Member Reviews

Great series, I have read them all so I had to read this one. I absolutely loved it, didn't put it down until I was done. Full to the brim with twists and turns it is relentless in surprises. Highly recommended.

Was this review helpful?

I as one of her biggest fans, I can’t tell you how thrilled and honoured I was to receive an email from her publishing house asking me if I’d like to read her new book? My response …. Hell yes!!!!! And wow is this a good read! You’re going to love this book and the whole series.

Cara Hunter has this amazing ability to spin what sounds like a ‘open-and-shut’ case into something that is wildly complex and totally entertaining. Throw into the mix her unique multimedia style (featuring news clippings, readers comments and news/Netflix broadcast) and you’ve got yourself one helluva read!

Each book by Cara tends to be inspired by real crimes. Whilst the story she writes is totally fictional, the fact that you’ve probably read or followed the real-life story previously only adds to the intensity and drama of the narrative, adding real pace with time-critical thinking and quick police action.

But her ability to write an incredibly rich and thrilling story doesn’t end there. As I mentioned above she’s really knowledgeable about police procedure and has crafted this whole other world containing the most loveable/hateful and funny characters. DI Adam Farley is at heart very down to earth and a skilled leader as well as crime investigator. Fawley’s style isn’t ‘fast and the furious’ car chases or all guns blazing shoot outs it’s incredibly clever problem solving in time critical cases - that is what makes this whole series so utterly brilliant to read!

If you haven’t read a Cara Hunter book before this one can definitely be read as a stand-alone novel. There is a nod to some backstory but really this book and the series aren’t heavily focused on Fawley, choosing to go all-out on the narrative instead. For those who haven’t read the previous books you may find the side story of one of Fawley’s team mates being in hospital a bit disjointed. I was sad that this part just disappeared half way through and we never found out more about her recovery or future prospects.

It’s truly hard to pick any fault with this book as it is just a rollercoaster ride of thrills and danger. I loved every minute of it and now I am sad that I’m back in the waiting room for the next - such is life!

Was this review helpful?

What a way to start my annual leave!! This is the 6th book in the DI Fawley series and I swear each book is better than the last. Cara Hunter is nothing short of a genius! This book hooks you in from the beginning and keeps you there throughout.

A witness hears a gun shot in an almost secluded part of the country and calls it in. The police attend and find an elderly couple with a dead body in their kitchen. At first it appears to be a burglary that has gone wrong but there are several things that do not add up and Fawley and his team need to try to make sense of it all.

Excellent read. My only complaint is that having devoured this book I have a long wait until the next instalment in the series. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced read copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

Was this review helpful?

One of my favourite authors, Cara Hunter keeps up her reputation as the Queen of Contemporary Crime Writers with this new instalment in the DI Fawley series.

Hope to Die is written in what has become recognisable as Cara's signature style, with copies of police interview transcripts and social media quotes dotted in among the narrative. These give the reader little insights into the background of the story, a feel for how the public are reacting to events as they are reported which gives a real-time feel to the book. There's a great resume of who's who and how they fit in at the start of the book so if you've picked up this without having read any other books in the series, you do get a great overview of the story so far.

Adam Fawley has recently become a dad again which if you have been following the series so far you will know is a significant event in his personal life. The events which kick off the book couldn't have come at a worse time for him; the shooting of an alleged intruder at an isolated farmhouse in the depth of the night seems fairly straightforward at first but when the team attend the scene there's definitely something "off" about the whole thing. The reports of what happened are not adding up and Fawley's instincts are telling him there's more to this than meets the eye.

Once the intruder is identified things get even trickier when it becomes clear that a previous police investigation by a neighbouring force has led to a terrible miscarriage of justice. The pressure is on to establish what went wrong in the original investigation - but why won't the wronged prisoner, who has spent much of their adult life behind bars, speak out and help solve the mystery?

Although I did work out "whodunit" quite early in the book (hence the deduction to a 4 star read), the journey of explaining how things went so horribly wrong for everyone involved was so intricately plotted that I was fully invested in the characters and how things would pan out for them all.

Roll on book 7!

Was this review helpful?

This is book 6 in the DI Fawley series and IMO one of, if not the best of a very good series.
The novel starts with what appears to be an open/closed home robbery gone wrong.
It then develops into something far more using clever means of transcripts and articles to develop the backstory.
It comes across that the author has spent a lot of time developing this plot which is interesting and intriguing.
The conclusion is very good too and the ambiguous ending with not all aspects of the story covered is good too.
Highly recommended and one of the better British crime authors around.

Was this review helpful?

It was a really gripping read with lots of twists and turns to keep me wanting more……. The story is tense and thrilling and keeps you turning the pages until the end. Recommended!

Was this review helpful?

Cara Hunter does it again! I will always race to read any of Cara's DI Fawley's series and Hope to Die was no different - in fact, I'd go to say it was one of my favourites so far.

Having been a while since I'd read book 5, I found the author's character profiles at the start of the book really useful. There was just enough information to remind the reader who was who. There are a lot of Adam's team to remember (some may say too many) but as always, they are all so distinct that you quickly pick it up as you go.

Aside from the usual police team, the plot is filled with a bunch of really fascinating characters who are threaded throughout the latest case, the majority untrustworthy which really adds to the suspense of the plot. There are so many fantastic twists and turns that it was easy to fly through Hope to Die, working alongside Adam and his team as the put pieces of the puzzle together, eager to get to the truth.

As with previous books from the series, I enjoyed the different formats the author used, including voice mails, emails, newspaper clippings, phone calls and even a Netflix documentary.

This a must read for any Fawley fans but I recommend any newbies start from the beginning and make the most of the earlier books.

