Ok, so, not a bad read at all. Flowed well with an interesting scribe yet I couldn’t help feeling underwhelmed.
I can’t say it was slow or boring, yet it felt different to previous Robert Bryndza novels, in short, it felt more than a filler than a killer read!
One to be read but forgettable.

Solid PI mystery. It is the fourth in the series but can easily be read as a stand alone. Some of the child death and trauma may be triggering to readers. I was able to guess the twist about halfway through, but it was well done.

Thank you Robert Bryndza, NetGalley, and Raven Publishing for my audio advanced review copy. My opinions are my own.

Plot - 4
Writing and Editing - 4
Character Development - 4
Narration - 4
Personal Bias - 3
Final Score - 3.8

I really can’t recommend this audio. Jan Cramer’s light, flippant narration is better suited to romantic comedy than crime fiction like this. 4★s for the story -1★ for the narrator.

Devil’s Way is the fourth book in the Kate Marshall series by best-selling, award-winning British author, Robert Bryndza. While private investigator, Kate Marshall recovers in hospital after almost drowning, she encounters a woman whose three-year-old grandson went missing eleven years earlier: Charlie Julings disappeared from the tent he was sharing with his grandmother, Jean, in June 2007. Police believed he fell into the raging torrent that was Devil’s Way River and was swept into a sinkhole: no remains were ever found.

But even though the courts have declared Charlie dead, Jean wants Kate and her business partner Tristan Harper to find out what happened. Eleven years on, trace evidence is non-existent, but they can examine the scene and talk to those involved: the police at the scene, the boy’s father, the tenants of the nearby farm, Jean’s lover. Their thorough research makes it apparent that Jean is being a little economical with the truth.

As they explore all avenues around the disappearance, and when they focus on a social worker with whom Jean had an altercation, it seems a bit as if they’re going off on a tangent but, intuitively, they persist despite the seemingly tenuous link to the case. A late-night episode with a ground-penetrating radar unit nets Kate and Tristan a dose of mace in the face along with a grisly result. Have they found the boy’s body?

While their agency is gaining a good reputation, Kate doesn’t hesitate to mention her police experience where it might facilitate cooperation with investigating officers. Tristan is proving himself capable and innovative.

The backstory fill-in is a little clumsily done but Bryndza throws in a good number of red herrings and twists to keep the reader guessing in the lead up to a dramatic climax and a very satisfactory resolution. Very readable British crime fiction.
This unbiased review is from an advance listening copy provided by NetGalley and Raven Street Publishing

This is a new to me author, but I was drawn in by the book blurb. I really like Kate Marshall. She is a no nonsense older character who has a PI service with a guy starting out. They are investigating the disappearance of a little boy that happened over 10 years ago. Was it a simple case that he wandered off and drowned or is there something more nefarious going on?

This is layered and you will never see where this one is heading. Kate is described as normally a strong character, but in this book she is dealing with not being at her best. That was interesting to watch unfold.

Jan Cramer did a good job narrating the book and kept me interested.

I like that there wasn’t a romance brewing, which often happens in police procedural, but that the PIs personal lives did play a part. This was well plotted and kept me guessing until close to the end.

This is a riveting read for anyone who loves a good suspenseful mystery. The author has fully developed characters but I did catch a mistake in his story. For those reading it, you will see what I mean, concerning a certain woman. Trying not to give anything away because it is that great of a read.

Once again, we find Kate Marshall and her assistant, Tristan solving a mystery but this time it involves the disappearance of a three-year-old boy, eleven years ago. The guardians have secrets of their own and this book certainly takes you for an incredible “who-done-it” ride. At one point, I did figure out a vital piece of information but the ending still played out brilliantly.

I must confess, this is the first book of the Kate Marshall series I have read. There are three more prior to this copy. I look forward to reading more in this series.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Raven Street Publishing for my e-audio copy, in exchange for an honest review.

⚠️ TRIGGER WARNING: Addiction, pagan worshipping, and mental health.

This was another excellent installation in the Kate Marshall series. I like that the series has moved on from the initial book and did not drag the Nine Elms killer into every story. That was a concern I had after the second book, but Bryndza has deftly moved the story away from that and made it more about Kate and Tristan's lives and their investigations with the Nine Elms killer just being part of their history.

This book can be read as a stand-a-lone, but you would miss out on some of the background and development of the main characters and their relationships. There is just enough background included that you will understand where the characters are coming from, but not a lot of detail to make it cumbersome. I love the combination of Kate and Tristan and that they have real life situations outside of their investigations, so would recommend reading the series from the beginning.

