I would like to thank Netgalley and Thomas and Mercer for an advance copy of The Alliance, a standalone thriller set mostly in San Antonio.

I enjoyed The Alliance, which is an engrossing read with an unusual premise and plenty of twists and turns. In fact, I never knew what was coming next. It is fairly high octane as it follows three characters, Special Agent Shannon Wallace, San Antonio Police Lieutenant Boyd and Icarus Glass, one of the original survivors. Each has something to add to the narrative and gives it a wider perspective.

This is a well plotted novel with, as I said, an unusual premise. I was impressed by the author’s ability to conceive such an idea and to execute it in a very readable style. Obviously it’s not exactly realistic, but it is entertaining with quite a few stressful moments and a lot of forward momentum. I like the way it incorporates modern technology with a side of social commentary and offers a dose of realism that the plot doesn’t.

The Alliance is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.

I got this book because I liked the idea of a network of killers working together and it gave Criminal Minds vibes. However, I was a little disappointed to begin with. It seemed slow and parts of it where unnecessary. I didn't really like any of the characters and wasn't bothered when things went wrong. There was so much more potential with this book, but I did enjoy the ending and there were twists and turns that I didn't see coming or didn't expect. Overall, not a bad book.

I was instantly gripped by the story straight away, you can feel the magic from the pages, I think I read the first 2 chapters in 5 minutes flat.

The plot was a wild one.
It had 4 victims, 4 witnesses/survivors and 4 killers and that is just start because as the case evolves it gets more and more complex.

The story was so fast paced and twisty.
I loved how it had quite a few key characters that played an integral part in the story, my favourite was Lieutenant Boyd because he’s been round the block a few times and seen it all before and his partner Jiffy made me smile too.

The last quarter of the book was so high stakes it stole my breath, it had everything you could want and the epilogues are perfection.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author but it certainly won’t be the last.

This is an indepth thriller that takes us on a breadcrumb journey where the reader has to piece together the tidbits to learn what The Alliance is.

There are so many characters to this story that you get to see what's happening everywhere.

The narrative is a medium-paced so you can fully absorb what is happening and does become all consuming when things start to heat up.

I enjoyed reading about the different characters and their development over the course of the book, plus the development of the police investigation - a combination of detailed research and Matt's own law degree is evident here!

There are various deaths in this book, and they range from being cleaner to being quite quite gruesome!

The overall story is full of twists and turns and keeps you intrigued until the end!

If you enjoy thrillers, this is a great thriller that you need to try!

The alliance by matt brolly.
Four cities, four killers, four murders. The Alliance is just getting started.
Omg I absolutely loved this book. I devoured it. Couldn't put it down. This was unique. I've never read anything like this before and I loved it. Definitely worth the read. It was gripping and twisty. I loved how the police and fbi were involved. This had me stunned. I did like Shannon Wallace, Lieutenant Boyd, Jiffy, and Leanne. I do love Matts books but I must say this is my favourite so far. Definitely recommend. 5*.

This was my first book from this author and I really enjoyed it. As a huge fan of Criminal Minds I love it when the BAU show up anywhere! I couldn’t put the book down at times because I needed to know answers. The plot was very well thought out and kept me completely hooked. I would certainly recommend this to others and look forward to reading more from this author.

Blood heck! Where do I even start with The Alliance by Matt Brolly?! This book literally grabs you as soon as you pick it up, and it refuses to let you go even well after you finish the last word. There are several points in the book, you feel as if your heart is about to beat out of your chest it gets to beating so fast, but you can't force yourself to put it down because you just have to know what is going to happen next. mr. Brolly is one of those rare authors that can put the reader right in the center of the story, and let them feel every emotion as they play out for the characters, making the readers feel as if they are living inside the book alongside them. By the time the story ends, the readers are on their knees begging for the story to continue. A new book cannot come fast enough!

"Thrive to survive and use your skills!"

Four cities, four killers, four murders. God I love this plot!
This book is so good. It kept me on the edge of my seat with every chapter. Took me two days to finish, and that's only because I had to deal with school activities.

