I adore this author and this stand alone novel did not disappoint. Fast paced and gripping story that keeps the pages turning long beyond when you should have turned out the lights!

Full review to come on Instagram and Amazon. Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for a review copy.

I really enjoyed this one and will look into this author more. I enjoyed with twists and the flow of the story. The writing was well done and kept my interest throughout. I will be recommending this one to friends.

I really enjoyed this slow burner of a thriller (it did feel a little long in parts), where you know from the off who the bad guy is. What you don’t know is the why and who his next victim will be. As the story unfolds, and it’s a dark and gruesome story, I found our bad guy deeply disturbing. He was proper creepy - both in his actions/motivations but also in his circumstances.

There are some cracking characters in this read from Fields: the snarky forensic psychologist Connie, her policing partner Baarda, even the forensic examiner. But my favourite character was little 12 year old Meggy - what a little firecracker and not your stereotypical preteen.

Thanks to NetGalley, the team at Avon and the author for the opportunity to read this review copy.

This book started off really well, I enjoyed the premise of the book and the setting. I thorough enjoyed the Connie and Baarda chapters too even if Connie came across a little annoying at first she does grow on you. However I feel a little disappointed by this book, I feel like it was missing something and I can’t quite put my finger on what. I guess it’s because I wasn’t trying to work out who the murderer was for most of the book. But overall I’m glad I read it, this was extremely dark but just be prepared for a slow steady read rather than a fast paced read.

A refreshingly clever read from Helen Fields. Not part of the ‘Perfect’ series but with a few cross over characters. Connie Woolwine is the protagonist an interesting strong woman with an intricate and detailed past. I didn’t think it could be done but move over Luc and Ava I have a new favourite.

I felt there was a lot more of Helen Fields, behind Connie and for the first time as I read the book I heard it in Helen’s voice. That hasn’t happened before with any of the ‘Perfect’ books.

I love Helen Field’s use of Edinburgh as a supporting role, it is delicious and it is definitely something I look forward to with her books.

I have been recommending the book to readers who I know will enjoy the writing and also that is a little less gory than Helen’s other titles. So it gives them a chance to enjoy the writing as much as I do.

I enjoy learning more about the backstory of the killer. It always makes me think more when I hear horrendous news headlines. I want to dive into the why and the how. Perhaps why I love crime fiction so much.

Another element of my reading experience was having my best friends name in the book. Meggy won a competition on social media and it was odd to keep seeing her name as I read. Luckily the fictional young character had the true essence of the real-life version.

A strong female protagonist has great writing and a killer plot. Set against the backdrop of Edinburgh. What more could a reader want? FIVE STARS

What a gripping thriller.

This was a very disturbing but good read.

Thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish and could not get enough of.

This is a must read for anyone who enjoys a good thriller!!
Absolutely loved the characters, the plot, the tension -  impossible to put it down.
Certainly recommended!

A great read with an unusual storyline. Quite creepy and tense, It would make a great film. The ending was also very well thought out. I recommend this book and will be looking out for other titles by Helen Fields in future.

Thanks to Netgalley for my e-arc copy for an honest review! I requested this book because of the look of the cover. Very dark and creepy looking specially for a Thriller/Mystery book. The Shadow Man is my first book that I read from Helen Fields and it certainly won't be my last. I heard that there will be another book following Dr. Connie Woolwine and Detective Brodie Baarda which I am excited about!

Loved the main character of Connie who is a forensic psychologist that is brought to the case to help out the local Scotland police. I loved her detective/partner relationship with Baarda. The killer/kidnapper is also a great character. You can just feel how disgusting it must be to have him so close to you. Gave me chills!!!

It did get a little slow in the middle that's why I gave it 4 stars instead of 5. I did like how it was super intense at the end. It had a great and surprising ending!

Amazing book that I throughly enjoyed and can’t wait to read more from this author. I really enjoyed the authors writing style and how the book was told. It kept me intrigued from the very start

Great book from this fantastic author would 100% recommend. Read within a couple of days which I rarely do with books these days.

I found this story to be emotional and well written. Through most of it, I'd have characterized it as a page-turner and not having much excess in the way of overwriting. Thoroughly enjoyed this one, but the ending may perhaps be stretched a little long. If this is a series, I'll definitely read the next.

Thanks to the author, publisher, and netgalley for a copy of the ARC.

