A parent’s worst nightmare is Grace’s deadliest case . . . Roy Grace, creation of the CWA Diamond Dagger award winning author Peter James, faces his most complex case yet in Dead If You Don’t.Kipp Brown, successful businessman and compulsive gambler, is having the worst run of luck of his life. He’s beginning to lose big style. However, taking his teenage son, Mungo, to their club’s big Saturday … teenage son, Mungo, to their club’s big Saturday afternoon football match should have given him a welcome respite, if only for a few hours. But it’s at the stadium where his nightmare begins.
Within minutes of arriving at the game, Kipp bumps into a client. He takes his eye of Mungo for a few moments, and in that time, the boy is gone. Then he gets the terrifying message that someone has his child, and to get him back alive, Kipp will have to pay.
Defying instruction not to contact the police, Kipp reluctantly does just that, and Detective Superintendent Roy Grace is brought into investigate. At first it seems a straightforward case of kidnap. But rapidly Grace finds himself entering a dark, criminal underbelly of the city, where the rules are different and nothing is what it seems . . .
more
The latest outing for Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, this is a nail-biting procedural in his usual style. Very readable indeed – looking forward to the next instalment already!
The most recent book in the DS Roy Grace series, the Detective Superintendent is thrown into the midst of the kidnapping of a teenager, but this turns very complex in the investigation. All is not as it seemed at the start of the case. In the meantime, the parents are faced with the dilemma whether to follow the kidnapper’s instructions precisely because their son is Dead If You Don’t. Or maybe it’s actually better not to do what the bad guy says. How are they to know?
This prolific writer never disappoints. His thrillers are not only action packed, but they are thought provoking. Life and death questions are forced upon the characters, and require fast answers. What is the right response? That’s a debatable question, often best seen only in hindsight. The immediacy of the writing style communicates the importance of each decision and each undertaking. And at the heart of the story is the depth of emotions portrayed by the diverse characters.
Kipp Brown is a successful business man and addicted gambler experiencing the worst of luck. His bank account is depleted just as his teenage son is kidnapped and a high ransom is demanded. How can Kipp pay? This is truly high stakes because his son is Dead If You Don’t. When the Detective Superintendent takes the reins of the case he’s surprised at the direction the evidence takes him and his officers. He is coordinating and working with a fascinating team of officers and others including a creative and reliable Pathologist. The perspective of each is compelling. In the other camp, motivations of those who plan the kidnapping are poignant and disturbing. And as is so often the case plans often go astray.
In addition to this exciting thriller, also try the audio book of his new standalone novel Absolute Proof – read by Hugh Bonneville of Downton Abbey fame. Investigative reporter Ross Hunter nearly didn’t answer the phone call that would change his life – and possibly the world – forever.
Peter James is a celebrated, highly-award winning author on both sides of the Atlantic with over 19 million books sold worldwide. A British mystery/thriller author who’s an international bestseller and a regular on the New York Times bestseller lists. He’s been nominated for or awarded almost every mystery/thriller award including the CWA Diamond Dagger award, the Barry Award, and first time ever recipient of the Rheinbach Glass Dagger Award for excellence in crime fiction in 2017. Three of his novels have been turned into films and several more have been adapted for the stage.
And if you want to hear more from the author listen on YouTube to – Kendall & Cooper Talk Mysteries with Peter James
When you read a Roy Grace novel, you’re guaranteed an intriguing plot with many strands and some neat twists to wrong foot you. This one also incorporates a change of pace as the kidnap of a boy brings time pressures cranks up the tension and work rate of the police.
I enjoy the detail of the police procedures and the way the author brings mundane, but essential legwork to life. The characters too are carefully crafted and believable, especially the bad guys who are particularly menacing. The story moved between the various bad guys, the victims and the police, keeping the tension high as time began to run out for the kidnap victim, leading to an exciting climax with Grace risking his life once more.
While all the author’s trademarks are present in the story, the change of pace affected the balance between the investigation and the backstory. The short time span meant there was little room for the running backstory of Grace’s family life, which was a bit of a shame. However, his ongoing battle with his boss, Cassian Pewe, reached new and enjoyable heights.
Highly recommended.
Oh how I am now in need of sleep. I started the book, I read page and after page, chapter after chapter, and I just couldn’t stop. The storyline pulled me in, the characters were amazing, and I couldn’t help myself but stay awake to keep reading.
This is my first Roy Grace novel and I was worried that I would be missing out some of the story but I wasn’t missing a thing. The story started with a new case and ended with the case being solved. That sums it up but there is so much more. There were multiple storylines that I wasn’t sure how they would tie together, there were characters that seemed to know each other but I wasn’t sure how, yet Peter James tied it all up nicely. I had ideas on how it would all come together, I had some of it figured out but not quite all of it.
Roy Grace had his hands full. A possible bomb at the football game that he was at with his son, a child kidnap and then add it to the mobsters that he has to interview to find answers. Yet, he kept it all together, worked methodically through the clues, looked outside the box for answers, and figured out how it was all tied together to solve the crimes. It was interesting to see how his brain worked and how he could possibly keep it together with little sleep and a boss that seemed to want to fire him at every turn.
This was the first book I have read by Peter James and I am excited to see that he has many more available. I am adding them to want-to-read list.
” A parent’s worst nightmare is Grace’s deadliest case” That is from the jacket of the book. I must say I agree.
Kip and his son attend Amex’s new stadium with state of the art security when something goes terribly wrong. His son Mungo has disappeared and the text that follows says we have Mungo , don’t go to the police.
There are so many facets to this book that interweave perfectly with each other, is merely a branch of the story and then it all comes together.
The murder count and the body count keep rising as Roy Grace and his team desperately try and save Mungo.
I loved all the characters, the parents were portrayed perfectly and you honestly thought you were right there with them as they wait frantically for news of their son.
You can feel Mungo’s terror as the clock ticks quickly yet slowly and agonizingly .
The Albanians are crucial to the disappearance to the teenager.
The pages turn quickly and yet there is so much to learn and to take in.
Roy Grace is my favourite detective and he is my hero.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read Dead if You Don’t.
If you aren’t familiar with Roy Grace you are missing out.