DI Robyn Carter has lot on her plate. There’s been a recent spate of murders & the victims couldn’t be more different. But Robyn & her crew have no doubt they’re all connected. Each is found with an invoice for £250,000 marked “Paid in full”. The only other thing they have in common is some tie to Bromley Hall, a ritzy Victorian hotel & spa in the Staffordshire countryside.

As they pick away at the investigation, we meet the anonymous killer in alternate chapters & slowly learn his motive & history.

This is one of those books where personal preference will loom large in terms of how much you enjoy it. I’d place it firmly on my “ok” shelf & I’ll try to explain why. The author clearly has some serious skills & the story flows well. But in this crowded & competitive genre, there has to be something that makes a book stand out, something that reaches out & grabs you so you become invested in the story & its characters & I just couldn’t find it here.

First up is Robyn, a hard working cop who has little else in her life. It’s difficult to describe why but she just didn’t come across as a fully fleshed out character. The way she is depicted lacked the depth that would have helped me connect with her. Perhaps I found her a little too earnest or maybe it’s that we’re repeatedly told about her background instead of letting the reader get to know her through her thoughts & actions. She & her colleagues have all the requisite personal problems but their responses seem so mild mannered they would not be out of place in a cozy.

When I read a thriller or police procedural, I want to be kept guessing. When the killer is unmasked, I don’t mind at all if I feel like a complete knob for missing the cleverly concealed clues. Unfortunately, the bad guy in this story is a “person of interest” from the moment they step on the page & I missed that element of suspense.

Despite the nature of the crimes, it’s a very clean read (no sex, swearing, etc.) So it’s merely a case of personal taste. As the old saying goes, not every hat you try on fits but those who prefer a softer murder mystery with a neatly tied ending should find much to enjoy here.

Detective Inspector Robyn Carter is back on the scene when spa manager Miles Ashbrook is found dead in a sauna. It is assumed that it is because of a heart attack. She is pulled off the case by her superior. She then turns her cousin Ross, a private investigator, onto it as she believes that it was not a simple heart attack and that foul play was involved. Then there are other murders with an apparent connection. She is on that case now.

Secrets of the Dead is a fast-paced thriller as Robyn races to stop this killer, because, as his pattern is identified, there are other people that will die. I often felt as if I were part of Robyn's team in trying to identify the killer. Carol Wyer definitely kept me entertained. Now, I am gladly onto Book 3 in this excellent series, as I purchased the entire set.

I very much enjoyed this novel. I could see a real improvement from the last book in the series (which I also enjoyed) and was pleased to see the progression. I really like Robyn and her determination to find the murderer and I love that she employs her private investigator cousin to help her.
I loved the setting of this story, a fancy spa hotel. The descriptions were good and I could almost picture being there. The plot is strong and I honestly wavered back and forth between who I thought the murderer was. I wasn't surprised at the end but that didn't take away from the story. The only real drawback to the story, for me, was that Robyn is not really revealed as a person. She's a great policewoman but there's not a lot of personal info and we really don't know what's going on in her personal life. I am hoping that as the series moves on, we will get more of a personal glimpse of Robyn and the rest of her team.

*Copy provided by Netgalley*

This one really kept me interested! I really wanted to keep reading to find out what was going to happen next.

Secrets of the Dead is a pretty intriguing and engaging crime thriller. I liked it and it really kept me at the edge of my seat. However, I can't stop myself from comparing this to [a:Robert Bryndza|5763380|Robert Bryndza|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1489696936p2/5763380.jpg]'s Detective Erika Foster series which I really love (even though I'm still in book 2, I i suck, i know). There's a lot of similarities but I love Bryndza's writing more.

BUT, if you like crime thrillers with engaging mysteries, I'd say go for it. It's really good and DI Robyn Carter is a pretty good detective to follow :)

actual rating is 3.5
full review soon on my blog.