I listened to the audiobook. This installation was narrated by Jan Cramer, who has narrated Bryndza's Erica Foster series. (Another fabulous series with a female detective as a main character if you're looking for one.) I'm not sure why Kristin Atherton didn't continue with the narration of this series, but Cramer does an excellent job bringing the story to life and I would highly recommend the audio.

#DevilsWay #NetGalley

This is the fourth installment in a series about a UK private investigator named Kate Marshall, but can absolutely be read as a standalone. I think the narration and pacing was great, I thought I had the case solved a few times, just to be presented with new information that proved me wrong! I will absolutely be checking out other stories in Kate's series!

Book 4 in the Kate Marshall series. A good storyline that had you gripped from the beginning with lots of twists and turns along the way. A good addition to the series

Because the storyline was that good I managed to stick with the audio even though this narrator is dreadful!

This is my first Robert Bryndza novel and I really enjoyed it, although I did guess the answer to the central puzzle quite quickly.

The novel follows private detective pairing Kate and Tristran as they investigate a cold case involving a missing 3 year old. It falls between genres in that Kate is a former police detective and has respect and information from the police but works independently with her own agency.

I would probably have given it 5 stars but listened to the audiobook and didn’t feel that the narrator’s tone particularly suited the book. It was still an interesting and engaging story though.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Raven Street Publishing for an audiobook arc in exchange for an honest review.

This is my first in the series of the book and I definitely think it would have helped to read the others; however given that I have now listened to as an audio book, and the second reading/listening has helped me understand more.

The story was interesting and the narration really suited it.

I was given an advance copy by netgalley and the publishers but the review is entirely my own.

I received this book from the publisher through netgalley.com I am leaving this review voluntarily.

While this is the 4th book in the series I didn't feel lost jumping into this series. Kate Marshall gets pulled by a riptide and winds up in hospital where she meets Jean. Jean is drawn to her when she finds out that Kate is a private detective. She asks Kate to find her grandson who went missing 11 years ago.

This was a well plotted story with lots of twist and turns, I was drawn in by the narration and the story. Addiction, child welfare, mental illness and grief all take part in this book. Both Kate and Jean are both recovered alcoholics, Kate lost her son due to her drinking and he was raised by Kate's mother. She still feels grief about all she missed in his growing up but now has a good relationship with him. While Jean doesn't lose a child due to her addiction she does lose her grandson. Kate knows that the unknowing of what happened is causing Jean great amounts of distress and pain.

While searching for answers Jean stumbles across the murder of a child welfare worker who Jean felt took a special interest in her grandson before he went missing.

I was fascinated by how these two cases would come together and it wasn't what I expected. I love the atmosphere of the book and how bits of information are parsed out throughout the book. Excellent mystery and with great narration.

***** AUDIOBOOK REVIEW *****

I listened to this from start to finish in one day while I was baking Christmas cookies and various fudges. I will say… it isn’t the most festive holiday story! I do love getting to meet back up with Kate and Tristan. Kate seemed to have a bit of a harder time in this book than her last few. She had an accident and it’s keeping her away from the one thing that relaxes her and really starts her day off right. Besides that, while she was in the hospital recovering, she meets a lady that needs help finding her missing grandson. He went missing 11 years prior while camping with her and his parents. There hasn’t been a sign of him since.

I stumbled upon Robert Bryndza with his first book, The Girl in the Ice, and since then I have followed him and watched for new releases. I do still miss Erika Foster though. Bryndza has really developed and refined his craft. He has a way of getting you to care for his characters. You end up wanting what is best for them. The narrator, Jan Cramer, does a fantastic job developing Kate Marshall. She’s a character that has a sordid past. She struggles a lot with life. It’s clear in the narration that Marshall doesn’t have all her stuff together.

Robert Bryndza returns following Fatal Witness (Detective Erika Foster #7) with his other popular series, (PI Kate Marshall #4) DEVIL'S WAY.

Kate finds herself in the hospital with an unlikely roommate —a woman who hires her to find her missing grandson in this riveting whodunit mystery.

Kate has been sober for thirteen years and misses her son, Jake, away at university. She runs her Private detective agency with her partner Tristan Harper, resides on Thurlow Bay, and enjoys swimming every morning.

In this exciting 4th installment, Private Investigator Kate Marshall ends up in the hospital after she hits a riptide on her daily morning swim.

The older woman, Jean, in the hospital bed next to her, complains a lot, and while getting to know one another, she tells her about a camping trip to Dartmoor eleven years ago with her family, where her three-year-old grandson went missing and was never found.

