DC Dove Milson is still working in the Major Crimes Team in Abberley under DI Jon Blackman and DCI Kevin Franklin with longstanding partner DS Steve Parker who is loving life with two small daughters. Dove herself is now happily living with fiancé paramedic Quinn after finally getting over the dreadful events she experienced while working as a confidential informant handler. Her younger sister Gaia now has three successful strip clubs and older sister Ren still runs her coffee shop with the help of daughter Eden who is back home with her young son Elan. They are all gradually getting their lives back on track after the recent devastating events. It’s nice to see other old faces back as well, such as Dove’s friend Crime Scene Manager Jess, DS Lindsey Allerton and DC Josh Conrad. A murdered woman is pursued from her crashed car to her caravan where she is tortured and stabbed to death, an unusual heart shaped stone left in her mouth together with another sinister item. Dove and Steve stumble upon the car forced off the road near a lifelike baby doll in a car seat and find themselves under attack from a fleeing man. One good suspect emerges, a real nasty piece of work with a criminal record and links to the stone. Could he have been set up or is he a ruthless murderer? Another death follows quickly with connections to the first victim. Now they have four carved stone hearts and if the detectives’ suspicions are right and someone is taking revenge for past crimes, there could be many more deaths if they don’t catch this killer soon.
As I have come to expect from this series, there are bizarre killings and twisted histories and secrets, and a wealth of puzzling clues laid out by the author in a wonderful dark and suspenseful plot that kept me hooked and guessing all the way through. With great characters, easy to get to know and already well introduced in the first three books, this is an extremely well told story which I can highly recommend. I can’t wait for more books in this series. 5*

While enjoyed the whodunnit aspect of this book, it moved a little slow for me. I feel like I missed a lot of defining moments in Dove’s character by not having read the previous books. There were parts of this, like Connie, that were unresolved because they felt important to the story at the time. There was missed opportunity for the killers identity. Despite these personal preferences, I enjoyed this.

The fourth of the detective Dove Milson series, Stone Cold Killing by A D E White is another fine police procedural. As Dove is driving along, she narrowly misses a baby in a car seat in the middle of the road, only to discover a crashed car and blood at the scene. The unfolding investigation reveals family tragedy, more bodies, and the police team’s own struggles personally and with the case. An enjoyable police procedural read with realistic characters, flowing narrative and intriguing Major Crimes tangle web to solve. This tale is a good standalone crime story read with a four star rating. With thanks to Joffe Books and the author, for an uncorrected advanced review copy for review purposes. As always, the opinions herein are totally my own and freely given.

This is the first book I have read in this series but it did not detract from the storyline. A definite four star read. Plenty of suspense to keep me guessing. Well rounded characters. Would definitely read the next novel . Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it.

It has been a while since the last one of this series came out but I clicked right back into the series after a few chapters. I do recommend you read this series from the start. I love Dove's character and Dove and Steve make the perfect work partners. Another thrilling read from this series, it is quickly becoming one of my favourite series. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

3.5 stars

Stone Cold Killing by D.E. White is the fourth in the DC Dove Milson crime series.

First, I'd like to thank NetGalley, the publisher Joffe Books and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.


Series Background: (Warning - May Contain Spoilers from Previous Books)
DC Dove Milson, once a handler of police informants, is now a member of the Major Crimes Team.   Her partner is DS Steve Parker, their boss is DI Jon Blackman, all under the rule of DCI Kevin Franklin.  Her friend, Jess Meadows is a Crime Scene Manager, and one of the few who knows her background.  Dove's fiancé is a paramedic named Quinn.   She has two sisters, Ren (whose husband is now in jail) and Gaia (who owns a strip club). They all grew up on a commune.  Dove has a photographic memory.



My Synopsis:    (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)
Dove has to swerve to miss the car seat in the middle of the road.  She is sure there is a baby inside it.  While she checks it out, Steve checks out the crashed car.  Dove finds a very life-like doll.  Steve finds blood on the seat of the car.  When a shot is fired, they dive for cover.

The driver of the abandoned car is Alice Cartwright, and she is found dead in her trailer, not far from the crash, a carved stone heart in her mouth.

They find the car contains drugs, but when a friend of Alice's dies, and her ex starts talking about lost babies, things get a little confusing - and a lot more dangerous.


My Opinions:
Although I liked the last book better, this was quite good.   It did, however seem quite long, and despite all the action, I felt it moved slowly.  Topics include mental illness, domestic abuse, kidnapping of children,  murder, and drug gangs.  At times...usually when Dove was being attacked (3 or 4 times) it was fairly graphic.  The book is also about a rather dysfunctional family.

The story is told from both Dove's perspective in solving the case, and an unknown narrator which was difficult to identify, and sometimes seemed like two different people.  I didn't particularly like those chapters.

Overall, there were a lot of characters.  I still like Dove, Quinn, and Steve.  I'm still trying to get used to Dove's family.

So, with all of that, I still think it was a good book.  The plot and writing were very good,  and that kept me plodding along.

