It’s hard to believe but Killing Mind is already the twelfth (12th!!!!) instalment in the Kim Stone series. By now, you’re probably thinking a long-running series like this must have lost its shine. You’d be awfully wrong. Angela Marsons is here to show you that a series need never grow stale. This latest addition is every bit as fresh as the very first book in the series and that is no mean feat. It does however mean that I ran out of words to describe the awesomeness of these books a long time ago.

DI Kim Stone is called to the flat of Samantha Brown, a young woman who’s been found with her throat cut and a knife in her hand. With no signs of forced entry or a struggle, there is little else to do but for this tragic death to be ruled a suicide. But DI Kim Stone’s spidey senses are tingling. Is it too late, though? Has vital evidence been lost? When a second body is found, it seems all roads lead to Unity Farm.

Unity Farm is an idyllic retreat, offering its residents an alternative way of life. There is a variety of classes, like meditation and reiki, and a sense of community that seems to appeal to quite a lot of people. But something is lurking behind the retreat’s pretty walls.

There are a few things that get me excited as soon as I spot them in a book description. Boarding schools, for instance, will get me every time. This time around, another setting that makes me stand up and pay attention from the get-go. Cults! Killing Mind offers the reader a fascinating insight into how these cults operate and it never failed to keep me utterly enthralled. It seems it should be easy for an outsider to pick up on the signs but what if you’re vulnerable or struggling? How easy is it for those who prey on the vulnerable to pull new members in? To woo them? To indoctrinate them, to manipulate them and to somehow instil this fear in them that the outside world is just no place for them to be? And as a parent, whose child has found themselves in the clutches of cult life, how far would you go to get your child out of there?

As for the team, all hail the return of Tiffany, aka Tink. What a delight to see this superduper enthusiastic energiser bunny again. I for one would absolutely love for her to become a permanent member of the team because it’s just so easy to imagine her getting on someone’s nerves. Penn has finally shaken off the “intruder syndrome”. He’s settled in and he definitely deserves to be where he’s at. Even if that other desk still looks a bit weird. (Therapy still available for those who know what I’m talking about.) As for Stacey, she’s somewhat distracted by her upcoming wedding. But mostly by food. Or the lack thereof.

Meanwhile, Bryant isn’t quite himself either as he finds himself distracted too, by an old case that has haunted him since his early beginnings on the force. Standing guard over the mutilated body of a murdered fifteen year old girl, Bryant vowed he’d do whatever he could to make sure her killer would never be able to hurt anyone again. But all these years later, the murderer is up for parole and Bryant has a bad feeling about it all. I often truly felt for him but this was also an excellent way to get to know him even better.

I’m sure you can tell there’s quite a lot going on in Killing Mind and I was completely gripped by it all. I do so enjoy it when there isn’t just one case to focus on in a story. There’s always a brilliant balance between the professional and the private lives of the various members as well. We know these characters, yet it also still feels like there is much more to discover about them. In these crazy times, Killing Mind was the perfect medicine for me. An escape from reality, a chance to sink deep into a story and forget everything around me for a few hours. It hasn’t been an easy thing for books to do these last few months, but Killing Mind managed it effortlessly.

The DI Kim Stone is a hugely popular series for a reason. Many people, including myself, eagerly await the next instalments. As is evidenced by the enormous pre-orders every new book racks up. Killing Mind is another gripping, compelling and addictive addition to the series. I often say I need to leave a few series behind because I can’t keep up with all of them but you can rest assured that the DI Kim Stone series will never be one of them. As long as Angela Marsons keeps writing them, I’ll keep reading them!

If you’re a fan, you’ll love this one. If you’re new to the series, trust me, you have such a fabulous time ahead of you! Do try and catch up and join the rest of us, as we once more count down the months to the next DI Kim Stone book!

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If you haven't entered the world of DI Kim Stone, you're definitely missing one of the best detective series around. The stories keep getting better as the installments continue and this one is immensely satisfying when Kim and her team tackle an unusual situation.

