A twisted and terrifying page-turner packed with shocks, thrills and heart-stopping danger, The Bad Place is an addictive crime thriller you will not be able to put down.

A remote farm out on the Thames Estuary had been christened The Bad Place by the tabloids after six children had been held captive there for two weeks. Five of the children had managed to get out of The Bad Place alive, but one of the gang had not been so lucky. Although twenty years had passed since that awful incident, the shocking memories are as strong as ever and every year, these five individuals meet to commemorate the memory of their dead friend. This vigil is an exercise in remembrance where the only rule is that that horrific night where they had made their escape is not mentioned. However, this year things take a shocking and dramatic turn.

When a member of the group witnesses a young girl called Sammi being kidnapped, the alarm is immediately sounded. With Sammi’s life in danger, the clock is ticking and the police must work around the clock to ensure that the girl is found safe and sound. DI Sasha Dawson of Essex Police cannot shake off this feeling that the key to finding Sammi lies in unlocking the secrets of the past and finding out the truth about The Bad Place. However, the more time she spends poking around in the dark recesses of the past, the greater the present risk to Sammi. Sasha will not give up until she has got to the bottom of this mystery – but can she catch this heinous criminal in time?

Is one of the five responsible for Sammi’s disappearance? Is history about to repeat itself? Or is there something going on that is even more sinister than anyone previously imagined?

The Bad Place is one hell of a read! A shocking crime thriller written with assurance, flair and plenty of style, this nail-biting read keeps readers enthralled with a beguiling blend of spine-tingling suspense, jaw dropping plot twists and relentlessly fast-paced action.

A brilliant thriller featuring a fabulous detective, The Bad Place marks M.K. Hill out as a name to watch out for in crime fiction!

The recent trend in police procedurals, is towards female detectives, with a family. This reflects twenty-first-century policing and is a welcome change from the hard-boiled male detectives, who often come across as cliched and stereotypical. DI Sasha Dawson has reached her rank, by dedication, intelligence, sacrifice and tenacity. She is a mother and a wife, and like most professional women suffers from the constant guilt of juggling her home and work life.

The story plays out in dual timelines, one historic, which provides the story with its dramatic beginning. It introduces Sasha Dawson, as a probationary police officer. The second, present-day timeline, brings the survivors of a traumatic event together in an annual ritual. One witnesses an abduction, reminiscent of what happened to them, and the plot begins its shocks and twists to an unexpected conclusion.

This is a good police procedural, which allows the reader glimpses into the lives of the suspects, police and victims. This coupled with its flawed and realistic characters gives the story its authentic feel. DI Dawson is a compassionate woman who wants to make a positive difference, and this reflects in the story’s ethos.

A great start, to what promises to be an addictive series.

I received a copy of this book from Head of Zeus Books via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Introducing DI Sasha Dawson, this is an excellent, polished start to a new police procedural series.


20+ years ago, 6 teenagers were kidnapped in their mini bus and held captive for 2 weeks, at The Bad Place, by a crazed Jerry Swann. When 5 manage to escape, 1 is left and ultimately meets her demise. young WPC Sacha Dawson witnessed the killing..

Fast Forward to the present day, and now a Detective Inspector and mother to 2 teenagers, Sasha Dawson  is working too much, her home work life balance is totally out of sync.


When a teenage girl is kidnapped in broad daylight, the spotlight is thrown back on the case from the past, is it linked in some inexplicable way?


Written over 2 timelines, telling the story of the captives 26 years ago, and the present storyline, the storyline from the past is at times very tense and particularly Taut.


Good characters I want to read more of, and an interesting back story involving Sasha's home life all add to this cracking tale.

Great writing, with a strong imaginative plot to keep you guessing, the twisty turns will keep you glued until the end of this darkly clever thriller.


Highly Recommended.

From the outset, THE BAD PLACE by M.K. Hill appears to be an exciting new series from a new author (to me). A remarkable and enthralling plot, I was pleasantly surprised that despite its seemingly random start it turned into something so insidious I didn't want to put it down and found myself racing to the finish.

