On Cold Ground by D.S. Butler was a fabulous read that had me totally gripped from the start.

This is the 5th book in the series featuring DS Karen Hart, set in Lincolnshire and I picked up the series with Don't Turn Back (book 3) which I also thoroughly enjoyed. The fantastic plot-line and brilliant characters made On Cold Ground a superb tale that held me captive throughout.

With innumerable twists and turns, guessing the identity of the perpetrator was nigh on impossible and the swift pacing meant there was no room for boredom or tedium. It was an impeccably crafted story and the dead ends, and absences of possible motives at the beginning of the story when the hunt for a sadistic killer purportedly known as ‘The Cleanser’ started, all helped towards creating the tense atmosphere. D.S. Butler weaves a masterful police procedural that culminates in an explosive denouement. Her rich character development is both multi-dimensional and plausible. This tale should not be missed as it is a fantastic continuation of an excellent series.

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

Yes yes yes what an epic book this is!!


On cold ground is the 5th book in the crime series featuring DS Karen Hart. Whilst out at the christmas markets with her boyfriend a dead body is discovered in the church. It looks to be the works of a serial killer but they cannot be sure. Karen is tasks to work with DCI Churchill who she had long suspected of police corruption. She can't seem to keep her personal feelings at bay.

So this is my first time reading any book in this series and for the life of me I can't decide why. The way Butler write is done so well with information trickling through from previous events without shoving it down our throats. It was great as I haven't read any of the previous books but I felt I could read this as a stand alone. Although I have my kindle currently set up and ready to start with book 1.

I find Karen to be a great protagonist. The whole way through I was constantly rooting for her to find the truth. I felt like I completely backed every thought and decision she made throughout the book. She is a great character she has her flaws and defo needs therapy but there seems to be sensible reasons for this issues. I really love her working relationships espically with Sophie who I have a huge girl crush on. If she ever gets a spin off I will totally obsessively follow her.

The case in this novel is quite interesting. We hear the killers point of view throughout the book and yet it was very difficult trying to pin down who it was. The method of the murders is brutal and it makes you question them throughout. I was a bit shocked at one point and I loved that I didn't see certain events coming. I thought I had it all worked out let's just say I was completely incorrect.

I raced through this book finishing in 2 sittings today and I am so glad I did. It is a huge page turner and I just needed to know how it was all going to turn out.

Would I recommend this book?

Duh of course I would. It has everything you want in a crime novel tension, suspense, murder, who done it, twists and turns. I love that we follow the investigation through Karen and Sophie. As well as the personal storylines that run along side. D.S Butler you have fan. I would recommend to anyone who enjoys Katerina Diamond, Cara Hunter or Lisa Regan if you like any of those ladies you will love this book and honestly any fan of this genre. As this is book 5 I would say you can read it independently but I think starting at book 1 will build a bigger picture (don't be like me and read book 5 love it and decided that reading books 1 to 4 might be a good idea ha), also at the time of writing my review all of this series is avaliable on kindle unlimited as that's how I've got them all.

Thank you to Netgalley, amazon publisher's and D.S Butler for the advanced digital copy of on cold ground in exchange for my fair and honest opinions.

This is the fifth book in a series but can be read as a standalone - I will be reading the others soon.

A strong police procedural for a female detective. One murder seems to lead to others and the underlying theme is corruption.

Urgency to solve the case grows as it appears the victims are close to the detective.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

First book I've read by this author and I really enjoyed it. This is the fifth book in a series involving Detective Karen Hart. I didn't feel like I missed anything by not reading the first 4 books. I will probably go back and read them. Karen Hart is at a Christmas fair with her boyfriend when she discovers a body in a church near the fair. As she starts investigating the murder, her superior receives a letter with some pretty serious allegations and hints that her superior may be next. Then, 3 officers from another precinct come in and take over the investigation in place of her superior. Karen and her partner, Sophie, do not like the head guy and come to find out that he is under suspicion of corruption within the police force. Then two more bodies are discovered. Are these bodies tied to the corruption? What about the hit-and-run accident which left a young boy dead? There are no obvious links but Karen and Sophie wonder if they are all connected. Either way, they are determined to find out who "The Cleanser" is.

