Perfect Kill

I received an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review

Wow this one was freaky. I literally never knew what was coming next. Turning pages the whole way through, read it in one sleepless night. Definitely recommended for fans of the genre

It’s so great to be back with Luc and Ava in this new book in the DI Callanach series.
Typically, the books are set in Edinburgh, however after the disastrous attempt at a relationship, Luc and Ava have split personally and professionally; this book also splits its setting between France and Scotland in a story of brutal kidnapping, the extreme sex trade industry and human trafficking for nefarious purposes.

As always, the plot is intelligently constructed and hooks you in right from the start. There’re some tough scenes that are both brutal and disturbing, but never gratuitous or glorifying.

I really enjoyed seeing Luc and Ava both passionately working to catch the lowest of criminality; they were separate for a lot of the novel, but Fields provides enough reconnection between the two to keep the reader of this series satisfied.

This can be read as a stand-alone, however as always I highly recommend reading this great crime series from the start to really benefit from the characters, their personal characters threads and relationships.
Highly recommended.

The sixth book in the DI Callanach series by author Helen Fields.
This is a crime series set in Edinburgh, Scotland and features the disgraced French police officer D.I. Luc Callanach and D.C.I. Ava Turner.
The handsome Luc Callanach and Ava Turner are working on separate cases that are soon to become connected. Luc is in France and Ava is in Scotland but they are investigating the disappearance of men and women being shipped to France in exchange for women trafficked into Scotland.
This one is not for the faint hearted and can be quite gruesome at times but nevertheless a very entertaining read. After the love break-up of Luc and Ava they are both treading a little easy with each other and hiding their true feelings by continuing to work in a professional manner. This is an excellent series that for me not only has good plots but an additional bonus with the on off relationship of the main characters.
The more you read of this series the more you will know and like the characters which helps make this a great read and an exceptional series.
I would like to thank both Net Galley and Avon Books for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Having read the previous books in the series I was pleased to receive this ARC. I think this series is getting better and better, the last two have been absolute belters. The central characters are DCI Luc (Mr Dishy) Callenach and DCS Ava Turner from the MIT team in Edinburgh. Luc is back in his native France on secondment to Interpol and working with his old partner Jean-Paul. There are two cases that initially seem unconnected - in Paris illegal organ harvesting and in Scotland murders that turn out to be linked to people trafficking, in this case girls as sex workers. Although this is the sixth book in the series, the author does clearly explain prior events so it can be read as a stand-alone.

I love the characters in the series and in this one DS Lively proves to be a bit of a hero which I like. The banter between the team is great. The issues covered are very serious and it is a welcome relief to have an occasional injection of humour. They team are comfortable with each other, they’re loyal and they have each other’s backs. Luc and Ava have issues in their relationship but things are improving. The storyline is fantastic and it feels like you are watching an action movie that leaves you a bit breathless. It’s high octane throughout. The human trafficking part of the story makes you want to weep as the girls are seen as commodities as they are used, abused and disposed of. Elenuta is a trafficked girl from Romania and she is an outstanding character whose bravery is an inspiration. The organ harvesting part of the story is equally well told and the fact that people can prey on others when they are desperate adds another dimension to the story.

The ending is good with the future looking brighter for two of the victims in the story. There’s an other strand too, as Ava’s best friend Natasha, another terrific character, faces a battle with her health and I like the way she uses this to try to get Luc and Ava to sort themselves out. About time too!

Overall, an excellent story and I found I could not put this past paced thriller down and read it in one sitting.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon Books for this ARC

Whilst Perfect Kill is part 6 of the DI Callanach series, if you've not read any of the previous books in this collection, it will not effect your reading of this book, as 'part' refers to a series including this character/detective and not a sequel to a specific storyline/ongoing case. Currently I've only read books 4 and 6 in this series, but do intend reading the others, because they are gripping reads.

This particular book is based around what appears to be two unrelated police investigations, in Scotland and France, which soon collide, with DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach.

This is addictive reading, flows well. There's a good blend of each character, then a smooth transition of the story bringing it altogether at the end.

Chilling a true page turner kept me reading through the night.Thriller lovers grab this book.#netgalley #avonbooks

Each time Helen Fields releases a book in this series i have this moment of fear that it can't possibly match the brilliance of the previous one. However each and every time i've been proved wrong. Luc and Ava are two of the most, complex, frustrating, fun and brilliantly written characters i've had the pleasure of reading. Each story has such an intricately weaved story and introduces people which you may only know for this one book but who you grow to feel so passionate about. Natasha's part was lovely, especially the end and i absolutely loved getting to see Lively get involved in a new way. Just amazing.

This book grabs you by the neck on the first page and doesn't let you go except to shake you now and then. The wonderful Luc Callanach and Ava Turner are back, alongside Natasha and Jean-Paul.

There are two stories: sex trafficking and organ transplants, with a twist. Its classic Helen Fields. Well researched topics (I do love a book that teaches along with entertains), great characters, great storyline.

I love this series for its gripping crime and the romantic subplot. The characters by now feel like people I actually know and the crime element always sheds light on social issues. If I had one criticism for Perfect Kill, it would be that the writing about social issues was a bit on the nose and I felt like things were being explained to me that were already clear. Generally though, I loved reading Perfect Kill and really enjoyed it throughout. I can't wait for the next one!

Absolutely love this series, and could not wait to read this latest instalment, definitely did not disappoint. Such a great read, with so many chilling twists and turns. Definitely worth reading.

DI Luc Callanach is in Paris investigating an illegal organ harvesting ring and trying to mend bridges with his former Interpol college. At the same time, DCI Ava Turner is in Scotland, trying to cope with, a missing persons investigation, serval murders that appear to be linked to people trafficking, relationship issues and some devastating news from her best friend. Both cases seem separate until a photograph of DCI Turners missing person turns up on French soil. Perfect Kill is book 6 of the DI Callanach series but each can be read as a standalone book the cases are new in each novel, it is purely character development that ties the books together. Having said that once you have read one you will want to read them all as they are enthralling reads.
This was another great page turner from Fields, I devoured it in a matter of hours and am already hungry for the next instalment. It opened my eyes to many things including the side of France that doesn’t pop into your head when you imagine Paris.
I especially loved following the development of DI Lively’s character in this book as in the first few novels he was a really odious man but in this book, you see another side to him, one that you makes you understand that there is two sides to every story. His dry humour, quick comments and raw emotion for the victims is a very welcome relief as the majority of book is very intense.
The whole series and especially this book are not for the faint hearted, the descriptions are gruesome and the way some of the victims are treated leaves you with that sick feeling in your stomach, hoping that this doesn’t happen in real life but knowing that deep down it probably does.
Having read all the prior novels in this series I was so excited to get this as an ARC and it has not disappointed.
Thank you NetGalley and Avon Books for the copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is the first book by Helen Field that I have read. I can't wait to back track and read other the previous books in this series. This book is a real page turner with a great plot.

Thank you NetGalley, publisher and author for allowing me to read this great thriller.

Organ Harvesting, People trafficking, sex slaves.... DCI Luc Cavanagh and DCS Ava Turner are back in another nail biting, gripping read. These are getting better and better the further in the series and the more established we get with these characters

Well developed plot and characters. The fast paced storyline kept me invested until the very end. I would recommend this title.

Another gripping instalment in this well established series with the return of several characters and a fast paced twisted plot. Set in two countries and with international crimes Has and Luc have very different but closely related cases to solve

This story unfolds in both Paris and Edinburgh, and features human trafficking, missing persons and organ harvesting. Perfect Kill is the sixth instalment of the Callanach/Turner series , each of which could be read as a standalone novel but I’d recommend reading them all to fully appreciate the dynamics between the characters.

Having read the previous books in this series, I was eager to know the latest developments between DI Luc Callanach, who last we knew was returning to France, and DCI Ava Turner, who was sending him away.

Another great page-turner by Helen Fields, which had me engrossed. I thoroughly enjoyed the development of DI Lively’s character in this book. Earlier in the series, he appeared unlikable and obnoxious, however this book shows another side to him.

The whole series - and especially this book - are not for the faint hearted; several times I wondered how on Earth Helen Fields came up with the ideas featured in the book. It left me curious as to the extent these things happen in real life.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the opportunity to preview this ARC.

DCI Ava Turner, DI Luc Callanach and the team are back, although in different countries. Luc is working on secondment with Interpol on France where he is dealing with a murder of a young man, possibly Scottish. Ava is running an understaffed team looking at a missing person who may be similar to the young man found in France, two murders of local criminals and the discovery of parts of three bodies on a pig farm. Is it possible that some of these cases are linked? Maybe they all are connected? This book is fast paced and exciting but there are personal issues going on, Luc is back working with his old friend Jean Paul, Avas friend Natasha is having a hard time and Ava and Lucs relationship is complicated to say the least.
I am a big fan of Helen Fields and this book does not disappoint!! I love the characters of Ava, Luc, Natasha and Lively. I am already looking forward to the next instalment!
Thank you to Netgalley, Helen Fields and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

As a big fan of Helen Fields, I couldn't wait to read Perfect Kill so I'm very grateful for my ARC from NetGalley. After every book in the Perfect... series I've said it's been the best so far but this one really is the best yet. I couldn't put it down! The story was amazing, a real thriller that grabbed me from the start. It sees Luc working on a case in Paris and Eva dealing with multiple bodies in Edinburgh. It's not for the squeamish and deals with the very unpleasant stories of human trafficking and organ harvesting. Eva is at her best, stronger & more courageous than ever in her working life but struggling with her personal life. Luc is dealing with his past and trying his best with the present. I enjoy the on/off romance of them, it's light relief from the dark murders and brutality. Liveley truly shows what he's capable of and it's great to see his character growing. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved Perfect Kill and hope there will be many more in the series

So this is actually the first of Helen Field’s books that I’ve read, and even though there is a series and occasional referencing to previous books, I didn’t feel as though I was coming to the team late on. It’s a very easy book to get into and the characters are likeable and relatable.
The storyline is current and controversial, yet written extremely well.
The beginning was gripping, the middle was exciting, and the end was perfect.
A great read!

The Good

research. Man, this book was keen on details. Now, I don’t know anything about real police procedures, about the biology and other fields involved in this book, but the way it was written made me feel like the author was a police-detective, surgeon, prison guard, mechanic and witch at the same time. Every word on the page felt real and there were no conflicts that I was aware of. Hats off to this, Ms Helen Fields.

writing. Exquisite. I loved every single word I read. Just like mentioned before, it all felt real. The topics in this book are actually very real and I will get to it a bit later, but the fact that she managed to combine fiction and reality in such a way you never felt them contradicting each other, that was super cool!

characters. OKay. So I only got to know the main characters of the series now, as I have not read any of the previous books ( I did however add them all to my shopping list) but they were SO GOOD! I loved DCI Ava, I loved Mr. Callanach and his pals, I loved how I was introduced to them in a way that helped me get their vibe but wouldn’t have pissed me off , had I read the previous books. We have one romanian character and here I will talk a bit more.

romanian character. I am biased in my choosing to talk about Elenuta here BUT this was the first book I read which shone some light of a very bad and important problem regarding Eastern Europe which is human trafficking. Romanian women are a big percentage of the women trafficked in Europe since we have many poor regions and girls seeking work are lured with promises of high salaries and few working hours. They are invited to interviews to talk about what the job involves and there they are kidnapped and stacked in trucks or worse, then sent to other countries and sold as prostitutes. The reason I appreciate the author to no ends for choosing Elenuta as a character ( although the name choice is not the happiest.. the name is Elena and Elenuta is its pet name so no one would actually introduce themselves by Elenuta) is because she steered away from any tasteless stereotype and she presented her as a strong, empathetic and smart woman. That is to crash to the ground the idiotic assumptions that only a “lower class” woman could fall prey to the traffickers.

plot. It was action packed and so real. I think I may overuse the word “real” but there was no fictional nonsense about it. The entire book read like it wrote itself, the author stayed behind and let the story unfold. She didn’t feel the need, not once, to make herself present.

relationships. Complicated and realistic. People are a mess. Bad things happen to the good ones. Some give up their personal lives in order to dedicate themselves to their work. Some hold childish grudges in their 30s. These are humans. And they are in this book.

The Bad

ending. Okay, don’t get scared, this is not THAT BAD. However, it ended far too good for me. The ending lacked a bit of that “life actually screws you over IRL and it only looks good on paper” vibe that the entire book had. If you read it, which I urge you do, you’ll know what I mean

Conclusions

Do I recommend this one? Absolutely. I loved it all, I will read it again and I will push it in the face of every single person I know. I pray it will be translated in Romanian so I can install myself at the corner of the busiest street and throw it at every passing person. I AM that dedicated.

I was beyond thrilled when I was accepted for this on Netgalley. I love Helen's books and her style of writing. This book is action packed from the get go. It's scary, gripping and thrilling. I always worry when I read books in a series that they may dwindle and become boring but that is certainly not the case with these.

The issues covered in this book are very serious and intense so the banter between MIT makes for a nice little breather. I'm also a big fan of DS Lively so it's nice to see him have his moment. I read this in one sitting and didn't really want it to end! I can't wait for the next!

Thanks to Netgalley and Avon books for the opportunity to read the latest from one of my favourite authors. I have read all the books in the DI Callanach series and enjoyed every one. As usual Helen Fields does not hold back , tackling the themes of human trafficking and organ harvesting. At times it was difficult to read and was very disturbing to think how brutally and inhumanly people are treated. This is definitely a rollercoaster ride and hard to see how the strands of the story would come together. Excellent.

I'm a huge fan of this series, so I was absolutely delighted to be accepted to read it ahead of publication. Helen Fields' books always have me hooked from page one, and are fast-paced, edge-of-your-seat reads. Perfect Kill is no exception! There are always a few bits in Field's books that I have to skip over because I'm too squeamish, but I think that's part of what I like about the series - it doesn't glamourise horrible things happening to people. Each book raises important issues, which seem to have been thoroughly researched.

These books just keep getting better. I can't wait to spend more time with Luc and Ava!

The most recent installment of Helen Field's series featuring DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callenach opts for two locations. Luc has been seconded to Interpol for a case in Paris and Ava deals with a case in Edinburgh.

Both cases are pretty gruesome. In Edinburgh, several strange murders have occurred in a short time, and eventually a connection to sex trafficking develops.

In Paris, Luc teams up with a former partner to investigate the murder of a young man from Edinburgh whose body is discovered in Paris. How did he get there and who harvested his organs?

As usual in this series, I like the characters and the writing while finding the crimes a bit fantastic and gruesome.

Fields' writing is excellent and both the main and secondary characters are well developed and believable. Those qualities keep me reading the series despite the dark and often bizarre plots.

Read in October; blog review scheduled for Jan. 27, 2020.

NetGalley/Avon Books UK
Crime/Police Procedural. Feb. 6, 2020. Print length: 400 pages.

Full review to be published online in mid January.

FIRST KILL is the sixth book in Helen Fields taut, engaging "DI Callanach" series. I have come to enjoy the UK police procedurals, and an once again engaged in the storyline presented. DI Luc Callanach is in Paris investigating an illegal organ harvesting ring and trying to mend bridges with his former Interpol college. At the same time, DCI Ava Turner is in Scotland, trying to cope with, a missing persons investigation, several murders that appear to be linked to people trafficking, relationship issues and some devastating news from her best friend. Both cases seem separate until a photograph of DCI Turners missing person turns up on French soil. The bookncan be read as a standalone, as the cases are new in each novel, but the character development from previous books may hinder the full enjoyment of the read. The reader will definitely want to go back to the beginning of the series to catch up.