Introducing DI Sasha Dawson. Although I am not a fan of the strong ballsy female type, Sasha is different. She is strong but not bitchy; she is open-minded but fair; she is sensitive, likable and yet she is still fallible. I like Sasha, though I could throttle her kids, and her relationship with her team is a good one with each bringing their own strengths to the investigation. I hate in-house fighting and to see a team work well together is a refreshing change.

Twenty six years ago, 6 teenagers were kidnapped and held in a dank dark cellar for two weeks. Only 5 make it out alive. But it takes the abduction of three children today to discover the truth from back then. Now every year the surviving victims meet for dinner and a candlelit vigil for their lost friend, Becky, with the unspoken condition that no one talk about what happened.

But this year is different. On the way to their annual vigil, one of the survivors witnesses a young girl being abducted. However, Lydia is not a reliable witness having struggled with addiction for most of her life since their time in "the bad place". The rest of them pass it off as a fantastical delusion Lydia had obviously misconstrued, given her behaviour has always been somewhat erratic. But then the next day, a report of a 15 year old girl having gone missing rings in their minds. Maybe Lydia WAS telling the truth after all.

Enter DI Sasha Dawson of Essex Police.

Sasha is no stranger to "the bad place" case. She'd been a week into her career and was just a probationary constable when the case broke, the victims escaped and had been there at Jerry Swann's final stand. She remembered one of the girls, Karin McCarthy, and had spoken to her the night of their escape and her face had haunted Sasha since. Now 15 year old Sammi was missing and aside from Lydia witnessing the abduction which had taken place near Karin's house, there is another link to "the bad place" five. One of the other survivors, Michelle, was Sammi's godmother. Coincidence? Sasha thinks not. What is it about these five remaining survivors that holds the key to Sammi's abduction?

Then another child is taken - directly in front of Karin and Simon, who was another of the five survivors. Luke, a teenage boy from Karin's school. Simon tried in vain to intervene and is met with brute force from the masked abductor and pushed into the path of busy traffic. So what links the past to the present? That is what Sasha endeavours to find out.

In the midst of this major investigation, Sasha's own personal life is in meltdown. Her husband is seemingly depressed and showing no interest in her or the children - he won't even talk to her, feigning tiredness. Her mother decides to leave her father and move in with them, creating chaos at home trying to create some boundaries with Sasha's children and their screentime use. Added to that, her teenage children are constantly bickering and then her daughter is accused of bullying, after telling her mother that she was the one being bullied. But to make matters worse, her usually placid husband punches the next door neighbour which is videoed by her daughter's friends and then streamed online. Can life be any more chaotic?

But juggling her private life with this troubling investigation into the abduction of two teenagers soon becomes personal for Sasha when her own daughter Angel disappears. And then all bets are off.

Told in dual timeline format, we are privy to the two weeks in the cellar of "the bad place" and what happened to the six teenagers as each snippet is unveiled gradually. The question of why didn't Becky escape with the rest of them remains forefront in everyone's mind. Who knows the truth? And what are they not saying?

The setting is around Southend in Essex (often known as Southend-on-Sea) and I find this a refreshing locale, away from the bigger cities of London, Liverpool, Manchester and Newcastle which are so often featured. The imagery of waves upon the beach and the mile-long pier - which is the longest in the world - is breathtaking. I could almost feel the salt air on my face.

What I love about THE BAD PLACE is that while it is a police procedural it also has that edge of a psychological thriller. It is fresh, it is intriguing and it is completely compelling. The chapters are short and punchy keeping you engaged throughout and, while you can put it down if need be, you won't want to. Despite the characters aplenty, it is easy to follow and identify who was who and where.

A frenetic pace was perfectly timed to keep the reader completely engaged makes THE BAD PLACE a hard book to put down. I wanted to "just read one more chapter" before bed but soon found myself finishing in the wee hours.

I look forward to catching up with Sasha Dawson and her team again soon.

An addictive crime thriller, I thoroughly recommend THE BAD PLACE to anyone who enjoys this genre.

I would like to thank #MKHill, #NetGalley and #HeadOfZeus for an ARC of #TheBadPlace in exchange for an honest review.

