three cases connected?

I love the main character of Frank Farrell. He is a very complex character. As well as being a dedicated and determined detective, he is also an ex- Catholic priest. Technically he is still a priest although he has been released from his duties. Once you have been ordained as a priest, you are always a priest.  His sense of vocation still guides his decision making and he is perhaps beginning to feel that call again. He has the added complication of a work colleague having serious marital difficulties. The complication is that Frank used to go out with his wife before he became a priest. Frank feels really torn between his call to the priesthood and his work as a detective and it was fascinating watching him in this book as he tried to decide where he could do the most good.

As well as having a great main character, Perfect Dead is also a cracking crime novel with plenty of surprises to keep you turning the pages. It is well paced and there is so much going on: murder, mystery, tension, danger plenty action and even some romance. A terrific crime thriller and I do hope there are more DI Frank Farrell books to come, especially since the book stops with such a heart-stopping climax.

Perfect Dead Jackie Baldwin.

When this book came up for review I liked the look of the blurb that went along with it. It was the second in the DI Frank Farrell series, so naturally I downloaded the first in the series and read that first. Thank God I did, I have discovered a great new Police Crime Series.

Frank Farrell is a great character for a book. An ex-priest who leaves the proesthood because he broke the sacrament of the confessional, and helped the police catch a murderer. It was only natural that once out of the Church he would become a cop, and so he started a distinguished career in the Big City and made his way up to DI.

Then he moved back to his hometown of Dumfries, which is where we find him in this series.

I won’t go on about book 1 Dead Man’s Prayer, take it from me it’s a fantastic read, because this blog is about Perfect Dead, which is just as good if not better.

Perfect Dead sees the MIT in Dumfries overwhelmed with 4 cases, murders, missing persons and art forgery, in the small town of Kirkcudbright.

Farrell is one of 2 DI’s tasked with breaking the cases along with his childhood friend DCI Lind, and their small band of Detectives.

The cases all seem to be centred around a small community of artists which provide a great cast of characters for the story. Each one is wonderfully written, and the way they weave into the story is fascinating.

This story is multi-layered and takes loads of twists, but all the time it stays within the realms of possibility.

Jackie Baldwin has created a wonderful set of characters. DI Farrell is still conflicted between his faith and his job, and when it comes to personal relationships he really does struggle. His main sidekick is DC Mhairi McCleod, a young woman that had, until Farrell arrived in her nick, built up a reputation as a party girl, but he sees the potential and relies on her for a lot of his work.

There are many others, all with great side stories, in the cast of police characters. Just as much effort is put into the criminals, with great effect.

The crimes in this book are perfectly written and they all add to the story, but what is the link. I didn’t work it out until the last chapters.

And talking of the last chapters, what a climax to a book.

I started this review saying I read the first book in the series before I reviewed Perfect Dead. That’s because I like to read books in chronological order. But this can be read as a stand-alone-novel, and a brilliant story it is.
Jackie Baldwin is a new author to me, but has gone straight onto the must read list.

Publisher: Killer Reads, Harper Collins
Publishing Date: 15th June 2018
Available to pre-order for the Kindle

DI Frank Farrell and his team are called to investigate what appears to be a suicide. When Farrell finds evidence to the contrary, it turns into a murder investigation.

The murder investigation leads to the mysterious Ivy House, home of ‘The Collective’, a sinister commune of artists who will do anything to keep their twisted secrets hidden.

When the remains of a young girl are found nearby, Farrell realizes that the two cases may be connected. The first victim was an artist ... the young girl modeled for several of the artists....and fell in love with one of them.

And when it's discovered that a group of art forgeries are found in the area, Farrell finds himself nearly overwhelmed. Now he must track down a ruthless killer before another person dies, this time much closer to home.

Farrell is a terrific character. He is a Catholic Priest, now non-practicing, and a break in his belief led him to law enforcement. Recovering from a near mental breakdown, he is now questioning whether to stay where he is ... or return to the church. His team are young and dedicated and have much respect for their boss. They also all have their own personal issues which puts them at odds with their respective jobs.

There is much suspense which starts slowly and builds to a rapid boiling of murder, revenge, blackmail, and many secrets.

Many thanks to the author / Harper Impulse and Killer Reads / Netgalley / TBR Requestor Review for the digital copy of this crime thriller. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

Four and a half stars. What a cracking crime novel. Fast paced, gritty and set in Scotland I loved the way this book was written that kept me interested to the very last page. The characters were well rounded and I loved the slightly flawed, ex priest turned detective Frank Farrell. I realise this was the second book in the series (and I hadn't read the first book) and on the whole it was absolutely fine to read as a standalone. However, the only thing that stopped me giving this book the full 5 stars was the constant references to 'what happened last year' with not even a brief explanation to what this was. Whilst it didn't stop me enjoying the story in this novel I did find it tedious to keep referencing it without even touching on it. Maybe it was designed to make you read the first book, but it fact it did the opposite for me! I will, however, be very keen to read the next in the series as it was a brilliant crime read.