It was especially enjoyable to follow the development of DI Lively’s character in this book, as in the first few novels he was a really odious man. Here, you see another side to him, one that you makes you understand that there are two sides to every story. His dry humour, quick comments, and raw emotion for the victims is a very welcome relief as the majority of book is very intense.

FIRST KILL, and the whole series for that matter, are written on the dark and gritty side, even for this type of read. The descriptions are gruesome and the way some of the victims are treated leaves you with that sick feeling in your stomach with the evil in some characters. Great read, but the reader really needs to start at the beginning and work their way to this book.

What a page turner! Switching between Scotland and France with ease due to likeable investigators (familiar if you have read others in the series, but equally as good as a stand alone), this story weaves human relationships with evil tendencies. The perfect son is abducted and the reader is shown how it has been orchestrated to retrieve his valuable organs. In return, he has been traded for sex traffickers, shipped to Scotland to be abused and violated. By no means is this an easy read but the human touch means that you are routing for each of the innocent characters and invested in them from the very start. Written with grit and emotion, it’s not a book to be enjoyed but one you will be very glad you have read. Thank you to Netgalley for keeping me up until the early hours to find out the fate of Bart!

I am a big fan of Helen Fields and this is the next instalment of the DI Luc Callaghan and DCI Ava Turner series and was just as brilliant as the others, if not more so.

Although Luc and Ava have worked together before and managed to totally screw up a budding romantic relationship, they are in different locations for this one. Luc is in France, on secondment to Interpol and Ava is still in Edinburgh as a DCI in the MIT team. All of the characters in the novels continue to develop and it is so easy to pick up where the last storyline finished, although it can be read as a stand-alone.

The hard-hitting nature of this story revolves around human trafficking in different ways. Young, fit individuals are being used for organ harvesting, taken across the channel one way and the same container is used to transport women in the other direction to become sex workers.

I was completely enthralled, despite the fact that some of it made for difficult, heart-rendering reading. The whole novel is packed with clever, sometimes witty, sometimes upsetting scenes and the human side to everything is covered with suck care including the friendship between Ava and her best friend, Natasha.

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon Books, UK and Helen Fields for this ARC of Perfect Kill in return for my honest review.

Another brilliant read. Highly recommended.

A young man wakes up to find himself shackled in a container - he has no idea how he got there. A body discovered in France with all its organs removed. Young women being trafficked from Europe to Scotland and held as sex slaves. The cases are being investigated by DCI Ava Turner in Edinburgh and Detective Luc Callanach on secondment with Interpol in Pars.

Fantastic read from start to finish - really love this series.

Thanks to Netgalley, Avon Books and Helen Fields for the ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

A delightful thriller with a unique premise. Excellent characters and fast paced. Highly enjoyable with writing that will keep you reading.

I thoroughly enjoyed this, the latest in the Luc Callanach/Ava Turner series. The pair start in different countries working on different cases which begin to converge and in fact turn out to be different aspects of the same crime.
The book is set in Edinburgh and Paris. In the UK Ava is dealing with murders with what appears to be a link with women being trafficked to Scotland as sex workers. At the same time, young healthy people are going missing without any clues as to their destination. In France, Luc is seconded to Interpol and is reunited with his precious partner Jean-Paul, they come across what appears to be illegal organ harvesting.
The interactions between characters is believable, this is the sixth in a series and one of the joys of such series is the development of characters as it develops, this book is no exception.. Ava and Luc are rebuilding the bridges which were burned at the end of book 5. DS Lively's character is developing well too. There are dark scenes in the book as you would expect with such harrowing topics but they are well dealt with and it's a good read.
It stands alone perfectly well, but the series is definitely worth reading.
I found the book an addictive read, and hardly put it down.

Perfect Kill is the 6th outing for Helen Fields' Turner and Callanach and as ever it's a well-written and gripping tale. As their relationship remains in turmoil Luc Callanach is in France helping Interpol while Ava Turner is in Scotland and waking up to a new case and not a little embarrassment. As it becomes apparent that the cases are linked Callanach and Turner find themselves working together on opposite sides of the Channel in a case that involves kidnapping, with a view to something readers might find hard to swallow, and sex trafficking.
Parts of the book are quite explicit,as is some of the language,and might be too much for some readers. being more hard-hitting than previous books in the series with some quite upsetting scenes. Parts of it stretch credulity but we're talking about a work of fiction written to entertain and it does that.
This is a worthy addition to the series, thought please be aware of the extreme violence and the language ,if the "C word" offends this isn't for you.
The ending is quite uplifting after what at times is a pretty grim read and I'm greatly looking forward to the next in the series.
Thanks to Helen Fields, Netgalley and Avon books for the ARC in return for an honest review.

Two young boys and a young girl missing. Luc Callanach on special duties in France whilst Ava Turner in Edinburgh , two top police investigators in their field suddenly become jointly involved in a case of people trafficking and illegal donor transplants. Personal relationships and misunderstandings that have shadowed these two protagonists in previous books must be put to one side if lives are to be saved. Slow methodical police work to figure out what is the crime and who are the perpetrators is played out against a ticking clock with time running out for the victims. This fast paced thriller has numerous strands to a multi faceted and complex crime investigation. Very much an investigation of modern times where police work relies upon cross border intelligence and awareness that in the modern era crime for profit is often the trade of people for illegal purposes. Several difficult subjects dealt with sensitively by the author whilst recognising and demonstrating in the writing style that the police are forced to adapt their methods to recognise the perpetrators if they are to resolve a new generation of crimes and identity the unlikely victims.. Concentration by the author on the investigation and less impetus on the romantic liaison between the chief protagonists has vastly improved this storyline allowing the reader to be swept along in this intricate and complicated investigation. A modern thoroughly enjoyable thriller using as both victim and perpetrators the underbelly of society for which most readers will be totally unaware .

Helen Fields has surpassed herself in the 6th book in the series of DI Callanach.

Perfect Kill is a chilling, page turning haunting story.

The topics of Luc's case in France and Ava's in Scotland are current and will have you shuddering.

I love Ava's whole team that work tirelessly and jeopardize their own safety to solve this horrendous case.

I relish this series and can't wait for Book 7 (no pressure).

Hope I sleep tonight.

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books UK to get involved in the gritty world of crime with Ava and Luc.

A gritty, action packed read. There were several threads running throughout the book and it kept the story exciting and gripping. I loved the way the story unfolded and the characters were well developed. I'm looking forward to reading the previous books in the series.

Absolutely fantastic read. This is pacy and gritty, with a dash of gore for good measure! I have loved all this series and they keep getting better. I also love the relationship between Ava and Luc. Can’t wait to see how that develops!!!! @NetGalley@PerfectKill

The story line is about human trafficking for various reasons. It is dealt in a very explicit way, I found myself really hoping for the victims to be rescued. I have read the first book in this series which I didn’t like that much, felt it to be a bit gory. This one was very nicely written and I finished it in one day. I pray for the victims of trafficking in real life also to be rescued.

It felt really weird to be reading this last week, the same week a lorry container containing the bodies of 38 men and women was found in Essex. The bodies are believed to have been smuggled into England, and although ''Perfect Kill'' focuses on trafficked women and men, the similarity is chillingly realistic. Whilst it is unthinkable to imagine the horror and desperation the real-life victims suffered, Helen Fields manages to convey some of the panic they very obviously went through.

And so we lead into yet another ''Perfect'' instalment of the Callanach and Turner series, and whilst it isn’t essential that you’ve read the previous 5 books, I would of course recommend them wholeheartedly. Luscious Luc is still over the channel in France with Interpol investigating human trafficking when he joins ex-colleague and ex-friend Jean-Paul to work on a case involving a macabre murder. It was good to read the relationship between the two and see how it developed over the course of the book, particularly as Luc seemed much more in control mentally over the events of the past that saw him wrongly accused of rape. His involvement in the case proves vital to the missing person case DCI Ava Turner and her team find themselves working and thus the two of them are thrust once again together.

Now if you haven’t read any of Field’s previous books, Luc and Ava are going through what can only be described as a rocky patch in their relationship. The ripple of attraction that kept me hooked for the first few novels having washed upon the shore and crashed out somewhat painfully; so in ''Perfect Kill'' they have to find their way out of the maelstrom of emotions they both feel to a more harmonious working life. And, even though I’m being denied the happiness of seeing them together, it is satisfying to read of them coming-back to the crack team they initially proved themselves to be.

The crimes they are investigating are as disturbing as I mentioned at the start, there are no real light moments, but whilst they are written realistically they’re thankfully not gratuitously macabre. I suppose what I’m trying to say as ineloquently as usual is, the subject makes you think yet won’t make you feel too uncomfortable reading it! I’ve probably not clarified that at all have I? Anyway, the writing is as engaging as ever, as once again Helen Fields proves herself to be worthy of one of the places at the top of many a must-read list. The action is kept at a steady place throughout, and there’s not a moment of slowness at all, the gaps between the action being filled with the dramas unfolding around it. The lives of the varying team members being as gripping as the crimes themselves,

I really could waffle on for ages about this series, and this book, but that would be boring for everyone involved I’m sure, so I’ll finish in my usual way of saying; this Is another cracking read from Helen Fields. ''Perfect Kill'' is out on 6th February 2020, be sure to beg, borrow or buy a copy as soon as you can.

Perfect Kill is the sixth book in the D.I. Callanch series, and I had to dive right into it the moment I finished Perfect Crime. I needed to see what came next for Luc, I needed to see how the new mystery would develop, and such left me devouring this one in a single sitting. I could not put it down, I was hooked.

Once again, Helen Fields has given a mystery that has you sucked in deep from the very first page. There are multiple elements to this story, leaving you to try and piece together how all the elements go together. With the elements playing out across both Scotland and France, you get to see a lot of all the characters we have come to love. Add in the details of what is happening to the victims, and the book grips you in multiple ways.

It’s not only a great mystery, Perfect Kill also continues the personal story we’ve been watching build throughout the series. There were elements introduced in this one that I did not expect, and it’s left me curious to see how things will progress in the future books. In fact, there was a lot of development for multiple characters, and it’s pulled me ever deeper into their lives.

With a twisted crime that keeps you hooked and the personal touches that leave you invested in the characters, Perfect Kill is guaranteed to leave you desperate for the next book in the series. I simply wish I could jump right into it.

Thanks to Netgalley and the pub lisher for the ARC in return for an unbiased review.
I'd like ot be unbiased as stated above but as someone who hads read all the publications in this series it is difficult.
This book investigates people trafficing and the illegal harvesting of body organs.
Set in Scotland and France the two main characters once again are Ava & Luc.
Really good story with a few twists along the way.
Think this series is just getting better and better.

Oh wow.... I’ve literally just finished this book! I read over 40% in one sitting. This was a gruesome book ( one of the worst I’ve read) and very graphic, though written so brilliantly I really couldn’t put it down. This is a series of books and one of the main character is called Luc ( I’ve read another one of the series) which I really enjoyed but this one really was exceptional. Well done Helen I can only imagine the amount of research that went into this book as it covered two very different subjects so so well. Hoping there’s another one to follow soon.

The 6th book in the DI Callanach series and I absolutely loved it!! It was fast paced with lots of twists. Two investigations, one in France where Callanach is back on secondment working with his old partner and another seemingly unrelated one regarding people trafficking in Scotland.

I love the characters in the series and think that you should read all the books in order to understand them and their relationships. It covers a lot of serious issues in this book and is pretty gruesome in parts.

The books are exciting and real page turners and the injections of humour with the team give some lightheared relief. Can't wait for the next one

I haven’t read any of the other books in this series, and I was worried I’d struggle to fully understand what was going on. I was wrong and easily got into the story.

I must say... it was a lot darker than I thought it would be. Don’t get me wrong, I do like a fairly dark read, I’m just not sure even I was prepared for how dark and impactful the descriptions were in this book. It’s been appearing in my nightmares!

I think it is especially chilling due to the latest news with the loss of 39 lives found in a lorry in Essex. I can’t say I ‘enjoyed’ this book as such, it was very gripping / thrilling, written really well, and a good ending. It’s just so scary and sad at the same time!

Hard to be unbiased about this book as I have read and really enjoyed all the previous books in the series.

This was a really hard book to read and didn’t shy away from the brutality and barbarity of the crimes being committed.

Thank you to Avon and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my review.

Another great page turning book in the DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach series. With Callanach on secondment in France, investigating a murder and Turner in Scotland looking into a missing person case, their professional and personal worlds meet. A gritty and macabre storyline which develops the series but can be read as a stand-alone book.

This is a brilliant series. There is a lot of suspense throughout this story. I read this in one sitting. I was hooked and glued to the spot from the start. I really like the characters and the storyline is creepy and dark.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

Alone, trapped in the darkness and with no way out, Bart Campbell knows that his chances of being found alive are slim. Drugged and kidnapped, the realisation soon dawns that he’s been locked inside a shipping container far from his Edinburgh home. But what Bart doesn’t yet know is that he’s now heading for France where his unspeakable fate is already sealed. DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach are working on separate cases that soon collide as it becomes clear that the men and women being shipped to France are being traded for women trafficked into Scotland. With so many lives at stake, they face an impossible task – but there’s no option of failure when Bart and so many others will soon be dead.

We are back with Turner and Callanach with this read and once again, Fields ensures we re-enter a dark world. There are two main plot threads to this, Turner's investigation and Callanach's. Yes they do come together at times but they are separate and we see the characters in two very different situations. This helped ensure the book still felt fresh, one thing I like about Fields is the constant character development, they are never left to go stale and are always given new challenges to face.

Anyway back to the plot, this is very dark but it is not my favourite plot from Fields either. At times, this felt a bit dull and obvious, the excitement and high-intensity action was not a constant which was a real shame. Aside from this, I did really enjoy being thrown into this investigation.

I have mentioned we see Turner and Callanach in two very different situations which helps keep the book fresh, Fields also brings other characters to the forefront in this read, notably, Natalie, Lively and Graham. In this instalment, they have more of a major role to play and I loved learning more about these previously supporting characters and I feel I understood them more after reading this.

'Perfect Kill' is a great read for any fan of this series. Fields brings the danger, the darkness and gore but at times does lack the thrills.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for an advance copy.

I never repeat the blurb. This was another great installment in this excellent series. The only reason for 4* not 5* is that the splitting up of the team, needed after the previous book, meant that some of the characters didn't interact with the same familiar rapport and some of the flying visits etc seemed a tad unlikely in the midst of such serious investigations. Hopefully normal service will be resumed next time...looks like it. Very up to date and contemporary issues as usual.

An absolute racket of a thriller. I love this series. Always a good complex crime story, interspersed with the will they/won’t they story off Luc and Ava. This did not disappoint one iota, and am eagerly awaiting the next chapter.

Now, if you're like me, this series needs no introduction! Another great DI Callanach story - who is has been banished to France but quickly his and Ava's cases begin to intertwine.

I love this series, with all, even the supporting characters being well rounded and this book is no exception.

Thanks once again to #NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read #PerfectKill in return for a fair an honest review.

I have been reading the "Perfect" series since book one, and have grown quite attached to Ava Turner and Luc Callanach - as well as their good friend Natasha, so knowing that the next book in the series was imminent, I could not wait to see what lies in store. And boy, was I not disappointed.

Luc is on secondment to Interpol and working with his old friend Jean-Paul on the murder case of a Scotsman, found with all of his organs missing; meanwhile, Ava is presented with the bodies of three (possible) murder victims found in a farmer's pig enclosure, while working on the disappearance of another Scottish man, who one night vanished into thin air.