Anyone who’s been following my reviews for a while knows that I love a good crime series. Well, my friends, it seems I have found another to add to the growing list. This was the first time I’d read a book by this author but the premise gave me chills, and the endorsement from Mark Edwards made me sure I could trust that this would be a great read. I wasn’t wrong.

The book opens on the thirteenth day of an abduction. This is also the day that five of the children held captive escape and there’s a showdown between the police and the kidnapper as they try and prevent a disastrous end. They aren’t successful. We then jump forward to twenty-six years later when the survivors are holding their annual get together to commemorate their lost friend. But when the final member of their party arrives shaken claiming to have witnessed a young girl being snatched on the street, the group are descended into a nightmare that they have tried to put behind them and secrets that have been kept for almost three decades threaten to finally be revealed.

This was a captivating and thrilling read. Like the police investigating, I was met with question upon question, and I was over half way through the book before I could begin to conceive who might have taken the children or what might happen next. The story is told in dual timelines with the flashbacks to The Bad Place all those years ago providing insights. It was clear from early on that one of them hasn’t told the whole story about her time at The Bad Place and would rather try to forget the unspeakable things that happened. All the same, I didn’t initially consider any of the survivors of being involved in the latest abductions, though as the evidence was uncovered there were times I did wonder if one or more of them were involved in some way.

All of the survivors are featured in the story but Karin is the one focused on most, and the one who narrates the flashbacks. It was her best friend Bex who was killed that fateful night and she’s haunted by it to this day. She’s the one who hosts their yearly vigils and seems to have a maternal role towards some of the others. I thought they were all well written and the author found different ways to show the lasting damage they’d all suffered after their abduction, some of which are very subtle. Their bond seems to be kind of toxic but comforting at the same time and as much as they talk about never meeting again none of them seem able to stay away from each other completely.

This introduction to DI Sasha Dawson had me hooked. She is a flawed character who is committed to her job and dealing with a home life that is falling apart. She desperately wants to put her marriage back together and find her closeness with her children again, but that isn’t easy when you have a job that demands so much of your time and energy. All through the book she’s battling this problem and I was rooting for her to find a way to put her family back together as much as I was for her to save the missing kids. Her team members were made up of some interesting characters that I also enjoyed reading and I’m looking forward to reading more about Sasha and her team in future installments of this series.

As I said, I found it very hard to figure out this book and that made me love it all the more. I love when I feel like I’m in the same boat as the police and the pieces very slowly come together. As we got closer to the end of the book it was impossible to stop reading as everything reached a crescendo. When the identity of the kidnapper was revealed I was blindsided. I had the wrong person in my sights and the author did a fantastic job of misdirecting me so I didn’t see it coming at all.

If your a fan of brilliantly written, twisty, edge-of-your-seat thrillers, then you will love The Bad Place. I know this author has a new fan and I am eagerly anticipating book two.

Thank you to NetGalley, Head of Zeus and M.K. Hill for my copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

An interesting new crime series set in Southend on Sea. Why this works particularly well is that the landscape, wetlands and association with this place as a seaside town of family fun…has now been transformed into a bad place…..

It’s where children go missing and where 20 years later, the survivors meet to hold a vigil for their one friend who didn’t escape. But is this story as straight forward as it might be? Who are these youngsters, now adults and what secrets do they hide?

DCI Sasha Dawson is on the case but she has just as many issues as the victims themselves. She’s the one to tell the story together with Karin, one of those who disappeared.

It’s a twisty tale of kidnap, secrets and more secrets piled on top of each other. A dogged detective with complex family issues and an overall net of intrigue to grab you and drag you in to the Bad Place yourself.

26 years ago, six teenagers were sitting in a minibus about to go on a trip …a driver gets in and off they go…..but then they notice, it’s not the usual driver and he has a knife…..

They are abducted……..eventually 5 escape…..but one was left behind.

The five friends meet up each year for a reunion, Karin, Paul, Michelle, Simon and Lydia also remember their lost friend Becky.

