Flesh and Blood, David Mark

I struggled to get into this book initially. I wonder if this is because it is the first I have read involving Trish Pharaoh and Aector MacAvoy and I understand that there are quite a number of previous books which will enable you to get a feel for the relationship dynamics.

However, I soon became engrossed and enjoyed the storyline.

Thank you to NetGalley and Severn House for a copy of this book, I rate it 4 stars.

It may be just me but I felt confused throughout a good part of this tale. Add to that some of the extremely gory details and I’m afraid that leaves me simply relieved to get to the end.

I'm afraid that Flash and Blood was not for me and I accept that I am probably in the minority as David Mark is obviously a well respected writer. I just found it too convoluted and I just struggled to stay attentive.

Not really enjoying this, although I have liked David Mark books in the past. It's well-written but a bit too violent for me.

I think this is part of a series and so coming into this not reading the previous books means that you have less context around the different characters. I initially found it hard to follow but quickly the book weaved together. The book centres around DS Aector McAvoy and his boss Trish Pharao. Aector is on holiday, A man is attacked outside of Trish's apartment. And so the story develops, twists turns, secrets, and the past catching up. What is the truth, and how will it all end. From a slow start I found the book hard to put down as you wanted to unravel everything that was happening. Brilliant would recommend this book.

Thank you to #Netgalley and #SevernHouse for the copy of #FleshAndBlood by#davidMark

If you like your books dark and convoluted this is one for you but unfortunately I could not get into it.
It may have helped if I had read the previous books. Maybe I’ll try one of the earlier ones and work my way up.

DS mcavoy is a really well written character. The story is gripping and would make an excellent television programme.
Highly recommended.

When Trish Pharaoh's lover is attacked outside her home who looks like Aector McAvoy. Trish goes missing it up to McAvoy to find out what's happening. A gruesome novel full of good characters and well paced. A gripping thriller that's hard put out down. I received this book from Server Publishing and Netgalley for a review

Detective McAvoy and his boss Trish Pharaoh are friends but it turns out that Trish has not shared all of her secrets with him and murders starting with her beau are a consequence. Great novel with lots of twists and turns.

This is the first of David's books I've had the pleasure of reading. My only regret is that it took me so long to find such a talented author. The writing is really descriptive and., at times quite gory and disturbing. I loved Pharaoh and McAvoy. At times, the references to past events meant I would have benefitted from reading earlier books first but this still works well as a stand-alone novel. I'm now going to go back and read more of David's work. Highly recommended.

EXCERPT: Aector Fucking McAvoy is feeling unusually good about life when the news reaches him that he's been attacked and left for dead on one of Hull's most well-to-do streets. It comes as a shock and causes a familiar flush of disappointment with himself. Getting killed is just the sort of thing he'd expect from the over-achieving simpleton he knows himself to be. He had believed himself to be enjoying a break with his family, their borrowed bow-top wagon pitched in this green velvet fold of the Eden Valley: this soft pause in the craggy landscape between the Lake District and the Pennines. He had thought himself comfortable by the fire, the echo of poetry upon his tongue and fire-fairies dancing upon the cold dark air. Had thought he was listening to the snap and chomp of the kindling giving itself up to the flame, smiling to himself in response to the occasional ghostly hoot from the owl that stares out with wide, paranoid, you-weren't-there eyes in the oak overhead. Had believed himself to be alive and vital: sitting outside the darkened hump of the bow-top vardo, his clothes damp with dew and sweat and the soft rain that hangs like mist in the air.

ABOUT 'FLESH AND BLOOD': DS Aector McAvoy is on a well-deserved family holiday when the news reaches him that he's been attacked and left for dead on one of Hull's most well-to-do streets.

It comes as something of a shock. But not as much as the discovery of who's really been attacked - and his growing realization it's no coincidence he's far from home, in an isolated, rural campsite, on today of all days.

McAvoy's superior officer - and best friend - DS Trish Pharaoh has been keeping secrets. Secrets that are catching up with her.

Secrets that could kill them all . . .

MY THOUGHTS: Unusually for this series, I struggled with Flesh and Blood. It had little to do with the violence, the gore, which - face it - are par for the course. It just felt rather disjointed. The plot felt overly complicated and - this has NEVER happened before - my attention wandered!

There is some beautiful writing, the excerpt above being a case in point, but there were several places where I felt plain confused.

This is definitely NOT my favourite in the series. In fact, I will go on record saying that this is my least favourite of the series. I understand that the author may have felt a need to do something a little different, but my advice is 'if it's not broken, don't fix it.'

I love Aector McAvoy's character. I love his devotion to Roisin and to his boss, Trish. I love the way Roisin and Trish tolerate one another for his sake, with a kind of grudging respect, but they definitely don't 'like' each other. But Aector and Trish have caught a lot of bad people together, locked up serial killers and corrupt police and politicians, and saved one another's lives. Their ties are strong and deep. And, let's be straight up about this, Trish has a bit of a 'thing' for Aector, not that she would ever admit it to anyone, but in her bones, Roisin knows and will never trust Trish in that way. She trusts her husband, but not Trish. Definitely not Trish.