The body of a young woman is found in her bare, impersonal apartment, throat slit, and initially ruled an apparent suicide. When Kim looks closer at the crime scene photos, the manner is changed to murder. Then, another body is found with similar wounds and the victims both found to have a link to a commune known as Unity Farm in nearby Wolverley. It's established that the place is really some sort of cult and Kim sends in a young PC named Tiffany Moore to find out what's going on in the highly secretive place that is now home to over 100 people. NO SPOILERS.

I started this later on today and couldn't put it down. The regular team is all back and I really like all of them so it feels more like a family reunion to catch up with everyone. Kim is a unique character, yes she has her personal demons and a great backstory, and I really like her no-nonsense personality. She treats her colleagues well and they respect her. As they all work toward figuring out what happened to the victims, there is also another issue that Bryant is dealing with. I do love good moral ambiguity! All of the research done by the author on the topic of cults was quite illuminating and very interesting. I thrououghly enjoy this episode and can't wait for the next.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this e-book ARC to read, review and recommend. If you want to read this one, do yourself a favor and start at the beginning.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Another great book! I have read every single book by the author and they are pretty much all 4 or 5 stars.

Great characters, short, snappy chapters, always keeps you guessing.

Only dropped a star due to the Kane & Sheila story lines which I didn’t like and a section part way through that was overly descriptive at the farm.

Otherwise highly recommended.

Twelve.

Publishing one book is huge. Committing to a series is massive. The pressure is crushing, the timelines don’t allow any mistakes, the characters need to evolve but remain those readers have fallen for, plots involve more and more elements as the web expands.

Angela Marsons has been the captain of the Kim Stone series for twelve books.

Well, my captain, your sailing force is as strong as ever!

I was so excited to be reunited with Kim and her team that I didn’t register straight away that the book opened on a simple case of suicide to confirm. It sounded like a good place to start a new book – something simple to give time to say hi to characters who are dear to me. But nothing is simple in the Kim Stone series.

A troubled Bryant, a detail from the family of the deceased young woman, and soon another body on the board… No doubt, I was in for another big Kim ride.

No one is perfect, not even our main protagonist. If Angela Marsons has shown us over and over again how perfectly imperfect Kim Stone is, those first chapters focusing on an apparent suicide reminded me that it’s okay to make the wrong call, as long as you make up for it. And Kim does exactly this! If it’s not like her to dwell on a bad step, she’s not one to let things pass. Still, like Kim, I was not expecting this newly-called murder to hide more bodies, more disappearances, and most importantly, a clear and scary road to a mysterious farm…

I have said it before, I am not into cult stories. They have to be particularly good, or bring a different angle to a story to be of interest to me. I thought the few novels I’d read on the subjects had covered everything… I was wrong. If the team’s links all lead to a farm where a hundred people live in harmony, there is far more to the investigation than taking down a charismatic crazy guy and saving the day. Angela Marsons takes risks and it pays. Instead of making a cult the center of her novel, she creates something new around it. An undercover officer, a Bryant on edge, a vulnerable Stacy, a surprising Penn are here to keep the reader busy and get the usual brilliant ratios of clever interactions. It eases the tension at times, allowing for breaks that made me feel in the best possible hands. I love this feeling.

Feelings are at the heart of this book. How others make us feel, how we force ourselves to feel, how life turns us into different people. There is a beautiful and heart-breaking sensitivity in Killing Minds, making it a truly gripping read.

Killing Minds is an intricate and smart novel. Marsons never fails to take the familiar world she’s created into new territories, injecting new blood into the series with this well-rounded, flawless title.

I can never find words to describe how much I love the DI Stone’s book that were so fantastically and perfectly written by Angela Marsons!
I came across the first book thanks to a friend and haven’t stop reading since then!
The only negative point I can find is that I know that eventually the series will stop and I cannot bare to think about it.
Killing Mind is just another amazing work of art, following the amazing DI Kim Stone and her team in another nail biting, unputdownable thriller!

I don’t know where does Angela Marsons get these fantastic ideias and how can she so cleverly write down these amazing books but I hope she doesn’t stop anytime soon! Full of twists and turns that you never see coming, it is one of those books that I already know I won’t sleep until I finish it.

