This is the first book of a series, and I very much enjoyed it. Danny Flint in the main character and the author takes time to build his personality and back story and this certainly makes him an endearing character. The book is set in the 80s around the miners strike, the author cleverly introduces an evil psychopath who teams up with someone else through being thrown into the same situation. The book is fast paced and has twists and turns without being unrealistic. I would certainly read another by the same author and I look forward to reading more from the Danny Flint series.

wow! i love this book! the way it took the reader from the south of england to the north and eventually Australia it was a real page turner and a stomach turner too! very graphic! police did amazingly, very clever, but so was the public- AMAZING!

Evil in mind is a great crime thriller based during the minor strike In 1984. When two murders become friends they decide to partner up. Detective don't know how to catch the killer because they never leave evidence.

I enjoyed this book however it is a slow burner so bare with it. I would also suggest getting yourself a note boon to write who is who as I still don't really know therefore won't be using character names in this review.

I enjoyed the storyline its an interesting case with an interesting psychology around murder.
As well as the murder investigation we get engrossed in the personal lives of every significant person in the book. The local police officer and his father storyline was quite emotional and also great to read, I felt by the time I finished the the book I was emotionally invested in all of the characters and I wanna know what happened to them all!! I’m just really happy that this isn’t a one and done series in terms of the detectives


Something that I found really intriguing about this because it’s set in the 80s, there is so much about the story that I had to remind myself would only be relevant in a modern tech technological world which this book is not based in. There for things like people having to call the police but having to find a house or phone box to make the phone call was really funny to me as a millenial I couldn’t help but I think that was a crazy time !!. I really got a sense of being in that year and i really enjoyed this different slant on an investigation and how the advancement of technology has played a huge role in modern day policing. I didn’t think it would add anything to the story but actually I feel like it adds everything to story and made the story far more interesting !!

The prose is written very well as I said prior the book is extremely long this was not a one and done day for me . Although the book is longer is not over compensating for a lack of a good storyline as the storyline is really well written as I said I believe that the book is so long because of the amount of different characters that play vital in central roles within the story. The author has a very good way of describing scenes so you really feel like you are there, I probably won’t be going to woods again anytime soon!

All I know Is i enjoyed this book I found that the context was really well written the characters were believable the investigation is done so well in terms of realistical police procedures got that decade its a great novel. I would therefore recommend evil in mind and rate it 3.5 stars out of five, the only reason it is not higher is because it took me such a long time to fully feel connection with the book and by then I kind of forgot who everybody was and at one point I was very confused thinking there was like 10 cops who were killers which they could have been but not in this book so just pay good attention LOL!

Thank you to netgalley, the author and the publishers for the advanced digital copy of evil in mind in exchange for my fair and honest opinions.

To my shame I must admit this is the first novel by Trevor Negus I have read but what a great writer he is. This is gritty, intense, complex and has a compelling realism.
The backdrop of Nottinghamshire during the miners' strike of 1984-5 is perfectly drawn. The attack in chapter 47 written from the victim's POV is one of the most chilling scenes I have ever read.
Undoubtedly one of the best crime novels I have read in a very long time.

Warning some of the murder scenes are very gruesome. Overall a good read. This chilling and utterly compelling story is one of those books which grabs your attention from the very beginning.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Inkubator Books for an advance copy of Evil in Mind, the first novel to feature DI Danny Flint of the Nottinghamshire Police, set during the Miners’ Strike in 1984-5.

Two very different characters, miner Jimmy Wade and police sergeant Mick Reynolds, find they have an interest in common, murder, and set out on a killing spree. Jimmy supplies the plan and Mick supplies the technical know-how to avoid detection. Together they think they are unstoppable, DI Danny Flint begs to differ.

I enjoyed Evil in Mind, which has an easy style and a compulsive plot. Obviously, with Jimmy and Mick identified early on, it is not a whodunnit, but more of a psychological chase. The narrative is mostly told from Danny, Jimmy and Mick’s points of view with other characters chiming in as and when necessary. This is interesting as it highlights the investigation and the evasion tactics taken by the killers, and at the same time the dynamic between the two killers, which is more a meeting of needs than minds.

The novel is longer than standard, which on the upside offers more character development and a deeper dive into their psyches, but on the downside offers a lot of unnecessary trivialities and is slower than it needs to be. I liked this slower pace as the novel never fades and it supports the detailed plot. I just wanted to keep reading.

I was, however, disappointed in the background. The miners’ strike was vicious, brutal and desperate on both sides and the author has treated it as an almost cosy dispute with no mention of the police brutality or the communities torn apart.

Evil in Mind is a good read that I can recommend.

4 stars

A slow burn mystery featuring two serial killers with some complex MO’s. This was a unique police procedural for me, both in terms of writing style & narrative construction. It’s a long read, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

[What I liked:]

•It was interesting having two criminals in this story, both with different motivations to kill, different triggers, different styles of violence, etc. Having one organized & one disorganized killer in the same book gave a nice contrast.

•The characters on the police force are great. I like Danny a lot, how intense & driven he is, while still being a compassionate & loving person. He cares about results at work, but also takes care of his employees & family. Rob is funny, Rachel is smart & intuitive. Glyn & Craig play off each other with great banter.

•I appreciate how the plot started with Jimmy’s background, how his psychology was shaped since childhood. The introduction of Mick felt a bit random at first but quickly made sense as the story progressed. The murders, escalation of violence, small mistakes made by the killers, etc. unfolded in a very carefully plotted way that kept the tension high.

•The writing style is different than what I usually gravitate towards, but I liked it. There is a higher ratio of narration to scenes with dialogue, but it never felt like summary. The amount of details was good, & the dialogue mostly smooth.


