An absolutely enjoyable crime solving plot, with a fabulous team of investigators. The plot, the characters, the methods of investigation keep you hooked. A page turner that's got everything going for it!

A thrilling third book of a series. I really like this main character and the way it all fits into the suspense genre. The writing is very descriptive and it makes you feel like part of the story.

A really good book, well written.
Captivating storyline, interesting from page one, full of suspense, good pace, smart plot and interesting characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book. This is my honest review. All opinions are my own.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley!!

This was my first book by Thomas Kies. The book was absolutely full of suspense. There were even some twists i didn't see coming.

You won't be disappointed with this book!

Geneva Chase is a crusading journalist who seems to find trouble. She's also got a serious problem with alcohol. Now, her paper's been sold, there's a distinct possibility she's going to lose her job, and the hot story involves a judge and an unnamed woman found dead in a bizarre way. AND, Merlin Finn, a bad guy (bad bad guy) with a fondness for S&M is on the loose. And there are white supremacists and Russian gang guys. Geneva's worked against traffickers in the past and her friend Shana works as dominatrix but is that what this is? Who is Jane Doe? And who the heck has kidnapped Geneva? She spending a lot of time worrying about her job (and her age) but that makes her voice more authentic. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. It's a nicely done thriller. No spoilers.

Graveyard Bay is an all-action thriller which twisted and turned right up to the last chapter. The main character Geneva Chase is a very attractive, hard-drinking, marauding journalist who is on-hand when the gruesome discovery of a murdered judge and another woman is made. Her investigations lead her to believe that the murderer is likely a recently escaped convict with a score to settle but Genie cannot rule out or a villain with whom she has had a previous unpleasant encounter either.

The story is well written and the story unravels at a good pace. The author uses the backdrop of a newspaper takeover to add more drama to the plot, whilst the supporting characters are believable but at the same time some are on the slightly exotic side. There are mild references to torture and some kinky sex but nothing gratuitous.

Overall this was a solid thriller and a very good read.

"Graveyard Bay" picks up two months after the events of "Darkness Lane" (I strongly recommend reading this one first so you can better understand everything that happens in "Graveyard bay". In a shocking first scene we witness how the bodies of a corrupt judge and an unknown woman are found under the waters at Groward Bay chained to the prongs of a forklift (I felt anxious just reading about it). A video points to the Aryan Brotherhood gang leader, recently broken out of prison. Geneva Chase finds herself in the center of a gang war between the Brotherhood and the Russian mob while at the same time she has to cope with the sell of the paper she works for and her struggles with alcohol.

"Graveyard Bay" is a solid thriller that moves along at a good pace. Although it has several subplots, at the end everything ties up nicely (that ending caught me by surprise!). Hoping to see what the future has in store for Genie.

Thanks to Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Poison Pen Press for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review

The fact that this is the third book in the Geneva Chase series and I am two books behind, wasn’t too much of a problem. There are enough references to the back stories, that you can piece together past events. And I genuinely don’t think that the info given will spoil reading the first 2 books if I do read them afterwards. That in itself is a great skill.

The main characters is a stereotypical investigative journalist, hard drinking, cynical sort of person who pushes further than they should, risking their lives. In this instance the journalist is a woman for a change. The other main characters, are well drawn and developed through the story.

Part of the story is that the paper Geneva works for has been bought, and the staff are all wondering if they will still have a job after the Christmas holiday. Kies does a great job creating tension between the old employees and the new owner, who has brought in a new editor. The new editor is,excited by the developing “Graveyard Bay” murder story, as if the torture and murder of two humans is nothing more than a promotional gimmick. It is in these situations that Kies’ background as a journalist shines through. As he obviously knows the workings and pressures of a newsroom.

This is not a book for the faint of heart. (Not many Crime stories are!) The author does hold back a lot of the detail of the gruesome murders, but there is more than enough detail to convey the message and let your imagination fill in the blanks Maybe this is more shocking, letting the reader decide for themselves what happened?

Overall this is a terrific story full of twists, tension, some horrific murders and a cynical but cheeky journalist. The book moves along at a good pace and is easy to follow despite the many different paths explored. I said at the beginning that this was my first book in the Geneva Chase series. It will not be my last.