We're given some insights into what has happened to the victims, through their own eyes, and the story slowly unfolds. But it's not only Ava Turner and Luc Callanach who get involved in the case(s) - Lively becomes a big part of an investigation into prostitution, slave-trade and torture.

Aside from the main plot lines, Ava and Luke's dear friend Natasha is diagnosed with breast cancer, and strives to bring them closer together; needless to say, they both are extremely supportive!

Slowly but surely, all of the plot lines seem to be converging, and Luc goes undercover in Paris to try and break a growing crime ring involving - as it turns out - both of the missing men and another person who hadn't been on their radar.

Another great addition to the "Perfect" series; read them all you must.

I could not put this book and loved being in the company of Ava Turner and Luc Callanach again! This was hard hitting again dealing with the issues of trafficking, prostitution and killing for body parts.

The story moved rapidly between Scotland and France and felt very real and topical.

It was interesting to see the development of the relationship between the two and the effect of Natasha’s illness on the dynamic.

A riveting read - highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books for this latest Helen Fields book. Absolutely gripping, a real page turner of a book. Totally enthralled from beginning to the end. 5 stars all the way.

This series must be the best around at present. They are PERFECT.......

This is the sixth in the series and as usual the story revolves around Ava and Luc and the Edinburgh Major investigation team.

This book will certainly not disappoint and will keep you on edge right till the end.

I couldn't put it down.

Looking forward to the next in the series

Helen Fields has written a superb series! This the sixth book is as good as any before it, and I date say any of the continuing books will be as good. Rarely have I read as consistent a series, the strong characters as well as the up to date criminal realism make her a favourite that I shall continue to return to.

Since I read all of the other books in the series, I was eager to pick up where I left off. And much like the prior books, this one didn't disappoint. Ava is working in Scotland, and Luc is working as Police Scotland's liaison to Interpol.

The tension between Ava and Luc still manages to persist long-distance, while Ava is struggling with her own issues at home in Scotland. Luc has his hands full in France, dealing with his old friend Jean-Paul, along with the body of a Scottish man who has turned up in Paris with most of his transplantable organs missing. As always, there are many sub-plots running throughout the book, making for an action packed story with many plot twists that kept me at the edge of my seat, unable to put down this book until I had finished reading the entire thing.

The characters that I know and love made their appearance, with all of their flaws, quirks, and of course, plenty of witty banter. A couple of new characters showed up as well, notably DC Swift and Jean-Paul, who has only been mentioned in previous books. I love how the author weaves her storylines, keeping readers hooked from start to finish, with engaging plots, endearingly realistic characters, and the gritty settings that exist in the underworld of cities around the world that most people avoid like the plague. I'll definitely be looking to reading more of this series.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and author for this ARC.

Firstly I have to say, I missed out on the first five books, an advantage to receive this book, an dis-advantage when you read the book and feel you have missed so much on the history of the series.

Perfect Kill is the sixth book in the D.I. Callenach series.

He had never heard himself scream before. It was terrifying.

Alone, trapped in the darkness and with no way out, Bart Campbell knows that his chances of being found alive are slim.

Drugged and kidnapped, the realisation soon dawns that he’s been locked inside a shipping container far from his Edinburgh home. But what Bart doesn’t yet know is that he’s now heading for France where his unspeakable fate is already sealed…

The central characters are DCI Luc (Mr Dishy) Callenach and DCS Ava Turner from the MIT team in Edinburgh. Luc is back in his native France on secondment to Interpol and working with his old partner Jean-Paul, they are working on separate cases that soon collide as it becomes clear that the men and women being shipped to France are being traded for women trafficked into Scotland.

With so many lives at stake, they face an impossible task – but there’s no option of failure when Bart and so many others will soon be dead…

Get ready for a rollercoaster ride like no other, with the next gripping thriller from the number one bestselling crime author, Helen Fields.

A powerful, strong, gory, shocking thriller that keeps going and two stories connect.

What I did enjoy so much as the last few chapters unfolded was, the gripping, tense suspense, then the touching comical moments, then some lovely light touches, no more said...

I feel I enjoyed this author, who I had not heard of before reading this book, do I now read book 1....

A good four stars, liked the writing of this author as well as the characters.

I was thrilled to receive this advance copy as I’ve been a fan of Helen Fields since stumbling upon book one earlier this year.
The sixth novel of the DI Callanach follows Luc
and Ava as they investigate separate cases in Scotland and France. The author continues to offer up the intricate, gruesome, and suspenseful storylines we’ve come to expect and love from her.
I highly recommend this book, which can be read as a stand alone, but you’ll get far more connected to the characters and their stories if you start from the beginning.
Thank you to Avon Books UK and Netgalley for the great read.

Perfect Book.

The Callanach and Turner series is a personal favourite of mine and this installment is the best yet.

I actually had to put this book down at one stage because it scared me so much, and I don't scare easily.

Absolutely incredible author with a talent for the macabre and violence, with a touch of heartwarming love.

Perfect installment.
Perfect author.
Perfect book.

Perfect kill is perfect.

Helen Fields is the premier crime writer of the last few years, she gets better and better! Her Luc Callanach series goes from strength to strength and Perfect Kill is the best yet. A young Edinburgh native, Bart. finds himself trapped inside a container, drugged and bound. HIs nightmare is only beginning when he eventually reaches his destination. Elenuta is a young Romanian woman being prostituted against her will along with other young women who have been trafficked into Edinburgh's seedy underworld. The cases are connected but with Luc in France and Ava in Scotland will they be able to solve this together? More to the point will they be able to put their personal feelings aside in order to work together? An epic read, harrowing in places. Thank you Netgalley for my advance copy.

♥I got a copy from the publisher through NetGalley and this is my most honest uninfluenced review♥

I'll just be plain honest here. It's been a while since I finished a book. Work is consuming, pregnancy (yeah) makes me tired all the time and I also have to play Destiny2 because a) I'm addicted and b) it's my thing-to-do-with-husband. So, I start a book, then I got kind of bored, then I just don't go back. No matter how amazing the book is, I'll just drop it in a few weeks. For some random reason I ended up in Netgalley (or I got an email, idk) and I just saw perfect something and woah had to go back to see what was it. Turns out, it was another book from one of my faves-auto-buy-author and here I am.

I'm not sure what I can say about this book, to be honest. It's amazing. That's it.
Loved to kind of know Jean-Paul and I'm just in love with DS Lively. Natasha's story is breaking my heart, tho (#ProtectNatashaAtAllCost). I loved both cases and thought it was very interesting how they connected. Great pacing as usual. And, once again, the cure for my book hangover.


Just can't wait for book7 ♥

Helen Fields is guaranteed to give you a gripping book to read and each book surpasses my expectations. This was probably the hardest book to read out of the series because of the intense sexual violence involved.

I was disappointed in Fields when I realised she had written about sexual trafficking and couldn't understand why the scenes had to be so graphic. They were very hard to read and so unnecessary in my opinion. Another negative is the way Fields ended the book but I'm using the ending to give me hope that another is or will be written.

Having said this, Perfect Kill was a very gripping read that I couldn't put down.

An undoubtedly well written, tense, edge of the seat thriller.
I really liked all of the characters and was drawn in from page one.
Would have given this 5 stars but the sheer brutality of it and the scenes which went beyond nasty and into sick had me scanning a few pages that were just too difficult to stomach. (& I can usually cope with the worst of them!)
Great read overall though.

This is my absolute favourite detective series, tackling serious and contemporary issues interspersed with the will they/won't they relationship between the two main characters, Ava and Luc.

The subject matter is gruesome and shocking at times. While Ava deals with one element in Scotland, Luc is helping Interpol with another seemingly unrelated case in Paris. The team as always have each other's back and there are quite a few witty moments along the way, a welcome break from the harrowing subject matter. Luc and Ava's interaction is as cliff-hanging as ever and I can't wait for the next installment in what has turned out to be a must buy series for me,

I would like to thank Netgalley and Avon Books UK for an advance copy of of Perfect Kill, the sixth novel to feature Edinburgh based DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callenach.

Luc is on secondment to Interpol in France investigating a people smuggling ring while Ava’s recently quiet life in Edinburgh is shattered by a two murders, one with links to France. What they discover is far broader than either could have imagined.

I thoroughly enjoyed Perfect Kill which is an engrossing, if rather stomach churning, read. It is not for the faint hearted with graphic violence and cruelty and an amazing proposition that makes a kind of sick sense. No, I’m not going to tell you what it is but it’s very clever and you’ll never guess but yuck.

The novel itself is told in several voices with Luc and Ava carrying most of it in their separate and combined investigations and two other characters telling their story as well, Bart Campbell who wakes up confined in a dark space and Elenuta who is living as a sex slave. Initially I found it quite confusing as where Bart and Elenuta fit in but quickly came to appreciate the additional depth they provide, giving the reader context and a different, more detailed perspective on the investigation. Their stories also allow the reader to measure the progress the police are making. I found it quite compulsive reading with their despair and not quite extinguished hope adding an emotional dimension.

The police investigation is non stop. It is split between what Luc is doing in Paris and what Ava is doing in Edinburgh. Unsurprisingly for fiction their investigations soon come together and end in a couple of major action scenes with Ava kicking serious butt.

Throughout it all there is the ongoing thread of Ava and Luc’s will they, won’t they relationship. I must admit that I find this rather tedious in comparison with the high octane level of the rest of the novel. I just wish they’d decide and we can stop the excavations of Ava’s psyche.

Perfect Kill is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.

This series really goes from strength to strength. The plots are better and the characterisation is excellent. The depiction of Ds Lively hearing Elunatas story was genuinely heart breaking. The trafficking story line is current and relevant. I really enjoyed the expansion of the story to France interpretation and interpol. Honestly this would make a great TV series hint hint! Slight spoiler alert. But seriously Ava jesus christ woman stop pushing Luc away already ;)

The sixth book in this wonderful series featuring D.I.Luc Callanach, D.C.I Ava Turner and the other members of the team. In this instalment Luc has gone back to France on secondment to Interpol while Ava is working on a case in Edinburgh and very soon it becomes evident that these two cases are connected and they are gruesome cases to say the least!!
This is a series that has always had a strong plot line and in this book it really steps up to the mark with loads of detail and very topical with organ harvesting, people trafficking wow it’s a hell of a ride.
The ongoing back story is as always a real bonus in these books making the characters feel very real with all their foibles but this is always done with a lot of thought and never at the expense of the main story it just adds to the brilliance of the read making you care about these characters a lot.
The more I have read the series the more in love with it I have become it really does have everything and Helen Fields is at her genius best as always so do yourself a favour and read them all, don’t miss out because this really is a top notch read and I have no hesitation in giving it 5 big fat stars.
My thanks to Helen Fields for giving me so much pleasure in a mighty fine read.
My thanks also to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for giving me the chance to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and author for this ARC.

Having read the previous books in this series, this book did not disappoint. The author covers current issues in this story - people trafficking and killing for body parts. The story takes place in two different places, DI Callanach is in Paris working with Interpol and investigating the murder of a Scottish man. In Edinburgh Ava Turner is investigating a murder and a man who has gone missing. As the book progresses it appears there are links with Callanach’s investigation and Turner’s missing person. Without giving any spoilers, I found this to be an absorbing and thrilling read. It held my attention from start to finish. All the characters return from previous books and the working rapport, banter they have between each other is great and it was lovely to see a different side to a couple of characters which for me made them more endearing. There were lots of twists and turns in the story, moments where my heart was in my mouth and I didn’t want to put this book down. Sensitive issues were dealt with very well by the author. All in all, a fab compulsive read that I didn’t want to end.

Helen Fields never disappoints. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Surprises and mysteries at every turn. Young people both male and female going missing. Girls being kept prisoners for prostitution, and being hunted down like animals. There is so much more going on. I don't want to say anymore, you'll just have to read and find out.

I love this series of detective books by Helen Fields and the newest addition Perfect Kill did not disappoint. Detectives Ava and Luc return for the newest story, which involves two crimes based on sex workers and illegal organ harvesting. I really enjoyed this book and can't more from the series in the future.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC

Oh dear!! You know it’s going to be bad when you discover your new best duo and it’s already 6 in! This means I will be up a lot reading the previous ones!
I may be late to this party - but it didn’t make it any less enjoyable!
Awful topic and tough to read in places, but what a rollercoaster! I am still reeling! Outstanding and cannot wait to read the first ones!

Helen Fields never disappoints! I actually never want this series to end. This particular plot with the sex workers and “the race” actually turned my stomach and was quite difficult to read at times and the subplot with Callanach in Paris also kept me guessing. I really enjoyed the more human side of Ava with Natashas illness and I am obviously still just praying for Ava and Luc to get together. I know I’m going to have to wait a long time but I CANT WAIT for the next instalment. Thanks to the author, Netgalley and Avon for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. This is a must read!!!

Ah yes, the Frenchman and the Scotswoman and their on again off again romance.
Luc is back in France helping Interpol with some PT distress about his sex life. His case involves a Scottish lad who turns up dead after all his organs have been removed! And Ava gets a shot victim after a trafficked Romanian girl attempts to escape from her captors. And this case winds up and up and up.. Two disparate cases you think but a twist of course.
Now a word to the author please. Helen, you either have a very sick imagination of you have been researching some very sick criminals. I hope it is the latter!
The twists and turns of these cases and crimes make for nail biting reading. Well plotted, well planned and well written.

I love this series! Ava and Luc are in different countries this time investigating different cases... or are they? As usual it’s well written and has our favourite characters. I read it quickly because I have to know more! Can’t wait for the next one.

Well written thriller with a difficult storyline which is sensitively handled.

The book is thrilling and draws you in because you care about the characters.

Excellent series of books and I look forward to reading more.

I hadn't read any Helen Fields coming into this book, and am sorry that I am late to the game with her. The pace was exciting and the storyline interesting, and works equally well for people familiar with the characters and those, like me, going in having not read any other books in the series.

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher- this is the 6th book in the D I Callanch series and was just as good as the previous 5. I would give with a worth 4 1/2 stars.

This is a wonderfully crafted action-packed story with twists and turns that keep you on the edge of your seat right to the last page. The author’s insightful look into both the international sex slave traffic and illegal organ theft crisis is timely and on point. The end had a satisfying, realistic conclusion; there is no magic bullet to rid the world of these people who will profit from the desperate and delusional, but enough justice for everyone.

This is my first exposure to this author and it definitely will not be my last! I definitely plan to read the other books in this series.

Thank you to NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

‘Perfect Kill’ by Helen Fields is the latest in the DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach series, set mostly in Edinburgh with occasional forays into France. Devoted readers will know that Luc recognises that these two ‘had been dancing around the edges of a relationship for a couple of years. Just when it had finally seemed about to start, he’d screwed up and Ava had lost faith in him.’ Nowhere is this more obvious than at the beginning of this novel as Ava rushes away from an ill-judged night with one of her colleagues. Naturally the Ava/Luc dynamic is still of interest to readers but it does take a back sear for much of the narrative as the two are caught up in some extraordinary people trafficking events on both sides of the Channel.
Fields never pulls her punches when describing difficult scenes within her stories. The abject misery in which the sex slaves live, the brutality and callousness of the men who ‘mind’ them and the appalling ways in which they are bought and sold are depicted vividly. However, the writing is not gratuitous. The author is merely reminding he readers that such atrocities happen and that good people are working hard to put a stop to them.
The ‘body parts’ element of the narrative feels a little more far-fetched. Are there really people out there who are prepared to deal in such a complicated trade, bearing in mind that so much could go wrong at each step of the way? However, whilst this slightly tenuous thread is central to the plot’s warp and weave, it does not detract from the overall effect. Above all, in the final chapters of the story, Fields reminds us that most people are brave, kind, thoughtful and caring. She leaves us hoping that we’ll see more of these attributes in her next Turner/Callanach novel.
My thanks to NetGalley and Avon for a copy of this novel in exchange for a fair review.