But then a young girl goes missing…..the abduction witnessed by a distraught Lydia.

DI Sasha Dawson is investigating the disappearance and finds a link to the five friends and The Bad Place…..then another child is taken.

This is a very cleverly plotted thriller that will keep you on tenterhooks right to the last page. I loved the way Sasha is portrayed as a strong, intelligent detective, but with a life behind the scenes, with its chaos and usual family dramas. Full of twists and secrets to keep you guessing.

Thank you to HoZ books, The Author and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this for free. This is my honest and unbiased review.

I didn't see THAT coming!! A terrific read - and one which has had me completely engrossed throughout.

DI Sasha Dawson finds herself presiding over the case of a missing teenager, allegedly abducted from the streets. It turns out that the person reporting the crime is one of several youngsters who were abducted many years ago; indeed, when Sasha was a rookie she was present as the survivors emerged into the spotlight. Is this a genuine abduction, or do past events still affect those involved in what became known as The Bad Place?

This is a riveting read; plenty of information flowing and it is the job of Sasha and her team to sieve through it and work out which are the definitive leads. As the story continues, it seems there is some connection to the historic case - even if it's only that it circles round those involved all those years ago. As with all great police procedurals, this story includes some details about the investigating team; their personalities and home lives and it all adds to the mix which makes for a thrilling and exciting novel with a very clever plot. This is a book choc-a-bloc with flawed characters and it made my day to see that it is first in a planned series! Definitely an author to follow - M. K. Hill can keep the reader glued to the page with a smart, interesting tale and one which fully deserves all five stars.

A really good book. This book hooks on to you from the beginning and doesn't just let go. The characters were wonderfully created and the twists that I did not see coming. I really like the character of DI Sasha Dawson. The author made her feel like real person not a fictional creation. I'll be waiting for the next book in this series. And a big thank you to NetGalley and Head of Zeus for giving me this ARC in exchange of my honest review.

This is a very well written police procedural with great characters. The plot is a little strange, and I normally don't like stories where the police officer is personally involved, but here it's at least a good reason behind. Smooth reading.

I really loved this author's other series featuring DI Drake - The Two O'Clock Boy (renamed His First Lie) and It Was Her - so I was quite excited to see that he had started a new series with a female protagonist! And I am happy to say that I loved this just as much. It's a wee bit convoluted and I did spend a while confused but it held my interest throughout and all came good at the run-up to the wholly satisfying end.
First we have to go back a couple of decades, to a remote farm, where six children were held for two weeks. Five managed to escape and every year they get together to hold a vigil for the one who sadly wasn't as lucky as them. To date, none of them have spoken about what went on during those two weeks. But during this year's vigil, one of the survivours witnesses, or thinks she witnessed an abduction. But the man who held them is dead. Killed in a stand off. Is she mistaken in what she saw, her brain skewed by what happened to her? Or has the young girl really be taken? And, if so, is it coincidental that it happened on their anniversary? Or is there more to thing than on first inspection? Enter DI Sasha Dawson and her team from Essex Police to investigate. But can they cut through the noise and peel back the layers to get to the whole truth of the matter, before it's too late?
Ooh this grabbed me from the off and held me captive throughout. Told in the present with flashbacks to the past injected at exactly the right places, it had me running around, chasing my tail as I tried to figure out what in the heck was going on. I didn't! Although I did have an inkling...
There is a lot going on and it does get quite busy but never nothing that I couldn't handle. Yes, as already mentioned I was a bit confused along the way but never frustratingly so. Having read this author before, I trusted that it would all come together nicely at the end and my trust was rewarded; and then some!
The characters were all very well drawn and I connected with the majority from the off. Obviously given their (combined) pasts they are all a bit wounded by what happened and their characters and behaviours were accordingly a bit complex. That said, they all acted well within these criteria.
Sasha is a wee bit stereotypical - juggling work life and personal life - but nothing that distracted me too much from the overall plot. I guess with a series you have to see the bigger picture of what is going on with the series characters and the author did make this element in balance with the investigation going on.
Pacing was as you would expect from a book of this genre but always matching what was going on with the plot. As the investigation stalled, the pace slowed down to reflect the frustration. As it ramped up, well... off we went!
All in all, another winner from Mr Hill - roll on next time. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Twenty six years ago, six children went missing. They were held captive for two weeks. But only five of them made it back out.