This was book three in the Geneva Chase series, but the first one I’ve read. Other than an one or two who-is-THAT? references to characters from previous novels, I wasn’t confused. This works as a standalone.

This is not a book for the faint of heart. While Kies refrains from giving salacious details of the gruesome murders, even the bare-bones version makes me shiver. There’s also a tour (of sorts) in a torture chamber. So if that will be an issue for you, you might want to skip this one. But most people who read current crime thrillers won’t be overly shocked.

Kies’ background as a journalist shines. It’s obvious he knows the ins-and-outs of a newsroom, the constant pressure of deadlines, and the often-chaotic world of journalism. In high school, I briefly entertained the notion of becoming a journalist myself, and reading Graveyard Bay was both a trip down memory lane to the newsroom of my hometown’s newspaper and a good reminder of why I didn’t choose that career path.

Geneva’s newspaper has just been bought by Galley Media. All the Sheffield Post employees are tense, wondering if they’re going to lose their job shortly after the Christmas holiday. Kies does a great job creating tension between the old employees and the new owner, who has brought in a new editor. The editor, Lorraine, is thrilled by the developing “Graveyard Bay” murder story. The “nastier the death, the better the ink,” she proclaims to Geneva (chapter 8), as if the torture and murder of two humans is nothing more than a promotional gimmick.

The question of whether Geneva will be able to stand this new, cutthroat editor rumbles in the background throughout the book.

Geneva is a flawed but interesting and sympathetic character. Her career has almost been derailed by her excessive drinking. (The pressures of work, perhaps?) Others think she’s drunk herself out of other decent jobs. Even her retiring boss, Ben, reminds her that he took a chance on her.

But while her drinking is clearly a problem, it doesn’t dominate her personality. She’s a darned good investigator. She is also worried about being 40; she constantly compares her age to those around her, wondering if everyone in the newsroom is younger than her, and feeling a bit threatened when her ex-boyfriend dates a younger woman. Not that she’ll admit to feeling threatened, of course!

Geneva is a complex character. I really enjoyed reading her “voice” on the page. She’s a hard-nosed cynic with a cheeky side. Her catty thoughts about the new editor, Lorraine, are snarky and funny. But she also cares deeply for her “daughter” Caroline.

In the past, she’s worked with a shadowy organization called Friends of Lydia, which works to free people from trafficking, and two of these “friends” appear in Graveyard Bay. Though she never says it, she maintains her ties to John and Shana partially because she cares about women in trafficking.

This is a twist-filled journey that takes Geneva to some strange places. A torture chamber. A dominatrix’s workplace. An isolated house guarded by a man with an AR-15. A pill mill. An alley outside a drug dealer’s house. Like I said, it’s not for the faint of heart.

The one thing that diminished my enjoyment was the S&M references. I understand that Kies (through Geneva) is highlighting the difference between what Shana, a dominatrix, does for a living and what happens in the torture chamber; one is for pleasure between consenting adults, and the other is for one person to inflict main on another. I also understand that the details into Shana’s profession and background are partially to develop her character.

But this part of the storyline seemed distracting, as though it didn’t quite fit into the overall story. Frankly, it didn’t interest me nearly as much as the investigation into the murders and the area’s opium epidemic.

Overall, though, this was a good novel. I thoroughly enjoyed reading Geneva’s opinions and I would read another book in this series. 4 stars

(Note: This review will be posted to my blog on August 30, 2019: https://meredithrankin.com/graveyard-bay-thomas-kies/ )

This is the third book in the Geneva Chase series and I am two books behind! In all seriousness though, there is sufficient information in this third instalment that you can piece together past events that do not negatively impact the reading of this third book. It might be helpful if you want to know a little more about Geneva and her history to go back and read the other two before starting on this one, if you are so inclined.

Geneva is a reporter/editor for a newspaper that has recently been taken over by a large conglomerate, that at the outset no-one knows much about. Geneva knows she's not going to be happy about it as she's already heard on the grapevine she'll be back on the crime beat. It is, however what Geneva is good at. Chasing down leads, networking are her primary skill set. Her secondary skills set appears to be drinking almost daily, and sabotaging most of her personal relationships. She also appears to have a knack for finding herself in dangerous situations - perhaps reflective of some of the company she keeps.

