3.5 out of 5. I had guessed who the killer was before the halfway mark. Not a lot of possible suspects

Great story, with a great thrilling plot!! Look forward to more by this author! Cannot recommend highly enough.

This was a tough case for Robyn to get her head around. With a case at the beginning of the book leading her down the wrong garden path and then being hauled over the coals and told to back off from a murder Vic, things are not going too peachy for Robyn.

People dying in mysterious ways, all linked by an invoice, the invoice doesn’t say what it is for, just that it’s paid in full. The first two murders happen in quick succession you don’t get a chance to draw breath. Truly terrifying is someone who doesn’t even think twice of killing someone in their home, leaving a 4-year-old without a parent! Awful, just awful.

After these two deaths, things go a bit quiet and we watch Robyn trying to solve them, figuring out how they are linked and if they are linked to the first Vic she was backed off from. A few red herrings, which makes things more exciting as you think you are close to something only to find yourself taking two steps backs.

Robyn is under a lot of pressure this time to solve things from her boss. Threats of being taken off the case and the lack of sleep somehow helps to drive Robyn to find out who the Litchfield Leopard is!

The chapters from the murderer are cold, he is obsessed and very much stalkerish. He waits for the woman every day without fail, but he isn’t as discreet as he thinks he is, no stealth here!

I love the setting of Staffordshire, as I knew some of these places from when I lived in the area, so I could picture them as Carol has written them. Plus who doesn’t love the reference of Watford Gap, even though it has nothing to do with Watford.

Carol has created such a driven and loyal character with Robyn. She is slowly showing more of her colours, her world is slowing coming back into focus and with colour. I feel Robyn is on her way back to us, Davis will always be a part of her but she’s learning to live again and hopefully, Trisha will be around in the next few books as I feel she could be a true friend.

Always lovely to see Ross and Jeanette and did chuckle at their time in the spa! I finally feel I have got to grips with the team, Matt, Anna and Mitz, they are a solid team and I do love that they do question Robyn and her actions and not just go with it because she asks. I was completely stumped with this book, I didn’t even know where to begin with my suspects so I just didn’t bother and let Robyn do all the hard work with her team. Adding a countdown for the Leopard to work with was clever, the Leopard became sloppy and things tend to go wrong then. Not the cleverest soul, but the retribution is all they are after. A closure of sorts and the ending they so believe they are going to get, a small part of you felt a bit sorry for the Leopard.

A tough case for Robyn, but it would be a Robyn if she didn’t solve it. We didn’t have any dramatic storylines carrying over, so I can relax easy and take a breath. However, I fear that the cases are just going to get tougher and tougher.

Carol has won me over with Robyn, she has written stories that have kept me hooked from the get-go, a kickass lead who will not stop, and riveting storylines to keep you up all night, just so we can rest when Robyn does. Looking forward to my next adventure!

Having enjoyed the first book in this series I was looking forward to getting stuck into this one. I found myself enjoying this story even more than the first book. This can be read as a standalone, but I would always suggest reading the books in order as you will gain valuable insight into the backgrounds of the characters who feature in them all.

Once again the author brings us a well written story which had me second guessing myself throughout. At first glance the case seems to be one which can't be solved. But by digging deeper, Detective Robyn Carter unearths the clues she needs to figure it all out. I did have my own ideas while reading about what was going to happen, but as always I was proved wrong on more than one occasion.

Another great read from the author, and I can't wait to see what she brings us next. Huge thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for providing a copy.

RATING: 3.5 STARS
(I received an ARC from the NETGALLEY)
(Review Not Blog)

I am glad I stuck with this series as book two was so much better. The murders and plot were gripping and I was flipping through this one. Adding to my enjoyment of this one was that Wyer put more thought into the characterization. I am looking forward to the next two books.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for the copy of this book.

Three murders with seemingly no connection to each other except for a paper saying 'all debts paid'. The leads are few and far between. It is a difficult case for the team but they get there in the end with many twists and turns along the way. It was also great to see another book with Robyn Carter featured. I am very interested to see what happens next. She is functioning well by keeping her demons at bay for now, but it would be interesting to see what will happen if she has to face them head on.

