Loved this one. Neville's writing feels very fluid and I love the world he creates. Good fun but still quite dark

A fast paced book to really get your teeth in to (not literally of course)
This one will keep you on the edge of your seat right up to the end.
It's an easy read, so you will fly through this one no problems.
a great twist to it.

(I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.)

DCI Serena Flanagan, newly returned to work after undergoing treatment for cancer, is forced to confront a troubling case from her past: the murder conviction of a 12-year-old-boy who has just been released back into the community.
When 12-year-old Ciaran Devine confessed to murdering his foster father it sent shock waves through the nation.
DCI Serena Flanagan, then an ambitious Detective Sergeant, took Ciaran's confession after days spent earning his trust. He hasn’t forgotten the kindness she showed him – in fact, she hasn't left his thoughts in the seven years he’s been locked away.
Probation officer Paula Cunningham, now tasked with helping Ciaran re-enter society, suspects there was more to this case than the police uncovered. Ciaran’s confession saved his brother Thomas from a far lengthier sentence, and Cunningham can see the unnatural hold Thomas still has over his vulnerable younger brother.
When she brings her fears to DCI Flanagan, the years of lies begin to unravel, setting a deadly chain of events in motion.

What a great story! I have read a few of Stuart Neville's books in the past but this one has to be my favourite.

Without going over the plot, the greatest strength this story possesses is the power of family, and the heart of DCI Serena Flanagan. These two characteristics elevate this story above the regular crime novel - not only do we get the usual "blood and guts" story, we also get compassion and understanding, we get power and control, we get friendship and family - in other words, we get an emotional rollercoaster, as well as a mystery.

I am looking forward to chasing down more of these as time goes on. A great start to the series!


Paul
ARH

I had Those We Left Behind sat on my Netgalley shelf for some time, I'm ashamed to say. But when I won a competition on the #TwoCrimeWritersAndAMicrophone podcast and the author very kindly sent me a signed copy of said novel, I made the conscious decision to read Those We Left Behind very soon - the kindle version rather than my personalised signed paperback, oh no that's sat on a special shelf.

The prologue is brilliant, it set the scene for the rest of the book. The total sense of the bond of brotherly love but it gave me goosebumps - the scene the author depicted of two teenage brothers surrounded by a bloodbath and me as the reader not knowing what has happened. Jump forward a prison sentence and the younger brother Ciaran is being released from prison to be reunited with Thomas his older brother who has been out 2 years.

I loved the author's style; the book is fast paced without me realising it. I raced through the book as it jumped between the story in the present and the historic investigation. Stuart Neville uses great imagery. I didn't realise how descriptive the book was but I felt fully submerged in both timelines; sat in the interview room, being questioned by Serena Flanagan, digging up the field with Ciaran and the other probationers, going for a spin with Thomas. The characters the author creates are complex to begin with and the more you learn about them, the more layers of complexity you peel back.

I felt for Ciaran; he's only got his brother in life and what a brother he is. Ciaran has lost both parents and been moved from pillar to post in the foster care system. But his constant has been Thomas, whose dominance and control might be viewed as his protectiveness of his younger brother. But that is to Ciaran's detriment, the full extent you will only find out by reading this dark crime story.

I will definitely be looking out for more from Stuart Neville, he writes an excellent crime thriller if Those We Left Behind is anything to go by!

Many thanks to Vintage Digital, Random House, Harvill Secker and Netgalley for giving me an ecopy of Those We Left Behind. I can't wait to read the next Serena Flanagan instalment later in the year!