In this instalment Geneva investigates the murder of a local corrupt judge and a female "companion" who both died a brutal death. Geneva has a number of potential persons of interest - a couple of Russian brothers, as well as a white supremacist group known as the Brotherhood are the front-runners. Geneva has crossed paths with them at various times and they all pose a great risk, not least of all to Geneva herself.

Geneva is a prickly character who clearly has her own personal demons she is battling with. However she has a quick mind and wit, and a strong sense of social justice. She also has a mother's protective instinct towards her dead husband's daughter, now 15. It is this relationship, and the potential of romance with a professional acquaintance John, that allows a glimpse of a softer side of Geneva. You wonder if the soft underbelly Geneva exposes will be her undoing at some point ...

Geneva and John work together until Geneva is kidnapped. Who is behind it all and will Geneva make it out alive?

This book has all the ingredients for success. An identifiable lead character with some human fragilities, badass villains, and some characters that you are yet to figure out. The plot is good and the ending was good as well, leaving room for further novels. There are some S&M links in here that just seem a bit gratuitous and maybe there for the shock value and I think this is the area that misses the mark for me - it's adding too much to the plot and in my opinion the less is more.

Thank you to Poison Press, Sourcebooks, and Netgalley for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I tended towards four stars for this book but it wasn't quite there as I have read some awesome thrillers lately..

This was the first book I’ve read by this author and it pulled me in from the very beginning. It was a quick easy read that kept me guessing until the very end.

Thank you to Net Galley for the advanced review copy in exchange for this honest review

A thoroughly great read and my first from this author. The twists and turns are great along with the work and personal relationships between the main characters. I didn’t see how it concluded coming - a real page turner and I didn’t want to put it down.

Two bodies are found under the icy, black waters at Groward Bay Marina, chained to the prongs of a mammoth fork lift. The bodies turn out to be from a judge and a Jane Doe. A videotape from the marina points to Merlin Finn, a ruthless gang leader with a proclivity for bondage and S&M who had recently broken out of prison.

Geneva Chase is a reporter with good connections with the cops. And being one of the first on the scene, she starts to investigates the pill mills, crooked doctors, and a massive money laundering scheme in an attempt to identify the murdered woman and find the killer. Along the way, she finds herself working with a disgraced New York cop and a host of other unlikely characters with ties to the criminal underworld.

Geneva is clearly hot on the killer’s trail, but when she is kidnapped and held at the mercy of the criminals she hoped to stop, it looks like her chance to uncover the darkness that has seeped through her hometown may be lost forever.

What did I think?
This digital copy was provided to me by Netgalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Although I have never read a book by this writer before, and therefore not in this series, it was not a difficult story to follow. There are some references to previous events, but nothing that prevents you from reading this story by itself.

The writing style is pleasant and was also very easy to read. Maybe even a little too easy. For me there was little challenge in the writing style and occasionally it could have been a bit more extensive.

The main character, Genie, is put down well, although it is all a bit too easy for her. Personally, I find her alcoholism to be very disconcerting. As if addictions are not all that bad and as long as you function it will work out well.

It was not a bad book, and certainly entertaining as a in-between story. But I don’t think I’ll soon pick up another book from this writer.

Just the kind of book I like. It was in beautiful setting with flawed characters and fast paced plot.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book

A rather formulaic investigative murder of a corrupt judge, a young woman, with gang murders, prison escapes, money laundering and bondage all added into the mix. The chief characters is a stereotypical investigative journalist, hard smoking, drinking, sorry sort of person who delves too deeply where they shouldn't and almost dies as a result. The only difference is that said journalist is female for once. Characters certainly well drawn and described but plot did not push the right buttons for me. As the third in a series with this character, I'm not looking to read the others I'm afraid. Thanks to NetGalley and Poison Pen Press for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Journalist Geneva Green fears losing her job after the paper she works for is sold. Salvation comes in the unlikely form of the bizarre and ritualistic killings of a judge and an unknown young woman. With the murders being linked to gang violence, drug running and money laundering, Geneva is determined to write a story so good, she’ll be in demand by every news agency. Of course nothing goes that simply and Geneva learns that pursuing this story may get her name in the papers, but it may be in the obituaries