The second Maggie Novak thriller and I fully enjoyed the ride. Heaps of twist and turns to keep you hooked. A great read. Thanks tot he publisher and netgalley for the arc.

I truly don't recall too much from the first Maggie Novak book, but I absolutely LOVED this book! Once I started listening to it, I didn't want to stop! I just HAD to find out what happened!

Maggie Novak is a lone wolf homicide detective. But when she receives a phone call telling her that her teammate, Detective Clayton Young is missing, Novak doesn't stop until she gets the answers they all deserve, even when it means looking in to uncomfortable matters, and pointing the finger at ones that shouldn't be pointed at!

There was a few very good last-minute twists and turns that really made this story awesome! I enjoyed every moment, from begging to end.

The narrator was an excellent choice for this book!

Now I can't wait until Book #3!

#NetGalley #A Place Called Fear #Amazon Publishing UK

A Place Called Fear by Keith Houghton is the second book in the Maggie Novak series. Maggie is a homicide detective in Florida. A fellow detective goes missing after a late night run to the store for milk and is later found dead in his car. The initial thought is that this was a suicide or was it? Maggie and her partner Loomis are running the investigation and soon find that they really don't know their coworkers and can not trust them. I love a story that keeps me guessing and this one definitely did that. I have already downloaded the first book in the series to go back and read the beginning of this series and I look forward to reading future books.

Elevator pitch:

An explosive locked-room/car mystery for a tenacious female detective
Read/Skip:

Read!

A Place called Fear is the second Maggie Novak I read in two months, and it may be even better than Don't Even Breathe. Both books get off to a great start, with a killer premise. An unsolvable riddle that keeps you turning the page. In A Place called Fear, it is almost a Sherlock Holmes-like; a cop dies in a confined space, his car, and manages to kill and wound other people in the process. The explanation seems cut and dry; still, there has to be a story, even if you can look to figure it out, till the impossible start making sense. Like the previous Maggie Novak thriller, A Place called Fear ends with a terrific highstakes action sequence. The rest of the story is almost Connelly-like in a good way. Keith Houghton describes the investigation in the same fluid, relentless, and convincing style.
Florida homicide detective Maggie Novak doesn't sleep much. Her personal life is reduced to snippets at the beginning and end of the book, so not many interruptions in the flow of the story—Maggie is just a hell of an investigating machine. That always hooks me. There are a few chapters from the POV of the one responsible for the explosive consequence of the cop's suicide; (I'm trying not to give away too much.) Fortunately, even if these are superfluous and I hope thriller writers would stop interspersing already great stories with them, luckily in this case, these are few and brief. All the attention is on Maggie chasing the case just like I like my procedural— and she is dogged and smart as they come. The kind of detective that has a long life ahead of her in fiction, if she manages to survive all the genuinely dreadful people she encounters. One side note, once, the conclusion has a 'gay character is screwed up' theme. What is going on with all these books referring to this antiquated notion? Back in Patricia Highsmith's times, it was understandable, but in 2020? But that is the only nitpick I have.

The gist:

When het colleague Detective Clayton Young goes missing on New Year's Eve, homicide detective Maggie Novak tracks him down to the nearby Wallmart, where he was last seen. After checking the monitors inside, she finds his car in the parkinglot and watches a muzzle flash go off on screen. Disturbed, she runs to the car, and when she arrives there, mayhem ensues. Together with her partner Loomis, Maggie tries to piece together her colleague's last days, trying to understand what could drive Clayton to this senseless act a few moments before the clock turned twelve.

a Place Called Fear is a excellent mystery with a entertaining storyline. It is well written and has great characters. Great twists.

I received an advanced reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

What a gripping read this is!
A new cop thriller series that is fast paced and full of twists and turns and with a killer I never guessed at until they were revealed.
I love the main character Maggie's character in this series and cant wait to read more about her and more in this gripping, upcoming series.

Maggie Novak Is enjoying New Years' Eve when she receives a phone call from a co-workers wife asking about her husband. Where has he disappeared to? A murder happens and Maggie has to solve it. It is unlike other murders because this involves a co-worker. This makes her questioning her colleagues and what their role in the murder.
I really enjoy this series. Descriptions make me feel like I am there at the locations.

I received this book from NetGalley - it is the second in the Maggie Novak series. Maggie is a homicide detective and at the beginning of the story she is enjoying NYE when a call about a colleague turns everything she thinks she knows about her team mates on its head.
I did not feel at a disadvantage having not read the first novel in the series. and I would say I would like to read more.
if you like detective novels with a fast pace and likeable characters then this is one for you. I also loved it is set in one of my favourite places to visit

I'm glad that i came across 'A Place Called Fear' as it was such an enjoyable book, full of twists. It didn't matter that this was the second book in the Maggie Novak thrillers, but i do hope to read the first book at some stage. I rarely write what a story is about as i prefer one to read the book for themselves, but i do recommend.

My thanks to Netgalley and the Publishers for my copy. This is my honest review, which i have voluntarily given.

(Waiting for Amazon to publish my review).