I simply loved to read more about this new case and I love all the main characters that are part of Kim’s squad! Their banter, their relationship and their commitment is once again highlighted in Killing Mind and it is simply magnificent.

The way the plot develops, the small details around Samantha’s case: everything was perfectly planned and accounted by Angela Marsons and this is another perfect book in my opinion.

I guess I have to say that, once again, my only disappointment is that the book had to end and now I have to wait for the next one to come out (hopefully it will be soon?!)

I simply cannot find words to describes how amazing of a writer Angela Marsons is.
If you haven’t read Kim Stone’s series, and you are an avid reader of crime, mystery and thriller, then you are missing out big time! Automatic buy for me all the time and without question one of my favourite writers of all time!

It is hard to believe that Killing Mind is the twelfth book in the Kim Stone series. Over the years I have read many other series but I don’t think that there has been one that I have still been enjoying at book twelve. Kim Stone has staying power and keeps readers enjoying and desperately waiting for more.

One thing that I love is that Angela Marsons picks topics for her books that she is interested in herself, that interest and the subsequent research that the author clearly does means that the books feel fresh and interesting and, frankly, a joy to read.

I still love the characters and how they have developed, every books sees them face challenges and more forward in their story.

If you haven’t read any of Angela Marsons’ books then you are in for a treat, I do think that every book can be read as a standalone, but you will be missing out on an amazing journey and some cracking reads so I really would start from the beginning.

There really is something special about Angela Marsons and her writing, I love visiting Kim Stone and her team as they solve crimes, it really does feel like I am visiting friends and although I am always disappointed when the visit is over, I know that it won’t be too long before the next visit, and that one will be just as good as all the visits before.

Roll on book thirteen…

I love this series. It never fails to delight. This has all the elements that we, the reader, have come to know and expect, and it did not disappoint one iota or miss a beat. An excellent read

Angela Marsons has another hit on her hands with this, the 12th book in the DI Kim Stone series. After initially considering the death of a young woman as suicide, Kim has another look at the scene and realises that it was murder. The next day a young man’s body is found at a lake with the same manner of death. It is not long before police link the two cases - both young people had been members at a retreat called Unity Farm. But, as Kim soon finds out, the farm is not as benign as the leader wants them to believe. It is, in fact, operating as a cult. And so begins the sense of creeping menace that pervades the rest of the book.

Kim sends a young policewoman, Tiffany (call me Tiff) to the farm undercover to find out more about the cult.hut staying in touch with Tiff is proving difficult. Marsons is at the top of her game with this instalment that was tightly plotted with plenty of tension, Our favourite characters are back and we meet Kane, who rescues people from cults. The cult angle was interesting and well researched. I really enjoyed reading this.

Here is my review of Killing Mind by Angela Marsons. It’s the twelfth book in the DI Kim Stone series.

DI Kim Stone and DS Bryant are called to a crime scene where a young woman, Samantha Brown, is lying in bed with a knife in her hand and her throat is cut. Bryant has the grumps. There is no sign of forced entry into the flat or any sign of a struggle. DI Stone and the pathologist rule it as a suicide.

When breaking the news to Samantha’s parents, Kim felt that there was something they weren’t telling her. DI Stone develops a niggle but can’t put her finger on what is worrying her about Samantha’s case. She goes back to the flat, speaks to the landlord who opened the flat that morning. He only opened one lock, not two on the front door. Samantha was murdered.

A young man, Tyler Short’s body is found in a lake, his throat was cut. There is a female sandal near his body so they drag the lake for a body. The team found a link between Tyler and Samantha. They had both spent time at a place called Unity Farm. Kim and her team did more digging for details of the place and the information they found was very disturbing. It was supposed to be a retreat for an alternative way of life but in reality they preyed on young people who were emotionally vulnerable and brainwashed them into a new way of living.

Kim decides to send someone undercover to see the full extent of life there. She believes the victims knew their killer and that it was someone they trusted. The plan is risky and she is putting her head on the line but can see no other way of doing it.