Was this review helpful?

One of my favourite authors does it again! I loved this so much, I just don’t want this series to end. It’s written so well and had me on the edge of my seat. I just love the whole gang especially Adam Fawley. I wish there was a bit more about Alex and her story but maybe in the next instalment.

Was this review helpful?

Cara Hunter returns on great form with the latest outing for DI Fawley, as he investigates an unusual murder that appears to reflect some news stories in the UK from years ago when a burglar is shot after disturbing householders during a break in that has ended in tragedy. All the trademark Cara Hunter plot devices are there, with some interesting additions. So readers can expect extracts from police interviews, social media clips and - a new feature - extracts from a verbatim transcript from a TV series. It is to Ms Hunter’s great credit that these devices do not feel ‘shoe-horned’ into the narrative; for the most part they fulfil the purpose of introducing relative detail quite efficiently, although this reader felt the extracts from the TV show transcript were perhaps somewhat less slickly incorporated.
This modest niggle notwithstanding, this is a story that will engage most readers; DI Fawley fans will take to it like walkers lost in a desert rush to an oasis! Pacing is excellent whilst the usual investigative team is all present and correct, together with a few new characters. To cap it all, the denouement is unlikely to disappoint.

Was this review helpful?

Another fabulous read from Cara Hunter. What can I say, it's a must-read, and who wouldn't fall in love with the characters. The plot was unique and the twists and turns were all I expect from this accomplished writer. Bravo (and hurry up with the next one)

Was this review helpful?

Another fantastic read from Cara Hunter, this is honestly one of my favourite detective series and I’ve read a few in my time! Love Adam and all the other major players in the story and have really taken to the new characters introduced. I would have liked a little more about Somers’ side story as it was mentioned briefly but then never really explored but other than that perfect gripping tale as always. Thanks to the publisher, Netgalley and the author for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

Cara Hunter is a prolific author of crime novels and her main character Adam Fawley is always superbly developed, with settings and additional characters drawn straight from contemporary times. This, her sixth instalment in the series, is as good as its predecessors. This time, Fawley is called out to a remote farmhouse where a man without any ID lies dead from gunshot wounds, yet the farmhouse proprietors Richard and Margaret Swann claim to have shot him in selfdefence as they feared getting burgled. But as Fawley digs deeper into their circumstances, name changes, a horrific historic crime and lots more buried secrets come to the fore….
As always in Hunter’s novels, as well as the police procedural, there are interesting subplots related to Adam Fawley’s team; it is worth reading the thriller for this alone. I suggest unplugging the phone, pouring a drink and settling in for what will be a long read, as you won’t put this down once you start!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers, Penguin, for the free ARC that enabled this unbiased review and that was such a treat.

Was this review helpful?

This writer is literally in my top ten authors of all time and believe me I read a lot. I find her characters with depth and her stories always always really engaging. No surprise to say I loved this book. Would really recommend to all avid readers.

Was this review helpful?

Hope To Die by Cara Hunter
Published by Penguin Random House
Publication Date: 18/8/22
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

No Spoilers

Fantastic! I’ve loved the previous books in the series, they just get better and better. Great cast of believable characters and a superb twisty plot. Satisfying ending bringing everything together perfectly, I read it in a weekend.
Can’t wait for the next book. Or to see it on the tv!

Thanks to the author, publisher and netgalley for providing me with an advance digital copy in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Was this review helpful?

Woweeee, just when you thought this series could not get any better. Absolutely love the DI Fawley series and this was probably my favourite book so far. I really can't wait for the next one!!!

Was this review helpful?

A break-in gone wrong brings Fawley back into the limelight and the team quickly discover that all is not what it seems. With twists involving people in hiding, historical cases of murder and questions raised about the justice meted the book moves at a fast pace and the ending comes out of nowhere!
brilliant.

Was this review helpful?

Having read the other books from this series I knew this one would be a corker too! Loved catching up with DI Adam Fawley and his team and was chuffed when I got invited to read it. I love the way these books are written with correspondence such as emails, texts etc written as they would have been received in real life. Definitely a great page turner and worth a read.

Was this review helpful?

This is a jaw dropping five-star read. This is number six in the DI Adam Fawley series and in my eyes the best of the bunch so far, I have enjoyed the stories I have read in the series before, I haven’t read them all, but I have some, and this one just stood out so much, I don’t know if it was the level of detail, or just the story but it sucked me in so hard, and I couldn’t put it down, I ruined a joint of beef as I missed every reminder and only stopped reading when the smoke alarm set off that’s how gripping this story is!! I don’t want to tell you the story as I wont do it justice, but goodness you need tis story and author in your life.

Was this review helpful?

This is DC Adams and his team with a challenging murder to deal with.

This is a great crime thriller not just about the Super Cop but a whole team with interviews a Netflix series and a whole lot more. You never get to rest as the twist may not be every page but they are fast and furious. The characters were great and believable not all of them likeable just like real life, some of them are very likeable. And the Rawleys what the truth obviously that's the story but you will have a very hard time working them out.

I just enjoyed this so much the whole novel, every page had me hooked, a phase often used but this was so much the case for me. I really hope it is for You as well.

Was this review helpful?

Another in the DI Fawley series and I think it's Hunters' best yet.
A call is made of a disturbance at an isolated house. When the police get there, no-one is around. But there is a grisly find at the back door. What seems like a burglary intercepted by the homeowners, is immediately arousing suspicions.
I really enjoyed this book. And interestingly, one of the main characters is featured very little.
I like the way the whole team have personalities, the action doesn't just focus on Fawley.
A great read.

Was this review helpful?