I've chosen this book because of the title. Luckily for me, I got it! It came out in October last year and I received a copy from BeRead via Netgalley.

Zoya Zozulya, a Ukrainian homicide detective known for her boundary-pushing tactics and insubordination, is sent to Interpol's Manchester office after pushing her superiors too far. There, she is partnered with Professor Robin Rutherford, a reserved English academic whose meticulous nature contrasts sharply with Zoya’s impulsive methods.

The duo is thrown into a complex case involving the murder of Dutchmen across Europe, a string of deaths tied to a brutal gangland conspiracy. As the body count rises, so does the tension, with Zoya’s unorthodox approach putting her directly in the sights of a killer with a personal vendetta.

The book didn't grab me from the start. I had to read on a bit before I felt like finishing the book. It's a decent read with fun and action filled parts, and the story itself is an interesting one. The Dutch character's name, Scheefnek, is just weird. I've never come across anyone with that name here in the Netherlands. I even looked it up online, but still nothing.

Although it wasn't the most spectacular novel, it did have its moments. I would still read a sequel to this book to find out what happens to the main characters.

3/5 ⭐️

I was not sure about this book at first, in the first couple of chapters it is a bit chaotic and I thought that Zoya's personality was too over the top. It was not that clear why Robin, a university professor, was her partner. However the plot started to hook me in and as the book went on, I got used to Zoya's way of doing things and started to appreciate her point of view more. The plot is quite complicated, and although based in Manchester, is also set partly in the Netherlands. The places are not really described in very much detail.
After plenty of twists, the plot starts to become clearer. I was not keen that Zoya had information that was not revealed until after she had acted on it, but did appreciate the growing friendships between Zoya and her colleagues and the moments of humour. I will definately read more of this series.
Thanks to Net Galley for the ARC . Agreat read

3.75 stars

First of all, thanks to Netgalley for the ARC of this book. Secondly, I'd like to confirm that this is a 100% honest review.
I know this book has already been published, but I still picked up the ARC copy available here on Netgalley because ngl, I was intrigued by the plot description.

And honestly, I enjoyed reading it. The FMC was a cool badass who had a really dynamic and interesting personality. The plot wasn't very suspenseful or thrilling for me, but it was interesting in the way that keeps you hooked! I really love reading books with strong FMCs who are independent and sensible. I LOVED the platonic friendships Zoya developed throughout the story, because I personally prefer that over romance any day.

Now, it's been 3 days since I read this book and I didn't get the time to give my review until now, but I wanna mention this one thing that happened to me right after reading the book. So, I finished it on New Year's Eve, just hours before midnight, and it was the last book I read in 2024 before going to sleep. But the next day when I woke up, I realized I'd dreamt of a kinda fanfic-y situation of Zoya with (the villain). And while in real life, I do not condone such a thing, dream me had an entire fanfic made out of that scenario which is really funny to me because, well this is the villain of a THRILLER. Not a romance, so you know that whatever my dream was is obviously not gonna happen (I wouldn't even want it to........ I think). Anyways, that was just something I wanted to share with my review of the book!


Here's what you'll get if you pick this book:
🛡️A strong FMC who is realistically funny, cool and smart.
🛡️Adorable nerdy sidekick of the Strong FMC. He's endearing as hell.
🛡️Multiple POVs in the book (including the villain's!)
🛡️An interesting thriller with some light-hearted fun parts!

This was everything that I was looking for and enjoyed from this type of book. It had that detective thriller element that I was looking for and enjoyed from this type of book. I enjoyed figuring out what was going on and was hooked from the first page. The characters had that element that I was looking for and enjoyed the way L. G. Wilder wrote this.

She's smart, savvy, multi-lingual, mathematically inclined, may know a bit about BDSM, and can lift and carry her male partner - and likely bench press more than he weighs! There's a new detective in town and don't let her height fool you, or her accent de jour. Spot on crime investigation and we need more Z!

Wow! This book was amazing!
The plot was fast paced and exciting. The writing was superb and I loved and hated the characters.
This is my kind of thriller, it's fast and twisty. I love a good twist that shocks me, I didn't see it coming but oh wow I should have!

This one was so good I will definitely be looking for more from this author!

Tough. Unconventional. Unstoppable. Detective Zoya Zozulya doesn’t follow rules she breaks them!
Great read! Wow some psycho characters!! lol this book also had great suspense, intriguing, action, murder, mystery, brutal violence, torture, a great who done it and a few crazy twists! The story was very interesting! I highly recommend reading this book! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!