After an investigation, there were not any clues and it was assumed he fell into the river and drowned. Jean's daughter, Becky, could not cope with the tragedy and committed suicide.

Jean has been haunted since then and uses her savings and hires Kate and Tristan to take on the case.

The camp area was not the best but the family did not have much money and they just wanted to have a fun camp weekend. The little boy was in the grandmother's tent and she stepped out for a cigarette and he disappeared.

Tristan is taking on a larger role since Kate is still recovering; however, they dig deep into Jean's history, Dartmoor, and police investigations, and they find a connection with a brutal murder of a social worker, Anna Treadwell after Charlies disappeared.

Are the two related?

Was Charlie abducted? Or did he fall into Devil's Way? What about members and friends of the family? Was something more sinister involved?

Dark and twisty—a multi-layered and complex mystery with vivid descriptions and well-developed characters.

The author always knows how to grab and hold you! I was invested in the characters and could not wait to learn about this little boy.

I love Kate and Tristan and enjoyed the sleuthing and sharp investigative skills as they unraveled the secrets of the past and cold case —to bring closure to a case that has gone unsolved for many years by the local authorities.

For fans of this series and new fans of crime thrillers, cop procedurals, and PI mysteries. Devil's Way can be read as a standalone; however, you will enjoy Kate so much that you will want to go back and read the others.

I am a fan of Erika Foster and Kate Marshall and look forward to seeing what comes next. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Jan Cramer for an outstanding and engaging performance. #CoverLove

Thank you to #RavenStreetPublishing and #NetGalley for a gifted ALC for preview purposes.

Blog Review Posted @
www.JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins |#JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: Jan 12, 2023
My Rating: 4 ⭐ Stars
Jan 2023 Must-Read Books

Another great book in the Kate Marshall series! This one, like the others, will keep you wanting more and the pages turning. Kate goes out for her daily swim in the ocean near her home and almost drowns when she is pulled into a riptide. During her hospital stay, she chats with her roommate, Jean. Jean learns that Kate is a private investigator and tells her the story about her grandson, Charlie, disappearing from a camping trip eleven years ago when he was three. While Jean was camping near Devil's Way, a river in a gorge, her three year old grandson went missing. Did he wander off and drown? Was he abducted? Jean hires Kate and her partner, Tristan to look into Charlie's disappearance.
Kate and Tristan are such likable characters. They continue to develop their professional relationship in this fourth book of the series. Although you could read this book as a stand alone novel, I recommend starting with the first book. I feel having the detailed background for Kate and Tristan really adds to the story. As Kate and Tristan begin to investigate Charlie's disappearance, they uncover some dark things about Jean's past. This book will keep you turning the pages to see what really happened to Charlie. The narrator of the book is easy to listen to and adds to the experience of the story. Thank you to Raven Street Publishing and NetGalley for allowing me to read this book.

I was given an ARC audio copy of this book In exchange for an honest review. I was really excited when I received the Netgally approval email for the newest book in the Kate Marshall series and I quickly grabbed book three to catch up before listening to this. Book four has Kate and Tristan investigating a missing three year old boy from almost a decade ago. This story moves quicker than book three and holds your attention as more and more information is revealed. The ending also wraps up on a more positive note than book three. Overall I really enjoyed this one.

Devil's Way Robert Bryndza
I really enjoy the Kate Marshall series, and I really liked this book too.
I enjoyed the storyline, I had a fair idea what was going on, but wanted to know why
I part read part listened to the story, my favourite way to read any book, and for me, I enjoyed this one more in print form. I liked the narrator, but felt I was more absorbed in the story when reading it.

This one took me a bit to get into because I hadn’t read the other books in the series, but once it got going I was hooked. Well written, great pace. I will definitely be going back to read the other books.

This was a really great mystery. The twists will keep you guessing till the end. I appreciate how the ending was handled as well. It took a more realistic approach to this kind of tragedy and upheaval.

I also enjoyed the narrator of the book. It was definitely worth the listen.

Loved it! Memories of holidays in Dartmoor brought to life in dramatic fashion. A superb cast of characters who you can imagine. Kate is a powerhouse lady - loved it!

Book 4 in the Kate Marshall follows a new cold case around a child who went missing eleven years earlier while camping with his parents and grandmother. Jean was the last person to see her grandson Charlie and she has never been able to move on, so she tasks Kate and Tristan with finding out what happened. This turns into a complicated case with lots of people to interview, places to investigate and no easy answers.

Another great instalment in this must-read series.