Bryant has his own troubles. A case that he first dealt with twenty five years ago has raised its head again, only this time he is more worried than in the past.

Kim tries to help Bryant where she can and if he asks. Then there’s the problem of not being able to contact Tiff. What if something has happened to her? Can they find the killer before they kill again?

Wow, this book had me hooked from the start and I couldn’t put it down. Brilliant read with an interesting topic. I totally recommend Angela Marsons and the DI Kim Stone series.

This is only the second book I’ve read by Angela Marsons, but she and this series have very quickly become one of my favorites. There are several reasons for this – the first is that I have come to appreciate the research that have gone into the stories. Many stories have twists and turns and those stories are all very enjoyable. But within the DI Kim Stone series there is a theme or social issue the detectives are focused as they work through the case. In Killing Mind, the issue being brought to light are cults. Why does someone join? How do they attract members? How do they retain members? How does someone leave the cult? If they do leave, what happens afterwards? The narrative of this story focuses specifically on Unity Farm, which encourages individuals to remove themselves from their past, their electronics, and their family, which they call blood relatives since Unity Farm members are their only family now. As the team investigates they discover the murdered victim(s) have a connection to this farm and DI Stone has Tiffany go undercover to gain more information on who is there and how it works.

Another facet of the story I appreciate is how well organized the team is and how they each get a moment in the sun while they do their job. It would be easy for DI Stone to tell someone to look up the background of an individual and then just get the information later. But here, we get to watch Stacey work as she tries to track down background information on the 2nd victim. Then there is Penn who goes to post-mortems, which he apparently enjoys but is probably pretty wise to not tell DI Stone that. Although the book series is called “DI Kim Stone,” each member of the team has a chance to shine and share the limelight within the story along with the main character.

Finally, I’ve enjoyed the secondary stories that go on in the background. Bryant is wrestling with the ramifications of a parole hearing from a murder that ultimately changed the trajectory of Bryant’s career many years ago. While Stacey wrestles with a diet.

Overall, a solid series and one I hope continues on for some time.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for my arc.

No 12 yes No 12 in the Kim Stone Series and this is one of my favourites so far. I really feel the characters are so well developed and the team dynamics are fantastic.

A young girl is believed to have committed suicide but Kim and her team are soon investigating it as a murder. This story centres around a farm run by a charismatic leader and young Tiffany is sent in undercover.

I find the subject of cults fascinating and think Marsons nails it in this book. Everyone can be vulnerable at some time in their life and these groups know how to manipulate and draw people in.

Another well written book by a very talented author.

If all of the books in the D.I. Kim Stone series are this good then I need to read them all! Killing Mind is my fifth Angela Marsons novel and I couldn't put it down.

The author continues her fabulous series with this intriguing instalment that explores the predatory, manipulative, and dangerous world of cults. Kim initially calls the death of 21 year old Samantha Brown as suicide, but closer examination has her rethinking it as murder. When a second body, Tyler Short aged 20 is discovered with the same MO, Kim and her team frantically scramble around looking for links and the killer. They both spent time at Unity Farm, a retreat for people seeking an alternative way of life, run by Jake Black.

This is a well-plotted mystery of excellent quality. I love the author's characterisation of Kim who is acerbic, though relentless and determined as an investigator. Her colleagues were all well-drawn characters, and together they made an extremely effective team, and especially liked the contributions from the caring D. S. Austin Penn who is gradually becoming accepted as one of the team and Tink (Tiffany), to whom Kim gives an undercover assignment. This book worked well for me as a single read police procedural, but there is no doubt that reading the previous books provides further background into the characters. The dialogue between team members was pithy and witty and very pleasurable to read. Angela Marsons hones each and every one of her books with well-researched and timely topics, keeping the reader totally engaged throughout.

The author's research on cults is evident in this tense and skilfully told story. As I expected, this is a hugely entertaining and polished addition to a series that has a huge number of crime fiction fans. The time I spent reading this brilliant novel was well worth it and I confidently recommend Killing Mind.

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

Actually, 4.5 stars (explanation below)

Killing Mind by Angela Marsons is the 12th in the Detective Kim Stone series.