For his part, Aector needs both women to be safe. While Roisin is the love of his life, as essential as the air he breathes, Trish is the one who has shown him that it is possible to be a good copper and a good person at the same time. He's no longer the classically shy introvert who used to tie himself in knots trying to follow the letter of the law. He tries to uphold the law but now he knows that the letter of the law isn't always the best solution. He thinks that without Trish's guidance, he wouldn't be able to be a police officer, and what else could he do?

Actually, I'm in total accord with both Roisin and Trish. I, too, love Aector and am looking forward to our next meeting.

⭐⭐⭐.5

#FleshandBlood #NetGalley

I: @davidmarkwriter @severnhouseimprint

T: @DavidMarkWriter @severnhouse

#contemporaryfiction #crime #detectivefiction #murdermystery #policeprocedural #psychologicalthriller #suspense #thriller

THE AUTHOR: David spent more than 15 years as a journalist, including seven years as a crime reporter with The Yorkshire Post – walking the Hull streets that would later become the setting for the internationally bestselling Detective Sergeant Aector McAvoy novels.

His writing is heavily influenced by the court cases he covered: the defeatist and jaded police officers; the inertia of the justice system and the sheer raw grief of those touched by savagery and tragedy.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Severn House via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Flesh and Blood by David Mark for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

A bit confusing to start with and a few times through the book.
I`ve not read any of his previous books and thought if I had read them I would have understood the characters better.
Once I was into it I enjoyed it.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC

From the start this is a gruesome police procedural story with Trish Pharaoh and Aector MacAvoy leading the hunt for the killer.

When I say 'gruesome' it certainly is, and Mr Marks seems good at this genre. I have not read any of his books before and I notice that this book is near the end of a long series. This being the case, I would have enjoyed it more with the main characters backstories.

I enjoyed the writing style and the book is well worthy of 4 stars. Not 5 stars as the violence was too hard hitting for me.

Thanks to Net Galley and Severn House for the chance to read and review.

Regular readers will know that I am a fan of David Mark’s writing and though I was late to his police procedural series with Aector McAvoy and Trish Pharaoh as the crime fighting duo, I honestly think it is one of my favourites.

Flesh and Blood is less of a police procedural and more of a serial killer on a revenge trail. I recently read Lars Kepler’s The Spider and this has the same vibe, but I enjoyed this more. In part that’s the allegiance to these characters and in part due to the wonderful quality of the writing which veers from dark and intense to blissfully poetic with flashes of terrific humour running through the narrative.

Aector is a big, red headed bear of a man (albeit going a little grey now). He adores his wife Roisin and their two kids and he pretty much idolises his boss, Trish Pharaoh. He has the soul of a poet, while Trish is a busty 5’0 and smart as a whip. She’s turned down the top job, preferring to say in charge of her unit. But in doing so, she has left a path free for the corporate mannequin, Detective Chief Superintendent George Earl. He’s the kind of policeman who always looks perfectly groomed and is constantly concerned with managing upwards. Jargon flows from him like a waterfall into a pool and he is a misogynist with a penchant for coercive control. Trish is a thorn on his flesh because he was second choice to a woman and her very presence rubs that in his face every day.

In Flesh and Blood Trish is in bed with her Icelandic policeman lover, Thor – a man who bears rather an uncanny physical appearance to Aector – when her car alarm goes off. Thor gallantly goes to investigate only to be struck down viciously in the street.

Aector is on leave, staying off grid in a Romany Vardo with Roisin and his kids when he’s called to hear about his own death. Thor was at first mistaken for Aector and not only that, but Trish has fled the scene.

Flesh and Blood is a fast paced read that is genuinely edge of the seat. I loved the return of serial killer Reuben Hollow whom we first met in Dead Pretty (#5). He is a clever, deeply charismatic man whom Aector caught. A true crime podcast is currently looking at the life and convictions of Reuben Hollow who still has many women writing to him.

As Trish’s former mentor is also brutally murdered, she is frantically trying to piece together the clues from what she knows – but one thing is clear – her secrets are coming back to haunt her.

With both Trish and inevitably Aector in very real danger, David Mark cleverly brings together the threads of this gruesome spider’s web and in the process some very bad people will be unmasked.

It’s beautifully done and I really enjoyed it. Great characters, fantastic writing and a plot that held me gripped for hours. A five star read for me.

‘The figure who stands above him is familiar.’

DS Aector McAvoy is on a family holiday in a remote location within the UK. He is contacted when colleagues fear that he was attacked and left for dead in Hull. Was the man who was attacked thought to be McAvoy? They were similar in build. And just to complicate matters, the man was attacked outside DS Trish Pharaoh’s home. There are plenty of questions, and few answers. Detective Chief Superintendent George Earl, promoted after Trish Pharaoh turned down promotion, is very keen to find out what has happened and why.

Reuben Hollow, a serial killer arrested by McAvoy and serving multiple life sentences for murders of those he believed somehow escaped justice, may have some of the answers. Pharaoh has some very deep secrets and both she and McAvoy are in danger.