The Shadow Man by Helen Fields

9780008379315

384 Pages
Publisher: Avon Books UK
Release Date: February 4, 2021

Fiction, General Fiction (Adult), Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Kidnapping, Murder

Angela, Elspeth, Meggie and Xavier never expected to be victims. They came from different families and circumstances, but that did not matter to Fergus. He wanted a family and would stop at nothing to get one. Detective Inspector Brodie Baarda and Dr. Constance Woolwine are working the case in Edinburgh, Scotland. They are racing against the clock because they do not know when the next victim will go missing.

This is a fast-paced book, the characters are well developed, and it is written in the third person point of view. I absolutely loved the story. In fact, I stayed up all night because I could not put it down. I just had to know what was going to happen next. If you read murder mysteries, you will enjoy this book but don’t plan on doing anything except reading until you are finished. Fair warning!

Helen Fields latest work is exciting and full of suspense. This interesting story is a must read. As far as the writing style and narration is concerned, it is absolutely fantastic. The way author has wevaed the story with the mastery of writing style and narration, it is truly commendable. Overall, it was a great experience. I highly recommend this work and give it full 5 stars for the writing, narration and overall presentation. Happy Reading.

It’s been a while since I’ve read anything by Helen Fields, whose ‘Perfect’ series I was addicted to for a while. As has happened with other series I’ve enjoyed though, I couldn’t stay caught up and – eventually – stopped reading them. It was nice, then, to see a new book with new characters. And what interesting character they were.

Dr. Connie Woolwine is a profiler who can only see the world in black, white, and shades of grey. She makes up for this by using her other senses to understand what is going on in the mind of a killer. DI Baarda specialising in finding kidnap victims, preferably alive. They make a great team – although Connie is definitely the dominant character. I liked them both – a lot – and do hope this is the only outing for them.

I also loved the story. I liked that is was different from other crime fiction I’ve read recently in that it didn’t revolve around women being brutally murdered. Here, the victims are all different, as is the reason they are taken. And the killers reasons are nice and complex, meaning he’s hard for Connie to figure out. There are no easy answers for her, which makes for a tense read.

I also liked that the killer was a fully-formed character too. He wasn’t one dimensional. It was good getting to know and understand him, even if I didn’t have much sympathy for his behaviour. So often, they are just ‘evil’ and psychotic without much of a reason why.

These are all things I’ve enjoyed in other Helen Fields’ novels. She really is a great writer and a great storyteller. It was really nice being back in a world and with characters she created. Maybe time to tackle that back-catalogue?

Wow this was riviting!! I coukd hardly putvut down! Macabre ✔, scary ✔, amazing characters ✔ I litterally coukd hardly ask for mire in a thriller. The twists and turns kept me biting my nails late into the night. Fantastic book. I highly recommend if you like a thriller with a dash of horror.

As always I loved the writing and pace of this book. There was never a point where I was bored or disengaged.

I thought I knew where the story right from the start, but the author manages to add some really interesting elements, to shake up the plot and make it stand out from all the other crime thrillers on the market.

I particularly liked the character who couldn't see colour, I thought that was really interesting.

The ending was pretty intense but kept me hooked right till the last page.

A really good psychological thriller. Strong characters and has that ‘can’t put it down’ charm. I was hooked from the get-go and look forward to reading more by this author. Strong 4/5.

High tension thriller, with non stop action and a gripping storyline. Kept me on the edge of my seat. Really good, believable characters.

I recently read my first Helen Fields' book and realized that this is an author that I need to read her other publications. I am so glad I grabbed The Shadow Man. The book opens with an abduction and it grabbed me and did not let go. With three victims abducted and being held in a house somewhere, the story is a race to find them and set them free. Will the police find the Shadow Man before there are anymore victims?

I did a read listen with this book and it was creepy. The Shadow Man has something called Cotard's Syndrome and I had never heard of it before. I actually went online to read more about it. It was a great fit to this story. The story has several POVs, The Shadow Man, An American Forensic Psychologist Connie Woolwine who is consulting on the case, and the various victims. They all mesh perfectly together to give us a full understanding of what is going on. This is one of those books that I just went along for the ride. It was a gripping thriller that I could not put down until I turned the last page. If you enjoy a chilling, thriller with a rather strange perpetrator, then you need to pick this one up and if you can get your hands on the audiobook, even better. Robin Laing and Cathleen McCarron are definitely narrators that I will watch for!