First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher Bookouture, and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

 
Series Background:    (Warning – May contain spoilers from previous books)
Detective Kim Stone is tough. She has had to be. Her mother is responsible for Kim’s horrendous childhood, and as a result, currently resides in a psychiatric facility. But Kim has survived, and although her social skills are lacking, her heart is in the right place. Right now, her team consists of: Bryant, her right hand man, and the person who voices her concerns in a much more diplomatic way than Kim would every think of; Stacey, who can find required information in a seemingly bottomless computer system; and the newest member, Austen Penn, who replaced Kevin Dawson who was killed in the line of duty.


My Synopsis:   (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)

At first glance, it looks like Samantha Brown committed suicide.  The coroner agrees.  But something doesn't feel right to Kim.  Further investigation leads Kim and her team to a troubling discovery.  Samantha is not the first "apparent" suicide.  The common denominator appears to be a retreat, run by a man named Jake Black.

The "retreat" starts sounding like a cult, when they meet a man by the name of Kane Devlin.  But Kim isn't sure she can trust him either.  She decides to send in Tiff, a young police officer that has worked with them before.  Perhaps Tiff can see what is truly happening on the grounds of this retreat.

Meanwhile, Bryant is struggling with an old case, as a murderer is again up for parole.


My Opinions:  

First....this is the first cover that I have not liked.  I don't like being shown a picture of my idol that may not agree with my own idea.  That's where the book lost 1/2 star.  Anyway....

I love the dynamics of the team that Marsons has created, and was thrilled to see Tiffany back.  She makes a really good addition, and I hope she becomes a full-time member. 

As always, the plot was mesmerizing.  With the short chapters and the suspense build-up, it was a very fast read -- well, it was really hard to put down, so...it was a really fast read.  The book centered around a cult, and Marsons definitely did her research as to how they are created and how the members are indoctrinated.  It was really interesting. The twist at the end did surprise me....I was not anticipating the identity of the killer!  Loved it!

I'm already looking forward to her next book.

5/5 stars

I know a lot of you have auto-buy authors, for me, Angela Marsons is one of those authors. Her Kim Stone series has grown into one of my favorites very quickly and I recommend it to a lot of people. I've even gotten a few on my friends started on it.

Killing Mind follows Kim and her team as they try to solve a string of murders that are connected with a local retreat.

Kim's character has honestly grown throughout the series. She's one of my favorite detectives. Her team help make the books just as interesting as she does. The little bits of humor spread throughout the book honestly had me giggling while reading.

If you haven't read any of the Kim Stone books, I highly recommend them but be sure to start from the beginning so you get the back story of each character.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for a review.

Another brilliant read in this series. This story is an interesting and compelling read from the start. There are some great strong characters. I was at the edge of my seat towards the end.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I am always waiting for the next DI Kim book. I love the characters, they’re so relatable. The storylines are always well done, and sometimes quite informative. I just never want to put the book down. I also like the little side stories we get that help develop all the other characters and make them more human.

I’ve just finished this book and am already impatiently waiting for the next one!

This is the latest outing for Detective Kim stone and her team, and it doesn’t disappoint.

What appears to be a “routine” suicide turns into a suspected murder, and when another body is found, there appears to be a link to Unity Farm, the home of a community led by the charismatic Jake Black.
As Kim and her team delve into the workings of the cult, they uncover disturbing evidence of its’ methods, and also become involved with a specialist in removing people from such communities.

Alongside this, Bryant is dragged back to his first murder case, following a parole hearing, and the subsequent events make him question what is really justice.

All in all a very satisfying read, and further development of a new member of the team.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read this book.