A dark and tad bit gruesome and it is somewhat over the top in that aspect but did cover fairly decent police investigation procedures. Very character driven and thorough plot but it doesn’t really stand apart from other thrillers. Don’t get me wrong the book is good but not gripping in the kind of way that really keeps you pulled into the storytelling. I think it just starts a bit to slow and is bogged down with just a touch to much of the mundane side of police-work but still remained compelling. I would continue to read the series although I would like to see a better balance of not just cunning brutal violence but cunning and driven detective work. I feel a great deal of detail is focused on the killer. Don’t get me wrong that’s awesome but I want to see the evolution of the detective becoming as cunning and stealthy as the killers with much less tedious day to day job dilemma. The constant procedures makes the book a bit tedious and sadly detracted from what has all the meaty bones of a top notch thriller.

Luc Callanach & Ava Turner are further apart than ever. Luc is working with Interpol in France after a Scottish citizen was found dead there having had all of his organs removed. Ava is in Scotland working on the case of Bart Campbell, a young man who disappeared after finishing his shift at a restaurant. There appear to be remarkable similarities between Bart’s disappearance and the body in the case Luc is working on.
Ava’s case leads her into the world of people trafficking and Luc’s takes him into the world of Organ theft. The cases seem to be becoming intertwined and Luc and Ava have to work together even with all the miles between them in order to save more lives being lost.
I enjoyed this but not quite as much as the previous one. I prefer it when Luc and Ava work cases together as I think their relationship dynamic is outstanding and when they are working different cases especially in different countries some of that is lost.
Will still recommend it as a very good read though.

This is only my second Helen Fields book but I felt like I caught right up and remembered most of the characters. It's an intense read for sure with lots of graphic and vivid scenes depicting the lives of women affected by human trafficking. Several murders, organs removed for a cult-like, gruesome ritual, and lovable characters who are flawed but will steal your heart. Definitely not the last book by Fields I'll be reading!

I think I might have to have a look for some more by this author.


To say that I was pleasantly surprised is an understatement. I found myself reading it, in any amount of spare time that I had. Whether, that was at work or home any spare time was taken with it.


Set between Paris and Edinburgh. With twists and turns, that has highly selective abductions on pseudo-medical grounds from Scotland to France and sex trafficking Eastern European women on the return journey.



Everything, has to come to a climax, and this delivers on all accounts. I don't want to give anything away. So, all I can say is that if your interested. Go and get this book.



Rating: 4.2 / 5.0


Status: Completed

I’ve only read a couple in the series and I really have to seek out the others as I’m really into these two detectives now. Both are investigating separate crimes that involve, murder, kidnapping, organ snatching and trafficking. What would be a difficult read in another authors voice, this one flows smoothly, quickly and interestingly with just enough of the trafficking explanation for readers not too familiar with the concept. This is a really character driven book, a stand alone, that would give you a more enriching reading if you have some more understanding of their personal relationship from previous books. Jumping onto Kindle now to catch up! What a great writer.

I wasn't sure about this book in the beginning. The tension between Luc & Ava plays a big part in the books and I thought that Luc being back in France working as Scotland's liason with Interpol that tension might not be there. How wrong I was. This book is every bit as enthralling as the previous ones in the series.

Loved it.

I read an advance review copy of the book. This review is voluntary, honest and my own opinion.

What a fantastic book. Truly gripping, action packed and easy to follow. There's so much information given, many different stories told and yet you're still able to keep hold of the full picture. This is made possible by the way the chapters have split narrative between the main characters/storylines.

After I read the last book (5) I said I would try to read the books that came before it, and as of yet that hasn't happened. But I'm so glad I didn't wait to read this book. It was so captivating throughout and really difficult to put down. If I could have read it in one sitting I would have. I'd highly recommend and am looking forward to any books that may follow.

Edinburgh’s Major Investigation Team are back at it again and readers are once again plunged into a gritty, gruesome, and truly unsettling installment of Helen Fields’ DI Luc Callanach series.
Fields delivers an unflinchingly realistic portrayal of human trafficking and illegal organ harvesting and, as evident in her previous books, never fails to highlight the disturbing reality for the victims of these crimes. Never one to shy away from the gory details, Fields does so whilst simultaneously portraying the strength of the human spirit when faced with the impossible and survival instincts kick in.
Although separated for the majority of the book, Luc and Ava are brought back together not only because of the ongoing investigations in both Edinburgh and Paris, but their love for their friend, Natasha, who has received some life-changing news. One of my favourite parts of this series are the relationships between all three characters. Natasha continues to be the glue that holds Luc and Ava together as well as the voice of reason amongst the awkwardness and unease.
Luc and Ava are still dealing with the aftermath of their short-lived intimacy back in Perfect Crime (Book #5). Part of me was surprised by where we find Ava in her first appearance in this book, but the other part of me - the more reluctant part, I suppose - saw it coming. It will be very interesting to see the dynamic between certain characters as the series progresses.
I enjoyed getting to see Luc and Jean-Paul work together, it was refreshing to see Luc back with Interpol and doing some old fashioned police work in France, allowing him to deal with some of his demons.
Without a doubt, DS Lively shines in this particular installment. His compassion and kindness towards the trafficked victims really tugs at the heartstrings. Fields has done a wonderful job developing his character since Perfect Remains (Book #1). In addition, I hope we get to see more of DS Tripp and DC Swift in future installments.
Overall, the book is fast-paced, well-researched, and a delight to read. If you’re looking for a real page-turner complete with great characterisation, then look no further.
I would like to thank Helen Fields, Avon Books UK, and the NetGalley for the advanced copy.

This author is one who captures human trafficking like no other. Wow, I miss certainly be reading more books. Powerful,gripping,karma. Certainly had me thinking of the things the poor would go through whilst it still goes on in this day. Utterly outstanding book.

Firstly I would like to thank the author, the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read an ARC of this book. It was brilliant as all Helen Fields' books are, it gripped me from the beginning and spat me out at the end. At times some parts were difficult to read due to the subject matter, but I think that is because you become so involved with the characters that you don't want to read about bad things that may happen to them. I will as always be recommending this book to everyone I know.

this is the 6th in this series and I've never read any others in the series. However, I don't think I missed out. This can be read as a stand-alone and I really enjoyed the twists and turns

This sixth episode of the DI Luc Callanach series, unbelievably is even better than the five that have gone before.
If you havent read any of these books I can definitely recommend them.
We find Luc still attached to interpol, in Paris, on the trail of a group involved in the illegal harvesting of human organs.
DCI Ava Turner is back in Scotland investigating the disappearance of several men and women. Enquiries suggest they are being transported to France and exchanged for young women sex trafficked into Scotland.
The discovery of a photograph in France finally establishes a link between the cases and provides the break through.
At times a brutal and chilling, fast paced and cleverly played out across two countries.
An exciting and gripping read, I`m already looking forward to the next instalment.
Thank you to Netgalley and Avon books for the opportunity to read this as an ARC.

Thanks Helen fields and net galley for letting me read this excellent detective book.
Helen Fields books are always excellent and this one was great, look forward to the next one.
The story was very gruesome going into details of body parts and Slave girls selling their bodies but could not put it down.
It’s very sad that the treatment of girls still goes on, and you hope by reading these type of books you could make a difference .

When Maggie Campbell realised that her son, Bart, was missing he was already 200 miles away and just waking from a chemically-induced sleep. Maggie knew straight away that something was wrong. Bart might be twenty but he was considerate of his mother and wouldn't have stayed out all night without letting her know. Besides, he didn't have his phone with him and he wouldn't have gone far without that. It's not long before Bart realises that he's alone, trapped in a shipping container and on his way to France, where his fate has already been decided.

Elenuta is trapped, but not in quite the same way. She's been trafficked from Romania and is now in a flat in Dumbryden Gardens in Edinburgh. Finlay did his best to keep his girls clean - that was best for business - but there was hardly any comfort in the flat and there was a constant threat that you would be chosen for 'the race' - and the girls who were chosen never seemed to return.

Meanwhile, in Paris, DI Luc Callanach, on loan to the French authorities from Police Scotland, is part of a team working on the discovery of the body of a twenty-year-old male on a building site. All his internal organs have been removed, with knowledge, if not much skill.

Back in Edinburgh, DCI Ava Turner, head of the MIT, thought that she'd found a way of forgetting about the end of her relationship with Luc Callanach, but sleeping with another DI on the Major Incident Team wasn't her brightest idea, particularly as Pax Graham is rather smitten with her - and she's no less smitten with Callanach. Then the bodies really start piling up.

It used to be that I made a point of not joining crime series once they'd really become established on the grounds that it wasn't fair on the author, but as series get longer and it's harder to pick up that initial publishing contract I found myself slipping into series where I'd missed the early books. Then there's the problem of not realising that the series is already at book six, which is what happened with Perfect Kill. It struck me that there were quite a few allusions to what looked like a very sound backstory, but I didn't realise that we were so far in, which will tell you that the book will read perfectly well as a standalone.

And it was a good read, apart from one quibble. I liked the characters and the plot is well-thought-out, but there are some graphic scenes of sexual violence. If this doesn't generally worry you then you can put this down to me being an elderly wuss with a soft heart. Either way I'd like to thank the publishers for making a copy available to the Bookbag.

I love this series of books by Helen Fields with the irresistible Ava and Luc. This is a complex book with two stories running alongside each other that eventually clash together. I was getting a very slightly bored half way through with the minutiae of details and knowing that I wasn't anywhere near a conclusion, kept on going as I knew that Helen would have something amazing up her sleeve, so persevered and am so glad that I did. The other area that took us off track were the long conversations between Natasha and Ava. Being a cancer patient myself I can see the authenticity of everything that Tash was feeling, it just got quite sickly. Thank goodness for the ending, which was perfect all round for those involved including an unsung hero in Lively. Can't wait for the next instalment.

First book by this author & I thoroughly enjoyed it. Fantastic plot & chAracters I’m going to have to read more in this series. I would recommend to anyone.

Ava and Luc are back but separated with Ava in Edinburgh and Luc working in France but their cases could be linked. A young man has gone missing, three skeletons are found. On top of this prostitutes, ava’s best friend Natasha, needs Ava but who is helping Ava? I thought the previous book was my favourite but this one tops it! Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

This is the 6th book in a crime thriller series featuring DI Luc Callanach and DCI Ava Turner. Although most of these stories are set in Edinburgh, Scotland, as they work for the MIT there, Luc is currently assigned in France as Scottish liaison officer to Interpol working on tracing a human trafficking case. A Scottish national's body had been found in Flandres and all that remained of the young man was a shell -- most of his internal organs had been removed. It seems that there is something more sinister going on that might tie into a missing persons situation that Ava is dealing with. From the backroom, filthy brothels where the trafficked women are used and abused to the sterile interior of a quasi operating theater, this is a complicated investigation that is grisly and chilling.

If you haven't read the previous five books in the series, I'd urge you to start at the beginning. This is a really good collection that has interesting characters, fabulous plots, and interesting settings. The writing is top-notch and the author spins the tales and lavishes us with incredible details. The relationship between Luc and Ava is quite complex and their history together is checkered with a bit of drama, but it works well. I do enjoy these books and they are very absorbing often requiring that I read them from cover to cover in a single sitting.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for this e-book ARC to read, review and recommend. I hope that #7 is in the works but I understand that Helen Fields is writing a standalone novel coming in February of 2021.

Another fab installment in the series from Helen Fields! I think this might be my favourite one so far - the threads of the separate cases that Ava and Luc are working on are woven brilliantly throughout the story, keeping you invested and in suspense as the novel builds towards its climax. Ava is badass and amazing as always, and I loved seeing hers and Luc's relationship develop even as they are more distant than ever. And what an ending! I can't wait to see where the next book leads...

This is the first book I've read in this series but it worked fine as a stand alone. I found the main characters, DCI Luc Callanach and DCS Ava Turner of the Edinburgh Major Investigation Team interesting and engaging characters. Clearly they have had a past romantic relationship, but are currently separated. Luc, with both French and Scottish heritage is currently on secondment to Interpol in France where he has been trying to track a human trafficking operation. When a young man reported missing in Edinburgh turns up dead in France, Luc is called to the crime scene and finds himself liasing with Ava's team in Edinburgh to find the killers.

This is a very gritty thriller with graphic themes of sex trafficking and organ harvesting, that will not be for those who prefer their crime cosy. However, this is well written, gripping suspense that will have your heart in your mouth as you read about the horrors that are inflicted on the young men and women abducted and held captive and tortured by some very cruel and nasty criminals. A riveting read!

Another excellent book from Helen Fields. Following a very difficult close encounter DCI Ava Turner has decided that the potential relationship with DI Luc Callanach is never going to happen and has agreed that Luc should go back to France as the Scottish Liaison Officer to Interpol. Luc has to face his past and work with his old partner whilst Ava deals with a murder in Scotland. When their two cases start to show similarities they are forced to face each other again. Great storyline and great characters.

Wow, what a rollercoaster of a journey.

This book had me hooked from the outset. It was gripping, dark but the ongoing storyline of the main characters was mesmerising.

Thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the books in the series & this one did not disappoint.

Helen Fields has a way of writing things which take you just to the edge. Just to that point where you have had enough of the scenario to know what’s going to happen next, then cutting away to the next scene or the aftermath. This makes her books really good. Sometimes that little bit left to your own imagination can have so much more of an impact.

The Perfect Kill is a perfect example of this with the description of some of the crimes being “peep-through-your-fingers” frightening, whilst maintaining a real believability.

In Edinburgh a young man is kidnapped and drugged. Waking up in a container he is soon swapped for a group of young women. Where is he being taken and what is in store for him.

In France a body is discovered minus its vital organs.

Back in Edinburgh a low level gang leader is running a bunch of brothels, using women that have been forced into the sex trade; but he has a side line that earns him much more money, and it’s not good news for some of the girls in the brothels.

In Scotland DCI Ava Turner takes the lead on the investigation into the kidnap of the young man. Meanwhile her partner DI Luc Callanach is back on his home turf of France acting as a liaison officer for Police Scotland and Interpol, and starts to investigate the the case of the man with the missing organs.

Inevitably the two cases are linked, and Turner and Callanach are thrown into a joint investigation.

This book is the 6th in the series. I’ve been on board from the start and I’m hooked. The characters in the series are amongst my favourites in Crime Fiction. Turner and Callanach have a unique relationship. Callanach has a past that has a lasting impact on him, he suffers from a form of PTSD that affects him in ways that can only be described as frustrating.

But he is a really good police officer, and after winning the respect of Turner, and her MIT, it all went wrong when part of his past came back to haunt him. This led to him being moved back to France, on a temporary basis, but now everybody wants to build bridges and get him home to Scotland.

This book is a roller-coaster of a story. Horrific in places, haunting in others, emotional throughout, but this just makes it readable. In fact I hardly put it down from start to finish.

