Keep me close is the second book in the series involving DS Josie Masters and the Thames valley police.

Its been six months since the events that happened in the first book and Josie is back to work investigating a missing girl with a new partner, DS Jack Pryce. This almost seemed like a continuation of the first book and I think this book would be hard to understand if one has not read the first one.

The story was good as well as the characters and the dynamic between Josie and Jack.
The ending was so shocking.

Overall, I enjoyed the book, but I did read the first in the series and I think that if I hadn't I would of been confused.

Keep me close is the second book in the series involving DS Josie Masters and Thames valley police. It’s six months on from where we left off in Hold my hand. Josie and her family are still suffering from the after effects of what happened months ago.
Back at work, Josie is called to investigate a missing girl with new partner DS Jack Pryce, Malin Sigurdssin missing from Oriel college. When they get to her room, they find blood in the bathroom, which gives the team cause to concern. Is she still alive or is she dead? When another woman’s body, a college staff and another student goes missing. The links between them Josie discovers that this is personal. When she gets back to the station her boss tries to take her off the case but she ignores his commands.
This is another gripping thriller from M. J. Ford, But, at first although it was a continuation of the first one I found it quite difficult to grasp what the plot was. I liked the relationship between Josie and Pryce and I really thought that they were going to get together into a relationship. I was quite surprised what happened at the send. I really did not see that coming.
Thank you NetGalley and Avon for an ARC of this book.

A British police procedural set in Oxford and its dreaming spires. The previous book explains why the lead female detective has PTSD but this one can be read as a stand-alone as enough of the back story is given. I have not read the previous book.
I found the story interesting and compelling reading and the characters involved were complex enough that I never guessed who the villain was, let alone why although the clues were there.
A good tone of voice by the author made this reading easy enough to follow and to be interested in the characters.

A rollercoaster of a thriller,red herrings galore. A great set of characters and a thrilling fast paced story.

3.5

This was good and very well written but I felt that I would have enjoyed it much more had I read the first. It can work as a stand alone so don’t let me scare you off but so much has happened to lay the groundwork for this story that it took me a bit off time to figure out what had gone on and why Josie was who she was.

Once I put all the pieces together this story really moved along. There was a nice amount of twists and turns, some of which were very surprising. Josie is quite flawed, understandable considering her past. She doesn’t always play by the rules. She’s an interesting character.

The conclusion was quite good and one I didn’t see coming. I did enjoy this and would read more by this author.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and Avon Books UK for a copy in exchange for a review.

A really gripping read with a great cast of characters. I really whizzed through this and found myself swiping away at my kindle eager to find out who the culprit was. The end was a real shock, was not expecting that at all but it was a good unexpected ending that actually tied the story up neatly

So this is Josie Masters second appearance in a novel, but you need not read the first one ( 'Hold My Hand') as this book felt and read as a superb "stand alone". Josie is now a DS working in Oxford and she comes up against a murderer and possible kidnapper of some students. Were these crimes linked?

This book is really well written and rolls along at a brilliant pace - yes, a real page turner. A well above average police procedural book, and no spoilers from me! I loved it, and brave to set the story in 'Morse' territory.

I would love to give the book 5 stars, but I am uncomfortable with Josie's boss and the Chief Constable who are both just too stereotypical.

Keep going Fordy!

I didn't realise this was the 2nd book in the Det Josie Masters series, there were pieces of information trickled and obviously leading on from the first book so I will go back and read that for completeness.

However, this didn't attract from a great mystery thriller, I love a good detective series and this didn't disappoint, with college girls going missing, can Josie figure out the link before bodies start turning up, this was a perfect who dunnit and why and I was surprised when it all came together!

A great police procedural mystery book for fans of this genre.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Avon Books UK for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion,

An excellent novel. I didn’t realise that this was the second in th Jo Masters series, however, this did not detract from my enjoyment of the move, as the writer gave enough back story for,the reader. A really good who dun it, kept me engrossed until the end.

I would really recommend reading Hold My Hand first, the first book to feature DS Josie Masters. A series of girls go missing from Oriel College and Josie along with Pryce, her new partner, are called to investigate.The book is fast paced and gripping with a really good plot. Although, Josie really should not drink so much! Thanks to Net Galley for my copy. Reviews on Facebook and Goodreads.

The events in this book follow on from what happened in Hold My Hand and I do recommend you read that one first as, although there is a bit of a catch-up, you won't really get the whole picture from that and some of this book might be hard to follow.
So, six months after saving her nephew from the killer clown (see you know you want to read about that - yeah!) DS Josie Masters returns to work a hero. But then a girl goes missing from Jesus College and she is assigned to the case, partnered with DS Pryce. It's all a bit strange and they feel like certain people are hiding things from them. Things take a darker turn and two more girls disappear from Oriel and Somerville. It soon becomes evident that the cases are related to Josie personally as they appear to be spelling out her name. But who and why? And then a body is found and it becomes a race against time to get to the bottom of things before it's too late.
Although I don't usually like books when the Police, or especially members of their families, get personally involved in the crimes being committed, When done well, it can really work; as is the case with this series. Anyway, forewarned is forearmed as it does mention this link in the blurb!
One of the things that I really enjoyed about this book was Josie's relationship with Pryce, Initially as just work partners but also when they got closer. The motivation for this exposed at the end of the book. A motivation that I have to admit I didn't see coming!
The action comes thick and fast and, along with it, a high level of intrigue and suspense, both of which continue throughout, as the story is told through Josie, so you only get to know what she knows along the way. I found this to be a very good fit to the crime being investigated, especially as it all appeared to revolve around Josie herself. The only downside of it being "all about Josie" is that I have absolutely no idea where the author can possible take her next time, and I really do hope there will be a next time as I did connect to her as a character very well throughout both books.
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Keep Her Close by M.J. Ford is a police procedural that will have the reader working right alongside the Thames Valley Police Department in a race against the clock to catch an unknown perpetrator. This is quite an enjoyable read for any fan of a fast-paced whodunit.

