Butterfly on the storm is part one of a planned trilogy and I can't wait for the sequel, it starts with the discovery of a small child, a victim of a hit and run, who are they ? and what are they doing in the middle of nowhere, dressed strangely and with no one coming forward to claim them, the story follows the police and an investigative journalist (who happened to be in the right place at the eighth time) trying to unravel the mystery. It races along at a breakneck pace climaxing with a cliffhanger finish and now that I've finished my biggest question is what's going to happen next?? I won't lie . At tmes I got a little lost with all the Dutch places and names but I'm glad I stuck with it as the characters in the book all seem to have a hidden back story which really draws you in and I hope with the next instalment we'll learn more about them.

Butterfly on the Storm is an awesome book .There is so much going on ,so many stories that gradually come together and make sense .It a fast paced book travelling form Afghanistan, Amsterdam and Russia .A story of corruption that knows no bounds ! Brilliant ,can't wait for the next installment.

I enjoyed the story overall, touching on modern concerns with immigration and fake news. There are some really nice moments, Farah's response to the statue, Her uncles joy in the kites, the girl dancing for Marouan.
However I found it hard to keep track of the multiple central characters, and there were too many points of view. The sex scenes didn't convince, the car crash scene read like a film script rather than a novel, and I hated the ending; and if Yul Brynner is mentioned one more time...

I've given this book a three stars because the storyline is good and had I been able to complete it, I'm sure it could have been five stars. I gave up at around 54%..... With great reluctance but a growing sense of frustration. The formatting problems were an issue in some chapters but the real problem lay in the overall construction.. I enjoy stories that move between time periods and I enjoy hearing about the background of various characters and how that influences the plot. I cannot use paper books because of OA so read from a kindle. The downside of this format is the inability to easily flip back to remind oneself of re-emerging characters. With so many characters, their histories, the different cultures and the issues that are related, I began to loose track of who was who and how important they might be to the plot. I found myself dreading the start of a new chapter for fear that this was yet another mysterious figure who may or may not be ultimately relevant. I envy those who read a paper version of this book as it showed so much promise but I am afraid I gave up when in became a chore rather than a pleasure.

Butterfly on the storm is a multilayered novel, part thriller part romance, part mystery but above all it is a really good read.
Journalist Farah Hafez begins this tale by having contact with a young afghani child who is brought into an Amsterdam hospital after a hit and run accident. On the commencement of her journey into discovering the who, why and when of this incident we are slowly introduced to a host of supporting characters ranging from the good to the hideously evil.
As the story unfolds we become to realise that at the base of this tale is the stink of pure corruption in high governments in varying countries that knows no bounds.
By the time the ending came I was exhausted from the myriad of emotions I had been put through.
The ending........well all I can say is that this reader will be checking Amazon daily to see when the next instalment is this trilogy is published.
My thanks to net galley and publisher for opportunity to review this book.

A disappointing first book - 'think Stieg Larson....' ran the blurb - I think not! This is a book that isn't sure what it is about - far too much irrelevant detail scattered around that, unlike in Stieg Larsson's trilogy, fails to add to the strength of characters but instead induces irritation or even boredom. Political prejudices are scattered through the text that don't belong - they will alienate some readers and make others wonder how they relate to the story. I rarely give up on books but 24% was more than enough in this case. This was a shame as there could have been a compelling story here - but a lack of focus, some over-written and contrived descriptions, and poor narrative flow made it too much like hard work.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book. It was a very good story, excellent storyline and great characters. I would recommend this book to anyone

This book has so much going on in it. There are so many stories that gradually come together to make an outstanding read. I loved everything about it. It is fast paced and grippiing from start to finish. It has background stories that link various charcters, as well as an ever evolving plot that leaves you caught up in it. There feels like alot of research has gone into this, or at least a good background knowledge.
Set in the Netherlands, the story begins with a young Afghan boy being involved in a hit and run, as the police and medics deal with that, a car fire close by is thrown into the equation. Danielle a Doctor on the scene forms an attachment to the boy, from the treatment she gives at the scene to the hospital and then beyond she is like a protector. It is at the hospital that Danielle meets Farah Hafez, a journalist and martial arts fighter. Who, after a gala fight, goes to the hospital to visit a competitor. On entry she sees the boy coming in on a stretcher, when he speaks a word in Afghan, she responds. She lived in Afghanistan until she was nine years old before coming to Amsterdam to live. She wants to help the boy and find out his story.
From this point on the reader will journey from Amsterdam, South Africa, Russian to Afghanistan. That journey will deal with corruption, greed, exploitation, bribary, arms trade and torture. The police and journalists have one agenda, to uncover the truth. But it will never be as simple as that, unconnected events have to be linked, people in power will stand in the way. In the turmoil of immigration issues in the Netherlands and the terror campaigns in the other countries, those who have power will not let it be taken from them. They will protect themselves at all costs.
This is the first of a trilogy that i am now hooked on. I will recommend this book and eagerly await the rest.

A long and complicated international thriller that starts in Amsterdam and spirals outward - a hit-and-run leads to corruption, trafficking, sex slavery and terrorism. The pace can be a bit slow: lots of things happening that don't move the plot on, and I didn't like the journalist seeing dead people: a bit fanciful and pseudo-spiritual, really. By the end, the author seems to have lost interest and/or exhausted himself as the story gets a bit sparse. All the same, this is good as an airport thriller but doesn't bring anything new to the genre.

Brilliant in every sense, it's already a long wait for the next instalment.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Penguin UK - Michael Joseph for an advance copy of Butterfly On The Storm, the first novel in The Heartland trilogy, set mostly in Amsterdam.

A young boy is knocked down on a country road and left for dead. Who he is and what he was doing there is a mystery to detectives Diba and Calvino. Journalist Farah Hafez is at the hospital on an unrelated matter when she hears the boy speak and offers her services as a translator. The boy's accident sets off a chain of events which lead all three investigators into extremely murky waters.

Butterfly on the Storm is undoubtably an ambitious novel, taking on the big themes of corruption, the Russian oligarchy, paedophilia and the role of immigrants in Dutch society - I don't think it is an accident that all 3 protagonists have foreign heritages. I did not, however, find it an easy novel to follow and felt that some of the connections were tenuous at best. This may be because it is not a gripping read and it is easy to put down. I'm unsure if this is due to the translation or just the way the novel is. The ending is action packed but very inconclusive, obviously setting up the sequel. I don't like cliffhangers in novels and this one is a doozy.

The author seems ambivalent about his protagonists. The reader is given plenty of information about them, their actions and reactions but it is still difficult to really know them or identify with them.

All I can say is that, based on this novel, comparisons with the Millennium trilogy are wide of the mark.