This is the 11th book in the McAvoy series, and Mr Mark has delivered a complex, twisted story of revenge and retribution. While I struggled at times to believe that Pharaoh had so many secrets and had kept them so well, the story held my attention from beginning to end. And of course, the sharks are circling. There are several people who would like to destroy Pharaoh and who don’t much care of there is any collateral damage. Dark, gruesome and full of twists.

‘But McAvoy can’t help but feel there’s always hell to pay – it’s just a question of which creditor is most to fear.’

Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Severn House for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

It's something of a surprise to find that you're dead, particularly when you're thinking that you're actually on a break with your wife and children, but that's what happened to DS Aector McAvoy. Whilst he was relieved to find that he was still, officially, alive, it was difficult for Detective Superintendent Trish Pharoah. Her protegee - McAvoy - was still alive but the partially clad man who'd dashed from her flat in the early hours of the morning when it was obvious that someone was tampering with her car, was not. Thor Ingolfsson was Aector McAvoy's doppelganger - and not everyone who commented on this was doing so kindly. It had always been suspected that Pharoah was sweet on Aector.

Aector now has to worry about whether or not he was the intended target of the attack. Who goes that heavily armed if you're just going to nick a car? Trish has shown that she doesn't want Aector to return home: is she hiding something - or is she worried for his safety? Trish is obviously going to be suspected of being involved in Ingolfsson's death but she has no intention of handing herself over. She needs to find out what's going on - and why. She turns to Tom Spink, her old mentor. His wife, Gillian, has been in and out of respite care for a while but someone has got to Tom Spink before Pharoah.

It's edge-of-your-seat stuff - and (in places) more than a little bit gory. In fact, for me, it was a bit too gory but then I'm a wuss about such things. The writing's good and the plotting is well done, though and it makes for an exciting, engaging read. I thought the concept was a little far-fetched this time around but if you're deeply involved in Aector and Roisin's world you'll probably love it.

I'd like to thank the publishers for letting Bookbag have a review copy.

Humberside detective DS Aector McAvoy is on holiday in a remote location when news reaches him that he has been left for dead. This comes as something of a surprise to him. As more information emerges, it becomes clear that there has been a vicious assault back in Hull, and that the victim is connected to his boss and close friend, Det Supt Trish Pharoah.

Pharoah is a forthright, abrasive character with a difficult history who is much admired by her team (who are constantly raving about how brilliant she is, although I felt there was more telling than showing of this quality in Flesh and Blood). McAvoy is a thoughtful family man who likes poetry. They complement each other brilliantly, although in this instalment, they are mostly working separately.

As a witness, Pharoah is told not to leave the scene, but she slips away from her colleagues and pursues a number of leads that place her further in jeopardy. Meanwhile McAvoy becomes embroiled in adventures of his own at his supposedly isolated hideaway and is inevitably drawn into the investigation. Flesh and Blood also features a charismatic serial killer and a true-crime podcast. The many strands are cleverly woven to make for a satisfying and complex story.

David Mark is a new name to me (in fact it was a NetGalley marketing email that introduced me to his work). However I did read Past Life, another in this series, immediately before reading Flesh and Blood, and it also had a plot which involved the personal lives of the detectives – in that case McAvoy and his wife, Roisin. Perhaps that’s unfortunate because I felt like the two books together turned too far inwards on the protagonists, their backstories, and their relationships. A glance at the blurbs of the other books in the series suggests this isn’t always the case.

However, I did enjoy Flesh and Blood on its own terms. There’s a lot to appreciate in Mark’s writing. The prose and the characterisation are brilliant, and the world he creates is distinctive. There’s a dark theatricality to the storytelling which reminds me of Stuart MacBride – both writers are able to take you beyond realism and immerse you in their unique twisted vision. I will certainly read more in this series, but will perhaps choose a novel that goes beyond the psychodramas of the protagonists.
*
I received a copy of Flesh and Blood from the publisher via NetGalley.

Gritty, gripping and well plotted. Another well plotted, dark and twisty novel in this series.
I enjoyed it and couldn't put it down.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

DS McAvoy is on holiday in an isolated rural location with his family. Trish has made him take a break, even booked the holiday for him.
Meanwhile back home, his double is attacked leaving Trish's house. So starts a long and complex tale of revenge and petty gripes. Not all is what it seems, but it all appears to come back to the murderer Rueben Hollow.
When Trish disappears after the attack, it appears that the powers that be don't want to look for her too hard.
There are so many agendas at stake, you do wonder how the police force actually investigates crimes at times.
I hadn't read any of this series before, but really enjoyed it and will read more.

Thankyou netgalley and publishers for arc
Well I am in same camp as a lot of other members when I say I simply didn’t understand the writing of this book unfortunately I was on holiday and just couldn’t get into it despite 3 attempts it just didn’t grab me
I would love to have known outcome but in much simpler detail too much gore I don’t need that much in my murder books
But maybe lots of others will enjoy