This is book two in the Maggie Novak series, I hadn’t read book one, but this is easy to read as a stand-alone novel, there were a couple of references to something that had happened at Halloween, which I assume was to do with book one, but in no way affected reading this book.

I loved Maggie and her relationship with her partner Loomis, I think each would take a bullet for the other if it came down to it, they worked well together. New Year’s Eve Steve Kinsey, Maggie’s boyfriend proposes to her, you never know what her reply was at the time, she still seems to be thinking of it later in the story, it didn’t seem to me he is the one for her, but I guess time will tell.

Who rents the storage units? What for? Maggie gets calls from Sasha Young wife of a colleague of Maggie’s, Clay, he had gone out for chocolate milk and not returned. The following morning when Maggie is on a run she gets a call saying he still isn’t back, so she goes to the store to see if they have CCTV, they watch Clay buy his milk, then leave for his car, when watching the car Maggie notices a flash, she runs out of the store to Clay’s car, he has just shot himself. From then on it’s all action stations as the drama ramps up.

Messages on Clays phone, what is his partner Andy Stucker hiding? He’s not very forthcoming with information, and seems to know more than he is letting on. Was Clay having an affair? Was he in debt? So many questions and so few answers. Who goes to buy chocolate milk and then shoots them self. Maggie is determined to get to the bottom of things.

This is a well plotted book, a good read with relatable and likeable characters, if you like a police procedural then you will enjoy this, some great dialogue. I am now looking forward to book 3, and have already purchased book one to read.

Thank you to #netgalley and #amazonpublishing for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest, fair and unbiased review.

This book took a little while to get me hooked. It was off to a slow start and I wasn't sure if I would make it through. But then the action kicked in about 15 percent in and what a wild ride it was. Plenty of suspense and an amazing twist ending. Great read

A well written police procedural with great characters. The procedures are a little strange, and the plot is based largely on this, and that's not good. But the book is very good entertainment.

Fast Paced action that had me tapping my kindle faster and faster. Tension and suspense which had me sat on the edge of my seat and constantly holding my breath. A hit list and several killers. A thriller which had me glued to my seat reading it in one sitting and finally turned the last page in the wee hours. A real rollercoaster of a read. A very happy reader and almost five stars.
I would like to thank the author, publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in return for giving an honest review.

This is the first book I have read by Keith Houghton and it won't be the last.
Great writing, grabs you from the beginning - the author doesn't really give much away
So when all the twists and turns start to unravel
You have a very unexpected ending that you will not see coming.

ThAnk you netgalley, Keith Houghton and Amazon publishing for allowing me to read and review this book.

Gripping thriller in the Maggie Novak series

I enjoyed the first book in this series DON'T EVEN BREATHE but enjoyed this second installment even more.

It's two months after the events in the first book and Maggie and her boyfriend are at a New Year's Eve party. She's had a bit much to drink and has a hard time comprehending a phone call she receives from another Homicide Detective's wife, asking her to look into the possible disappearance of her husband who headed to the store to get milk.

She ends up forgetting the call until the next morning when she's called in to help look for the detective.

This book moved much more smoothly than the first one. It was still a bit out there but I enjoyed it.

Maggie ends up getting into all kinds of dangerous situations and is trying to come to grips with her relationship with her boyfriend.

This was a fast-paced exciting thriller that I thoroughly enjoyed.

I received this book from Amazon Publishing through Net Galley in the hopes that I would read it and leave an unbiased review.

Maggie is a homicide detective in Florida. When one of her fellow detectives goes missing on a late night run to the store for milk, and she is called upon to investigate. Her co worker is soon found, it seems he has committed suicide in his car in the store parking lot, or not...

This book keeps you in suspense all through. The main character is a very believable detective. This was a real page-turner and didn't disappoint.

Well written and I didn't see that coming at all (the end) . I loved the twists

A really good easy read. This is the second book in what is looking to be a great series. There are good solid characters and plenty of action. Police investigating police is a storyline with a few shocks and a lot of suspense.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

This fast-paced, action-packed read is literally crammed with non-stop tension. In places I could barely breathe so terrified was I for homicide detective Maggie Novak. She’s investigating the death of a fellow officer and friend, Clay Young, and right from the very start things start getting particularly dangerous for her.
I thoroughly enjoyed being dragged into the action and could literally visualise some of the more terrifying scenes playing out in front of me, as though I were watching a movie.
Maggie is fabulous. She’s no-nonsense and incredibly brave (foolishly so at times). She is also soft-hearted and empathetic, with a complicated love life to sort out. I’d have her on my team any day, as well as her loveable partner, Loomis.
I didn’t even begin to suspect how everything would play out in A Place called Fear. It was thoroughly enjoyable and gripping, and the characters and dialogue were great. I really look forward to meeting Maggie and the team again.

Just started reading book if the rest of the book is like the beginning it should be a very read. Looking forward to the rest of the chapters will review the rest when I've finished the book

Loved this book. It was gripping with a great story. The twists and turns kept coming and I just wanted to keep reading to find out what had happened. Highly recommend.