A village of secrets finds its past lies waiting… settle into his new station at Bexford. Now history is threatening to raise its head again, and he has a murder case to contend with.
Detective Inspector Sam Brock has a new recruit to take under his wing, and he’s determined this one isn’t going to die. As if that wasn’t enough of a headache, his wife is coming home and may be on the verge of discovering the lie he’s been telling her.
Newly paired duo Brock & Poole must track down the killer before more lives are lost.
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England, law-enforcement, murder, murder-investigation, conspiracy, procedural, relationships, family-dynamics, framed, friendship*****
Definitely a character driven mystery, and the characters certainly are. But it’s also a good procedural with exceptional due diligence. The publishers blurb is a good hook, so no need for recap or spoilers. Very good read!
Nigel Patterson showcases his talents by differentiating the characters, and his range of accent and tone is really great.
This book was recommended to me, and I am thrilled, as I really loved it.
New to town, DS Poole is faced not only with a murder on his first day on the job, but getting to know and understand his new superior, DI Block.
The characters in this book are excellent, and the story is well written, leaving the reader guessing until the very end. Highly recommended.
I am looking forward to reading more from this author.
I didn’t like the way Poole was introduced but after that little bump, I enjoyed the rest of the read. I liked the other central character, Brock from the start.
Distinctive characters and an intriguing fast-paced read which was easy to read. I prefer more depth to my reads but if you’re looking for a pleasant, quick cosy mystery then I would recommend this one.
Great book
This is a very enjoyable British mystery, I don’t think that it’s really a cosy mystery as it is a little dark in places, although there are some moments of light relief as well.
The story is quite original and contains several twists and turns, but unfortunately it does suffer from a few errors, both factual and grammatical which prevent me from giving it the 5 stars it could have been worth, but it is still a very promising start to a new series, and I look forward to reading more of them.
I received a complimentary copy from the author, but have voluntarily written this honest review.
An Occupied Grave is one of the best police procedurals I’ve read recently. Sharply drawn, compelling lead characters—I really enjoyed the complexity of both DI Brock and DS Poole, and how the layers of the onion kept getting peeled throughout the story. The murder plot kept me guessing, and although I guessed the murdered correctly early on, I kept wondering how they police were going to prove it. I also very much liked the personal subplots; none of them got wrapped up in a bow at the end, and I liked this so much I immediately bought the next book in the series. This is a great page-turner—I haven’t had so much fun reading a mystery in a while!
Received a free copy for a review. I loved this mystery. It reminded me of my favorite tv show “Midsomer Murder”. I will be reading more books in this series.
I like all the Brock and Poole mysteries. Looking forward to the next one
It took me a while to get into this crime story as the character of DI Brock seemed a little wooden. As someone who keeps his feelings to himself, the story was well underway before his character was slowly revealed. From this point the whole story picked up and became an entertaining and enjoyable read.
It starts with a funeral and the discovery of a body already in the grave of someone about to be buried. It’s a terrific start as the mayhem commences. DS Poole, who’s new to the squad, has his own problems alongside working with Brock. Slowly, they begin to piece together events and identify suspects as the story gathers pace for an exciting ending.
Overall, it’s well-written and delivered, the characters are believable and the outcome managed a couple of surprises, which is always welcome.
Newly Hired Detective and a Strange Case
4 Stars
Appropriate for teen – adult
No sex
No memorable harsh language, if any
Action, but no gory violence
Some humor, especially around character personalities
Characters – likable and in this first in the series already building up to being 3 dimensional.
Setting – England nowadays
Writing – In the first few chapters there were several distracting mistakes in word choice or sentence structure, but then it seems the editors started paying attention, since there were only one or two minor mistakes. Because I was probably not paying close enough attention, in the beginning I got the two main characters confused. Who’s the married one? (Brock)
Good plot. How did a male’s body come to be in the grave of an elderly woman who recently passed away? The partners, Brock and Poole, come to know and appreciate each other as the new guy, Poole, establishes himself to his superior, Brock.
At first I didn’t think I was going to enjoy the story, so was almost skimming it. Several chapters in, I became invested in working out the puzzle.
Intriguing mystery with lots of off-beat characters.
Very interesting an unusual English mystery about mourners gather at a grave and find it’s already occupied. The main characters, Brock & Poole work very good together. There are a few very unexpected things that come up in the story that I didn’t expect and I enjoyed listening to the whole story.
Great detective team. Surprise ending!! Beware of whom you trust!!
Great mystery!
I liked the way the relationship of the characters was built throughout the book. I like a good mystery and this one was good.
I read the first book and then had to get the next 3 in the series. I’ve told people to get this series who I know would love them. I wish there were other books in this series. Great characters.
It was a twisted story until it all came together in the end…
Brock and Poole are likeable characters. An easy-read.
I really enjoyed this book!
This is the first time I’ve read this author but I will read more to see how the characters develope.