What a creepy book. I really enjoyed it. If you are a fan of Bones( Jack Hodgins really) this is the book for you. Dr.Marwood reminded me of Hodgins so much.

I did kind of guess the “killer” but not completely. I would read the next in the series.

Thanks to NetGalley and Embla Books for a copy in exchange for a honest review.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Embla Books for a review copy of Venom in the Blood, the first novel to feature forensic entomologist Dr Vanessa Marwood, set in the fictional English village of Greensands.

I enjoyed Venom in the Blood, which is an interesting mix of much more information than I ever knew I needed about spiders, an engrossing crime investigation and a foray into Vanessa’s youth in Greensands. It is mostly told from two points of view, Vanessa and her childhood friend DCI Paul Truss. He is leading the investigation and gets her involved when he sees the bodies.

The novel, as you might guess, is all about spiders as the display of the bodies and the way are killed is reflective of their behaviour. This is an imaginative approach and to be admired as something different, even if I personally found it a bit icky. Otherwise the novel is a fairly standard procedural with Paul and Vanessa winnowing the pool of suspects as the bodies pile up and more information is uncovered. As usual there are several suspects later exonerated and an unrelated crime uncovered.

I like the plot and found the way it unfolded engrossing but I was much less keen on the creepy crawlies. I’m not sure if I would read another in the series due to my lack of interest in entomology, but I would read another series by the author as she knows how to hold the reader’s attention.

Venom in the Blood is a good read that I can recommend.

The first installment of Dr Vanessa Marwood an forensic entomologist who is asked to postpone her flight to New York for her new job, four bodies are found. Full of intrigue with plenty of twists. An excellent start already looking forward to the next book. A very good read. Thanks to Embela Books and Netgalley for this review copy.

On the brink of travelling to New York for a new position, Vanessa Marwood a Forensic Entomologist, is asked by her detective childhood friend to come back to her hometown to Greensands to investigate some gruesome murders. She hasn’t been back for a long time, her brother Vincent disappeared on her watch over twenty years before but reluctantly she accepts.
What a fascinating and gruesome read. The murder victims are arranged to copy certain ways spiders kill their prey and as Greensands was known for The Butterfly Farm many years ago, the whole village seems to have an interest in Arachnids and other insects.
This kept me guessing till the end and after a slow start, it certainly picked up the pace.
Tracy Buchanan is an auto read author for me. I’d be interested to see where Vanessa Marwood ends up next. You could say it was quite educational!
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy to read.

This is a fantastic start to a new series. I loved the different take on the usual police procedural. It was so interesting reading an investigation from the entomologists side. So many amazing facts about insects and spiders. Dr Vanessa Marwood is a lovable and intriguing main character and there are some great supporting characters. Greensands and the abandoned butterfly farm were the perfect creepy setting. It's written so beautifully you feel like you are there. I did guess the main twist but not the specifics of who. There are plenty of odd suspects to keep you guessing. It's a fast paced read with twists and turns that had me hooked to the explosive ending. I look forward to more from this series.

Dr Vanessa Marwood is called by an old friend, DCI Paul Truss to go back home to Greensands, where there are 4 unexplained bodies of old friends found at the Butterfly Farm. Vanessa is due to fly to New York to start a new dream job there. Paul persuades her to postpone as she is a forensic entomologist to help with her expertise. She thought she had left her past behind when her brother, Vincent, went missing 25 years ago.

How is everything linked? All of these questions will be answered by the time you reached the chilling conclusion! It was well written and very, very descriptive! I had moments when I would gasp out loud!! It was unputdownable and very engrossing. I highly recommend this book.

I struggled with this one. Unusual premise. Very creepy village with unhealthy interest in insects. Has twists and turns but just did not keep me engaged. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it.

3.5 rounded to 4 stars. The good from my perspective: nice chilly start, liked Dr Vanessa Marwood and Paul, Helen and family. The plot is interesting to begin with, there are loads of suspects and a few twists. But first negative, there is a serial murderer in the village but the Police just mossy along without by that point anticipating or protecting against peril. Second negative, the ending seemed a little too much, and contrived and didn’t quite match what came before. To me, the murderer was sort of thrown in my face, and I couldn’t believe that the other main characters wouldn’t have picked up who he turned out to be.

A thrilling start to my new favourite crime series!

When forensic entomologist, Dr Vanessa Marwood, gets a call from an old friend to come back to her childhood home of Greensands to help solve a gruesome murder, Vanessa puts her move to New York on hold to help out. Soon she’s entangled in a web of secrets and lies when more bodies are discovered on the abandoned butterfly farm and Vanessa realises she’s been lured into a dangerous trap by an insect obsessed serial killer…

Wow! I loved, loved, loved this book! I’ve had a long held fascination with forensics, and was so intrigued by the entomology angle of the book - it was such a fresh take on a police procedural and I was enthralled by all the descriptions of the insects and spiders, to the point I kept finding myself googling them so I could learn more about the creepy crawlies…and this comes from a lifelong arachnophobe! But I am genuinely interested in seeing these spiders in real life now; Vanessa’s love and passion for them leaps off the page!

The nature-gothic setting of Greensands and the abandoned butterfly farm are the perfect backdrops for the chilling murders. Buchanan’s beautiful descriptions made me feel I was stepping through the summer warmed long-grasses and wild flowers, with the chirruping sounds of insects all around me - I’d love to live there (minus the serial killer, obviously)!

The story moved at a fast pace and the twist at the end was surprising and really satisfying - looking back you see the clues being tantalising dropped and it all comes together in a thrilling denouement. I can’t wait for book 2 in the series and falling back into the creepy-crawly world of Dr Vanessa Marwood!

A complex thriller where we learn rather more than we may want about the mating rituals of insects. Plenty of twists and turns.

