When wealthy mother of two Ella gets stabbed in broad daylight during her jog through the park, the police suspect involvement by a gang on the local Beacon estate. The following morning, Beacon resident Keira Bradley is stabbed to death. Are the cases linked or just random acts of violence?

This is the second DI Kelly Porter book I’ve read, and I enjoyed it just as much as the first one. The story flowed well, keeping up a steady pace throughout, and the ending when it came was a good one. It was unusual in that the identities of the killers was known from an early point, but their motives and the characters in the background only became clearer as the story progressed. I did find myself confused at one point in the build up to the final showdown, but overall a very enjoyable story.

Little Doubt is a cracking addition to Rachel Lynch's series featuring DI Kelly Porter, set in the Lake District, on the notorious Beacon Estate.

When Ella Watson is stabbed to death whilst out jogging in a Penrith park, DI Kelly Porter and her team are perplexed as there appears to be no motive. Later the same day, Keira Bradley is also stabbed, though this time the crime takes place on the Beacon Estate. Kelly is put in charge of both investigations. These cases are made more complicated by her boss, who is friendly with the Watsons and is at pains to protect his own reputation. The Beacon Estate is dominated by gangs who are naturally feared by the residents. There is also a long standing mistrust of the police. Kelly has the unenviable task of attempting to win over their trust in order to uncover the truth, a task that may well prove insurmountable.

This is a series where the subplot concerning Kelly's personal life is equally as compelling as the ongoing investigations, and although it isn't essential to have read all of the previous books, it helps to get a better feel for the characters and their motivations.

Rachel Lynch masterfully adds depth to the story by exploring a variety of themes that often heavily affect teenagers: the need to belong, drugs, alcohol, bullying, obsessions. Kelly is smart, capable and honest, with the same worries that plague many of us: fear of being thought incompetent, and losing her job. Kelly is a tireless and determined investigator who puts everything she has in her mission to get justice for the victims.

Little Doubt is a gripping, page-turning story of the highest quality. The tension increases steadily and though many things are intentionally revealed throughout, the final chapters are still filled with plenty of excitement and danger. The familiar protagonists are present but there is greater involvement from the new and secondary characters that are integral to the current investigations. I am looking forward to reading book #8, Lost Cause: An addictive and gripping crime thriller as there are some indications of change in Little Doubt.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel, at my request, from Canelo via NetGalley and this review is my own unbiased opinion.

Another excellent addition to this cracking series. Two woman are knifed to death but their circumstances and lives could not be different, and so begins a brilliantly clever plot. Kelly, just back from a relaxing vacation in Florida with Johnny, is plunged straight into the deep with these crimes but soon learns that her biggest problems are very close to home! Those on whom she has come to and should be able to, rely on, may just but her undoing and the end of her career as she knows it. Explosive main plot and boy oh boy the subplots. Epic stuff and then- the ending!
Suffice to say things will never be the same again!

I love reading this series it better with each book. Once i started reading i couldn't put it down. Looking forward to reading more in the future

Another great novel in the DI Kelly Porter series by Rachel Lynch. Very topical, in the days of knife crime, the story of two women from very different social backgrounds, stabbed to death by the same gang. Set around the Beacon Estate on the edge of Penrith, an estate where knife crime, drugs and abuse are an everyday occurrence. Di Porter has her work cut out solving these two crimes, but also corruption within her own team and at the top ranks.
An engrossing read with twists and turns, and another well written, well researched book. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book, it is a series that I really enjoy. Believable characters and stories.

When a local woman is brutally stabbed to death, there is a great deal of shock amongst the Lake District community. The death of another girl in a similar fashion does not command the same level of outrage, however, due to the difference in their social standing, and DI Kelly Porter faces a wall of silence as she tries to uncover the truth. When she begins to unearth a much larger conspiracy, the detective knows that she must put her job on the line if she is to see justice served.

This is a series that I have enjoyed since the first installment and I think I can safely say that this, the seventh book, is by far my favourite. With knife crime on the up, Rachel Lynch has written a very topical book, and one that highlights how this is not just a problem of the big cities. It was easy to see why witnesses were not forthcoming, with fear of reprisals being at the forefront of their minds. I am sure that there are some people who will read this book and will draw comparisons to an estate or area that they know.

For those who have watched the television series, there is a definite ‘Line of Duty’ feel to parts of this book, with Kelly realising that she cannot trust everyone who is supposed to be on the right side of the law. By introducing police corruption to the plot, we get to see a different side of Kelly as she realises that due to her integrity, matters may be taken out of her hands as she not only battles to solve the case, but finds herself fighting against those supposedly helping her to solve it.

One of the themes that I enjoyed most about Little Doubt, was how we get to see the best of people in the worst of circumstances. The mother of Keira Bradley, the murdered girl, was the epitome of a strong woman, going against the grain in order to bring order to her lawless estate.