A brilliant edge of your seat read I do so love a good book that has me sussing out the what, when, where and who.Excellent loved it 5*

This is book 4 in the Detective Dove Milson series but easily read as a stand alone. The characterisation is excellent with very clever plotting involving murder, drugs and child cruelty. Reader beware, but the topic is sensitively handled. I like the team dynamics, the fast pace and the short, snappy chapters. The unnamed character's point of view was interesting as I tried to work out all the dynamics. It's a very good, well written thriller which I would recommend to fans of the genre. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

This is one of those books that after those first few pages, you don't want to put it down! DC Dove Wilson is at it again in this forth book in the series. This was an interesting story that really drug me in from the first chapter, and didn't let go until the last page. The case they are working also involves an unknown cold case that had to do with children. For the most part this was Dove's story, but we also hear from an unknown (until the end) person talking about now they should have been the one chosen. This book does have some triggers in it. So if you're sensitive to child abuse, rape,and violence, just beware it is in this book. But it's written so well that it was easy to get passed all of that, I just wanted to know what happened! D.E. White writes a good, original album storyline, and has a way of bringing you in to her characters lives, and you like them! I now can't wait to read the fifth book in the series lol!! Thank you to Net Galley, the author,and Coffee Books for an advanced copy of this book. Read it, you won't be let down!

Well written with a gripping story and well deveoped characters. There are lots of twists and the multiple murder aspect with lots of suspects made for great suspenseful reading. I enjoyed it.

The book will be out on the 9th of November and is published by Joffe Books .

This one took a bit longer for me to finish. The book started out quite strong. A scene that draws you in so you want to keep reading. But, the further I got, the less I cared for it. Too many events and too many characters are described and that made it somewhat difficult to follow. The story itself was alright, but it was made too elaborate. Too many different things happened for it to be a great thriller. The many storylines changing from the present to the past was just too much.

The idea was alright but the execution failed a bit.

2/5⭐

This is a great whodunit that escalates quickly from one murder to three. There are multiple motives, from drug-related to child-protective, and that makes for a diverse list of suspects. The clues and discoveries point to at least 3 different potential culprits. And through it all you have witnesses that do not want to provide information or knowingly misdirect. It really made me feel for the detectives that have to work so hard to find the truth in order to solve a crime. I not only loved the main characters and the investigation, but found all the other characters helped to round out the story (whether I liked them or not!). A great read!!

I would like to thank Netgalley and Joffe Books for an advance copy of Stone Cold Killing, the fourth novel to feature DC Dove Milson, set somewhere on the English south coast.

Dove and her partner DS Steve Parker are driving down a country lane when they have to swerve to avoid a baby in a car seat in the middle of the road. They can see a crashed car and blood a few yards away. Steve investigates the car crash and Dove discovers that the baby is a life like doll. Then they get shot at and the women in the car that crashed is found murdered with a heart shaped stone in her mouth.

I enjoyed Stone Cold Killing to a point, but I don’t think it is the best novel in the series for various reasons. The novel is essentially told from Dove’s point of view, but there are short chapters from an unnamed character full of anxiety and ramblings that are initially difficult to make sense of. They didn’t add anything to my reading experience, except a desire to get past them as quickly as possible.

The plot is a strange mixture of action packed and muddled. Dove escapes four (yes, four) life threatening situations in this novel, and not all of them are related to the investigation. The plot of said investigation is the muddled bit. The current murder investigation has its roots in alleged historical crimes that no one knew about and the victim may have perpetrated, the killer certainly thinks so. I never felt that the novel had a clear focus where A leads to B etc. and instead is a series of theories looking for proof. I also think that the author throws in unrelated incidents to create a little excitement in what is quite a dull plot.

I understand what the author is trying to say and agree on the links made, but I wish that it was more direct.

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, from Joffe Books and #NetGalley. Thank you to the publishers, NetGalley and the author for the opportunity to preview and review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Realistic, thrilling and entertaining

Good solid police procedural with a really realistic and relatable main character. The book flows along nicely, but I could personally do without the other narrator, as I feel this slows the action down.

D. Dove Milson is back!!!!! Book four.
And it's been well worth waiting for.
Dove and Steve Parker just miss a baby car seat in the middle of the road but it's a doll and blood leading into the woods and abandoned car in a ditch the driver Alice Cartwright is found murdered.
A carved stone is in her mouth heart shaped so they are now on a mission to find a stone cold killer and this is not the first murder.
I just love this detective in her books, there's never a dull moment, always plenty of action, and the author grips you right in there right till the end.
Amazing, Fantastic, gripping, Incredible, Mind-blowing. The best book ever in this series.

I always find it odd when books follow a lowly Detective constable rather than a higher ranking officer, but I suppose that the DCs and DSs are on the front line and see more of what is going on, on the ground. This book is exciting and very readable. Well thought out characters - especially the police officers.

Loved it - couldn't wait for the ending but didn't want the book to finish.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher I read a free advance review copy of the book. This review is voluntary, honest and my own opinion.

In Stone Cold Killing (Detective Dove Milson #4 by D.E. White, Detective Dove Milson and her partner narrowly avoid hitting a baby's car seat in the middle of the road. Up the road, a car has crashed, and a trail of blood leads into the woods. This is book 4 in the Detective Dove Milson series. As the description states, it is an addictive crime thriller.

The storyline held my interest and had the right mix of police procedural, action, murder, and suspense. I really liked the Dove character and felt she was quite realistic in her dialogue and actions. The whole team was good together and provided the right blend of characters and depth to the story.

I would recommend this book and this series.

#STONECOLDKILLING #NetGalley @JoffeBooks

This is Dove's 4th case and a particularly emotive and harrowing one as it involves babies, child cruelty, murder, drugs and red stone hearts! I found it thoroughly engaging and suspenseful and I liked the twists and turns which kept me guessing.
This is an addictive read, one not to be missed.

Good book and series! This book had a bit of everything! It had suspense, intrigue, action, murder, and great police work! The storyline was very interesting and had me glued to my Kindle! I will definitely recommend reading this book and series! They're well worth reading! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!