Really enjoythis book. New series for the author, whokeeps getting better and better. Like that he describes part of the city that you can easily recognise as having walked passed yourself.
Edge of your seat thriller that keeps you hooed right until the end. Looking forward to many more within this series

The opening few pages had me gripped, four young friends were daring each other to go through the tunnel where the Bone Keeper was supposed to live. This was a legend that scared the children but was not real but when they went into the tunnel only three of them came out.
DS Shipley and DC Louise Henderson are called to a scene where a young woman has collapsed after being beaten and stabbed but the strange thing is a witness said he heard the song about the Bone Keeper when she went past.
It's difficult to review it further without spoilers so all I can say it is worth picking up and reading yourself, I loved the book and it had me on the edge of my seat from the beginning to the end and had lot's of surprises in between.
Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of the book.

This is a standalone by Luca Veste who is best known for his series of novels featuring DI David Murphy and DS Laura Rossi.

20 years ago, four teenagers went exploring in the local woods seeking to find to the supposed home of The Bone Keeper. Only three of them returned.
Now, a horrifically injured woman is found wandering the streets of Liverpool claiming to have fled the Bone Keeper. DC Louise Henderson must convince sceptical colleagues that this urban myth might be flesh and blood. When a body is unearthed in the woodland the woman has fled from the case takes on a much darker tone.
The disappeared have been found. And their killer is watching every move the police make.

This is a mix of the horror and the crime novel which will grip you throughout.
Like many of his books this is not at all cozy being quite dark at points but it will make you think and make you keep turning the page.

When myth becomes reality. So there’s a local myth kids talk about to scare one another, about a creature who takes children called the bone keeper, it lives in a tunnel and one day 4 kids set off to find it in the tunnel and only 3 come out.....a few years later a woman is attacked and again blames the bone keeper. The story flits from past to present and is a genuinely creepy read. I can’t say much without giving things away but I will say if you want a dark and creepy read that will have you sleeping with the lights on this book is for you!!!!

Oh, that wee rhyme at the start just sets the tone for the rest of this brilliant new standalone from Luca Veste, creeped me right out it did! When Caroline Rickards is found injured and bleeding in the streets the case seems to echo the dark myth of The Bone Keeper, who haunted the children of Liverpool many years ago. Caroline is insistent that it was The Bone Keeper who done this to her. Will others believe her that the urban myth of childhood nightmares could actually be real? And when the body count keeps rising it becomes harder to believe that it really was a myth!

The Bone Keeper introduces us to DC Louise Henderson, a woman who would appear to have a bit of a troubled past. We meet her as she is having a panic attack in her car as she is called out to an incident and it is clear that she is hiding something from her colleagues. Outside of police, she seems to have no friends; the police are her family and they seem to be as dysfunctional as her own had been. She keeps her past firmly hidden from her colleagues, even DS Paul Shipley, the one person that she appears to be close to. I got a real sense that she wanted to open up to someone, yearned for a connection but was trying to protect herself. While this aspect of her personality makes her difficult to connect with, it also makes her more intriguing as a character. There is definitely a dark secret here, something from her childhood that is hinted at, tantalising the reader and making them eager to discover more. Just what is her connection with The Bone Killer?

DS Paul Shipley is a mix of the "old school" and "new man" type and while he is sceptical of the connection to The Bone Keeper myth it is also clear that he cares for Louise. The two of them have a strong working relationship and insights are given throughout as to their connection. Louise and Paul are definitely a duo that I'm keen to see Luca develop, very different from Rossi and Murphy(check) but a couple that works well together. There is a connection and a depth to their characters that engage the reader, their shared history and knowledge of TBK myth brings them closer yet both of them view TBK in very different terms

This book is as creepy as hell, the woods, the non-human black mass with dead eyes and stench of death is enough to ensure you are pinned to your bed in fear when you wake up at 3am!

The novel skips between timelines and characters which can be slightly confusing at times, you certainly need to pay attention throughout or you will find yourself a little bit lost! Please don't let this put you off though as the story does pull together and all becomes quite clear and when those pennies drop then OMG they don't half drop, they come flying down, clattering around you and terrify the bloody living daylights out of you!

Luca Veste is a storyteller extraordinaire! The Bone Keeper is a perfect read for those who like a dark and twisted plot that will make them think twice about taking their dogs for a walk in the woods the next day! (Review to be published on my blog nearer publication date)

When a local myth becomes a chilling reality and past nightmares become present terrors you know that you're in for a treat.

Difficult to review without spoilers but this is a dark and creepy read that will have you checking that you've locked the doors and will keep you turning just one more page. It's tense and well written but you need to keep your wits about you as the changing between timeline and characters does get a bit distracting at times. I would have liked to like the main character more, but maybe that was the writer's intention, perhaps the damage from her past set her at a bit of a distance from the reader as well as from her colleagues.

This standalone book has made me want to read his Murphy and Rossi series!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the ARC copy of this book

A promising thriller - a serial killer bringing to life an urban legend, that unfortunately for me fell a little flat.