Little Doubt is a fantastic book, with numerous plots that all converge to create a clever, gripping, topical story. One of my favourite reads of the year so far.

My thanks to Canelo for their invitation to receive an eARC via NetGalley of ‘Little Doubt’ by Rachel Lynch in exchange for an honest review.

This is the seventh in Lynch’s popular series of police procedurals set in the Lake District featuring D.I. Kelly Porter. Last February I read ‘Bitter Edge’, the fourth in the series, and enjoyed it very much. I was amazed that two more books in the series have been published in the interim!

This opens with a shocking crime when Ella Watson is stabbed to death in broad daylight. Later the same day Keira Bradley is also stabbed, though her death takes place on the notorious Beacon Estate. While Ella’s murder is big news, Kiera’s is considered just another statistic in a dangerous place.

DI Kelly Porter is put in charge of both investigations. This task is complicated by her boss, who is friends with the Watsons as well as eager to protect his reputation. The Beacon housing estate is dominated by gangs and its residents both fear them and have a long standing distrust of the police. Porter has to win their trust to uncover the truth, a task that may well prove impossible.

This was again a very solid police procedural that unflinchingly addresses the very important issue of knife crime as well as that of how murder victims from different classes are often treated. At one point Kelly reflects on “the Yorkshire Ripper case, when the victims weren’t taken seriously due to their immoral activities as supposed prostitutes.”

I was pleased to read on the Canelo website that the eighth book in the series, ‘Lost Cause’, is due to be published in August 2020. Meanwhile, I have the rest of the series awaiting my attention on my Kindle.

A double homicide and a dirty cop? Love how Rachel Lynch approaches each of these police procedurals with unique vigor. This is the seventh book in the series and Lynch is not slowing down or offering any redundancy. The plot is tight and held together with several strong characters. Always a reliable and intriguing series!

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC of #LittleDoubt, which was read and reviewed voluntarily.

Another great addition to the series. This was a fast paced, taut mystery. It has very realistic characters and dealt with timely issues. It held my interest throughout and I'm looking to reading more

Rachel Lynch returns to top form in this latest DI Kelly Porter offering which is is a happy return to good old-fashioned crime and the police procedural grind of catching criminals. As ever, Kelly Porter’s friends and the wider cast in the local detective community play solid and well-constructed roles in a narrative that maintains a satisfying pace and leads to a denouement that should not disappoint readers. Again, the reader familiar with Cumbria and the particular corner where most action unfolds has to suspend a little disbelief, given the number of murders and other serious crimes that have been committed there in a very short space of time. But, hey, if it’s good enough for Midsomer Murders and the Oxford of Morse and Endeavour any complaints would be unreasonably nitpicking.

In addition to the way in which Ms Lynch spins her tale around the seemingly random murder of an innocent jogger the narrative explores subtle themes around the importance of policing with consent whilst tackling serious anti-social behaviour in addition to a serious case of police corruption harking back to an earlier novel in the series. Overall a good read you’re unlikely to want to put down.

Another excellent Kelly Porter book! Little doubt is fast paced and tightly written. It deals with two disturbing aspects of youth culture - knife crime and county lines, so is totally topical.
DI Porter has to solve two murders and to do so without the support of her boss. In fact Superintendent Neil Ormond seems intent on removing her from the investigation. Kelly realises that something is not right in the Cumbrian police force and needs to work out exactly who she can trust.
As always the characters are believable and the action is well plotted.

Another excellent novel from Rachel Lynch with Detective Inspector Kelly Porter and her team based in the Lake District. This is the seventh book in the series and already I can't wait for the next instalment. This book involves gang culture, knife crime and county lines drug dealing which at present is being reported daily on the television news and media and is story telling which is right up to date with the present. Ella Watson a wealthy housewife is going for a run in a park in Penrith, little does she realise that it will be her last. She is stabbed by two assailants, one stab wound to the abdomen which severs the aorta and the other to her thigh which severs her femoral artery, she has no chance of survival. She is wearing expensive jewellery and still has her iPhone when discovered so robbery as a motive is ruled out very quickly. Detective Inspector Kelly Porter and her team commence the investigation and no sooner are they started when a second fatal stabbing takes place, this time the victim is Keira Bradley, a young woman from the opposite end of the wealth scale. Kelly now has two murders to solve but is being pushed by her superior Detective Superintendent Neil Ormond to concentrate on the wealthy victim.

Thanks to Netgalley and Francesca Riccardi of Canelo Publishing for a widget in exchange for an honest review.

As great as her personal life is going at the moment, DI Kelly Porter definitely has some issues at work in the series latest installment. Upon her return from an amazing trip to Florida with Johnny, the death of a middle-class woman and mother of two has Kelly's boss breathing down her neck and threatening Kelly with termination. But as another woman is found murdered, tensions mount between the citizens and the police, Kelly is forced to confront secrets on her own team? Are these murders gang-related or is Kelly close to a massive cover-up?