Pages: 416
Publisher: Avon Books
Available: 6th February 2020

Brilliantly written thriller on a subject that’s hard to swallow but so real in this day and age. Sex trafficking is so real but so hard to read about. Helen fields uses this subject so well and helps the reader warm to the poor girls this is happening to.
Luc has gone to work for Interpol in France and Ava still in the UK, join forces when two young men go missing from the UK. The stories collide and the team work together to solve the impossible.

I have received a copy of this book from Netgalley - thank you.
as book 6 of a series I was nervous there would be a lot of background that I would feel like I missed out but like many good police series it was easy to pick up who the characters were and how they ticked. Being set between Scotland and France was an interesting angle as they are two places I have a limited knowledge of however I love a good police tale - and this was one of those.
A good helping of twists and turns and suspence towards the ending of the parallel but intertwined plots
I very much enjoyed this book and will be looking to read more in this series

I really devoured this series. In less than 2 months I have read all parts, including this ARC which I received thanks to Netgalley.

The characters in this series are so real, so recognizable. Something you often see in English crime and thriller books. However, the writer knows how to touch something that really gives you the feeling that you know the characters, sympathize with them and are directly involved with each and everyone of them.

Since there is a clear red line in all books of the Luc Callanagh and Ava Turner series, it is important to read the books in order. And believe me, it's absolutely worth it.

In this part, more is played on the personal level of the main characters. The way in which the writer also shows the sides of the victims and the perpetrators ensures that you are completely involved in the whole and I therefore had trouble putting the book away.

The book actually seems to consist of two parts. There is a crime that connects Scotland and France, which is why Luc is back at Interpol. But there is also the issue of women being used and abused in prostitution. Slowly these stories come together and despite the fact that you think you know how things work from the start, you get a surprise again. Something Helen Fields really does very well in all her books.

This part is definitely recommended and I can hardly wait for the next part.

Perfect Kill is part of a series but I read it as a new reader. This novel works fine as a standalone work. This is probably one of the most brutal and intense books I've read this year or even ever.

Perfect Kill by Helen Fields. What a whirlwind of action! Well developed and interesting characters with completely vile villains. The crimes are disturbing and difficult to read. First book in the DI Callanach series that I have read and it won't be the last. Enjoyed following Ava and Luc and the rest of the team.

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for the opportunity to preview the book.

This is a gripping and an emotional book which is the sixth book in the series but it is also a stand alone book which only touches on the back story. I have read all five books and each book gets better and better. The story is divided by two detectives one in Edinburgh and the other in Paris who are investigating a organ harvesting ring. Well worth picking up an reading.

I love this series so thank you to Netgalley and the publisher AVON Books UK for an ARC Copy.

Bart Campbell wakes up inside a shipping container far from his Edinburgh home. Alone, trapped in the darkness and with no way out, Bart knows that his chances of being found alive are very slim. What Bart doesn’t know is that he is heading for France where his fate has already been sealed.

DCI Luc Callanach is back in France working with his old partner Jean Paul but it soon becomes clear when his case starts to collide with DCI Ava Turners back in Scotland, that men and women being shipped to France are being traded for women trafficked into Scotland.
So many lives are at stake so they face an impossible task - but there cannot be an option of failure when Bart and so many others will soon be dead.

This’ll the sixth book in this series and it was another belter of a book. I was hooked from the first page until the very last. I love all these characters and it was good to be back with them all again. A good storyline, which I found quite chilling this time round, has all of the team working together and jeopardising their own lives to solve the case as quickly as possible.

Looking forward to book 7 - I CANT WAIT!!

Another fabulous book from Helen Fields and really great to catch up with Ava and Luc. That said, although it's part of a series it's not necessary to have read the previous instalments. This particular book is very intense and has a seriously disturbing plot. Fantastic characters throughout. Possibly my favourite in the series.

Thank you to Avon Books UK and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was an utterly gripping, but very dark read. I had not read the previous books in the series, but had no problem becoming immersed in the story. The characters were very well-drawn and I felt invested both in the police side of things, as well as the victim's side. The plot was a rollercoaster, and the intersecting of plot lines was extremely well-done. Highly recommend, but readers should be aware of themes of extreme violence and abuse.

This was really excellent. Despite the somewhat unlikely plots it was carried off with some fine writing and good characterisation. I'll now be going back to the beginning of the series and try not to remember too many of the spoilers !

I adore this series, and this book, the sixth in the DI Callanach series, is way up there with the rest. Totally horrifying and dark in parts, the story packs loads of suspense as the bodies continue to pile up. Luc Callanach and his boss, DCI Ava Turner, get drawn into the sordid underworld of prostitution and human trafficking. The story also involves some horrific gratuitous violence – so it’s really not for the faint-hearted. I found the descriptions of “the world’s nastiest spectator sport” almost too difficult to read.
I really enjoy the relationship between the gorgeous Luc and Ava. While it took me a while to warm to him, she is totally delightful, but also needs a jolly good shaking. What was she thinking with her major indiscretion with one of her team members?
Ava is investigating a murder in an unsavoury part of Edinburgh. If she and Luc were only communicating, they might have realised earlier that it’s linked to his investigation with his ex-partner into the death of a Scottish lad in Paris. I love Ava’s honesty. What you see is what you get, and when she’s made a mistake, she’s forthright about it. She also has lashings of the empathy that so many fictional detectives lack, and is fiercely loyal to her friends and squad. I just wish she wasn’t so silly with her relationships! She’s also not scared to get down and dirty, and leads from the front.
As usual, there’s wonderful low-key humour throughout the book and even the fairly minor characters are beautifully drawn, such as the chillingly ghastly, but charismatic, Giorgia Moretti-Russo. I really enjoyed the friendship between Ava, Natasha and Luc– such humanity in stark contrast to the inhumanity of the crimes they investigate. A great read that I thoroughly recommend and I cannot wait for the next one.

I have read all the previous books in this series, which just keeps improving. Set partly in Scotland and partly in France,this story-line is very topical and the action is fast paced. The serious issues covered in this book are dealt with in a sensitive manner, especially the organ harvesting. Characterisation is excellent and I loved the humour of DS Lively. I loved the ending and the promise of more from Callanach and Turner. Overall, I have no hesitation of giving this book 5* and I would highly recommend starting with book one in the series. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

This was a very chilling and suspenseful storyline! An excellent crime thriller! I would definitely read more from this Author!

Helen Fields has done it again, great to see DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach back in action for book six in this great series. This time Callanach has gone back to his native France as Scottish liaison officer to Interpol working with his ex partner Jean-Paul.

At first what looks like two cases after a body or shell of a body is found in Flanders all the organs have been removed. Whilst in Scotland Ava is dealing with missing person cases, which then end up as murders, but when a photograph of one of her missing people turns up on French soil, they realise the cases are linked.

People trafficking, mainly young girls being sex trafficked, to organ harvesting, this is a gripping read, not for the faint hearted. Such a brilliantly written book. With characters you can’t help but like. Great to see a different side to DI Lively in this one, he hasn’t been the most likeable in the previous books, but this time we see the other side of him.

Despite this being a book with some strong themes in it, it’s no always doom and gloom, there is always some humour added, with banter between the team, which lightens the difficult subjects handled.

This can be read as a stand alone novel but if you like a good police procedural with great plots, great characters, I would recommend you start at the beginning. Get to see how these great characters grow. Each of them having the others back at all times. This series just gets better. Looking forward to book 7

I would like to thank #netgalley and #Avon for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest, fair and unbiased review.

#PerfectKill #NetGalley Another fabulous book in the DI Luc Callanach/DCI Ava Gardner series. Set in Edinburgh and Paris, it covers two cases that become inextricably linked. As always the writing is fast paced and edge of the seat riveting with a dark and gruesome storyline. I love this series and the relationship between Luc and Ava and also with Natasha. I did want to give Ava a shake and tell her to buck her ideas up! For a fierce, strong DCI character she is rubbish on the relationship front. She needs to give her head a wobble in regards to Luc for the next book but I can't wait to read it!!

The book begins with two murders, and the investigations into the crimes. The action takes place in Scotland and France, and involves cases of organ harvesting, and human trafficking. Although this book is part 6 of a series, this is the first book that I’ve read in the series and I did not feel like I was missing anything. I will definitely look for other books by this writer.

This is the sixth in the series starring DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach and my first but certainly not my last. A young man is kidnapped in Edinburgh and reported as a missing person. . Ava Is working in Edinburgh so starts looking into the case, and Luc is now based in France working his cases but their individual cases are somehow linked.
I was able to read this without having read the previous novels but did not feel I had missed out although reading the previous would probably add to the characters back stories. A great novel which unfolded in an unexpected way.
Thanks to Avon books and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Oh I do love this series. Have I said that before? I know I have but I only say it because it is true. With brilliant characters and storylines which always keep you on your toes and guessing, it makes for a brilliant read.

This book is slightly different from the others as readers know from very early on the who in this particular chase, but perhaps not the full extent of the whys and wherefores. This is an investigation which is taking place on both sides of the English Channel, with Luc Callanch back in Paris as liaison to Interpol, helping to investigate the abduction and subsequent murder of a young man from Edinburgh which will see the Detective finding unexpected links back to an investigation that his DCI, Ava Turner, hs charge of back home.

This book is full of tension and really elevates that feeling of unease within the reader. There are two very distinct and yet linked threads to this story, neither of which is particularly palatable and yet both of which are sadly believable. This is a story of human trafficking by the most depraved of individuals, but with a very unique twist that adds something to the reading experience. As expected from a Luc Callanch novel, there are moments that will make you wince - the story takes several very dark turns and whilst most of the violence is kept off page, the intention and the result is still very clear and provokes a visceral reaction as a reader.

I love the relationship between Callanach and Ava and anyone who has read the previous book in the series will know that their friendship is balanced very precariously on a knife edge right now. This carries over into this new book, and the tension between them is intriguing to watch, played perfectly by the author. Beyond our two lead characters, we get to see a very different side to Lively in this book, a far more sensitive side, still mixed with his bullish passion though, and I kind of liked it. He is entangled in a very complex and heart-wrenching case which had me enraged as a reader because I know that a good portion of what happens is likely happening everyday somewhere in the world.

This is another brilliant, fast paced, high stakes, completely engrossing read from Helen Fields in a series I absolutely love. I can't wait to read more from Callanach and Ava and they sure have plenty left to offer. Brilliant stuff.

All alone in a steel container, with only a few snacks to survive. What's happening? When you are removed from the container it is sprayed out and a small group of women are then sealed inside.
Are these two cases connected by anything other then the use of the contain. Find out the different possible outcome for each inhabitant.
Great story. Thanks netgalley.

Thanks to Net Galley and Avon books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was my first Helen FIelds book and wont be my last.

It was well paced, characters developed well and flowed nicely. The story itself had me hooked.

I am now purchasing the series from the start so thank you Net Galley and Avon Books, you have converted me!

First and foremost, a large thank you to NetGalley, Helen Fields and Avon Books UK for providing me with a copy of this publication, which allows me to provide you with an unbiased review.

Returning to this stellar police procedural series, I was eager to discover how Helen Fields would tackle some of the major cliffhangers she left for readers. She’s surely spun things around and developed a multi-pronged storyline that will keep series fans talking and the reader enjoying this one until the final page. With DI Luc Callanach on the outs with his boss at MIT Police Scotland, he has agreed to make his way to France and help out an old INTERPOL colleague. When they discover the remains of a body—its internal organs removed—Callanach is baffled about who or what might be lurking in the shadows. Some preliminary DNA traces it back to a missing Scottish boy, forcing Callanach to get on the phone with DCI Ava Turner, this aforementioned boss and past love interest. Turner takes the call and agrees to make the notification, but is working some cases of her own. Someone has discovered the body of a man, shot in the head. Found in a seedy part of Edinburgh, there are some obvious signs of trying to clean up the scene. Add to that, a young man has gone missing out of thin air and no one can make sense of it. While both cases progress, Callanach learns of an underground organ transplant ring and tries to infiltrate it, but must be extremely delicate, while DCI Turner’s leads send her on a few wild chases, including to a pig farm. Both Turner and Callanach must also tackle feelings from their recent amorous tiff and news of a friend that leaves them broken. With two additional underlying plots related to people in captivity, this book leaves little time to breathe or process. Fields has done it again, with a stellar piece of writing. Recommended to those who love this series and need another reason, as well as the reader who loves a police procedural that leaves it all out on the field (pun intended).

I discovered this series a while back and cannot get enough of it. The mix of Scottish and French beliefs adds depth to the story and a layer of humour I have not found elsewhere. Luc Callanach remains a wonderful protagonist, still smarting from some of his choices, but eager to help back in France. His police work is balanced nicely with an air of compassion, both for Ava, as well as those around him on the case. We do not get much more back story, or even processing what happened, but Callanach does well keeping things professional as best he can. Contrasting nicely with this is DCI Ava Turner, whose supervisory role has been violated again, but she is still trying to shake off the feelings she has for Callanach. Compartmentalising these is difficult, but she as a few major cases on her plate, let alone the news of a friend’s illness. Juggling all this, as well as professional interactions with Callanach begin the wear her down to the nub. Others make recurring or new appearances and keep the story fresh, from all angles. Fields has done well to develop some characters who pull the reader in, while others are surely repulsive enough that no one wants near them. The plot was strong and worked well for me, balancing a Scotland and France angle, tying things together effectively without muddying the waters too much. There is that ongoing Callanach-Turner strain that has kept the series on edge for a while, which does not dissipate here. As series fans scream for some resolution, they also bask in the awkwardness that continues throughout. I am eager to see where things are headed, as this series never disappoints.

Kudos, Madam Fields, for another stellar instalment in the series. I hope you have many more ideas for your crew!

Many thanks to the author, publishers and Netgalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an unbiased review. This is a really good read. It's part of a series, but can be read as a stand alone. It's easy to pick up the story, as I did not having read the predecessors. I enjoyed the character developments, and although some of the scenes described were unnerving, and potentially upsetting to some, it was worth perservering with. I'm notsure if I'd read any other books by this author, as this wasn't really my preferred genre, however that's just my preference, it was a very well done. I'd score it a solid 4 stars.

Another great instalment with Callanach and Turner. Joint storylines from Scotland and France add to the intrigue. Good pace. Fantastic storyline and characters. Plenty of suspense to keep me enthralled. Look forward to her next offering in the saga. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it.

I have read all of the ‘Perfect’ series and this one was brilliant. Very dark in places but the story had me hooked. Always great character development as well as the investigation storylines, and I enjoyed seeing more of DS Lively in this book.

I love this series. Ava and Luc are fantastic characters you get to know really well.

This book was dark, sometimes harrowing and completely believable.

I was hooked from the first page til the very last. I didn't want to put it down.

I thoroughly recommend this series to anyone who loves police thrillers.

Cant wait for the next one!

I absolutely love this authors book series with Callanach and Turner. The chemistry between the two is kept simmering along even when they are on different continents. This time they are brought together not only through the love they share of a mutual friend but a case that involves kidnapping and murder. They must find out who and why men and women are being shipped to France and what dark reasons are involved. It keeps you transfixed as you are rooting for them to make their relationship work against a backdrop of mistrust and distance. A great paced novel that speeds up the tension and nail biting as the truth is unearthed. Cannot wait for the next book

Perfect Kill is the latest book in the Turner & Callanach series by Helen Fields and it is another excellent crime novel that keeps you hooked from the first page.

The storyline is set in both Scotland and France with the author weaving the narrative without confusing the reader.

This is a very enjoyable series and one that I look forward to. Definitely recommended

Another amazing book from Helen Fields. I love the characters of Ava and Luc and their relationship keeps me gripped. Highly recommended reading.