I do enjoy a new Kim Stone book and Killing Mind is – once again – thoroughly compelling. Twelfth in this deservedly popular series, it can easily be read as a standalone. For me, however, much of the enjoyment of Angela Marsons’ new books comes from catching up with the police team again.
As usual, Kim is totally on the ball, discovering – at odds with Keats, the almost never-wrong pathologist – that Samantha Brown’s death is murder, not suicide. This eventually leads to the revelation of exactly what Samantha has been up to recently – no thanks to her parents, who are obviously lying to the police. This discovery paves the way for a fascinating investigation into a seemingly harmless retreat.
I’m a self-confessed Kim Stone fan. While I think I might be petrified to actually meet her (her disposition hovers “somewhere between aggressive and hostile”), I love that she’s tough, no-nonsense, razor sharp and doesn’t suffer fools. In Killing Mind we see a few glimpses of Kim’s notoriously guarded heart. She seems intuitively in step with friend and colleague, DS Bryant, who’s being eaten up by a parole hearing – and shows understanding and flexibility that I’m not sure the Kim Stone of old would have been capable of. There’s definitely some progress along Kim’s EQ journey! (I love that Bryant continues to act as a foil for Kim, shielding others from her. He’s often sent out with her to make sure she doesn’t offend or upset.)
Kim is also almost motherly towards Tiff, who’s back on the team and unwittingly placed in danger during the murder investigation.
There are some fascinating insights into cult psychology in this book. Marsons really brings alive just how insidious they can be, making them almost impossible to leave. Killing Mind is highly disturbing in parts and features some horribly tense moments after Kim initially underestimates the dangers of the cult.
Reliable Bryant, with his huge heart, heaps of compassion and decency, goes far beyond the call of duty in this book. He feels guilty that a heartless rapist wasn’t imprisoned many years ago and went on to rape and murder a second victim. There are some interesting parallels between the main case and Bryant’s sideline investigation, and Marsons seamlessly intertwines the threads of both stories. Interestingly, Bryant is called upon to make a huge moral choice – will he choose black and white justice like the good policeman he is? Or justice that serves the innocent?
As the bodies mount up, I was drawn into the story with its wide variety of complex characters, all with interesting back stories. The author’s characters are always believable and three-dimensional, often testing both your emotions and moral compass. I couldn’t help but feel sympathy for the murderer, and when Kim’s team finally catches onto the truth and arrests are made, it doesn’t really feel like a victory,
The chapters are short and compelling making this is a book I found extremely difficult to put down. Fabulous!!

Another fantastic read in this series. A superb series with a brilliant cast of characters. It's not just Kim Stone as the lead detective that makes this series so successful , but also her team who are both friends and colleagues. The plot was riveting and nerve wracking. An apparent suicide is later discovered to be murder which in turn leads to investigating a Cult. A gripping plot in which I had no idea how it was end. Highly recommend this 5 star read

KILLING MIND. ANGELA MARSONS

I have been lucky enough to be in to this series since it started, and here, in book 12, we have the best one yet.

Where Angela Marsons manages to pull new, original, and gripping plots from, whilst keeping us engaged in her cast of central characters, is a mystery but long may it continue.

Detective Inspector Kim Stone works out of Halesowen Police Station. A perfect place to set a crime series as it sits right on the edge of the Black Country and the rambling countryside, giving Angela plenty of scope to have realistic crimes in real areas.

This book stretches across both. Vulnerable people are being recruited around Dudley and introduced to a “retreat” at the remote Unity Farm.

That alone wouldn’t come on Kim’s horizon but, when a girl is found dead that does. At first inspection it looks like a suicide but something pricks at Kim’s mind and she looks a bit deeper. Before long she is convinced the girl has been murdered and that the scene has been staged.

Why did the girls social media footprint end 3 years ago. Why are her parents behaving suspiciously when they talk to the Police.

Meanwhile more bodies are found and some tenacious work by one of the team manages to link the finds with people who went missing under dubious circumstances

Eventually Unity farm becomes the focus of inquiries but how can the team penetrate the façade that the owner puts up of an innocent retreat.

I’m not taking this any further because I don’t want to give the plot away. Needless to say it’s a gripping story, and for those of you who have read the other books you know that nobody is safe and that not all of the books have a happy ending.

This made this book even more suspenseful. There were time when I caught myself holding my breath. There were other times when I exclaimed out loud, prompting raised eyebrow from my wife.

Did I enjoy the book? Hell yes!!

Pages: 430
Publisher: Bookouture
Available now.