This was really a fantastic read. It is already the fourth book in the DI McGuire series, and honestly, they just keep on getting better!!!!
An innocent party leads to a missing teenager. This sets the tone of a gripping, riveting read, from beginning to end! Highly recommended!

This really is a top class series, although the stories can be read as stand alones. I do have to admit to reading the 5th book before this but the enjoyment was just as enriching. The opening scene is a distressing house fire, with the only survivor being a young boy before the story jumps forward to present day.
There is that moment, when you have children, of leaving them at home when you feel they are responsible enough to stay behind while you have a weekend away. Well for Simon's parents it turns into every parents worst nightmare. How can such much go wrong in one weekend? The team have their work cut out as they are pulled in so many directions with this case and dire complications and twists of a case that should have had its conclusion, one that was very personal to the team. Unfortunately when you think that things can't get any worse they just do! The more they discover about the teenage party the more vile crimes are uncovered, rape, murder, drugs and abductions. Even when some of the party goers emerge the picture doesn't become clear.
This is a terrific read with so many tangled leads, suspects and personal complications for the team that my mind wouldn't rest. The aftermath of destroyed families that would never be the same again just kept growing as the pieces were fitted together, concluding with a devastating end! Utter brilliance!

Omg what a book!! Liz has done it again... Gripping read from start to finish. Absolutely love the characters in this book. The family bond and relationships between them all make this book even more fantastic

So when parents come home from a trip to find their house trashed, their son missing and two bodies they immediately call the police. So enters Gus Mcguire and DS Alice Cooper to investigate.

I liked the dynamics of Gus and Alice, they are professional but also have a great banter and there is a good rapport with fellow colleagues. This lifted the tone of the story at times and I think it worked well in what would be a stressful situation for those investigating.

There are little indications of past stories that are explained and this added to the intrigue for me. They have been added to give clarification to a reader who hasn’t read the previous books and do complement this story.

The plot covers so many different angles and takes trips down those pesky blind alleys that helped build up the suspense. It was as if I was being teased and being held just at arm’s length from the truth. Not only does the team have a tricky case to deal with but a past keeps poking their nose in.

The author did a fantastic job of leaving tantalising little clues giving an inking as to who it could possibly be and when the end arrives you definitely get to learn about the why of the crime.

This is a brilliant story that intrigued me, with several plot lines that twist and weave until you discover all the facts. A thoroughly enjoyable and addictive read that would be great for fans of gritty Norther Noir, crime, murder and mystery books. One I would highly recommend.

Uncommon Cruelty by Liz Mistry

3 stars

No smoke without fire

The fourth book in the Gus McGuire series, this is an easy reading police procedural with plenty to keep the reader turning the pages.

Detective Inspector Angus (Gus) McGuire is a mixed race with a mop of unruly dreadlocks and so doesn’t fit the accepted idea of a senior detective. Understandably his team is equally diverse, DC Alice Cooper, seemingly fragile but with an unexpected resolve, new boy ‘Taffy’, dependable DC Sampson and Compo, the IT whizz-kid.

When Jane and James Proctor return home after a weekend away they find their house has been trashed by an unauthorised teenage party. Their fifteen-year-old son, Simon, is missing, and there are two dead girls in the house.

Gus and his team are assigned to the case and find a hornet’s nest of subjects, each with something to hide; they also are not helped by the presence of the venomous DC Knowles who Gus had demoted and who is carrying a significant grudge!

I enjoyed this novel as Gus and his team are an engaging lot and there are enough twists and turns to keep up the pace. Although the way it is written leads the reader towards a predictable conclusion, you are never quite sure whether there is an element of misdirection.

Well written but let down a little by basic errors which should have been picked up in the proof-reading.

Pashtpaws

Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.

Solid addition to the gus maguire series. Excellent storyline encompassing the usual supects with mistry weaving an intreguing web.

Its very clearly a middle of the series book so i wouldnt recommend it as a standalone as it heavily references previous books.

All in all a great book. Cant wait for the next one!

wow, gus is back, you can almost see him and his team,especially when they are having to give the bad news,
teenagers and parties,you just know something is going to happen, i love the family dynamics with Gus and his dad, Oh and mums cooking,lol, Liz Mistry has come up trumps again,well done

This is a great book 4 in the Gus Mc Guire series. A couple return from holiday to find their teenage son missing a the bodies of two teenage girls in their house. What happened to their son? Liz Mistry is a master of gritty and thrilling novels. Fast paced, good characterisation and a twisting plot. Another winner from this author with a twist at the end. Bring on the next installment! One to take on holiday. Many thanks to Bloodhound Books and Net Galley for my copy. I reviewed on Amazon, Goodreads and Facebook.

Thank you Netgalley and Bloodhound Books for this arc.

I have not read any of Liz Mistry's previous books, but am looking for them now!
This was right up my alley with great characters and a great story. There were plenty of gory parts for me and a lot of well developed characters, even the minor characters were written so a not to feel stereotypical to me.

I'm happy to have found another author to help fill the gaps between Robert Brynzda and Angela Marsons.

Wow. This series just gets better and better with each book! This is Brilliant! I am absolutely loving this five star series, I cannot get enough!

This is book four in the DI Gus McGuire series and cannot be read as a standalone, this series needs to be read in order as it makes reference to previous cases and previous books.

