While attending a crime scene on the outskirts of Maidstone, DI Kay Hunter makes a shocking discovery.The victim has been brutally cut to pieces, his identity unknown.When more body parts start turning up in the Kentish countryside, Kay realises the disturbing truth – a serial killer is at large and must be stopped at all costs.With no motive for the murders and a killer who has gone undetected … killer who has gone undetected until now, Kay and her team of detectives must work fast to calm a terrified local population and a scornful media.
When a third victim is found, her investigation grows even more complicated.
As she begins to expose a dark underbelly to the county town, Kay and her team are pulled into a web of jealousy and intrigue that, if left unchecked, will soon claim another life.
Gone to Ground is a gripping serial killer thriller full of page-turning suspense, and the sixth book in the Detective Kay Hunter series.
The Detective Kay Hunter crime thriller series – available in print, large print and audiobook from all major retailers and libraries:
1. SCARED TO DEATH
2. WILL TO LIVE
3. ONE TO WATCH
4. HELL TO PAY
5. CALL TO ARMS
6. GONE TO GROUND
7. BRIDGE TO BURN
8. CRADLE TO GRAVE
9. TURN TO DUST
10. A DARKER PLACE
Praise for Gone to Ground
“Several twists and turns make this novel an exciting read!” ~ Goodreads
“Another solid police procedural in this fantastic crime series!” ~ Keeper of Pages
“A true example of a gripping page-turner. I LOVED it!” ~ Chat About Books
“If you like fantastic crime books with a fabulous female lead you’ll love this book!” ~ Over the Rainbow book blog
“A great read with tension, pace and a gripping and unusual plot.” ~ Fiction is Stranger than Fact
“Once again Rachel Amphlett’s writing is flawless, well thought out and gripping from start to end.” ~ Have Books blog
“A fantastic thriller, consistently presenting the police team as the humans they are and the ending is, as always, just perfect!” ~ Goodreads
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Detective Kay Hunter has her hands full with a serial killer. What appears obvious isn’t so. Is it? Recommend!
You’re always guaranteed something intriguing, original and a little bit different when Kay Hunter investigates a murder.
Gone to Ground begins with the gruesome discovery of an amputated foot in a layby. It’s quickly followed by more body parts at the local tip, posing all manner of questions to Kay and her team. Do the parts belong to one victim or more? Who are they? Is a serial killer at work?
With a lack of evidence, it’s a difficult and slow investigation for newly promoted Kay and her close-knit team, which is on fine form in this outing. But once some progress is made, the pace picks up to deliver a satisfying climax that ties up all the loose ends.
Like any series, it’s best to start at the beginning and watch the characters develop with each story, but this works fine as a standalone, offering insights into the challenges and adventures faced during previous investigations.
Rachel Amphlett never fails to offer entertaining crime fiction with intriguing plots, a welcome sprinkling of humour and down to earth characters you believe in and root for. I have thoroughly enjoyed every Kay Hunter novel and can’t wait for her next outing.
Note: Even though this is Book 6 in the series, it works fine as a stand alone.
Kay Hunter has her hands full with this one! It all starts with a group of bicyclists and a detached foot. The trail of clues lead to resort hotel that has lots of team building activities like archery, barbecues, and such. So many suspects, so little time before yet another victim turns up dead.
First, I have to talk about the goat. Kay’s husband Adam is a vet and he sometimes has to bring home a critter for a little TLC. This time, it’s a little goat. Adam thinks he can set up a pen in their back garden for the little devil. Hahahahahahaha! Obviously, Adam has a lot to learn about goats. I found this an adorable touch to what is admittedly a grim story.
Back to the grim story. I did find one thing kind of weird. Everyone who comes into contact with a dead body or body parts (except for Kay and her boss) has a strong emotional reaction. The bicyclist who found the foot vomits and cries and has to be seen to. The truck (or was it a tractor?) operator who finds victim #2 is so distraught he gets the rest of the week off. Now these guys don’t know the deceased at all, so I thought it was a little odd to have the same emotional reaction from two guys. Later on, two of the junior detectives also have a strong reaction but they fare better in hiding it. I expected a greater variety in reactions and not for nearly everyone to be upset over it.
Other than that, this was an intriguing murder mystery. I loved the tangled web at the resort. Since there’s all these capable people hired by the resort to provide activities for the guests, there’s plenty of surprises to uncover. I enjoyed the little snippets about the various arts and crafts.
This is Kay’s first big investigation where she’s leading things and her boss is right there offering a helping hand (because he’s a good guy). Her team is also well oiled, each one knowing how the other operates. They’ve been having their own unofficial team building dinners once a month and it shows! I love that there’s no in fighting or sneaky, petty behavior.
Perhaps half way through the book, they figure out how the killer is disposing of the bodies (mostly) but they still don’t have a motive or a list of solid suspects. It’s a pretty gruesome disposal method but I personally think the worst is left to be revealed at the end of the book. The tension is a slow, delicious build for this mystery. Kay’s team has to work hard for each little crumb of a clue.
Once they figure out the motive, the who is pretty easy to figure out. Then it’s just hunting the killer down before the body count grows again. This was an intense ending to the book and not everything turns up roses for everyone. Another great addition to the series! 4.75/5 stars.
The Narration: Alison Campbell continues to be a great Kay Hunter. I also like her supportive, sometimes teasing voice for Adam. She makes a great Kariss (one of the junior detectives) as well. Sometimes her male voices drifted into feminine tones especially if the male character was speaking gently or quietly. But much of the time, the male voices were masculine. Each character voice was distinct. The pacing was perfect and there were no technical issues with the recording. 4.5/5 stars.
I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Rachel Amphlett. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.
The heat is on Detective Inspector Kay Hunter and her team to find another killer on the loose! What level would you go to find the truth when it seems like no one can be trusted? All suspects are leading back to ground zero. Amphlett captivates her readers with this mystery; this time it is a slew of men disappearing around town and turning up with severed body parts and burnt flesh.
DI Hunter has her plate full with handling interviews for the Detective Sergeant position that they desperately need for their team since her promotion. Everything freezes once a new case is brought to their attention though. Body parts from one victim are found right outside of the police station. It hits the news fast and political figures get involved as a way to trump the media with blowing the story out of proportion, like usual. After two more bodies turn up in other locations with the same signature, Kay dreads the media will have a field day because a serial killer has struck Maidstone. Can they find the killer before the town starts wanting them taken out of office? With all the leads that they’ve tracked down, everyone seems to have a motive, but they all seem highly credible also. Kay can just sense that they’ve missed something critical to their investigation once they learn that all victims were attendees of a single hotel in town. That just can’t be a coincidence, but what aren’t they seeing… or not seeing in this case?
Amphlett has done an incredible job with character development. All of the characters have motive, but they all seem extremely helpful and fearful of the killer. The heightened crime mystery is relayed to the reader quite well and the pace is wonderful. Since this review is complimenting the audiobook, it appears that the story is well-written from the voice relay. Campbell’s narration is impeccable and enjoyable. If you are a reader of crime mystery and suspense, you may want to pick up this installment; however, there are previous installments that you may want to delve into before this one. It can be read as a standalone as far as the crime goes, but the character banter and personal dilemmas carryover from prior installments.
An audiobook was provided to Turning Another Page by Audiobookworm Promotions and in no way affects the honesty of this review. We provide a five-star rating to Gone to Ground by Rachel Amphlett.