The novel opens with DS Jo Masters completing her mandated time at a psychologist's office, discussing a past case that resulted in the loss of her partner, Ben. Right away, I felt a little out of the loop, having not read the first book of a seres centred on DS Masters. Several chapters in, however, I was able to piece together some idea of previous events. When a student at Jesus College, Malin Sigurdsson, goes missing, Jo and new partner DS Pryce are launched into a new case. When another young woman is the victim of a hit and run, followed by several more disappearances of young women, Masters and Pryce begin to draw parallels, and eventually discover that Jo could be a possible link. The case has become personal.

I had not even an inkling as to the identity of the perpetrator until the dramatic reveal, something I love in a suspenseful read. On a lesser note, I would have liked more context as to Jo's relationship with Lucas. I definitely plan to read the first installment of this series.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Avon UK for this ARC.

I found this police procedural to be slow going at first. Detective Jo Masters is called to Jesus College Oxford where a student has disappeared. Immediately Jo is in conflict with her stepfather, a politician who seems to be more concerned that the disappearance be kept out of the papers than with finding his stepdaughter. As he is in league with her superiors she soon finds herself sidelined. Then more girls vanish and a body is found. Suspicions rise in Jo who worries that the disappearances have something to do with her past. But who could be behind it? The perpetrator is revealed at the end and seems to me to be quite unbelievable. So, after a slow start with believable characters and actions we move to much faster action and unbelievable (or at least one) characters. There are constant references to the previous book in the series but although this seemed a lot I felt I didn't learn much from them and would have benefitted from reading this first.

Overall, I found this to be an OK read. I didn't really warm to Jo and her suspicious nature and I'm not sure I would read another in the series. But there are many readers out there who will enjoy it I'm sure. Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARC

I really enjoyed this book. It kept me guessing most of the way through but the ending seemed a little too incredible. This is the second in a series about Josie Matters and I think it would be good to read the other first for some context. The story is original and had some surprising elements. Definitely a good read with some very atmospheric creative writing

Thrilling and fast paced, DS Jo Masters is thrown headlong into a case where a young student has disappeared from her university in Oxford. She is still dealing with demons of her own from a previous case that claimed the life of her partner, Ben. Her superiors tried to stop her becoming too involved as they felt she was still suffering but Jo was determined to get to the bottom of the disappearance. However, when another girl goes missing she becomes obsessed with the case leading to her making desparate decisions that ultimately leads to serious repercussions. The story develops quickly and although I worked out the main perpetrator this did not detract from my enjoyment of this well written book. There were several red herrings that worked well and the characters, especially Jo are interesting and believable.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to.

I enjoyed reading this book. I had not read the earlier book that covered the background to this story but I did not feel that this was much of a disadvantage. There are so many police crime/murder/serial killer type stories around, often where the prime character is a police woman is single, in her thirties, super-intelligent and always solves the case(s). It must become more and more difficult to find a uniqueness in the story line to make the reader feel that he/she is reading something new. I think this book goes a long way towards achieving this goal and I do recommend reading it but read the earlier book first.

I liked the premise of this book tremendously! However, I do not like Josie, the supposed hero detective! I would not want to be her partner! Good grief I knew from her having conversations with her therapist, where someone threatening would come from! It did not take a rocket scientist to figure out she heard someone say something, it went straight over her head, until too late! During young college-age women being abducted, she gets roaring drunk? The police wonder why we don't trust all of them? I know the statistics are high for alcohol abuse within the Police, and Military, if you have to get drunk to cope, get out! No, she left me cold, the story was highly entertaining, I do not like figuring out where the story is going before I get there! Most people will genuinely enjoy this story.
I recommend! Thank you Netgalley!
Carolintallahassee.com

Loved this book was captivated from the start right until the end. Jo is a brilliant character and hope to see more of her, she's strong, feisty and determined. Trying to find three kidnapped girls and as the story evolves it appears they are linked to her but who it is and why they're targeting Jo keeps us in suspense right until the end.

I really enjoyed the first book in the series Hold My Hand which introduced us to DS Josie Masters so I was delighted to catch up with her six months later in Keep Her Close. In her personal life she now has a new boyfriend and she has a new colleague, DS Jack Pryce who has joined Thames Valley Police who has been fast tracked. A young woman has contacted the police after raising the alarm when her friend seems to have disappeared from her rooms in Oxford University. More women disappear as the plot unfolds and Josie and Jack are in the thick of the investigation. As always though, Josie is hampered by the police hierarchy and the powers that be. Not only does she have to manage the investigation but also the bureaucracy and her own private life and history.

I really, really enjoyed this book. I devoured it. I loved the characters and the plot is superb: l found it exciting and positively spiral it had so many twists. Top notch writing for avid detective thrillers.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.