It was fast-paced and written very uniquely. The path leading to the ending was quite surprising. We also get an insight into the minds of the survivors. I was particularly interested in Icarus's story, and my oh my, what a surprise we got about his past! I think this book would make a good movie adaptation when done right.

This book immediately grabbed me and wouldn’t let go! There is no drawn out build up, it’s just BAM, right into the action. As if the crimes themselves are terrifying enough, add in the fact that there are 4 identical murders that played out at the exact same time! I read this book in 2 sittings because I just didn’t want to put it down but had to. The storyline was very intriguing and automatically made me think of Criminal Minds. I love that we got the story from 3 different perspectives. It was especially interesting to read from one of the victims point of view! I enjoyed the short chapters. The one thing I would have liked is if the chapters had been marked as to whose perspective we were reading. Though it was easy enough to figure out, so that could just be an OCD thing for me. I recommend this book to those who are Criminal Minds fans….or even Saw.

📱E-Book Review📱

The Alliance
Matt Brolly

🌟🌟🌟🌟

There's nothing better than going into a book totally blind - and a new to me author too! - and finding that it's totally your kind of book!

When four identical murders happen in four different cities, the FBI knows that they've got a complex case on their hands.
Special agent Shannon Wallace is tasked with finding the killer - or killers!, but as social media kicks up a frenzy they realise that they need to stop The Alliance before they can recruit and kill again.....

This was a really unique storyline - one that I've seen touched on before, but never to such an extent as this.
The concept was brilliant and I loved the way this all panned out and was executed (excuse the pun!)

This drew me in straight from the first page and I was completely hooked! I honestly couldn't put it down until I'd finished!
The chapter ends were like little mini cliffhangers and I just had to read one more...and one more....
The pace was also super fast which had me racing through it.

There were a fair few twists in this and I have to admit that I caught a couple early on, but this totally didn't matter as the storyline was so robust that I still had no clue about motives or how these people had connected and formed this group in the first place!

I really liked Shannon as a character. I think that shed have a good backstory to tell - maybe in future books if this becomes a series?

A great read with a horribly realistic feeling atmosphere.
I'm keen now, to see what else this author has written....

The Alliance was a gripping thriller and police procedural but also so much more than that. We have a plot that is tightly woven and leaves you guessing and needing to know more with a premise that was top tier. I loved the characters, unfortunately I did end up like The Alliance members more than I should but all the characters were brought to life with such passion you couldn’t help but get attached.

There are moments we are left on the edge of our seat wondering what will happen. I can honestly say this felt like a real crime investigation at points more than a novel which only goes further to show Brolly’s masterful way of writing. If you are looking for a gripping, twisty and fast paced thriller look no further than The Alliance!

Didn't enjoy this one as much as his others A very complex and complicated story with many shocking twists and turns.

The Alliance by Matt Brolly and narrated by Hillary Huber was an excellent read from start to finish, especially as it was full of twists and turns throughout that will have you guessing till the end. This latest book starts with a Bang!! with an abduction.........

Over four cities, in four different locations in the US, with miles apart from each other and all at the same time............There's four identical murders of total strangers.
All the local Police are lost for words and have called in the Big boys/girls! The FBI.....with Special Agent Shannon Wallace helping them. But, she is just the same!
They all start to investigate and they all get sucked into the killers guessing game!

With each murder there is survivor who has witnessed it all, and these lucky ones - But are they?

They now need to decide how to tell their stories to the whole world through social media etc. They have to write about the horrific murders they have witnessed to create a media storm and a new term is soon coined for the "The Alliance"

But Why?

This is to lead to a bigger murderer spree!

As they recruit new killers and into their ranks, more innocent people are linked to the initial murders and these are killed. It now becomes clear that Wallace is facing an unprecedented threat a deadly alliance formed to terrorise the nation with coordinated strikes.

But, who is next?