I haven’t read any of Helen Fields books in this series but found that the author gives sufficient background detail of the main characters DI Luc Callanach, DCI Ava Turner and Jean Paul of Interpol that the book can be read as a stand alone book. The three main characters interacted and engaged well with each other. Callanach is of Scottish and French parentage and is seconded to Interpol in France to work with his old friend and former colleague Jean Paul. The book revolves round female sexual trafficking in Edinburgh and trafficking for human organs in France. When a male body is discovered in France devoid of all internal organs Callanach along with Jean Paul are called in to investigate, it quickly becomes clear the body is that of a missing male from Edinburgh. At the same time another male , Bart,Campbell has also gone missing from Edinburgh. Meanwhile a body found in Edinburgh leads Turner whilst investigating that murder to become aware of sex trafficking ring which is connected. After DS Lively infiltrates the house where the sex workers are kept it becomes clear that the cases in Edinburgh and France are connected and it’s a race against time to save both Bart Campbell, a Scottish female also held with him and the sex workers from their gruesome fate. The book moves along at a fast pace, it is a tense and thrilling read but some parts may not be for the feint hearted, I myself found the details about the sex workers a little bit too graphic but that’s just my personal view, that apart I enjoyed the book enormously and shall now read the first five in the series.

Thanks to Net galley, and Avon books for this ARC.

I always enjoy reading books in this series,I love the characters.The pace of the book was good, and I read it really quickly.Bring on the next one,please !

This is the sixth book in a series featuring DI Luc Callanach and DCI Ava Turner. I read it as a standalone novel though, entirely satisfactorily.

Callanach, of French and Scottish parentage, is seconded from Edinburgh to Paris as an Interpol liaison officer, while Turner is in Edinburgh. Their paths cross when the body of a young man from Edinburgh is found in Paris, stripped of organs.. Another young Edinburgh man is missing. Meanwhile there's a sex trafficking ring operating in Edinburgh, a man is found shot and the remains of bodies are found on a pig farm....

A gritty police procedural with heft and depth. The subject matter is often grim. Despite the quality of the writing I found myself continually picking this book up and putting it down again.

I received a digital advance review copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

This is the sixth in a series of crime novels written by Helen Fields featuring Detective Inspector Luc Callanach and Detective Chief Inspector Ava Turner. This follows on from the fifth book in the series "Perfect Crime". However, this latest entry can be read as a standalone thriller.

Luc Callanach had been seconded from Interpol in France to Police Scotland's Major Investigation Team in Edinburgh, but at the beginning of this book he is back in Paris acting as Scottish liaison officer with Interpol investigating the disappearance of a young man from Edinburgh. Meanwhile, Ava Turner and the rest of the Major Investigation Team become involved with a murder that appears to be related to gangland violence in Edinburgh.

Hence, the story takes place on both sides of the English Channel and there are several strands to it, involving organised crime, people trafficking and murder. I liked the way that the chapters alternated between these different strands. This resulted in the tension being maintained throughout the book, so that I found myself wanting to keep turning the pages to find out what happened next.

I have read the two preceding books in the series, and it was good to re-visit familiar characters. One of my favourite characters, a detective sergeant, gets to play a more significant role in this story and we see a different side to his character.

A criticism I have made of previous books in the series is that, for stories set in Edinburgh, the dialogue has featured very few Scottish colloquialisms and, indeed, there have appeared to be some Americanisms. I am pleased to report that, for this latest book, this has been addressed, and there are a few good Scottish expressions throughout.

Overall, I found the book to be a thrilling, although at times very graphic, account of law enforcement agencies' investigations into major crimes. So, are these investigations on both sides of the Channel resolved? You will have to read the book to find out.

A sound, solid police procedural with engaging characters, fact-paced and set in atmospheric surrounds. Unfortunately I hadn't realised there were prior books with these characters but I now know what I'll be reading next. I've become emotionally invested in the handsome hunk of a policeman Luc and his senior-in-rank would-be love interest Ava Turner. The book ended on a very upbeat note, despite one of the tangential characters being diagnosed with cancer. I won't say more for fear of letting drop spoilers but I now have a reason (as if one were needed) to await the next ''installment''. A fantastic read and one I'd and highly recommend to my fellow bookworms - you won't be disappointed. My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Perfect Kill is not a book I’d recommend if you’re squeamish but it's perfect for those who love a well-written mystery or thriller. It was violent from the very beginning and the opening chapter had such an impact on me as a reader that I felt compelled to continue reading. I found the plot very intriguing and it’s a horrifying but disturbingly compelling tale of people trafficking, forced prostitution, and murder. I do love this genre of fiction so it came as no surprise to me that I enjoyed reading this book.

I really liked Fields’ writing style because it felt so authentic and natural. This really helped me to connect with the story and the characters. It was also fast-paced and full of action, as a crime novel should be, and the characters were very well-written. I really liked the characterisation of both Luc and Ava as they were complex, multi-faceted characters and they behaved like actual people. I think the only thing that I found off-putting in the novel was how certain characters were described. Sometimes, the physical descriptions of the characters took me out of the story completely. I’m not sure why but it was just something that I didn’t gel with as a reader and I found it oddly jarring.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this! It was punchy and authentic and just a really good thriller/crime novel. I’m really tempted to go back and read the rest of the series now. I’d highly recommend it if you’re a fan of this genre.

This is one petrifying story that I couldn't leave alone as it felt like it would be front-page news for real by tomorrow. I was just gutted that I am coming into this series so far down the line though as you may guess this is a bloody beauty.
There had been something big kicking off in the previous book which had caused DCI Luc Callanach to leave Edinburgh and the Major Investigation Team and move to France to work with a former colleague in Interpol. Back in Edinburgh his ex-lover and boss DCI Ava Turner is facing the problem of two healthy men and a woman disappearing under very suspicious circumstances. Sometimes fate just won't let you keep apart, with the major cases that both Callanach and Turner are working on being woven together, if lives are to be saved they will have to put differences behind them.
There are two huge international cases going on and the author ensures that you become emotionally invested in both equally. When the body of a healthy young man is discovered the family have to be informed of his death and the terrible things that have happened to him. It is pure heartbreaking and horrific. My mind just swam with anger and grief for them but as the story continued it made me more frightful for the ones that were still alive. My connection to them felt so more intense and personal for them and what it would do to their families. Totally wicked writing, hook line and sinker.
Then when I thought that human trafficking couldn't possibly get any worse back home it took to an even darker path. This book just moved so incredibly fast, darting from one storyline to the next, it was every suspense thriller reader's heaven. The bad guys were from hell and the victims resigned to it could be the last day for any one of them.
Callanach and Turner come together in spectacular fashion and are an utter dream to read about. Turners sassy I don't give a damn I am going to have you slimebag attitude is just sheer bliss that I was salivating at. There were some pretty bad situations that she just had me crack up on and laugh. It should be illegal for her and Callanach ever to be apart.
This is a full-on top-notch read with action, fear and gutsy detectives. Can't recommend it enough!!!!
I wish to thank NetGalley and the publisher for an e-copy of this book which I have reviewed honestly.

I'm a fan of Helen Fields and in particular of Luc and Ava and this book did not disappoint. The plot, without giving away any spoilers was unusual enough to draw me in and the relationship between Luc and Ava carried on developing in an intriguing and definitely unconventional way! A definite recommendation from me!

This is the sixth book by Helen Fields in the DI Luc Callanach series featuring DCI Ava Turner called Perfect Kill. It’s set in Edinburgh and abroad in Paris.

Bart lived at home with his mum and had a part-time job at a restaurant which he enjoyed as he could pick up extra shifts. His mum didn’t mind as he always woke her as he left the house with a cup of tea in the mornings and they helped look after each other. Only something must have gone wrong, Bart hadn’t woken her, she didn’t have her cup of tea and his bed hadn’t been slept in, where was he?

Bart didn’t remember leaving the restaurant when he woke up but now he was alone, in the dark and he was shut in somewhere and he was moving. He soon finds out that he’s tethered by his ankle to a pole in the middle of a room that has no door but there are bottles of water, a big bag of food and a bucket in a corner. He is a prisoner.

Bart’s mum is reporting him missing just as a body is found over in Paris with all it’s internal organs missing plus the eyes. DI Luc Callanach is liaising over there with Interpol with another case. He let’s DCI Turner know. They become involved as it turns out to be a missing person from Edinburgh. How did a missing person from Edinburgh turn up in Paris when he didn’t leave the country? His passport is still at home. Why would all his organs be missing?

There are other strange happenings around Edinburgh as well with other killings happening. One is where at least three remains are found, by a farmer, in with his pigs that need investigating. Where have the bodies come from? How long have they been there? If the farmer had been behind it, he wouldn’t be likely to report it, would he?

Wow, this was a brilliant read from start to finish and was a roller coaster of a ride! It was unputdownable and I loved every minute of it. I have some catching up to do on this series but this made me realise how much I love it.
5 out 5 stars

So unfortunately I hadn’t read the other books in this series about DI Callanach, however that didn’t matter as this works well as a stand alone book also. This book centres on the abduction, trafficking and slavery of women and how brutally they are treated. As the team investigates we get to know the characters better- some nice, some not so nice. A pacy read, not for the faint hearted.

I seem to have a habit of doing this; selecting books from series that I haven’t come across before, this one is the latest book in the DI Callanach series set in Scotland (and a bit of France). And I’m grateful to see this hasn’t affected my enjoyment of this latest offering - it sucked me right in. This is a brutal tale (not one for the squeamish) into kidnapping and modern slavery, with some pretty despicable excuses for humans. Their treatment of the women they’ve abducted is abhorrent. There’s also the baffling case of young Scottish man whose body is found dumped on a French building site, all of his organs have been harvested. This is the tale of the police team that investigates these crimes - headed by DCI Ava Turner. This is a gripping read, with some characters that you’ll warm to, and others that you’ll want to see meet a sticky end. I’m definitely going to check out the earlier books in the series.

A superb sixth book in this series featuring DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach, which firmly remains top of my favourite tartan noir crime thrillers. Perfect Kill is thoroughly captivating, thrilling, chilling and a perfectly addictive read.
Ava and Luc are physically separated, with Luc in France and Ava remaining in Edinburgh. Whilst Ava and the usual murder team are investigating the disappearance of a young man in Edinburgh, Luc is helping Interpol with an investigation into human trafficking. It soon becomes apparent that the two investigations are linked and the teams in Scotland and France must move very quickly to avert disastrous consequences for many potential victims.
It is great to see the introduction of new characters in both Scotland and France, together with the development of existing favourites such as Lively and Natasha.
I commend Helen Fields yet again for her original and creative ideas with her storylines as ‘Perfect Kill’ is yet another of her books which demonstrates her skill as an author.
Thanks to NetGalley for a Kindle copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I never realised this was The sixth book in a series, unfortunately I’m one of those readers who prefers to read a series in order. I have read some great reviews for this book and the authors writing, so I have bought the whole series in the hope I will get to read them soon.

I never thought this author could get better. OMG I was so wrong!!!!!. Personally her best book in the series so far. Atmospheric with tension you could cut with a knife. Chilling, dark very dark and utterly gripping. This is a MUST READ, finished this book in a day, it was so good. This read had me glued to my seat and tapping my kindle faster and faster. I was constantly holding my breath and it definitely got my heart racing. A tour de force of a very dark crime and so Highly Recommended.
Thanks to Avon Books UK and Netgalley for the ARC.

Wow!! The grittiest of Helen Fields "Perfect" series starring DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach, to date.

This one has to be the best so far but you only decide that if you build up the back storyline of Ava, Luc and Natasha during the previous 4 books in this series.

There are 2 storylines here. Follow DCI Ava Turner in Edinburgh and DI Luc Callanach in Paris. Yet both cases come across each other but are not directly linked. Stunning descriptions of the 2 cases coming to their dramatic ends.

I must admit 1 of the storylines (won't say which one) reminds me of a storyline in one of Stuart Macbrides fairly recent novels and the other storyline rings a bell elsewhere too but still brilliant. Still a must.

Can't wait for the next one in the "Perfect" series

This book starts out with a bang and it just keeps getting better and better. It's a roller coaster of a ride so buckle up. Happy reading!

This was one shivery read. The scenes described were so realistic, I felt I was present right there.

This was a police procedural with Luc Callanach and Ava Turner both investigating different crimes yet they found it to be linked. The book had human trafficking, organ harvesting, abuse and debasement of women along with hard work and determination of the cops.

My first book by author Helen Fields, I was blown away by the subplots. There were many and varied, and the author brought them all together as the pages turned. Human abuse and trafficking are difficult topics for me to read, they fired my blood right up. Kindle screen was tapped as I wanted to get to the end. I wanted the abusers found and hung dry.

The author's writing was fabulous, even with a topic I usually skim read, I was pulled to read this. I have to be honest, some things made me cringe, and I couldn't bring myself to read the acts done on men and women. For me, it was pretty graphic.

The dark psyche of the real world was shown in the subplots, but there was light at the end of the tunnel when the cops tighten the noose on the gang. Both the main characters were well etched, this was a new series for me, yet I didn't have much catching up to do.

A gritty hard-hitting thriller with graphic scenes showing the underbelly of the society well weaved in a police procedural with superfluous writing where suspense is raised with each chapter.

Sometimes it’s very hard to read books about stories that you heard all your early school years because I was born and raised in an Eastern European country and the main plot of this book is about human trafficking and organ sellers on the black market.
It’s a very well written story with great characters and a gripping read that unfortunately, comes from real-life stories that are still happening.
It’s my first book by the author but I’m going to read more because there’s a back story between the characters that I’m really curious about and want to know more. They are challenging and compelling and I loved how their characters developed.

As always, an absolutely brilliant read by Helen Fields. Her writing style is so clever and so addictive and I am thrilled I got to be one of the first people to read this book. Thank you.

Another great book in the DI Luc Callanach series and it’s a series that gets better and better.
The book starts off with Ava in Scotland and Luc in France, helping Interpol out.
They’re just about talking after what happened in the previous book but soon the disappearance of a young man brings their investigations together.
Natasha gets some bad news and both Luc and Ava are there to help her through it.
The investigation in France is centred around illegal organ transplants but they seem to be kidnapping the ‘donors’ from Scotland.
As well as this Ava has another murder to solve which leads to a particularly nasty group running brothels and killing women for fun.
This book has a great pace but the final few chapters are non-stop action and had me well and truly hooked.
The ending, as always left me wanting more from this great series.
Thanks to Avon Books UK and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4

DI Callanach #6

The story is set between Edinburgh and Paris and covers two cases that are somehow linked. A young man is kidnapped in Edinburgh but he is reported as a missing person. DCI Ava Turner is working on the case. DI Luc Callanach now works in France helping Interpol. The investigation in France is around illegal organ transplants. Ava is also investigating a murder.

Once again I did ot k ow that this book was part of a series when I requested it. It's dark and gruesome in places. The characters were believable. There are some funny but also some upsetting scenes. I do feel I have missed out on a lot of the background story y it having read the rest of the books in this series. I did enjoy this story.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Avon Books UK and the author Helen Fields for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I like a book that can actually hold my attention from the first few pages.

This is the first book I'm reading in this series and it really did well as a stand alone.

A riveting read for me!