DI Frank Farrell is an ex-priest. He is pretty much a hermit but works quite hard at his job, especially in this new case, that of trying to stop a vicious killer in a town in Scotland. Is there a such thing as a perfect death? Obviously, the killer has that very intent in mind. Well, the first murder in this case is that of an apparent suicide. However, there is a powerful clue that shows otherwise. Farrell and his team are led to the mysterious Ivy House, a commune of artists holding onto warped secrets. Another murder takes case, thus ramping up their investigation.

This is my first book by Jackie Baldwin, but this is the second in the DI Frank Farrell series. This was an engaging read. Even though Farrell is damaged, he definitely grew on me. So did members of his team. I found myself invested in their stories. Although I haven't read the first book in this terrific series, I felt that I understood Farrell, his angst and what drives him. I am a romantic at heart, and kept hoping for him to find a love interest. Maybe as the series progresses? Since I will definitely be reading Book 3 in this series, at some point before then I will most certainly take time to read the first book. Ms. Baldwin is relatively new on the scene, but she has excellent talent that I look forward to reading in the future.

Many thanks to Harper Impulse and Killer Reads and to NetGalley for this ARC to review.

Date of publication: June 15, 2018

Perfect Dead is the first book that I have read by Jackie Baldwin and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

It is a police thriller with the main character being DI Farrell although in reality there are a number of main and supporting characters who are well formed and are interesting.

There is sufficient backstory to allow the new reader to understand how the characters have been impacted by previous events and this is included without distracting from the main story.

The book itself has a number of strands that are well juggled by the author send which keep the pages clicking over.

Overall this is an excellent book and one that makes me want to read both the previous book in the series and the next one assuming one is being written

4 and 1 / 2 stars

DI Frank Farrell and his partner DC Mhairi McLeod are called to the scene of an apparent suicide in
Kirkcudbright. Something doesn’t look right to them, so they label it a suspicious death. They talk to the woman who found the body, a housekeeper. None of the other neighbors have any information save the elderly lady across the street who says she heard a gunshot and an unknown car pass by her house twice on the suspected day of the murder. The victim, Monro Stevenson, was formerly associated with a group of artists known as The Collective. He had a bad crush on the girl, Ailish Kerrigan, who also lived there with her then boyfriend Patrick Rafferty, also from Ireland. Ailish disappeared three years earlier. Most people thought that she had run off after finding her boyfriend had picked up someone else. But, DCI John Lind, DI Farrell’s good friend, believes differently, as does her sister Maureen.

Meanwhile, DI Moore is investigating an art forgery ring. It is not going well until they capture the man who was taking the forged art piece to the exchange place. DS Stirling and DC Thompson go undercover as the contacts for the art forgers.

When Ailish’s body is found, DCI Lind calls her sister Maureen and imparts the bad news. The investigation of her murder leads the team back to the Collective, the same group to which Monro Stevenson belonged. It seems all leads on the three cases lead back to them.

Another murder is committed, of a young woman named Poppy Black, which is also disguised to look like suicide, the team kicks into high gear.

The pieces of the puzzle finally fall into place. Several people are arrested in the forgery scandal. The murderer of Poppy and Ailish is discovered, but not before there is another near miss for someone on the team.

This book is remarkably well written. The action scenes were well described and clearly thought out well by Ms. Baldwin. I truly enjoyed this book. It had romance, action, suspense and intrigue. It had drama – that’s it! I liked DI Farrell very much. Although he is a lonely person in some ways, he jumps into the action and doesn’t look back. He gets along well with the rest of the team, other DI’s and the DCI as well. I appreciate that he has Henry in his life. It added a nice touch to DI Farrell. This is my first Jackie Baldwin novel, but it certainly won’t be my last. I immediately went to Amazon to look for other books by this author. Well done, Ms. Baldwin!

I want to thank NetGalley and Harper Impulse and Killer Reads/Killer Reads for forwarding to me a copy of this remarkable book for me to read, enjoy and review.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Harper Impulse and Killer Reads for an advance copy of Killer Dead, the second novel to feature Dumfries based DI Frank Farrell.

When the body of artist Monro Stevenson is found in his cottage in Kirkcudbright everyone except Frank thinks it's suicide, there are enough minor discrepancies in the scene for him to suspect murder. At the same time DI Moore is investigating an art forgery ring which appears to be headquartered in Kirkcudbright and DCI Lind is investigating a grave of bones which he suspects to be that of Ailish Kerrigan who disappeared from The Collective, an artist's colony three years previously. Soon all the investigations are leading to the village of Kirkcudbright.

I thoroughly enjoyed Killer Dead which is a satisfyingly complicated read with plenty of twists and turns. With all these plot strands I thought it might be difficult to keep up but everything is laid out logically and is thus easy to follow. The plotting is clever and well thought out and with so much going on there is never a dull moment so it held my attention from start to finish. I also like that it has a linear timeline and is told in the third person from the police point of view, mostly Frank's. It makes for an immersive read when the reader is not distracted by an ever changing point of view. Thank you Ms Baldwin for bucking the trend and adopting this straightforward approach.

Frank Farrell is a rather lonely figure with few friends and no significant other. As a former priest he is often sickened by the behaviour he encounters as a detective and hears the siren call of the Church. It is difficult to work out if he is serious about returning to the priesthood or if thinking about it is a stress reliever. He is a kind, considerate man with hidden steel and very likeable as a protagonist.

Killer Dead is a good read which I have no hesitation in recommending.