Good storyline, great plot and good character development.

I really enjoyed this book. Character development was good. The plot was very interesting. Not a lot of typos.

Excellent novel. This is number 5 in the series of Detective Karen Hart. She is searching for the murderer of 3 individuals and also a young boy that was killed by a hit and run. Great story of who done it. I usually don't like to start in the middle of a series but the story picked right up and the reader was not confused by what was happening. I will definitely read the other books in this series.

Karen Hart has a rare day off! Whilst walking back from the Lincoln Christmas Market past the Cathedral she hears a scream. Someone has found a dead body. They have a rope around their neck & a cross carved into their forehead. What is the killer trying to tell them. When another body is found, killed in a similar fashion & a note from 'The Cleanser'. The killer seems to believe these people deserved to die. When DI Morgan gets a note from the killer, showing he knows his name & address he is taken off the case & the usual team is split up. The DI sent to lead the case is an unpleasant individual who Karen suspects might be part of the corruption within the force.

This is book 5 of the series. I seem to manage to read just odd numbered ones! It could be read as a stand alone though. It was an engaging story that kept me guessing. When I thought I'd worked it out along came another surprise. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book.

WOW what an excellent ending!! Karen is part of a team looking into a hit and run and 3 murders. The murders are separated off into a new team. Boy is Churchill rather awful, isn't he. So not only is there the victims to figure out but the office politics is also front and center. I like that Karen just never gives up. Although she does seem to dream up some wild theories. I found the book entertaining with the twists and turns of the investigation. A very good story.

Still reeling from deep personal loss and ongoing internal corruption investigaions, Detective Hart is alerted to, and first on the scene of a grizzly murder in a cathedral. Warning letters and subsequent murder suggest a serial killer is on the loose. Good police procedural and multiple twists keep the reader engaged.

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley.

Detective Karen Hart is on a date with her new boyfriend when she hears a scream from inside the Cathedral. Instantly alert, she finds the body of a murdered male with a cross carved into his forehead. There is a note alongside the body from "The Cleanser." Is this a ritual killing? Will there be others?

In addition, there is an investigation into high-level corruption in the police department. Is this related to the murders?

This is the second Detective Karen Hart mystery I have read and I look forward to others.

On Cold Ground is the fifth entry in the DS Karen Hart series, and I enjoyed it as it completed a secondary arc that began with the death of her husband and daughter a few years ago. I don't mind it when a story continues for several books, but I do have an issue when it drags on and on, and I was worried that something like that would happen in this series. Luckily, it all merged rather well, even if you have to kind of suspend your belief in what happened a little bit and just go with it.

I, for one, am glad that this book dealt with the police corruption far more openly that in previous books. When Karen's boss comes in the cross hairs of a killer, a new boss is brought in to deal with the situation, and unfortunately, the cliches began as soon as the man entered the building, the red herrings being so obvious I was sort of chuckling my way through them. This is such a common trope that it's getting old, fast. However, I do like the support that Karen gets from her various superiors as well as from other people as she tries to investigate the current case she is working.

Karen, herself, is far from perfect, and I usually tend to prefer my main characters flawed as it makes them more interesting. She is growing on me as a character and I think I am finally seeing some growth although I do feel there is still a lot more the author can do with her character. That being said, Karen did lose her family a little while ago, so it's understandable that she has trust issues and doesn't want to be pushed into doing things she is not yet ready for; grief is not something that ever goes away and I am grateful the author has taken this into consideration.

The other characters have a lot of potential that has not yet come to fruition, but the series is still developing and I am hoping they will have their moment to shine. I have always liked Sophie and I would like to see her become something more than someone who is portrayed as a 'yes man' and only interested in how she is perceived by others, someone who will stand up for herself and be more confident in her abilities.

The mystery itself wasn't too complicated, but I did find it interesting, and I like how it was interwoven with the corruption scandal. If you are someone who reads a lot of police procedurals, you will probably figure this out quite early in the book although the author does try to lay out some interesting twists and turns. It was more the motive that took me bit longer to figure out. The author has an easy style of writing that does tend to draw you in although some of the dialogue does tend to make me cringe.