Thank you NetGalley for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest review

I love returning to see what this pair are doing Luc and Ava are characters you feel could be your friends, and this book was no exception.
A very well written easy to read book which Im always disappointed to finish as I never know what to pick up next
Already eager for the next offering from Helen Fields

I've been following Helen Fields' D.I. Callanach series since its fourth installment, Perfect Silence. I was immediately gripped by the characters and the intense plot Fields wove. For me Perfect Crime only improved in these areas and I wondered how she would be able to top herself. Perfect Kill is, however, on a completely different level. Thanks to Avon Books UK and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I want to take a moment at the beginning of the review to talk about the beauty that is a well-crafted detective book series. Too often, series feel the need to ramp up the tension and action, no matter what consequences that might have for the characters. It's similar in TV shows and films. How often can you put someone through hell or have them punched in the face before they simply can't get back up? The good series don't just allow for lasting consequences of trauma, they work actively with them. Part of the reason why The Hunger Games and Divergent series were so popular was because its protagonists carried their trauma openly and had it inform their next steps. I've always found that the D.I. Callanach series similarly tries to allow trauma and stress to be a part of Ava and (especially) Luc's character arcs, supporting their growth from book to book.

Perfect Kill is a tough read. Although each of Helen Fields' D.I. Callanach installments so far have dealt with heavy and difficult topics, Perfect Kill is very much a culmination of all of them. With Ava Turner in Edinburgh and Luc Callanach in Paris, both find themselves drawn into the same case when the kidnapping of Scottish youths coincides with the arrival and trafficking of Eastern European women. The main theme of Perfect Kill, then, is exploitation and abuse. Some of this is very violent, as we're given an insight into the horror by the narration one of the trafficked women, which means Perfect Kill might not be for everyone. I found certain parts of the book tough to read but I was also very glad that Fields didn't sugarcoat anything. For those with a weak stomach, there is also a bit of a warning attached to this book, as there is some explicit talk about surgeries. On the more serial aspect of Perfect Kill, the novel focuses a lot of Ava and Natasha's friendship, as well as the fall out between Ava and Luc after the revelations at the end of Perfect Crime.

I have reached the point where Helen Fields is now at the same level as Elizabeth George. The moment I see either of their names, I know I will be reading the book it is attached to. Fields explores new depths in Perfect Kill, with characters plummeting to new depths of despair and terror. She finds the right balance between allowing for the horror, while also bringing in lighter moments as a reprieve. Many of these lighter moments come from the side characters that continue to delight me in every installment. Moving back and forth between France and Scotland allows for a bit of suspense, as the reader begins to suspect how linked the two cases really are. As always, Fields nicely ties up all the story lines towards the end of the book, except for the continuing tension between Ava and Luc. This better not be the end of the D.I. Callanach series because although I adore the tension, I would love a resolution!

The D.I. Callanach series is a pleasure to read and Perfect Kill is no exception. Fields delivers the thrills, the twists and turns, but also the emotional punches and character development. Get into this series as soon as you can!

This review will be live on A Universe in Words from 7/3/2020

Absolutely enjoyed from start to finish, u didn't want the book to end. Highly recommended, if you like books that keep you guessing and on the edge of your seat.

I love the "Perfect" Ave & Callanagh series by Helen Fields. I think if I could delve into the mind of any author she would be high on my list. This book was truly horrific, the research must have taken her into some really dark places because it was just twisted! Hunger Games eat your heart out, I nearly had to stop reading because of the horrific atrocities the poor Romanian girls endured.

The relationship between Luc and Ava is frustrating and beautiful and raw and has me screaming at the pair of them. I also really love Lively as a character and I hope he develops his relationship in the next book with Elenuta. I definitely think you need to read the books in order to truly understand the characters and how they develop over the series however. there are only a few references to the previous novels so you definitely could read it as as standalone if you really wanted to.

I highly recommend this whole series and Helen certainly hasn't disappointed me in the latest installment. i was up half the night reading this book in one sitting, a must for anyone who loves modern, gory, psychotic crime thrillers! I'd like to thank Netgalley for the ADR copy of the 6th installment and am already on the look out for the 7th.

‘Perfect Kill’ is the sixth book in DI Callanch book series by Helen Fields.

Alone, trapped in the darkness and with no way out, Bart Campbell knows that his chances of being found alive are slim. Drugged and kidnapped, the realisation soon dawns that he’s been locked inside a shipping container far from his Edinburgh home. But what Bart doesn’t yet know is that he’s now heading for France where his unspeakable fate is already sealed… DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach are working on separate cases that soon collide as it becomes clear that the men and women being shipped to France are being traded for women trafficked into Scotland. With so many lives at stake, they face an impossible task – but there’s no option of failure when Bart and so many others will soon be dead…

I have read all of Helen’s books including her courtroom suspense drama and I’ve enjoyed them all, their tense, gruesome and really concentrate on the darker more twisted side of the human nature and her latest book is no different. But for me in all honesty, I found this book to be most unsettling story that I’ve read in a while, so much so that I regularly had to put it down.

The story focuses on the harsh reality of human trafficking as well as human organ harvesting and is seen through the narrative of Bart who finds himself kidnapped and in a strange country, whilst Elenuta has come to Scotland looking for a better life and is captured by a Scottish criminal who sell women for prostitution as well as competing in cruel games where women are pitted against each other to race to safety. As it’s a DI Callanch series, Luc is working in France for Interpol and Ava is working in Scotland, but even though they are in different countries, the sexual chemistry continues to sizzle between the pair of them as they struggle with new feelings for each other.

From the very first scene, this book is an intense and cruel story. The treatment of people particularly women is disturbing, from the sexual, physical to the psychological torment that the women are exposed to for gratification and for money, is truly haunting and to think that the circumstance are realistic to real life, makes the story even more terrible. The story is graphically written and Helen doesn’t hold back with the descriptions of the treatment that all parties are exposed to, including the police.

Although the book is part of a series, it could be read as a standalone, but I would recommend reading all the books in the series, as DI Callanch and DI Ava Turner are interesting duo, as the handsome and charismatic french man and outspoken Scottish woman.

With a strong plot that is well researched and informative, ‘Perfect Crime’ is a complex and disturbing thriller, that made for gripping reading but is most certainly not for the faint hearted!

You can buy ‘Perfect Kill’ from Amazon and is available to buy from good bookshops.

Bart has gone missing, his mum knows something bad has happened because Bart is a good boy and wouldn't just disappear. Ava and Luc are soon working on different cases, in different cities not dealing with the elephant in the room. The cases take a dark turn, human lives at risk, big money and people who will kill everyone before giving up what they perceive to be theirs.

This isn't an easy book to read in that it is so dark, the very worst of humanity, people using human beings for their own gratification. Murder, death, rape, trafficking is only the beginning, it is not for the faint hearted. Graphic, violent, shocking, dark, brutal - Fields has a way of dragging you in and keeping you gripped from the get go. If you have been with the books since the beginning you also have the added sideline story of Ava and Luc.

Quite a bit of emotive moments in the book too I found, when you are reading about characters going through so many horrific things, situations, experiences you can't help get a bit caught up in it all. I have read the previous books in the series and I cannot wait for the next, 4.5/5 for me this time.

I love this series by Helen Fields. We have our Scottish Detective Chief Inspector Ava Turner that is looking into a missing person. She is working with her French (boyfriend) Callanach being a liaison officer to Interpol temporarily looking into a person found with missing body parts. Soon they realize the two are connected.
There is just the right amount of action included to make the story great. You love the characters and want Turner and Callanach to get together.

It’s been a while since I’ve read a police procedural type novel and it took me even longer to get round to reading this one. All I can say is shame on me - this was a brilliant entry back into this genre as well as Helen Fields’ works and I’ll definitely look out for her others. Given this is the sixth instalment of this series, I did feel that I wasn’t as connected to the characters and aware of their backstories as I could have been, so perhaps it would be better to start at the earlier novels in the series, but other than feeling less engrossed in Luc, Ava and Natasha’s lives, this did not prevent me from poring over the case. The storyline is amazing (although it feels somewhat questionable to say that about one so wretched). Perfect Kill is an engrossing, gritty and, unfortunately, accurate insight into the world of trafficking; it is hard-hitting, making it easy to feel compassion for each and every one of the victims. Fields’ knowledge of both the subject matter and the locations covered does not go unnoticed and adds so many realistic layers to the plot. Other than it all coming oh-so-cleanly together at at the end (but would we want it any other way?) I really enjoyed this book - 4 big stars.

*I received an advance review copy of Perfect Kill from the publisher through NetGalley.

What can I say I will read anything Helen Fields writes I love the perfect series and have recommended them to anyone that would listen - and many listened and are also hooked.
I love the two central characters and how they have developed over each book.
Needless to say Perfect Kill does not disappoint. I know the word page turner is banded about so much but in the case of this book (and the previous) it is totally true. To say much would give it away but grab a copy and read the only warning is you will not be able to put it down!

The Luc Callanach series is one of my favourites and I always look forward to the next instalment.
This one didn’t disappoint - a brutal and sometimes uncomfortable story of prostitution and organ harvesting.
Luc is still in France with Interpol and Ava in Scotland. When a young Scottish man is found dead in France with all of his internal organs missing, Ava and Luc have the task of finding out what has happened.
Alongside this is the story of Elenuta, who has been lured from her homeland with promises of a good job and the means to provide for her family, but has in fact been trapped in a world of prostitution and misery.
The story was very cleverly told, intertwined with the on off relationship between Ava and Luc - this time however, they are united because of Natasha and a devastating illness.
Looking forward to the next one already!

I'm a fan of Perfect Crime but Perfect Kill made me hands down to you, Helen Sarah Fields!

I was not prepared with the twist of this thrilling and gut-wrenching story. Wow!

The plot was unbelievable mind-blowing! Ava and Luc is still the best tandem!

Hopefully, in the seventh book, our hearts will finally be joyful.

Thank you to Avon Books and Netgalley for the ARC!

Thank you Netgalley, Avon Books Uk and Helen for the advanced copy of this book
Totally brilliant and a really different story. I loved the way it linked together the crimes in France and Scotland. I don’t want to give anything away, but I wish Ava and Luc would sort themselves out, hopefully in the next book - I hope there will be on - things may change. Please Helen keep writing this series.

I love this series of books and the latest offering was not a disappointment. Brilliant - I can’t wait for what is in store next.

This book is part of a series. It can be read as a standalone but the back history of the characters is referred to occasionally. This did not affect the overall reading experience for me. Helen Fields tackles some very unsavory crimes in PERFECT KILL. The crimes reach into several countries where the investigating parties have developed rapport from previous relationships. The characters work together well, their skills complement each other while they work diligently to stop the wholesale disappearance of men and women who have no connection other than being in the wrong place at the right time. Whether taken for the harvesting of organs for sale or sold into sex trafficking, these men and women have little hope. I have now taken a long time to tell you that this is a fantastic book that will make you squeamish in parts but will also make you cheer out loud as our heroes close in on the criminals. Now I'm going to have to go find the other books!

I really enjoyed this thrilling story. I loved the way two seemingly separate cases in two different countries were gradually interwoven into one massive crime. I also liked the dynamic between Luc and Maggie and as this is the first book I have read featuring them I can't wait to discover their back story. I thought the character of Natasha was a good addition to the book and without giving away any spoilers it will be interesting to see how her story pans out and how it will affect Luc and Maggie. I look forward to the next instalment in this story.

Today is my stop for the blog tour of one of my favourite authors, Helen Fields. Her latest book, Perfect Kill, is just perfect. Creepy, dark, full of action, unpredictable. Perfect. And don’t forget to visit all the other stops of this amazing blog tour.

This time Ava and Luc are facing two different cases. In France, Luc is working on a case where a young man’s body is found with all internal organs removed. The body belongs to a British citizen. A woman in Edinburgh reports her son missing. A young woman same age is also missing. Two possible victims of organ harvesting mafia. Luc is running against time to save these people’s lives. And find the killer.

In Scotland, Ava is working on a different case. Human trafficking. There is a body of a man connected with local mafia. Then there are several female bodies found on a farm. It turns out that they are connected. Can Ava and her team stop the chain of human trafficking from Eastern Europe and save all those women?

In the meantime, both Luc and Ava are trying to solve their personal problems. But their friend, Natasha, is battling breast cancer. Can they both put personal thing on side and just be there for their friend?

Perfect Kill is the sixth novel in the series, but it can perfectly stand alone. It is a gripping thriller, starting from the very first sentence. You read: “He had never heard himself scream before. It was terrifying.” and the hair stands up on your head and you don’t know what to expect next. The author included the most common evil in modern days, organ harvesting and human trafficking. She goes deep into the net of the mafia who plays with human lives like they don’t worth a thing. What the victims go through, is beyond every imagination. And adding Natasha to the whole story is a perfect balance. I enjoyed reading the book, couldn’t stop till the last page. Totally recommended.

The crimes in this book could, and probably are, happening now. Trafficking, organ harvesting - a very modern, realistic novel which you won't be able to stop reading until the very last page. The behaviour of the criminals is appalling - no humanity, people as commodities. The victims and police are well-written, human and flawed, but it makes the novel even better.
Would recommend to anyone.

Perfect Kill is book six in the D.I. Callanach series and this series keeps getting better.

Two detectives working on two different cases in two different countries find the cases linked.

This is really well written. The storyline is so good it sucks you right in from the start and holds you tight all the way through. Although a good sized read I read this in a day as I couldn’t put it down. Perfect Kill is a brilliant story. The author doesn’t hold back which I was delighted with. Can’t wait for this author to write more.

How can Perfect Kill be the 6th book in the #Callanach series? It feels like yesterday that I met Ava and Luc! Yet, it feels we’ve been friends forever… I will never get enough of the sense of familiarity that envelops me when I pick Helen Fields’ series. It feels like coming home after wandering through other worlds. That’s how much I love everything about those Perfect books!

Chapter one. You know something is wrong. In her precise style, the author paints a parallel. A mother, a son. It doesn’t take long to understand this is the beginning of something big, dark, and ugly. I don’t know what is it with Helen Fields’s narrative style but she always manages to plunge me into her world by transporting me through my senses as well as my emotions, in equal parts, making me an active protagonist of the book. If I don’t turn that page, who will suffer because of it? Who will escape justice? Reading becomes life and death, and this time again, I was so immersed in the novel I thought I was going to burn with all the action!!!

Imagine waking up not knowing where you are, alone, and with little food and water for only company… Where are you headed? Who is behind this? Hello Bart.

Imagine being held against your will. Promises of a better future have led you to a scary place where the hope to survive is almost as painful as the idea of dying. Hello Elenuta.

What is the link?

Helen Fields plays hard and in Perfect Kill, she reunites two of the most horrendous things it’s hard to believe are happening in our pretty societies. She doesn’t spare the reader and doesn’t sugar-coat anything. You get the reality of what no one should have to go through. And more. It was ‘easy’ for me to stomach every detail as I know the author never give you anything for free. All details have a purpose, this is one of the reasons her writing is so efficient!

DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach are not on the same case. Not even in the same country. But the terrible fates of innocent people keep them linked. I was curious about how both would feel, be like, and face each other after the events of the previous book. This is a tricky time for the protagonists, but it is made smooth and authentic by Helen Fields, who doesn’t force anything on them. After six books, as a reader, I believe I know Ava and Luc, and would be able to say if they were acting in a way that felt out of character. But don’t be afraid, they’re still very much the same old stubborn people, struggling and dealing the best way they know how to (which means not very well!!!) Their personal lives get in the way, blending with two cases that turn heavier with every chapter. There might be miles between Ava and Luc in this book, but the evil oozing from the pages bring them together in multiple ways, my heart aches and was warmed, and then it broke a little more and… Read, and see.

