This is book 3 in the series
This is a dark and emotional read
It is well written with a compelling storyline. It kept me gripped throughout

Wow 😮 what a great addition to the DS Nikki Parekh series! Had me gripping from the first page to the last ! Left with a cliffhanger which just wants you to read the next one !!

A very gritty read, perhaps too gritty at times and uncomfortable as a result. As usual, it's a well-paced read with plenty of twists.

Detective Nikki Parekh, Book 3
I started this series at book one and part way through knew it was going to be a series I would enjoy. I have read books 1-3 back to back and feel i've really gotten to know the characters. DS Nikki Parekh has something about her that you just cant help but like.

A new case for DS Nikki Parekh and her partner DC Sajid Malik. When bodies start to mount up Nikki realizes that someone is trying to send a message to her. Nikki is going to have to dig deep to get the strength to revisit her past.
I found this book just like the previous 2, gripping, thrilling and exciting. I look forward to catching up with the rest of this series.

Nikita “Nikki” Parekh does not like to talk about her childhood. Her life is in a good place now. A respected detective, a wonderful family, colleagues she enjoys, she has come a long way from the trauma that shaped her early years.

When she is called to investigate the murder of a homeless woman, a “rough sleeper” as they are known in Britain, Parekh’s past comes crashing into the present. The woman was a friend of her mother’s in those old days, days when her mother was physically and sexually abused. Their paths had diverged, but at a vulnerable time this woman was there for them.

Still, there is no reason for DS Parekh to think the crime is related to her in any way. That is, until an article about the murder is sent to her along with a child’s diary entry. Why was it sent to her? How might this relate to her past? And can she continue the investigation in the present if she is so close to the situation?

Liz Mistry writes novels with impact on many levels. Nikita Parekh is a very believable character. She is biracial, close to her Indian-immigrant mother and estranged from her white father. Her family embraces their multiculturalism. She is a smart and dedicated detective. She also struggles to overcome her internal struggles. Sometimes her coping mechanisms are effective. Sometimes they are not and she turns to self-harm or alcohol. In addition to a sharp plot with very abrupt twists, Mistry invests a lot of care into her character. The investment pays off handsomely.

Britain, like the U.S., struggles mightily with issues of racism and integration. That theme plays out in Dark Memories, but what stands out to me is the celebration of multiculturalism. Parekh is not Indian. She is British--but she does not ignore her heritage. Her police partner is a gay British man of Arabic/Muslim heritage. Characters in the book do not fit into cultural or racial stereotypes. They fully embrace being British, they fully embrace what their families brought to the country, and they fully chart their own paths. Being part of a multiracial family myself, I can appreciate both the challenges and triumphs Mistry writes about.

Nikita Parekh is a wonderful character inhabiting an often dark world given light by the people she loves. The plot is smart and satisfying. Dark Memories is a terrific addition to what is becoming one of my favorite series.

The plot line for this book was super captivating and kept me hooked until the last page!

As you follow Nikki through the discovery of murders, something is ticking behind the mind with her memories. There is a lot of emotional rollercoasters, tragedies, mysteries and hooks that draw you in as you try and figure out who and what Nikki has gone through, and why there is a man that scares her more than everything.

This is without a doubt, a great book to read, but I am limiting my review, as you need to read it to fully enjoy the effect that it has on you afterwards!

Liz Mistry is a new writer to me, her lead character Nikki Parekh is a gritty Bradford police detective.

A series of murders of homeless people leads Nikki closer and closer to her own difficult upbringing and leaves her asking questions of her mother and needy younger sister. This moves at pace, is full of surprises without feeling contrived and builds to a great climax.

If there is a genre called Northern Noir, this might be it. I loved it.

I'm afraid I found this book rather too gritty and depressing at this time and was unable to continue after the first few chapters. I should have been warned by the title and the blurb, but I am a fan of the detective novel and thought this might be a new addition to my list, as it is set in Yorkshire - my favourite county. However, sadly this one was not for me.

I started to read this and was enjoying it and then realised there was a lot of back story, so went and bought the first 2 in the series and read those. I was very glad I did - this book would probably have stood on its own, but it was much richer with all the background.
A very satisfying series - well written and with well-drawn, sympathetic characters. I thought the plot in this one was a tad over-complicated, but the denouement was believable.

It's hard to write a review for this series without using the word 'gritty'. Set in Bradford, the issues the city faces, like many other post-industrial places, make a rich background. Poverty, social unrest, homelessness, drug abuse, racism, domestic violence, child abuse and homophobia could make these novels depressing reading.

Instead, this third book in the series about a woman detective focuses on typical police work of the region and especially serial killers or murders. Each character is fully developed so that when reading a chapter it is obvious whose perspective it is by the unique voice. None of this flicking back to the title to find out whose point of view it is. The detective has her own life with her partner, children, mother and sister, all typically human with their own past and hurdles. The story is fast and the people are realistic.

There is no glamour in this book but neither is it sensationalist or exploitative. Despite the hardships of those involved, this is a story about love, loyalty, courage and resolve above anything else. What Dickens does for London, Liz Mistry does for Bradford. Only with a bit more grit.

​Recommended read for those who like tense crime thrillers.

This book is well-plotted with a slow initial build, but then it moves at a solid pace with the tension ramping up throughout.

Another novel in the crime series set in Bradford featuring DS Nikki Parekh. and DC Sajid Malik. Like its predecessors this is dark in tone and content. Three apparently unconnected murders lead back to uncomfortable revelations about Nikki’s past and she has to confront some demons from her past to get to the truth.