I read this one much like the others-in one sitting. I was pretty satisfied with the overall storyline and appreciated the cliffhanger that Kelly is given. I am very interested in how everything is going to turn out for Kelly, Johnny, Ted, and Josie. Perhaps Kelly will finally reunite with her sister?

Goodreads review published 03/03/20
Expected publication 05 /03/20

DI Kelly Porter works in the Lake District but this novel is largely set in a sink estate on the edge of Penrith where drugs, gangs and knife crime are the order of the day. Ella,a well off white woman is murdered while running in a park and a delinquent teenager murdered at almost the same time on the estate. Kelly investigates and suspects the brothers who run the local gangs must be involved. as events unfold she starts to wonder if her boss could be a wrong'un. Ella's teenage son complicates matters by trying to get involved in order to be able to avenge his Mum. Its a pacey story which builds to an exciting conclusion.

Not read any of this author before and found this novel interesting well thought out and well written but I do beg to differ on what the author classes as middle-class as one knife crime was done on a well to do mother whose husband retired early on his own business profits and has all the best, house cars gadgets and even the children go to private school, was classed as middle-class now I would say, high class, now on the council estate another bad knife crime took place and they were also called middle-class, but the way the people acted many on benefits, drugs knife crime and theft in abundance I would put down a lower class, but apart from that the author did a good job at bringing about the amount ofknife crimes and where they can take place not always in the big cities, but anywhere, adding to that, a good detective who has empathy to both classes, and tries her hardest at solving both crimes as they took part in the same vicinity, but was constantly harassed by her boss to bring about the solution to Emma the well todo lady and to put the onus on the estate, doesn't matter that another young girl lost her life, why? Kelly the detective is not sure what is going on as her boss is at her constantly to bring about closure to the family. Kelly does have her work cut out and she does have a good team but something is not right she can feel it, will not give anything away as it's well worth a read. and I must thank Canelo for an advanced copy to read and review and would certainly try another read from this author

This is the seventh DI Kelly Porter book, and this time there is no beautiful Lake District backdrop. This time we visit the rundown Beacon Estate in Penrith. It is run by gangs and drug use and knife crime are the norm.

Kelly is investigating the fatal stabbings is 2 women - one a wealrhy mother of 2 and the other a teenager from the Beacon Estate.  She also has to fight corruption in the highest echelons of the force, and perhaps also in her own unit.

Rachel Lynch has written a superbly plotted police procedural dealing with the very topical problem of knife crime. The story is intense and gritty and had me holding my breath a few times. The character of Kelly Porter is likeable and very believable. I love her back story, and all her family members who we are getting to know more about as the series progresses. I also loved the character of Sharon Bradley.

The book ended on a bit of a cliffhanger which has made me desperate to read the next in the series. 5 well deserved stars from me!

Beautiful, wealthy, housewife Ella is stabbed to death while jogging in a Penrith park. It's not far from the notorious Beacon Estate. Soon afterwards, gang girl Keira is knifed to death on the estate. Are the deaths gang related, abd are they linked? DI Kelly Porter is assigned to both. Superintendent Neil Ormond, knows the dead woman's husband and makes it clear to Kelly that he's in overall charge.

A gritty police procedural. The story flows well and twists a little towards the end. Recommended, whether as one of a series, or to be read standalone.

Sometimes a murder can appear to be completely random. Or is it? DI Kelly Porter faces exactly that dilemma in 'Little Doubt'.
Rachel Lynch provides a second murder to further complicate matters for the DI whose task is even further complicated by consistently being undermined by her superior.
This is ideal reading if you're looking for a detective murder story that doesn't shy away from being reasonably gritty whilst providing enough emotional baggage to make the characters believable.

Thank you to Canelo and NetGalley for this copy in exchange for an honest opinion.

A medium paced police procedural that could have done well with lesser number of pages. The middle part was pulling the tempo of the book down. 3.5 stars

When two women are stabbed to death DI Kelly Porter has two cases to deal with but the women come from different backgrounds & whilst she fights to treat each case equally she comes across prejudice within the force. Ella Watson was a woman of wealth and status whereas Keira Bradley lived on the notorious Beacon Estate.

Kelly puts everything she has into finding justice for both victims. The only thing she hadn’t anticipated was a traitor in the ranks. When the evidence points to someone in her team, Kelly has to put feelings aside and work the case no matter where it leads.
This is the seventh book in this brilliant series & is another engrossing, compelling read. I love Kelly & eagerly await each new book & I'm not disappointed. Well researched, well written, strong characters & a storyline that keeps you on the edge of your seat. There are plenty of twists as Kelly & her team track down the murderer.
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read