Hard for me to review this book as I didnt realise it was part of a series and so as I started reading I felt like I had just walked into a party late without a clue who was who, what had happened or why. The first few chapters had so many names and people and references to other stories that I lost interest pretty quickly. Also didnt realise it was a paranormal story, which in my opinion very rarely make good books.

Obviously this is down me not reading the blurb or doing my research on the book before requesting.

Just not for me.

Sorry, could not finish this book! Thank you for approving me, but I felt that this book wasn't my cup of tea!

I actually enjoyed this story - even if it was about Clown suits.

Thanks for the chance to read this

An intriguing mystery with tension and twists. The recurrent characters made me interested in backtracking and reading the series from the beginning.

Thanks to netgalley for the chance to have read this great read.  I loved being part of the lives of the characters, and really enjoyed the book.  Recommended.

I love the characters in this series and their interactions. A thrilling story with a scary ending

Having read a few of the preceding books, I was curious to see how this would like up to the others. I was pleasantly surprised that the story-line was still original and with just the right amount of creepy factored in.

A very quick and sufficiently creepy read. I finished it in one evening. I didn't know when I requested it that it was part of a series, and I wish I had. The author does a decent job of trying to fill you in on the background of the characters, but I might have enjoyed it a little more if I'd read them in order. It features a couple of twists that definitely surprised me.

Back in 1950, a young man has run away and joined the circus. He's now Tufty the clown, clad in a black and white suit and strange orange wig. He's good at his job, but one can't call him a good clown... he's definitely not someone you want around your children. Or yourself.

In the present, a different young man named Walter has come across a strange clown suit he's mysteriously drawn to. The voices in his head now come from the suit... making him put it on and do terrible things.

Annie is a former policewoman on maternity leave. She has a few months left to enjoy her time with her charming eight month old son Alfie. She is also a bit of a psychic, much to the dismay of her police officer husband. We don't get many details, but it's very clear that the powers she has have led her to trouble in the past and put her in grave danger. She hasn't been experiencing anything otherworldly for some time, but that all changes with a dream. She sees a house where a woman has been murdered, and again feels like there's spirits around. Husband Will is on the case she dreamt of, and eager to keep her far away from it and out of harm's way... but that might not be an option.

I was given an ARC of this book from Net Galley and HarperCollins UK, thank you! My review is honest and unbiased.

Let's just talk about the cover for this book first. I love a cover that instantly has me wanting to read a story, and this is one of those. As soon as I saw it I was hooked, and I couldn't wait to read the book.

As a fan of this series I wasn't sure what to expect with this one as the main female character, Annie Graham, wasn't actually part of the investigating team as she was at home with her newborn baby Alfie. I needn't have been concerned, however, as she manages to find herself embroiled in the mystery regardless. With her gift Annie is able to gain information which otherwise would have remained hidden, but is she able to decipher it properly?

The story itself gripped me instantly and I honestly found myself unwilling to put the book down once I started. The author shocked me a little near the end of the story, and I'm now unsure as to what may happen next. However another little twist gave me hope at the very last sentence. I cannot wait to see what she brings us next.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing a copy.

Oh God. Nooooooo. Why didn't I follow my first instinct with Helen Phifer? The first of her books that I read left me a bit cold. But then I read another, and really enjoyed it. Then I read this, not knowing it was part of a series. AND NOW I HAVE TO READ THEM ALL!!!! I just don't have time (*cries into her kindle....hopes it's water resistant*)

So Annie Ashworth (nee Graham) should be enjoying her maternity leave while her husband deals with the nastier elements of life. But the spirits have other ideas and her dreams are haunted by a creepy clown with a knife. Meanwhile in Barrow Walter discovers an old clown suit that seems to be able to control him, and make him act in ways that he previously found unimaginable. But this suit belonged to Tufty the clown, a clown happier to get screams than laughter....

What I liked about this book was it does what it says on the tin (or cover if you like). It's a very creepy tale, but not overly gruesome. The story is well told and although it's number 6 in a series enough was revealed to let me know about the characters but also withheld enough to make it worth going back and reading the rest. Now I just need to find time to do it!

Thank you Netgalley, HQ and Helen Phifer for this advance review copy for an unbiased review.

No one knows what hides beyond the smile and the silly tricks of the most famous clown- until he is found guilty for murder and hung for his crimes... Except its 1950 how can they be sure they have the right person? Fast forward to current time and things start happening... this book was scary, thrilling. and OMG in so many ways. I loved every second of this book! Read for yourself- while the book setting is england, it is an easy enough read for American readers- i found the easiest way to understand certain words was just to read them as we normally say those words and not how they are written- that was the only downfall i found, otherwise i loved the entire book i found it moved along very smothly even with switching between 1950 and current time. !!

I would like to thank Netgalley and HQ Digital for and advance copy of Face Behind The Mask, the sixth novel to feature police officer and psychic Annie Graham.

Annie is on maternity leave when she gets plagued with bad dreams about a white house with a blue door. She is horrified to see it on tv the next day as the site of the murder her husband, Will, is investigating. The reader is much better informed as it seems to be a clown suit which incites the wearer to murder so there are two narratives that of Gordy the original owner of the suit in 1950 and Walter who finds the suit in a house clearance in the present day.

I confess that I do not enjoy paranormal books as I find it impossible to suspend my disbelief far enough to enter into them and was unaware when I downloaded this book that it had these elements. For this reason I have rated it at 3 stars. If, however, you enjoy this genre there is much to like about the novel.

Ms Phifer does an excellent job with her characters. They are pleasant people with a strong friendship (except, obviously Gordy and Walter) and they bring a warmth to the novel the subject matter doesn't. She has a good ear for dialogue and it seems natural. The plot is well thought out and has an unexpected twist at the end.

Face Behind The Mask is not for me but it is well done.

I love stories that combine procedurals with the supernatural, which is why I was surprised that I'd never hear about the Annie Graham series. At first, it was a little hard to follow all the personal history between the characters, so reading the volumes in order would be recommended. However, it's not really necessary, as the background morsels buried in the new story quickly helped me catch up. Will, Annie's husband, is investigating a stabbing for which they have no motive or suspects. Annie, who is on maternity leave, keeps having visions of a clown doing it. And what can be scarier than a creepy clown. Tufty seems to be the culprit because he is ugly, scary and has homicidal tendencies. But Tufty died a long time ago. We quickly find out who's the killer and why, but the police are behind and if only Will listened to Annie, he would have solved it already. I liked Annie and the whole team, I loved their interactions and their gallows humor. I just didn't like Will, probably because I'm missing so much backstory. But, seriously, listen to your wife! I will be adding the older books to my TBR list, because this is such an enjoyable series.

Wow this book was fantastic! Loved the characters, loved the story. Couldn't put it down, it totally sucked me in and didn't let me go until the very last page.

Walter has found an old clown costume, one he feels compelled to try on. Once he’s in the outfit, he feels strange urges and desires overcome him, hears voices and begins to do the type of things that never would have crossed his mind before. The costume was once the possession of 1950’s circus clown Tuffy, the kind of man that inspired clown phobia for a very real reason. Annie Ashworth may be on maternity leave, but when a serial killer begins stalking her town, the police officer becomes concerned. Annie can sense ghosts and she’s picking up the spirit of a troubled soul that needs to be put to rest – does it have anything to do with the terrible nightmares she’s having about a crazed clown? There is nothing creepier than a killer clown! Read this with the lights on!