Uncommon Cruelty is written well, fast paced, easy to devour, and contains short chapters. This case is dark and focuses on a missing teenager and what seems like one hell of a party aftermath and mess to clear up. Its great to be back with the familiar team! You will not be able to put this book down until you’ve finished it!

I would highly recommend this series to you all, but please read them in order. I look forward to the next book by Liz!

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, got into the story straight away which is something I look for in a good book. The characters were like able and complimented the story which was well written and meant I wanted to keep on reading, didn't want to put the book down. Will certainly be looking out the earlier books to enjoy some more DI Gus McGuire

Liz Mistry envelops us in her book we live each moment with her and her characters.Each book builds up our grasp of the characters and our belief in them and I look forward to reading a lot more from her pen.She doesn't shy away from tackling difficult subjects and fulfills her task superbly a series to follow avidly

This book was so, so good I cannot recommend it highly enough!!

I love the characters in this series and I am a massive fan of the author's previous books in the series and her writing style suits this book really well.

The plot in this book is great, really well planned out and it flows so well. We are thrown straight in to the story and I was hooked as soon as I started reading. I didn't want to put the book down until the end and was a little bereft after I'd finished too

No hesitation in giving the book 5 stars, it really deserves it and has been on of the best I have read so far in 2018!!

I love this series and in my opinion the books are best read in order to get the most out of them. Set in and around Bradford West Yorkshire they give a good insight into the multi cultural way of life in this city of many faiths. Liz brings the characters to life and I particularly like the interaction between DI Gus McGuire and his sargent Alice. The book is packed with action as you would expect. If you love gritty northern crime thrillers then this book is for you. Thank you for the ARC

This is the first book in the DI Gus McGuire series that I have read and I have to say I loved it!
Gus has fast become one of my favourite characters. The plot was brought to life and kept me guessing to the end.It certainly did not disappoint on any level.
Flushed with its success I have just downloaded the first 3 books in the series so that I can be up to speed with the lives of Gus and his team when number 5 is published.
Thanks to Bloodhound books and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this as an ARC.

Not for me - I don't care to read books with a lot of swearing - so I have not done a review

The police and their team are called in for a dissaperance to a teenager boy.
Who’s parents have been away for a weekend .
See if he has been returned .
I got this from Netgallery

Uncommon Cruelty is the fourth book in the DI Gus McGuire series. The author has written it so it reads well as a stand alone giving enough background where needed.

I have read and enjoyed all the books in the series and really didn't think it was possible for them to get any better than they already were. Boy, how wrong I was as the author knocked the ball out of the park with this one.

When Simon's parents come home after a weekend away, they could never envision what is in store for them when they walk through their door. I might actually get my teenagers to read the book in the hope it puts them off ever even thinking about having a party behind our backs! The aftermath of the party is only the start of the shocks and surprises that are in store for the reader.

This is a series with a seriously strong cast of characters. Gus, his dad, Alice, they really are stand out characters who all bring something different to the table. I think I might actually be a teensy bit in love with Gus's dad. He brings some humour into the otherwise dark and twisted read. He is so laid back and for some reason I imagine him sounding a bit like Sean Connery of which sends me weak at the knees.

This is one case that has the team working around the clock. It is a story that I couldn't stop thinking about over the course of the few days I read it and I picked it up at every free opportunity I had. It really got under my skin and I was as desperate as Gus to solve it.

Uncommon Cruelty is a jaw dropping read that will send your heart racing. Without a doubt my personal favourite in the series and in my opinion, the authors best novel yet. If you haven't read this series yet then why not?

Uncommon Cruelty is the 4th book in the DI Gus McGuire series and to my mind the best yet. The characters are brilliant especially Gus Mcguires team of Alice, Compo, Taffy and Sampson. There were several threads going on in this book and it all made for a riveting read. The main plot plot throughout the book dealt with sex, drugs, violence and murder. A gruesome, harrowing, frightening, shocking, heartbreaking and emotional read. Did I say emotional? Yes, it certainly had that aspect. I was still thinking about this book long into the night. I highly recommend this book and I also highly recommend the previous books in the series to be read first. Eagerly awaiting book 5,!

I would like to thank Netgalley and Bloodhound Books for an advance copy of Uncommon Cruelty, the fourth novel to feature DI Gus McGuire of Bradford police.

James and Jane Proctor return from a weekend away to discover their house wrecked, a dead teenager in their bedroom and their teenage son, Simon, missing. Gus and his team soon have their hands full as they try to identify the body and find Simon because everyone is lying or at least concealing parts of the truth.

I thoroughly enjoyed Uncommon Cruelty, so much that I couldn't put it down and read it in one sitting. It is an excellent piece of crime fiction with great pacing and characterisation which held me engrossed throughout.

The plot is well planned as the investigation starts from the fairly narrow confines of a dead girl and a missing teenager and gradually spreads its tentacles wider and wider until it narrows back to the conclusion. I am in awe of Ms Mistry's command of her plot as it covers a lot of ground seamlessly. There is no superfluity and while wide ranging it is concise, almost sparing in execution. It is exactly the kind of novel I like to read and I will be searching out her back catalogue for more of the same.

The characterisation is equally strong from the police to the unnamed first person narrator whose imprisonment peppers the main narrative. Gus and his sergeant, Alice, have a great, natural vibe which adds to the reading experience. Alice does not have her troubles to seek in this novel and they add an extra edge to the read.

Uncommon Cruelty is one of the best novels I have read this year so I have no hesitation in recommending it as a good read.