On Cold Ground was one of those books that overall, I enjoyed very much, but when you take it apart, does have some problems. There were some plot lines I just had to grit my teeth over and go with them, but it made it easier to enjoy the book. I do think the characters need some development as they can be a bit one-dimensional and while I enjoy this author's writing style, the dialogue can be a bit stilted. Overall, a good book and one I would recommend.

Good read, the story line was good and characters all had believable personalities. Karen has just began to climb out of the darkness that losing her husband and daughter threw her in. She’s in a date and hears a scream. She finds a body with a cross carved into its head. From there she stops at nothing to catch this killer.

I received an ARC of this compelling detective mystery. This is the next book in the Detective Karen Hart series. I was immediately immersed in the story. Great characters and a story that kept me guessing. Highly recommend!

Although this was the 5th book in the series, it can be read as a stand alone. I have not read any of the other books in the series and really enjoyed this book.

Detective Karen Hart is first on the scene of a murder when she hears a scream and goes to investigate. A man’s murdered body lies in a chapel with a bloody cross carved into his forehead. A murderer known as ‘The Cleanser’ is on the loose and starts a series of brutal killings that appear to be a sadistic mission. Detective Karen Hart is on the case and there are hints and rumours that point to a police conspiracy within her colleagues. The case is a tough one with the added disruption of a very annoying senior officer.

This was an excellent read and had me reading late into the night unable to put it down. Exciting plot and the dialogue between the regular characters made this an enjoyable read.

Well, since I've only read #1 in the DS Karen Hart series, and this is #5, I felt a little lost in parts of this book. I feel like I definitely need to go back and read the previous books in the series since I really like the author's writing style, and Karen Hart is a well-rounded, intelligent character. I felt like I was missing part of her life and this book made me feel like a chunk of her character development was 'missing' and I needed to understand her more.

I enjoyed the guessing game in this one... the author does a great job of throwing a lot of characters out there as red herrings and you continue to think you have it figured out. Thankfully I didn't and I was left surprised at the end - twists are always welcome IMO.

Another great book in the Detective Karen Hart series
Thus book will have you on the edge of your seat and you won’t want to put it down
Can’t wait for the next in this series
Thanks NetGalley

Wow what an exciting ending to a fabulous series. This is book 5 of the Karen Hart series. Karen has been on a real rollercoaster of emotions during this series even losing her beloved family. Karen will not give up on her work to discover who is behind the corruption ring after DI Freeman was found out Karen was determined to get the top person whoever that might be. I have thoroughly enjoyed following Karen’s life through the ups and downs. I give this book a well deserved five stars

On Cold Ground by D.S. Butler is the fifth book in the Karen Hart series. Karen Hart’s station is investigating three different cases, a hit and run of a child, three murders that could be the work of a serial killer plus an internal investigation of corruption. What Karen doesn’t know is all these cases are connected. This is a great series and I’m looking forward to the next book. Thanks Netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

It took me a little while to read this book because I had a crazy work schedule for a couple of weeks. But once I was able to get into it, I finished it in just one setting.

While it was a little difficult to get into at first due to UK terminology differing from US terminology, it was an amazing read.

While I was suspicious of the one of the characters, I didn't expect the ending. This book had me on the edge of my seat as DS Hart and the rest of the team try to solve three grisly murders.

But how do they all connect? DS Hart is in the right path, but the powers that be make sure to pull the investigation in the way they want it to go.

An amazing author that I will have to read more of!

I want to thank the publisher, author, and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

DS Karen Hart is out walking with her boyfriend when a scream comes from a local church. She finds a dead body with a cross etched on the man’s forehead. This investigation stretches the team of detectives, as they try to solve multiple investigations. When a threatening note appears, the team is separated and DS Hart is forced to work with a different team, which is lead by someone who might be ‘crooked’. As more deaths occur that seem to be related, the team is in a race to find a murderer.

There were many interrelated storylines in this book, with DS Hart as the main character. The chilling (and thrilling) conclusion puts the police force in an all-out attempt to save their own.