[What I didn’t like as much:]

•Minor quibble, but there was a lot of Sue towards the beginning of the book, & then mentions of her & Danny’s dad just dropped off until the end. I know Danny was busy & not seeing her for most of the book, but it felt unbalanced to me for a character to feature & then disappear into the background.

•Practically every woman character in the book is introduced with a long description of their sex appeal. The ones who aren’t, are described as trying too hard to appear sexy so end up looking tacky. I just...does it matter to the narrative how attractive a professional woman is?

CW: murder, torture, domestic violence, drug abuse, sexual assault, suicide, physical assault, racism

[I received an ARC ebook copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Thank you for the book!]

Well written and a good debut novel. But violent - not the kind of thing to read before bed! I enjoy books set in the 80s - had no idea that they were using forensic suits etc.

Dark And Compelling...
The first in a new detective series featuring Detective Inspector Danny Flint. A dark, tense tale, fast moving and compelling with nicely mounting tension. Characters are credible as is the storytelling. A promising start to a new series.

Evil in Mind is the first instalment in the Detective Chief Inspector Danny Flint series, set in and around the village of Mansfield Woodhouse, Nottinghamshire. It's 1984 and the county's in the grip of a bitter, acrimonious strike called by the National Union of Mineworkers. Jimmy Wade is the very definition of evil, he first killed at the age of eleven, he's now a coal miner in Nottinghamshire. Mick Reynolds is in a hateful marriage and has a pathological hatred of women, he's a sergeant in the Metropolitan Police. When Reynolds is sent to police the strike, his duties involve escorting Wade and other miners breaking the strike into work every day. Thrown together by circumstance and recognising each other's murderous natures, they embark on a brutal killing spree, using Wade's natural cunning and Reynolds knowledge of forensics and police procedures to evade detection. The two men are pursued in Nottinghamshire by DCI Flint and in London by DI Johnson and both are under increasing pressure to get results. To make matters worse Flint’s father has just suffered a life-threatening stroke that'll need plenty of time in rehabilitation but at least he has the love of a good woman. The killers revel in playing games, taunting the police, ultimately intending to kill one of the detectives. As the police close in, the story reaches a thrilling and unexpected climax.

This is a compulsive, captivating and thoroughly original fact meets fiction police procedural set in the dark time of the eighties miners strikes, which caused havoc around the country. Not only is the plot intricate and detailed but so is the backdrop and the political, social and economical issues of the time are brought into sharp focus. It also had me pondering whether two killers or psychopaths can recognise each other as brothers in arms as the story goes here. From all the true crime I've read, I feel it would take a very special type of personality to share their kills with another as murderers are narcissistic and always seeking the limelight at all costs. Negus captures perfectly the hustle and bustle of a mining town and the opportunities such work brought for the working class. Trevor is a 30-year police veteran with 12 of those spent as a Detective involved in specialised interviewing of murder suspects, bringing an authentic and believable element to the story. This is a dark, sinister and surprisingly riveting tale that moves at a blistering pace with good use of twists and red herrings to pull the wool over your eyes. The police investigation is realistic and gave very good insight into the time by exploring both the political and policing pressures involved. A cracking, unexpectedly compelling read.

What a massively clever book.
I really enjoyed the story plus the twists and turns
Would definitely recommend this to anyone

It is a very interesting premise-do two killers recognize each other? Sure, there are a few instances of people killing in pairs. Those people are usually close or related. What about two strangers? It was intriguing. This book is a re-release of a book exploring such an idea. It was brutal and truly showed how much anger toward women puts them in danger. I did enjoy reading how the two worked together. The crimes themselves were not terribly nuanced.

Now, in order to tell a tale like this and be truly successful you need to have some connection to the killer. Think someone like Dexter. You want to at least partially see both sides. Here, the cat and mouse game was less successful because Wade was no one you wanted to get away with anything.

Two killers, thrown together by circumstance and recognising each other’s murderous natures, they embark on a brutal killing spree, using Wade's natural cunning and Reynolds knowledge of forensics and police procedures to evade detection.

This was a great read, it was clever and interesting and I really enjoyed the setting of the Mining Strikes in the 1980's - it's nice to read about murders set in a different time and it adds to the whole desperateness and depression of the characters. I loved following along with the Police Investigation and the changing of the characters perspectives, there were some backstories in there to help build the character profiles which I loved. You got to see more to people than just them at work.

It was a captivating read, with many twists and turns. I did enjoy (and find hard at the same time) how I felt worse and worse for each victim and was still expecting them to fight back every time. The murders were extremely gruesome, so I think some may skip over these parts but for me they really added to the story by showing just how careful, calculating and evil these two men are. The ending did not disappoint and didn't feel too hurried which I often find with books of this genre.

Will definitely be reading more of this Author.

Thank you Netgalley and Inkubator Books for the eARC. This book was previously published as The Coal Killer.
It's England in 1984 and there's a huge coal miners' strike raging. The details were interesting, since I remembered the news, but not many details.
We meet Jimmy Wade, a stone cold killer who started killing at the age of eleven. Eventually he meets a policeman, Sergeant Nick Reynolds, who's dying to kill his wife, but starts off with prostitutes. The men recognize they have similar tastes and start hunting and killing together.
Meanwhile D.I. Flint is under much pressure, not only has his father had a life threatening stroke, he meets a special woman and to top it off, he only has three other officers to work with, the others are all busy with the strike. Working the case of the horrific killings takes up too many hours of his day; he's overwhelmed.
It's a good police procedural, well written with a good sense of place, but I found the grisly details of the murders hard to process, so I ended up skipping those many chapters. For readers who are not as squeamish as I am, I recommend this read. But again, there's a lot of grisly detail that may disturb some readers. The ending has a good twist.