I am a fan of Nikki French but I confess I really struggled with this. I found it to be quite repetitive and some of the language to be stilted and clunky. Just couldn't enjoy it I'm afraid.

I should have read other reviews about reading this series in order- but like a mutt I didn't.
Now having finished this wonderful thriller I will search out Monday through Saturday and read the rest in order.
There are no spoilers here - see other reviews for those here I want to recommend the writing and the skillful crafting from two authors who seamlessly meld their individual efforts into one great book. Here I think we get the best of two great writers.

This is just another excellent read. I found it darker than any since the first book in the series. So dark that I had to read a lighter read before bed (I am a wimp!).
I love Nicci French. Easily my favourite author. I expect one more in this series then hope they will go back to stand alones.
Funny thing is I don't like Frieda. She's just so annoyingly perfect. I wouldn't want to be her friend. I like Yvonne and Karrlson. But don't particularly like the other characters. This is a great credit to the writers though....I still want to know what happens. I'll re-read the whole series before the next book I think.

Freda Klein, a psychoanalyst has a homicidal perpetrator that the police have never managed to catch that sends her messages every so often. He has killed before and despite wider opinion, she is convinced he is still alive. When a new dead body is found in the floor boards of her London home, her old DCI and DC are asked to support the lead investigator, Patricia Burge with the case. It transpires this is a copy cat killer, but people around the skilled but difficult Klein start to also get hurt...

Whilst I usually enjoy Nicci French novels, I have to say I was disappointed with this book. I read it and still quite enjoyed it, but there were too many gaping holes in the police investigation and actions of Klein, not being part of the investigating team were unrealistic, making it difficult to feel entirely credible. Never did they usable mobile phone signals to trace where individuals had been or used CCTV to capture car journeys to support alibis.

The characters were decent as was the pace and story development. You learn who the copy cat killer is mid read and have an insight into his misguided ideas, but again he went from a credible, measured, intelligent person, to unravelling and escalating in his behaviour and kills too quickly. It's not a bad book, but not a great book either.

A gritty crime story with a back round story still to be finished. Lots of interesting characters who come together to form a family.

For some reason I just can't take to the characters in these books - as I started to read I remembered feeling this way when I read an earlier book in the series. The group of friends and main protagonist are also quite similar to those in another crimes series I've read and I can't take to them either - so clearly that's just on me!

I really liked the fact that the big "whodunit" reveal happened earlier and I enjoyed the story from this point. The ending in particular was a nice surprise, it would have been so easy for Freida to get wrapped up in meeting with Daniel but it didn't happen - much to my delight.

Thanks to Net Galley, Nicci French and Penguin UK - Michael Joseph for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

As always, I could not wait to get stuck into this book and I couldn’t put it down. The husband and wife duo known as Nicci French is a formidable writing team and they are able to add multiple levels of detail and sub plots to their thrillers. This technique draws the reader into the story and ensures that each page is full of twists and turns. I always feel that I am getting double the author with their books and thoroughly enjoy the complex plots and red herrings and the cliffhangers leave me wanting more.

The unlikely and reluctant main character is psychotherapist Frieda Klein - at times prickly and stubborn, but fiercely loyal to her friends and family. I have a girl crush on Frieda. You love to hate her because she refuses to listen to any point of view that differs from her own. She seems obsessed with Dean Reeve, a man responsible for a series of abductions and a murder. The problem is that he is meant to have killed himself 7 years previously so the police are not keen to pursue that avenue without proper evidence. Dean Reeve first appears in Blue Monday but it is not necessary to have read any of the previous books in order to enjoy this one.

The gruesome discovery of a dead body under Frieda’s floorboards is the springboard for another fast-paced race to discover the killer. Frieda’s friends, colleagues, family and even her patients are placed in jeopardy as the killer plays a game of cat and mouse with the police.

What more is there to say - I could not wait to get back to reading this book and eagerly await the next one. A gripping read and a pleasure to review.

Gillian

Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.

While this is at times a very staccato read, due to the high volume of dialogue in the story, Nicci has written a gripping, twisting and turning story that grabbed my attention and did not let go!

The main character in Frieda Klein is absorbing, and the ending of the story hints at more to come! I hope that is the case, as I would certainly like to continue my journey with Nicci French. I would highly recommend this book!

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book as an arc. I have read the first couple of books in the Frieda Klein series, but not all of them and was interested to read the conclusion. However, I have since read there is to one more book in the series? Having read the end of this book, I think there must be another one due as all the loose ends certainly weren't tied up!
This was a great read, Frieda is still walking the streets of London, I love the way the city is so evocatively portrayed. All the characters from the previous books are here and it was great to catch up with them again, I particularly love Ukrainian builder Josef. The horrific Dean Reeve who we first met in Blue Monday, is back in Frieda's life again, and is determined to wreak havoc again.
Well written and at times terrifying, I am a big fan of the Nicci French duo, I think I may have to work my way through the books in this series that I have missed now!

This was my first foray into thecFrieda Klein series of books and I now want to retrace my steps and follow through retrospectively to see how we reached where we are. I found the story fast paced and interesting. Has Frieda's nemesis Dean Reaves reemerged , despite being believed dead by the police. Frieda's friends and family are targeted in a series of incidents and she has to discover the perpetrator? Frieda is certainly a complex character amidst her band of friends. The ending does leave you wondering where the storyline will go next.

An engrossing read with many twists and turns that keeps you guessing at the final outcome.