Very well written and cleverly constructed, this is well up th the standard of the previous outings in the series and Liz Mistry has become a reliable yardstick in so called “northern noir “. Recommended.

Liz Mistry has made a career out of her Bradford-based detective stories. It is fair to say that cheerful, they are not. This is crime fiction as gutter-level grime with drug addicted prostitutes with blackened stumps for teeth.

If you’re looking for “cosy” crime, then Mistry probably isn’t for you. However, if you want well plotted, sparsely written, taut thrillers with some truly nasty villains, then Mistry is for you.

DS Nikki Parekh is a very grounded guide to the investigation, a woman of complex emotions – Mistry is a top notch writer of anxiety and the need to escape from pressurised situations.

As a novelist she is also constantly growing in confidence. Here, we slalom between narrators, first person and third person to entice, excite and conceal the motivations of the protagonists.

And, it is fair to say, Parekh and her partner DC Sajid Malik, do have a lot on their plates. They are still processing the trauma of the trafficking case which comes in the book which precedes this one, as well as tackling a killer who is picking the victims off and experiencing an unnatural gratification – blood spattering on their lips described as “erotic” at one stage a particularly effective way of unsettling the reader.

This novel is sure to be a firm favourite with anyone who wants to go down, down to the neglected areas of Bradford, down to the seedy underworld in which Parekh and Malik ply their trade, down into the well-crafted, excitingly well-plotted, hard bitten novels of Liz Mistry.

Well, this certainly, unexpectedly, explored many more emotions than I'd have expected! I know Liz Mistry wanted to explore and show the reader more of DS Nikki Parekh's personal life, and this she did! As with Broken Silence, she has explored an extremely difficult subject, taking the reader on a real emotional journey, in a totally believable way - this stuff really happens! From the first body being found, and anonymous letters being sent to Nikki, the pace of the story telling is maintained throughout, with different points of view being aired. It deals with so many issues in Nikki's life that many readers would be able to relate to: parent/sibling relationships, workplace issues and childhood traumas that have been buried deep until now. I love the relationship between Nikki and her work partner Saj, and they work brilliantly to bring justice to those wronged. I confess to a chill running through me at the end. Cannot wait for book 4!

Although this is clearly an established series, Dark Memories is my first foray into the world of DS Nikki Parekh and her evidently traumatic past. I don't feel that not having read the previous books hindered my enjoyment, although it would no doubt have  strengthened my connection to the characters.

Having survived an abusive childhood, Liz Mistry's main character DS Nikki Parekh takes no grief from anyone and is stubborn and determined (a little to her detriment but I can understand why!) almost to the point of being pig-headed... She refuses to back down, at any cost.

Somehow she has retained strong family bonds and these are tested to the limit during Dark Memories as the past seems to be at the centre of the current case.

DC Sajid Malik is a great character, he has a softer edge to Nikki's hardness and they make a good team.

This book in well plotted with a slow initial build but then it moves at a solid pace with the tension ramping up throughout.

Dark Memories is the third in a series by accomplished crime writer Liz Mistry featuring DS Nikita Parekh (Nikki). Having read the first two books I jumped at the opportunity to read this one.

In this latest instalment, The body of a homeless woman, Peggy Dyson, is found stabbed to death under the railway arches. Nikki and her work partner, DC Sajid Malik are immediately on the case and Nikki remembers Peggy from her childhood; she was a friend of her mum, Lalita. Nikki is perturbed by the lack of clues and motive for Peggy's murder and is ill at ease when she receives a newspaper cutting and photo about the murder and another one about the murder of Liam Flynn, a university researcher, near Peterborough, Cambridgeshire. When a third body is found across the road from her childhood home Nikki thinks it might be personal.

The author's pacing was spot on, there was always plenty going on and there was certainly never a dull moment. Liz Mistry clearly knows how to write a story that is compelling, entertaining and all-consuming, with characters that are perfectly drawn. I have really taken a liking to Nikki who is stoic, bold, vulnerable and flawed, yet always real. Nikki's partner-in-crime, DC Sajid Malik, has also left an impression on me; he is caring, straight-talking and protective. I really appreciated the amicability and banter between Nikki and Sajid. All of the characters had a great part to play, whether or not they were likeable. Although Nikki was the main protagonist, I loved that some of the chapters were written from the unnamed killer's perspective, thus allowing for the odd glimpse into an ever-darkening mind.

Liz Mistry delivered an exuberant story of drama in this clever police procedural - a toxic concoction of a damaged childhood, revenge, and evil. Taut and compelling, it was a cracking story and a book that I revelled in all the way through. It brought no disappointments and the clever plotting enabled me to fully grasp the situation and motivations of the protagonists. The masterful twists paved the way for an enthralling denouement. I can't wait to see what is in store for DS Nikki Parekh next and I am delighted to recommend Dark Memories.

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

This was an excellent detective thriller, based in and around Bradford. It was fast paced and realistic. The characters were very well described and I would definitely read another story in this series.

Gritty police procedural which hits close to home for Detective Nikki Parish.. Lots of twists before the murders are solvef.

I loved this book. A gripping story with great chracters that grabbed me from the start. I would read this author again.

A well crafted, police procedural and another outing for Detective Nikki Parehk. This is a raw, visceral read, uncomfortable in places due to the themes it depicts.
Mistry is a superb storyteller who doesn't shy away from the grittier side of crime fiction. But unusually she achieves this through beautiful writing and non-stereotypical character portrayals.