I enjoy the concept of police procedurals but often find them a tad too dry and slow paced with stereotypical characters and frustrating periods of inactivity.
'Secrets of the Dead' was well-paced with a strong cast of interesting characters and I enjoyed it from start to finish. In fact I started it yesterday morning and had finished it by 4pm.

I loved the short chapters because they kept switching perspectives and settings so it never felt static. When one path led to a dead end, another one was almost immediately revealed. It kept the pace up and the plot developing so I never felt bored.

I liked Robyn as a lead narrator, she had flaws but was still relatable and warm. But I am also interested in the supporting cast, I loved Ross and Jeanette poking around in the hotel like the Holmes and Watson of the retirement world.

I enjoyed the main plot, particularly the retribution element. It was an interesting twist. I found it creepier once I read the author note as well.
I worked out who the villain was when they were first mentioned just because I tend to do that (my husband hates watching crime dramas with me because I always guess the killer 5 minutes in), but it didn't take away the overall tension, especially as it wasn't confirmed till really late on.

One of my pet hates with crime novels is chapters from the POV of the baddie. They often don't add anything to the storyline and just disrupt the flow and pace, and I would rather have the tension of not knowing who the baddie is or their motivations. Getting inside their head takes away some of the unknown and tension. Though the baddie chapters were quite short in this book, I still didnt feel they offered any real benefit or interest so I stand by my no-killer-POV-chapter hate.

I haven't read any of the other books in this series (yet) but this one read well as a standalone. And I would love to know more about Robyn and Ross and the gang

The book's story was interesting, but the detectives were a bit off. I could have asked better questions in interviews and some of the leads were obvious but not followed. Also, the perfection of murders is a bit of a stretch.

The means and motive are fairly easy to suss out early in the book.

To see my full review go to novelthrillsanchillsreview.wordpress.com

Secrets of the Dead is the second novel in the series presenting Detective Inspector Robyn Carter. I read Wyer’s first novel Little Girl Lost back in March and was mesmerized with DI Carter. I thought this novel was absolutely brilliant and could completely relate with DI Carter by knowing what it feels like to lose someone who was so connected to you.

I read Secrets of the Dead as a buddy read with Annie from The Misstery and we had a lot of the same feelings when it came to this novel. I will not be talking about anything that gives away the ending nor will it ruin the novel for those who have yet to read it.

Robyn Carter is still working as a Detective Inspector in this novel, trying to work her way up in the ranks. The minute she realizes that she has more than she bargains for in this case is when everything she is known for (her instincts, the will to succeed, never giving up) is questioned.

The plot of the story compared to Little Girl Lost was a little bit slower for me. I was getting antsy reading chapter to chapter because I felt as if DI Carter and her team were never going to catch the killer. They had their victims, they had their invoices that claimed 250,000 pounds, they had the connections but up until the end they didn’t have the who or the why.  It was just one thing I was bummed about. I wanted a more fast paced thriller.

One thing I loved about this novel though was how we got to see a more in depth side of Robyn and her relationship to her deceased husband Davies. We get to discover her emotional and softer side. It made me love her character even more. With that we got to read more about Amelie as well. Amelie is Davies daughter. We see more of Robyn and Amelie’s relationship bloom into what could be devastating for Robyn as Amelie is a spitting image inside of Davies but she makes the most of it and makes their time beautiful.

Another thing I enjoyed was how Wyer wrote her victims. There were different types of deaths throughout the book and there were even a couple that slipped through the grasps of the Leopard himself. The tragic deaths were perfect for this story.

The fact that this book was mainly written in the present time, and very few snippets were shown from the past is something I enjoyed. I really enjoy books that go back and forth from past to present but this was a nice refreshing thrill ride.

Thank you tremendously to Bookouture, NetGalley and Carol Wyer for allowing me to read this novel for my honest review. And a Happy Publishing Day to Wyer on her second installment of the DI Carter Series!

I am enjoying her books.