The title comes from a song that I know from the Johnny Cash Live at Folsom album and it’s a title that works well for this, the 7th book in the Frieda Klein series.
When I was offered the opportunity to read this book, I started with the first in the series, and I am glad I did. Although it is possible to read as a stand-alone, I think it really does help if you understand who the central protagonist is and what her relationship is with the killer, Dean Reeve.
Dean Reeve has long been thought by the police to have killed himself, but Frieda, a consultant psychologist knows better.
The police have reluctantly had to accept that Reeve is still alive and is probably responsible for the murder of a man who is not only known to Frieda, but whose body is placed under her floorboards.
Petra Burge takes charge of the police investigation as it becomes ever clearer that anyone whom Frieda loves or is close to is now in danger.
One by one her friends and family are targeted. But is this Dean Reeve – or should he be believed when he sends Frieda a message suggesting that she look elsewhere? Once again the Police are on the back foot as the reader is drawn into the complex web created by Dean Reeve and his copycat would be competitor.
For Frieda, these events are intolerable. A character who has always valued her freedom and independence, she is now brought low by the knowledge that she is at the centre of the crimes that are doing such harm to her friends and family. She has to bring the perpetrator to justice, whatever it takes.
The book certainly moves at a fast pace with events following one another fast and furiously until your head is spinning. The characters are very well drawn and you feel you know them – in particular the new friendship – or at least understanding - between Frieda and Petra Burge is to be welcomed in an otherwise fairly male environment.
The conclusion is swift and brutal and leaves the reader wanting more – I feel sure there must be at least one more book to come. I’ll certainly be reading it if there is! A gripping series.

I've read all books in the series to date and, although I'm led to believe this is the finale, I doubt it ends here.. What a thoroughly satisfying read! The characters are so involved with and natural with each other, enabling a most believable tale. There are the many twists and turns which I've come to expect from Nicki French but also the characters are drawn so well, I feel I know them. It's so perfect for a TV series, the storyline and characters being superior to many offerings. Let's wait and see.

Only slightly negative point I want to make is that the ending did not satisfy! There must be more.

The unresolved ending left me both frustrated and hopeful - could Frieda and the gang really return for another outing?! I didn't entirely believe in the relationship between the killer and his wife but otherwise it was another gripping and enjoyable thriller from the reliable French.

This has to be the darkest Frieda Klein novel so far...... With violence and death stalking her at every turn Frieda remains calm while trying to protect all those she loves and cares for. Gripping from start to finish.

This is my first venture into the world of Frieda Klein - the jury is out on whether I will delve back into her previous exploits. This book did rely on you having prior knowledge of events and characters and I did feel as if I was looking in from the outside - not fully involved in action as it unfolded. I did enjoy the location, set in London - and some of the secondary characters are great. I am sure I will in time return to meet Frieda again.

A good read but i think something is missing and i cant quite put my finger on it, i will probably try reading again

This is the first book I have read in this series but it did not matter at all and it was easy to read as a stand alone book. Frieda is chasing a shadow although there is a growing belief that the man she is chasing is alive. Her friends and family become victims of crime but who is carrying out these attacks is it the shadow she is hunting or someone else. A fast paced excellent read

I wasn't aware that this book was the seventh in a series but luckily it did not matter. The book was still enjoyable. A good read.

Long term readers of my book reviews may recall I've struggled with the Nicci French Dr Frieda Klein series. I actually even put one or two of the early books aside rather than continuing with them.

However, I actually enjoyed the last one I read,  Friday On My Mind and commented in that review on the fact I felt that Frieda was - perhaps - evolving a little and become a more likeable character. I'd like to think I wasn't alone in struggling with early Frieda and the Nicci Gerrard / Sean French pairing decided to insert a little personality into her stiff unrelatable demeanour. I suspect however, it's probably more about the trajectory they'd always planned for the socially-challenged psychotherapist rather than public outcry. 

I should mention that it wasn't until I came to write this review that I realised I somehow completely missed Saturday Requiem, which was out earlier this year.

Anyhoo, there's finally some vindication for Frieda in the seventh outing in this series when it appears her belief that psychopathic killer Dean Reeve - who she's long believed to still be alive - IS indeed alive and well. Hmmm.... by 'well' I mean living and breathing, albeit still psychopathic - presumably.

Now, if you're like me and really cannot remember Reeve's earlier appearances in this series, never fear, as it doesn't matter. I do recall reference to him (or at least a sense of his presence) in the last book I read, but really can't recall his initial introduction. So - if you're coming into this series late, it doesn't matter.

All you really need to know is that those around Frieda (and thankfully she was a pretty prickly and unsociable character, so there aren't many of them) are at risk.

We've all read enough books and watched enough fictional TV about psychopaths to know they never start with the object of their obsession... rather akin to the cat and mouse, they play with their victim to prolong their sense of anticipation - almost like foreplay - eking out their enjoyment and their target's pain for as long as possible.

And that's exactly what it seems Reeve is doing. Or is he?

I liked the introduction of Chief Inspector Petra Burge and appreciated that the authors didn't feel compelled to set her up in an adversarial relationship with Frieda - which has been the case in the past and was getting a bit old.

There's a sense of change in this novel and - in reality if the series was reflecting the days of the week - this would be the last. Given the way the book ends however, I'm not sure if that will be the case. Of course, if it continues it will be interesting to see where the authors take the series.

I was a bit reticent to start this book, given my meh-ness about early novels in the series and the fact it was over 400 pages... but once I started I did not stop and read the book in a sitting - enjoying the pace and unfolding plot.

3.5 stars