I have said it in the past, this series doesn’t make for a comfortable read. Perfect Kill is no exception. It is disturbing, it leaves you repulsed by the black hearts and minds you meet. Helen Fields sheds light on plagues of our society we would rather not know or not think about. When you think you’ve met the devil, grab any book from the Perfect series and see how wrong you were… Still I keep reading. Helen Fields takes crime fiction to the highest level by throwing us in the cave where demons hide.

I only have one niggle with this book. Bear with (the French part of) me. As much as I was happy to see Luc come back to France, a detail had me go ‘no!’ A bit of context: Luc and his colleague meet a woman in a prison. She is said to have been condemned to several life prison sentences. Except France doesn’t have ‘real’ life sentences. I am no specialist, I just wanted to mention it so that readers know that usually, when you are condemned to a life sentence in France, it usually means you can stay in prison for up to 30 years, with a certain amount of years during which you can’t apply for an early release (usually 22 years) It does sound like a life sentence, but it is not quite the same as in the UK so I had to say it. And from what I know, you can’t get multiple sentences. That’s it. It’s a small thing in the big scheme of things happening in this book!

Did you really think I was going to shut up? No way!

Perfect Kill is a perfectly paced crime novel with storms of action, showers of feelings, and real life nightmares. I highly recommend it!

Brutal ,believable and brilliant. Helen Fields is one of my favourite authors and does not disappoint with this latest in the DI Callanach series. I was hooked from the very beginning and the intertwining of the different strands of the story kept me on the edge of my seat. The brutality and treatment of fellow human beings was frightening but unfortunately, I have the feeling that in today’s world it is probably extremely accurate.
A well written and thought provoking book that will stay with me for a long time.
Thank you Helen Fields, Avon and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book and give my unbiased opinion.

The queen of gripping, gutsy and grisly crime fiction is back with another nail-biting and spine-chilling instalment of her fabulous series featuring the intrepid and redoubtable DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach: Perfect Kill.

Bart Campbell is trapped in a living nightmare. Waking up alone in a darkened space, he is petrified when he realises that he is locked inside a shipping container bound for somewhere far from his Edinburgh home. Regardless of how much Bart screams or how desperately he wants to get out, the chances of someone finding him and rescuing him are very slim and when he realises that he is destined for France, little does he know that his fate has already been sealed and whoever kidnapped and drugged him has got one thing on their mind: murder.

DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach are kept busy working on two seemingly divergent cases. The investigations they are currently conducting do not seem to have any connection nor do they appear to be in any way linked- until they realise otherwise. It turns out that men and women are being shipped to France and are exchanged for women who are then trafficked in Scotland. As the two detectives find themselves chasing one lead after another down a plethora of dark and dangerous alleys, it becomes increasingly clear that there is a sick mind on the loose with a thirst for blood intent on profiting on other people’s misery and desperation who will stop at nothing until their devious ends are achieved.

Time is running out for Ava and Luc and with so many lives at stake, they face an impossible task as failure is not an option and one wrong move or a single error of judgment could result in a catastrophe of epic proportions. Are Ava and Luc up to this particular challenge? Or will this be a case which simply cannot be solve?

Dark, gritty and terrifying, Helen Fields’ Perfect Kill is definitely not for the faint-hearted. I had almost no nails left whilst reading this outstanding tale of edge of your seat suspense that pulls no punches and keeps you absolutely glued throughout. As always, Ava and Luc are on top form and you just help but be completely and utterly gripped by this fast-paced, tense, nerve-twisting and heart-pounding thriller that I couldn’t put down.

Helen Fields is up there with Val McDermid and Karin Slaughter when it comes to writing sinister crime thrillers packed with menace, malice and mayhem and her latest novel, Perfect Kill is a perfect example of her outstanding storyteller prowess.

Twisted, shocking and chilling, Perfect Kill is another unmissable read by Helen Fields.

I knew what to expect from a book by Helen Fields, especially one in her D.I. Callanach series. I had read every single one before this and loved them. As usual, Fields did not disappoint with Perfect Kill

Right off the bat this book did have a slightly different vibe than the others in this series. For one, our two favorite characters, Ava and Luc, were investigating crimes in different countries as Luc was in France and Ava was back home in Scotland working with the team. I wasn’t a fan of this vibe because I feel they play well off each other, but I get why Fields may have done it. Loose ends and all that. The story line in Perfect Kill was one of larger scale and almost seemed too big to write at first. I was confused how things were related or not related and a bit confused on what was happening. But Fields quickly started filling in the puzzle pieces and did it smoothly . Not many can write about a criminal act of this magnitude and not fumble some of the details at least once.

Our characters we have grown to love in this series were the same people and the Perfect Kill gave us an even closer look into their back stories, lives, and personalities. I love how each book Fields allows us to learn just a bit more about the character to help us understand why they are the way they are and I love how she just weaves it into her writing so seamlessly.

I’m no expert on the matter, but having read my fair share of Mystery/Thriller/Suspense novels, Fields has definitely carved herself a place at the top of the pack of the best writers in their class. She never fails to surprise us in the end and have me turning the page, ignoring all my life’s requirements just to know what happens next. If you love yourself a good crime novel, pick up Perfect Kill or any of her books in this series. You will love them!

This opens within the environs of a normal and safe family household but soon it becomes evident that one member of the family is about to become the focus of a nightmare.
Fields writes a tense detective novel embroiled in the world of illegal organ-harvésting and, to add even more tension, she intertwines a horrific plot around sex-trafficking.
I was involved from the start but perhaps the niggling problem I have is that, whilst Fields tries to make the central detective human with the personal problems she faces, I did just find myself wondering whether her friend's illness might be just one thing too many.
Plenty in this to keep the reader busy.

Thank you to Avon Books UK and NetGalley for this copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is a first class series. They are best read in order, so you appreciate why DI Callanach is back with Interpol in France. When he has a case of a young man found with his organs harvested, the trail links to crimes being committed in Edinburgh and DCI Ava Turner is back working with him.

The trail switches around both countries, involving a gang abducting and using European women in the sex trade and more young people brought over to provide replacement organs for those dying. The human exploitation is graphic and harrowing, and the reader is praying at least some of those culpable will be brought to justice.

The book is pacy and fascinating, with good interaction between the characters. Even DS Lively develops more, which is good to see.

A great read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Not going to lie. I am always really keen to read the next in the Luc Callanach and Ava Turner series. Helen Fields has really nailed the art of leaving the reader wanting more, by teasing out those personal moments then dangling a big question at the end of the book.

But the #Perfect books are more than that. Each time I finish one I think to myself that the next one can’t possibly live up to her previous books, and each time Ms Fields proves me wrong. These books are addictive and Perfect Kill, the 6th in this series, is a cracking thriller/police procedural.

Tense, fast-paced, thrilling and suspenseful Perfect Kill is another terrific read. In Perfect Kill the action takes place in both Scotland and France. France because that’s where Luc is – on secondment to Interpol, trying to renew acquaintances with former colleagues after his difficult exit, and currently licking his wounds after making a complete arse of himself with DCI Turner.

In Paris, Luc is part of a team investigating a people smuggling ring and who have discovered the tortured body of a young man on a building site, who may be Scottish. In Edinburgh, Ava has been trying to move on from Luc, though not wildly successfully, and she now finds herself dealing with two murders alongside trying to establish the identity of the body that has been found in France. With an overstretched team, she has a lot on her hands.

The plot of Perfect Kill is strong and her subject matter tackles crimes that make you feel seriously queasy as she shows the dark underbelly of what people trafficking and forced prostitution means for the victims. That’s not the only major evil in this book, either. There’s another, just as horrible crime going on, but this one is covered in the dressing of a rich con trick and is going to be much harder to unmask.

Bart Campbell is a young man with everything to live for. He’s close to his mum, so when he doesn’t come home after finishing his shift in the restaurant where he works she’s not slow to call the Police. By that time, Bart is waking up to find himself chained up, in the dark and in fear for his life. It’s a race against time to see if Luc and Ava can find him.

Fields vivid and truly scary descriptions take the reader straight into the horrors of what is befalling those characters whose lives are in peril. Even when the threat to life is not acute, the way in which the women, in particular, have to live is brutal and truly shocking. Fields never flinches from showing us the true horror of such lives, drawing us in and inviting us to feel the pain.

Though Callanach and Turner work together very well and have the most professional of relationships, which means that they are well placed to discover the links between the cases they are separately working on and to bring them together in a timely fashion. Though their history means that their personal lives are very much grating on each other, an old friend’s illness will force them to set that aside for the time being.

I enjoyed too the way in which Ava’s team is becoming a greater part of the story as their characters evolve and are fleshed out.

Verdict: Perfect Kill is another must read in this series. Sharp and on-point, this police procedural is a gripping, edge of the seat twisted descent into nail-biting hell.

A well structured and excellently written crime novel which links Edinburgh and Paris. It deals with controversial and shocking themes like sex trafficking, missing persons and murder for organ harvesting. With graphic descriptions in places the investigation twists and turns brilliantly leaving the reader on edge and compelled to read on.
Although this works as a stand alone I loved reading this crime drama so much I now want to read the other DI Callanach series. Dark, gruesome but superbly executed writing - an absolutely compelling read.

Edinburgh student Bart Campbell awakes to find himself in a shipping container and tied down. He doesn’t remember how he got there or where he is going but he realises that nothing good can come from his situation.

DI Luc Callanach is working with Interpol in Paris, France looking into an illegal organ transplant operation when he comes across an emptied body. The body belongs to Edinburgh resident Malcolm Reilly who was recently reported missing by his family. He asks DCI Ava Turner who works for Major Investigation Team (MIT) in Edinburgh to speak to the family and to let them know what has happened to him.

DCI Turner is also working on the case of a man shot dead in his home in a shady part of Edinburgh. The body has been left but someone has tried to clean the area around it, why?

Could the three cases be linked somehow?

Perfect Kill is the sixth book in the ‘Perfect’ series by Helen Fields but the first book in the series that I have read. To be honest I didn’t even realise that it was the sixth in the series until I read it on Goodreads. I can confirm it can be read as a standalone as I never felt like I had missed out or didn’t understand any sections.

The plot is quite sinister in places and as well as the illegal organ operation there is also a prostitution ring in Edinburgh going on right under the detective’s noses and some of the scenes within in this subplot can get a little full-on, so be warned if women being attacked and killed for sport is a trigger for you.

The writing is superb and had me invested in the story from the very beginning. I was eager to know would Bart make it home ever again or would Elenuta, one of the prostitutes ever get away from the criminals keeping her and forcing her to have entertain men daily.

This is one of those books that had me on the edge of my seat. It was horrific at times to read but that was mainly down to how realistic it was and how believable the situations were. I loved how eventually the cases worked their way together and also the moments of lightheartedness throughout which always came at a welcome moment.

The characters were plausible and likeable. I enjoyed both DI Callanach and DCI Turner’s working styles, even if they were completely different from one another. I also appreciated the setting and scenery of both Edinburgh and Paris.

If you are a fan of police procedural novels that have a more gritty, gory side to them then this is the book to read. I am now off to check the others in the series out.

What a brilliant read. It was engaging, it was engrossing and it was very well written. My first read by Fields and it certainly will not be my last. Despite starting at the end of a series, I have not been deterred – I need to get my hands on the rest of the books!

Fields has gone into so much detail in this story. She creates a criminal world that simply pulls you in. Initially I was uncertain where the story would be headed but, as the plot progressed, I was increasingly keen to find out more. At first I was a little put off by the subjects of human trafficking and prostitution. However, Fields’ depiction creates a chilling sequence of crimes that you want to see solved.

Whilst this is a series that follows Callanach, my favourite character was undoubtedly Ava. She is strong, brave and determined. I liked her witticisms and dedication – both to her best friend, Natasha, and her work. As the plot intensifies, I felt like Fields developed her character more and more – she has more of a presence than the dishy Callanach. I found myself desperate to see Ava succeed and solve the crimes – believing in her character and strength added to my enjoyment of the novel.

Set in both France and Scotland, I liked how the plot shifted between the two countries. Whilst it was clear how the missing persons was linked to the prostitution rings, I was more engrossed in witnessing the crimes being solved. Indeed, the undercover element from Callanach and Lively in particular, had me tense with fear of discovery.

From my perspective, it is evident how much time has gone into crafting this story. I cannot be more specific than this, but I felt like a lot of time has gone into making sure every element of the plot is “just so”. I think it based on the fact that there characterisation is developed, the different plot strands carefully considered and the crimes themselves so elaborate. This book seems like a labour of love that resounded from the pages. I guess what I am trying to say is this author devotion made me enjoy the story even more.

I surprised myself with how much I enjoyed reading this novel. The characters are convincing and the crimes are believable. It was equally chilling and thrilling, and I am excited to read more stories about Ava and Callanach.

With thanks to Avon books and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is the 6th book in the series and I think this one is definitely the darkest of the six books. There are some very disturbing scenes involving a sex trafficking storyline which were at times quite difficult to read. Despite the very dark subject matter I did really enjoy the rest of the book, as I have with all of this series. I find the writing to be very engaging and I’m always hooked on the storyline right from the first couple of pages. The characters are well developed and despite their flaws, very likeable. By book six I’m now very invested in these characters but I am starting to find the storyline with Ava and Luc a little frustrating now and I hope that they either get together in the next book or that this will they/won’t they storyline gets dropped. Another dark and twisty police procedural in a great series which I thoroughly enjoyed! Thanks to @netgalley for the copy of this book.

An intelligently plotted, noir, crime thriller. set in Scotland and France, two cases, one in France, one in Scotland has DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach working separately, which given the recent strain in their relationship is probably best. As the killing escalates, and the connections between the cases multiply, the two detectives are drawn together professionally, even while they try to maintain their distance.

I love the team dynamics in the Scottish police team, so many different personalities, but all prepared to put their differences aside, to get the job done. An overly enthusiastic new team member threatens the team status quo, but everyone has to learn and Ava is prepared to give him a chance.

Luc reacquaints with his former partner in France, there is much to forgive, but neither seems willing to compromise. Only, when they face danger, does the bad blood between them get some perspective.

The crimes are heinous and are hard to read about, there is a pervading sense of evil in this story, which is chilling. The investigation is authentic and painstaking, and the suspense builds to not one, but two adrenaline-inducing conclusions.

The detectives' personal life is not without its drama and sadness, but at the end out of the despair, a positive way forward beckons.

An addictive, police procedural style crime thriller, with clever suspense building and vibrant, relatable characters.

I received a copy of this book from Avon Books UK in return for an honest review.

This was such a messed up book, I enjoyed it though, if you could enjoy it...

I've read some dark books before but this one is definitely up there in one of the most messed up books I've ever read.

It was really difficult to read at times. The subject matter is incredibly dark and there really are a couple of scenes that were even getting a bit difficult for me to read.

If you can handle the subject matter of this book, I would definitely pick it up. It's the 6th in the series but you don't have to read it in order. I've only read the first book in the series and it made perfect sense to me

The writing is engaging and there was a lot of action all the way through.

The characters are interesting also. I thought that DI callanach was unlikeable in the first book but I think hes more likeable now, so it's nice to see character development across a series

My only minor criticism of this book was the length. It did feel a bit too long and there were points where I wasn't fully engaged with the story but there was plenty of action towards the end which hooked me right back into the story

Overall, this is a very interesting, well written book but incredibly dark and intense. Major trigger warnings

TW: human trafficking, organ harvesting, sex trafficking, rape, torture, murder and imprisonment