When murder strikes her small UK hometown, Vanessa Marwood must put her plans to move New York as the lead forensic entomologist on hold to help find the killer. Teamimg up with lead detective and long-time best friend Paul Truss, they investigate the grisly murders. The bodies are found with spider-silk sewn into the wounds on the victims stomachs. Each victim found is more brutal, each with spider and bug related evidence. In a small town such as this, the killer can only be someone Vanessa and Paul know.

I really enjoyed this book. It's my first 5 star read of the year. I loved the spin on the murder mystery with entomology. While bugs and spiders give me the creepy crawlies, I found it fascinating how the killer used insect behaviors with each murder. Vanessa and Paul are very relatable characters and for a murder mystery, I felt the author captured what a real investigation would look like. You could tell Tracy Buchanan did her research on investigation and forensic entomology, which I appreciate. The storyline was believable and while there was a twist, it was believable and not out of nowhere. Overall a really good read. I'll definitely be watching for book #2 in the series.

Venom in the Blood by Tracy Buchanan is the first book in a new procedural crime series. The locale was eerie and added to the mystery of the story.

I liked Vanessa and Paul, the main characters, and it will be interesting to see how their characters develop over time.

Lots of suspects and red herrings to keep you reading and guessing. A good start to a new series and new author for me.

#VenomintheBlood #NetGalley @EmblaBooks

This was a completely different take on a crime novel set in a creepy village . It was a good book with enough twists to keep you engaged till the end .

What a creepy place Greensands is, everyone there seems to be obsessed with creepy crawlies, live or dead.
It seems to run through the very fabric of village life.
I liked the two main characters Vanessa and Paul, their friendship was a good base for the story.
I did guess the twist very early on, but it was still and enjoyable read, and I've probably learnt a thing or two now!
I'd definitely pick up another book with these guys.

This was an awesome story that would make even the most avid insect detester gain some serious respect. Vanessa Marwood is a forensic entomologist who is about to leave for a new position in New York when a series of murders hits her hometown of Greensands. She delays her trip to assist, as the victims have unusual wounds that need her expertise. As she works with the lead detective, Paul, who also happens to be a childhood friend, she worries this might be the work of a twisted serial killer. And when more victims are found with causes of death that mimic insect mating behavior, her fears are confirmed. They know the Greensands abandoned butterfly farm connects the victims, and most of the townspeople, but the level of knowledge and techniques the killer employs mean this isn’t your typical crazed murderer. Are these gruesome and disturbing deaths a message to Vanessa? Will the police find the murderer before Vanessa is the next victim?

I found the descriptions of the various insects and their behaviors fascinating! I seriously Googled almost every species that was mentioned because I wanted to see what they looked like based on the descriptions in the story. There are so many cool and exotic spiders, butterflies, and beetles woven into the story. The blowflies and maggots, not so much! It’s definitely an underrated field of work because it’s not exactly glamorous, but you can see how important studying insects can be and how they assist with time and places of death.

The non-entomological parts of the story held my interest, as well – there are plenty of suspects and suspicious characters to consider. The ending is awesome and so satisfying. I hope there are more Vanessa Marwood books to come, not only because there are some unanswered questions but because these characters are too good to stop here! I cannot wait to see what else is in store for them!

I’d like to thank the author for sending me down yet another interet rabbit hole. This one? Clothing made of spider silk. I had no clue.

While this book started just a little slowly (and gruesomely), I soon found myself utterly fascinated and ocassionally disgusted. Our main character loves the buggies – especially those that eat corpes – and I now know more than I ever wanted to know about both their eating habits and their mating habits. I shudder just thinking about it!

Our mystery is a good one and the ‘who’ of it all came as a complete shock.

I mostly liked our characters, though I’m a tiny bit sour on our romance. I’m honestly kind of icked out by our broody guy.

The author has definitely brought us a unique concept and I’m interested (and slightly horrified) to see what they’ll bring us next.

• ARC via Publisher

I am not a fan of bugs, but the hook in this murder mystery involving a forensic entomologist is an innovative concept that's hard to resist. The rest of the novel also largely lives up to the expectations that Tracy Buchanan has set her readers up for.

After four innocent people are gruesomely murdered - the killer having sewn spider silk into their wounds - Dr Vanessa Marwood is forced to change her much earlier decision never to return to Greensands, the scene of this particular crime. What she doesn't know is that the murderer has deliberately carried out this act with the aim of luring Vanessa back to the area...

The secrets and horror hidden in the past have a big part to play in this story. Buchanan has written a gripping story with a difference. The graphic violence is on the higher end for someone like me, but it earns 3.5 stars nevertheless.

I really really enjoy this it was completely different to any crime/detective book I’ve ever read. I loved Vanessa was a forensic entomologist it was such an interesting read and I’ve learned so much about bugs which I didn’t think I ever would.

It was full of twists with the past showing its ugly face.

A really good first in the series book and I can’t wait to read more.

I stand and admire the bodies before me, mere moments from taking their final breaths. So glorious in their helpless beauty, the spider webs in their wounds glistening beneath the moonlight. They are no longer mine. It is time for them to be returned to the people of Greensands and to the one person who I know will be among the first to see them: Dr Vanessa Marwood.
This is the first book in a new crime series! It was definitely a good one! Very creepy but a fantastic read! I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book! It had great suspense, intrigue, action, serial killers, gruesome murders, a great who done it and some really crazy twists and turns! I highly recommend reading this book as it was well worth reading! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me! Can't wait for more!

A complex web of secrets, lies, and sins of the past weaves through a serial killer's bizarre trail of murder in a small town that truly embraces the creepy crawlie side of life. Unique investigation focusing on yes, bugs, as a forensic entymologist returns to her home town, and tortured past, to assist in an investigation definitely in her lane. Unique and addictive!