As they all recruit new killers into their ranks, more innocent people are linked to the initial murders are killed. It now becomes clear that Wallace is facing an unprecedented threat

Tick Tock the clock is ticking and will the Police and Special Agent Shannon Wallace of the FBI need to work it all out before the next round of murders?

WoW!!!! Just mind blowing and excellent the way Matt has put this book together. Superb book/audiobook that will keep you gripped!

Big Thank you to Netgalley, Brilliance Publishing | Brilliance Audio and Thomas & Mercer for my ARC.

"Four cities, four killers, four murders. With the killers always one step ahead, the very fabric of society threatens to unravel."

I hate to say it but I didn't like The Alliance as much as I thought I would. The storyline was quite intriguing and I couldn't begin to figure out where it was going next! Unfortunately, the storyline then started feeling a bit repetitive to me as the book went on. I really like the author's Detective Inspector Louise Blackwell ​ ​series, however, and I'm looking forward to The Solstice becoming available!

Many thanks to both #ThomasAndMercer and #NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an early copy of #TheAlliance. This book is a standalone, with the expected publication date of April 23, 2024.

Wow! So much more than a thriller or police procedural. I loved the premise and it is masterfully plotted out and written. The characters are brought to life perfectly and the entire world the book is set in, just is so amazingly well brought to life! It's one of those books that makes you think about society and the world and the bigger picture, its so well written to be all consuming and thought provoking. Amazing

Ohhh, I LOVED this book!!! The premise was so good and very interesting. It is nothing like I have ever read.

Brolly grabs you with the very first chapter and keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout the entire book. With some chapters from the Alliance’s point of view and others from the detectives’ point of view, this book is engrossing, thrilling, suspenseful, and honestly felt very real. With all the true crime podcasts that I have listened to in my life, this book felt like it was ripped from the headlines rather than a work of fiction. Now that I think about it, it felt very Criminal Minds.

These characters were clever. The plot intricate. Brolly left nothing out. The book was satisfying.

Did I love any or all of the characters? No, but it works for this book. I didn’t need to like anyone in order to enjoy it.

I would highly recommend this book for anyone who likes books/shows like Criminal Minds and/or police procedurals.

Four cities, four citizens kidnapped, 4 people killed, and the name of The Alliance becomes known to the public and to the Police/FBI. The amount of cases involving this "alliance" keeps on spreading as well as their usage of midia (internet, papers, blogs, etc) to divulge the unspeakable crimes they lead people to commit. Hopefully this story will not be giving weird thoughts to people worldwide.... As always, Mr. Brolly delivers a gripping and well-written story, with a great plot and strong characters. Highly recommended!
I thank the author, his publisher, and NetGalley for this ARC.

WOW I can thoroughly recommend The Alliance (Kindle Edition) a mystery thriller which kept me at the edge of my seat all the way through. This is my first thriller by Matt Brolly and he is such an exciting writer.

A group called The Alliance are connected to the dark web and are behind four serial killers, four cities and four identical murders.

They chose their victims well as they are connected to the media and The Alliance want the world to know what they are doing as they instruct the four that they abducted to adhere to their instructions.

The Alliance tell their chosen victims to listen, watch act, thrive to survive and also evolution.

I love the rapport between FBI agent Shannon Wallace, Lieutenant Boyd, Jiffy, and Leanne.

The Alliance, the premise is Four cities, four killers, four murders. With the killers always one step ahead, the very fabric of society threatens to unravel.

I found this to be difficult to read. I have had the pleasure of reading Detective Inspector Louise Blackwell ​ ​series and loved each one. This one was not for me.

Just the premise of The Alliance had me heavily interested in reading this book. The thought of several serial killers somehow working in conjunction with each other is not something I've read about before.

This is a fast paced book that you won't be able to put down. Once things really got intense, my mind just wouldn't stop reeling with all of the possibilities. What really is The Alliance? Who is the mastermind? Are the victims really victims? Every time I thought I had it figured out minutes later I'd change my mind.

Matt Brolly definitely kept my attention with this one and I can't wait to read another book by this author.

Thank you Thomas & Mercer for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

#netgalley
#thealliance