Now it's the present day and children are going missing again. They seem to have a connection to the original case. Will the police arrest the culprit before anyone else disappears?

This story is told through a duel time line. In the past we learn what happened twenty six years ago. The presents what's happening now. This is an addictive dark read. I really like the authors style in writing. What a great character DI Sasha Dawson is. She has a chaotic home life but that just made her more human. There is a lot going on in this fast paced police procedural. There are plenty of twists in the plot line. The suspense grows with each turn of the page. This is the first book in a new series that I will definitely be looking out for. I do recommend this book.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Head of Zeus and the author MK Hill for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Twenty years ago a group of teenagers are kidnapped and kept hostage for two weeks Why? What happened to them when they were in captivity? The story is set in two time periods and finally leads upto the fateful night when one of the hostages loses their life. The storyline delves into the impact of what happened to them in later life and how it shaped who they are today. I was hooked from the first page, I could not put this book down. When the truth was finally revealed I was shocked. This book is a real psychological thriller. A tale of before and after which had me gripped, hence I finally turned the last page in the wee hours. Almost five stars and highly recommended.
I would like to thank the author, Head of Zeus and Netgalley for the ARC in return for giving an honest review.

20 years ago, 6 kids were kidnapped and only 5 rescued. Every year they met up for their annual candlelit vigil fir their lost friend Becky, with a condition that none could talk about the past. This year too, they met and one of them witnessed a girl Sammi bring kidnapped. Detective Sasha led the investigation and she had a fine tangled mess to unweave, both from the past and the present.

My first book by author M. K. Hill, I was quite pleasantly surprised that even when it started insidiously, it managed to grip me with its plot. I turned the pages almost feverishly wanting to get to the real truth and what the 5 were hiding.

Told in dual time frames, it gave the feel of never been told, and the author's writing gave it a freshness with the suspense growing till it was the driving force which kept me hooked to the book. The twists and turns were wicked in its onslaught, filling me with unholy glee and excitement that only a well written thriller could only bring.

The group dynamic was cleverly portrayed, the Detective kept the story from slacking. The characters aplenty took me time to get them straightened out in my mind. I needed a book to take me away from real life, and this did the trick. A good innovative story, I would say!!

This was one of those reads that really makes sure to sink it’s claws into you quickly. It kept my attention with the thrills, chills, and disturbing themed, I love the varying timelines, because it makes me feel like I’m getting lots of the complete picture filled. Well written, shocking, and pretty much almost impossible to put down!
Will highly recommend!

The Bad Place is the first book written by M K Hill that I have read and it is an enjoyable and fast paced police procedural.

The storyline links a group of school friends that were kidnapped but where one of them died with spent day abductions.

The author provides many twists and turns whilst also establishing the main characters as this will be the frost book in the series.

My only slight reservation was that there was a little too much time taken up with the family of the main detective and whilst I understand that some of this was necessary for the main storyline I felt it did detract a little.

Overall though this was an enjoyable book and one I would recommend

Switching between past events and the present time this thriller tells the story behind the bar place and the effects event had on the children involved as they are now adults.
A gripping read not quite how I expected it to end but would recommend.

An unusual story line with a great twist in the end. As a reader born in London and always visited Southend on sea as I grew up it was great to have a story based here. Great police team led by Sasha Dawson who has her own family problems. Look forward to more from this author.

The Bad Place by author M.K. Hill is a dark, twisted story! Releasing in September 2019 with full review to come!
Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an arc copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Psychological thrillers are my favorite genre these days and when I read the summary to The Bad Place, I was greatly intrigued before I even started reading! I was captivated throughout the novel and couldn’t wait to read more to see what would happen next. There were enough twists and turns and gotchas to keep you on your toes just when you think you had it all figured out. I liked the different personalities and how the characters interacted together, in the past and present. Easy read, dark, but still a great book!