‘Absolutely stunning!… wow it blew me away… I loved everything about it… 5 stars, although it is a shame I can’t give it more, it’s easily worth a 7.’ Bonnie’s Book Talk, 5 starsOne hot summer’s afternoon, five-year-old Ava Sawyer went to a party. She never came home… Two years later, Ava’s body is found and another little girl, Audrey Briggs, goes missing. Audrey also attended that party … Briggs, goes missing. Audrey also attended that party …
Leading the investigation is Detective Natalie Ward. A mother of two teenagers, this case chills her to the bone, and is a disturbing reminder of the last job she worked on. One that still keeps her awake at night…
Natalie soon discovers that Ava’s mother has some worrying gaps in her alibi and as she digs deeper, she’s sure Ava’s father is not telling the full story. And what did the owner of the garden centre Elsa see that day? Something that she’s not telling Natalie …
Just as Natalie is facing up to the grim possibility that Ava and Audrey were killed by someone close to home, another little girl from the party doesn’t come home from her ballet lesson. Can Natalie find a way to stop this killer before more innocent lives are taken?
Gripping, fast-paced and nail-bitingly tense, this book will keep you flying through the pages long into the night. Perfect for fans of Angela Marsons, Rachel Abbott and Karin Slaughter.
Readers are going crazy for The Birthday:
‘OMG this author has done it again!!!!!!!!… Fantastic!!!!!!!! I was hooked from the first page and stayed up till 3am to finish it.’ Goodreads Reviewer, 5 stars
‘Omg!! My heart is pounding so hard! I have just finished reading The Birthday and I am floored! This is the first in a new series from Carol Wyer, featuring DI Natalie Ward and her team. What a way to start! Speedy, sharp, heart stopping and engaging; this is a series I am definitely looking forward to!’ TishyLou, 5 stars
‘A rollocking rollercoaster ride … dark, twisty and wonderfully gripping’ Minimac Reviews
‘Something special… This book truly is excellent… Heart-thumpingly good… A well-paced, heart-wrenching, pulse racing, edge-of-your-seat kind of book and a crime fighting team who you can genuinely root for… look no further as this could genuinely be your next favourite read. I tore through it.’ Jen Med’s Book Reviews, 5 stars
‘What a twist! …I read this book in a day!’ Goodreads Reviewer, 5 stars
‘Fantastic… The story had me hooked from page one… Absolutely brilliant!… Cleverly written, well thought out, action-packed, nerve-wrackingly, nail-bitingly good… This is one highly recommended thumbs up from me and I cannot wait for the next book!!!’ Stardust Book Reviews, 5 stars
‘A gripping, edge-of-your-seat, nail-biting, heart-pounding, unputdownable read that will keep you turning those pages.’ ilovereading, 5 stars
‘Everything Carol Wyer touches turns to gold. She most definitely knows how to write an addictive and tense page-turner and this one is no different. Compelling from the first page, this will have you hooked in a heartbeat.’ Novel Deelights, 5 stars
‘An exciting new series… Excellent character development… full of surprising twists and turns. This was a truly thrilling book… chilling… It certainly was no average read… I read The Birthday so fast that I was actually surprised… Excellent pacing… superb writing.’
Robin Loves Reading, 5 stars
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A new author to me, I was drawn to Carol Wyer’s book by the blurb. A birthday party, missing child & then subsequent murders of little girls, it all sounded like a complex case & definitely stood up to its promise. The police characters are great, each with their own personal back story, but it was the way in which the author kept me guessing until a few chapters from the end that really impressed me. Easy to read & with a descriptive style, I thoroughly enjoyed this book & have already purchased the next in the series.
I really enjoyed this start to a new series and can’t wait for more. Highly recommended!
I received an advanced reader copy. I am voluntarily leaving a review. Ava Sawyer goes missing at a birthday party for her classmate. Five years later, renovations on the center where she disappeared unearth her body. She is wearing a yellow dress. Natalie Ward is assigned to the murder investigation. Two other little girls from the same party start going missing after Ava’s body is found? Are they connected? Can Natalie solve the mystery before another little girl dies? This was a good, twisty story. I did not see who did it coming. An enjoyable read.
Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for allowing me to read this ARC book, The Birthday by Carol Wyer and giving my opinion.
**spoiler alert**
This is my 1st book from this author and I can say I was pretty happy with it. DI Natalie Ward is called in on a case of a childs body being uncovered on a construction site, as she is trying to find out the circumstances of how this child got there another little girl goes missing …now Natalie needs to find out who is killing little girls and it all seems to stem from a little missing girl that disappeared from a birthday party just a few years back….
There are alot of good, well fleshed out characters to sink your teeth into, story moves along at a pretty good pace! I am looking forward to the next book and to reading more from this author!
4 and 1 / 2 stars
Five-year old Ava disappears on a trip to a garden center/petting zoo to celebrate a classmates’ birthday. Two years later, her remains are found behind the garden center building.
Soon, one after another, Ava’s classmates start disappearing and turn up dead. They all shared the same school, the same dance class and many of them hung out at the same pool. The team has too many suspects and much time is spent chasing down their alibis, checking CCTV, interviewing witnesses, teachers and family members.
The identity of the killer is somewhat of a surprise, but he was a viable suspect all along. His personality seemed all wrong. The book is interspersed with little vignettes of the killer; his thoughts and actions. The reason for the killings is very sad, but all too easy to believe.
I believe this is my first Carol Wyer novel, but it won’t be my last. I truly enjoyed it and went to Amazon to look for others of her books. I liked DI Natalie and her team. They worked very well together and were truly dedicated. The book was well written and plotted. The writing was crisp and relevant to our times – sadly.
I want to thank NetGalley and Bookouture for forwarding to me a copy of this book for me to read, enjoy and review.
I so enjoyed this book that I immediately went and bought the rest of the series that was available. I would definitely recommend this book. You think you have this book figured out and then there was a twist!!! Great writing!!
This book had it all with twists and turns. I loved it and couldn’t put it down. I kept guessing who was guilty and I was wrong!
This book was easy to read. It is a story that is so very sad. I enjoyed the book and recommend.
It was an enjoyable book from the beginning to the end.
Very good thriller, but oh so sad.
Twisty turns and well developed characters
DI Natalie Ward and crew are fully fleshed characters and make for interesting reading. The subject matter is difficult but handled well. Held my interest all the way through. First by this author but by no means my last!
Good story line and characters. I concluded who the villain was early in the story so the who done was gone, but what the villain was up to next was somewhat a mystery.
Love this had trouble figuring out the bad guy. The flash back were deceiving to me.
Depressing
It one of the reasonable novel have ever seen