It was a great book. I loved how it all came together in the end. Sometimes, when I have read a really good book, I take time afterwards to marvel at how the author came up with the ideas and how they brought it all together in the end. This was one of those books.

I highly recommend this book and the first book in the series 'Little girl lost'. You will not be disappointed. They are well-written and will keep you gripped from the first page!

Secrets of the Dead is the second installment of the DI Robyn Carter series. I haven’t read the first book, [b:Little Girl Lost|32762388|Little Girl Lost|Carol E. Wyer|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1477416465s/32762388.jpg|53352626], but I didn’t feel it diminished my ability to enjoy this story. And oh my… did I ever enjoy this story!

Three murders. Three innocent victims. What secrets did they share with their killer?

DI Robyn Carter is on the hunt for a killer. Three people are dead, their murders obviously connected—but how? What did they have in common, apart from a cryptic note found on their bodies? DI Carter is determined to find out, hopefully before anyone else turns up dead.

This story has a fairly large cast of characters, but they are all, in their way, crucial to the story. I’m in awe of how Wyer presents the reader with multiple threads and delicately weaves them all together for a mind-blowing tale overflowing with thrills and chills. I can’t say much about the particulars of the story, other than to note it is a fast-paced story with plenty of action that kept me reading into the wee hours of the night.

I’m looking forward to reading more about DI Robyn Carter in the future, and will be keeping my eye out for news about the next book in the series. In the meantime, I’ll look for a way to work the first book into my reading schedule!

If you love reading a good crime thriller, I highly recommend giving Secrets of the Dead a read. You won’t be sorry!

Another day, another fast paced thriller. One of the things I liked about this one is how fallible DI Carter is. She makes mistakes; she gets it wrong chasing a potential suspect right from the start which sets up a narrative of whether she’s the right woman for the job searching for a serial killer. You have to admire her dedication to the job; I’m not sure she gets any sleep for the whole of the book! Which is often pointed out.

There are so many twists and turns in the hunt for this killer. The why-do-it remains a mystery throughout most of it. As it becomes clear the pattern is linked to an accidental death in a health spa several years previously we are given insights into the killers mind but the full links come at the end. Which I liked.

I liked the characters; there’s not too much detail on many of them but they seem to gel well on the pages and hopefully with further books we may get a little bit more. I liked the dynamic with fellow DI Shearer who she believes is out to get her (there was a teeny tiny bit of him being the boy who picks on the girl he fancies at school between them. She’s widowed; he’s divorced so who knows how that one will play out)

This book had me gripped from the start, it was impossible to put down and I can’t wait for the next one

After having thoroughly enjoyed Little Girl Lost back in January, I couldn't wait for the second book in the DI Robyn Carter series so when it became available on Netgalley, I hit that "request" button like my life depended on it. Okay, yes, slight exaggeration but still ... excited and also very impatient.

As is always the case with a second instalment, you wonder if it will be as good as the first one was but I'm happy to say that Carol Wyer has hit another home-run with this one.

I won't divulge too much about the plot. As it is, I feel the blurb already gives away too much information. When the body of a murder victim is found with a receipt saying "all debts paid", I was immediately intrigued. But when a second victim is found with the same receipt, both Robyn and the reader are sucked into a fabulously disturbing case. This case clearly involves a killer on a mission and he won't stop until he's finished.

Secrets of the Dead is another great addition to the DI Robyn Carter series. Not only do I really enjoy the interactions in the team and their diversity, but this is the second case that completely drew me in from the start. This killer displays a whole other level of creepy crazy, which becomes increasingly obvious from his own chapters. What I also like, and slightly hate, is that the author lets you get familiar with a character before having them murdered. Their death just hits you that little bit harder and makes you want to yell out nooooo, why would you do that?!

Gripping and engrossing, this series is quickly becoming another firm favourite for me and I'm already eagerly awaiting the next one to find out about, what I'm sure will be, yet another fascinating case Robyn and her team will be working on.

"If she was asking for his help it could only mean she was doing something she shouldn't. He liked that about her; she was ballsy, daring and usually right."