The Bone Keeper opens with four children entering a disused tunnel where the legendary 'Bone Keeper' is suppose to live. Only three come out the other side. We then move onto a stranded woman, found wandering the streets, singing a song about the Bone Killer, who she claims abducted her. It's DC Louise Henderson who is put in charge of getting to the bottom of the mystery and determine if The Bone Keeper is fact or fiction.

The constant flipping between timelines and characters was ultimately confusing, and made it difficult to follow the plot. I prefer a linear approach to these kinds of stories, as it's very easy to get sidetracked and then the plot becomes too convoluted. I also found the characters a little difficult to like - especially Louise. I'm still unsure how she was apparently aware of what was going to happen and why. The relationships between characters is also rather hard going and stilted. There's no real depth to any of them.

This lack of depth also means that the plot suffers. There's no emotional connection to the crimes and victims, and it all just comes across as rather clinical. As if we're going through the motions rather than being taken for a ride.

As I've mentioned before, I'm very picky when it comes to contemporary thrillers. I want something original, and this time The Bone Keeper didn't fulfil my high expectations.

Nothing about this book was predictable! I was expecting a detective fiction story and although the central character, Louise, is a DC this isn’t in any way a conventional story. It’s a dark, disturbing novel, that at times is scary and leaves the reader feeling decidedly uneasy.

Unfortunately I was unable to actually read this book due to the virtual printing errors that constantly appeared making it impossible to read

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. I have found a new author, this had everything and in parts very creepy. Good read

I can honestly say that I loved every word of this book! I received a copy to read and review via Netgalley. I was so excited to be able to read this early as I’ve been waiting for it for a while. I’ve only discovered Luca Veste earlier in the year and read his first novel so far but I loved that and as this is not part of the series I knew that I could read it without missing anything out.

Keep the lights on.
Remember to breathe.
This thriller will grip you like no other.

He’ll slice your flesh,
Your bones he’ll keep.
The Bone Keeper’s coming,
And he’ll make you weep.

This is based upon Louise Henderson who is all too familiar with the song from her childhood, where the woods are a place to be feared, now a detective she’s having to enter the woods and face her fears.

I couldn’t read this quick enough! I was convinced that I knew exactly what was going on and I was wrong!! This book kept throwing in twists and turns right up until the end....

Definitely a MUST READ

Twenty years ago, four teenagers ventured into the woods to find the home of The Bone Keeper. Only three returned.

Now, a woman is found the streets of Liverpool singing a sickening rhyme, she claims she fled The Bone Keeper. With much scepticism amongst the task force on the case, it is up to DC Louise Henderson to convince her colleagues there may be some truth behind the urban myth.

As more bodies are uncovered in the surrounding woodlands the investigation begins to take a more sinister turn.

Can Louise’s shady past cast some light on the case, and can she unearth the truth in time when the killer is watching her every move?

This story is told alternatively between ‘Now’ and ‘Past’, and although clearly labelled throughout I never felt as though it flowed very well. Instead of feeling gripped and wanting to read through to the next section, I often found myself putting my Kindle down and taking the opportunity to take a break.

For the most part DC Louise Henderson voices the main point of view. Unfortunately, I found her extremely difficult to engage with. I understood the authors ‘air of mystery’ around this protagonist but I don’t believe it worked in her favour, in fact it left me feeling rather detached from her.

Nevertheless, there were some parts that were actually quite scary and extremely well written. The parts from the view of ‘The Bone Keeper’ were sinister, the killings detailed and the mystery of this urban legend were intriguing. Sadly, it wasn’t enough for me to really sink my teeth into, and I found the ending particularly contrived.

There was potential for a great, suspense filled thriller in these pages but, for me, I felt it lost its way.

This one won’t be in bookshops until March next year, but it is definitely a story I will not forget to tell you about as soon as it hits those shelves. This is one bone-chilling, hella scary book about what they all thought was a childhood myth – a creature living in the woods labelled as the ‘Bone Keeper’ who sucks the life out of those that cross his path…

‘He’ll slice your flesh.
Your bones he’ll keep.’

Is he real though?! You will have to wait until next year to find out more…

Great story about a detective with lost memories that start to return during investigating a case. lots of twists and turns to keep you interested.

Set in Liverpool, where the local legend of the bone keeper is known by pretty much everyone: He is a man / creature who lives deep in the woods and collects victims to steal their bones. DC Louise Henderson finds herself plunged into the bone keeper’s tale when a woman, Caroline, is attacked in the woods and claims it is the work of the bone keeper. Is this a twisted copycat bringing the legend to life, or is the bone keeper actually real? This theme is very well played throughout the book, with just enough supernatural references to keep you guessing and wondering.

In a similar vein, we are also given a backstory to one of the two lead female characters (Louise and Caroline) – twenty-years ago, a girl, her brother and two step-siblings went into the woods to find the bone keeper and the girl’s brother is never seen again – once again you are cleverly kept guessing about which woman it refers to and, for me, this did add a great level of suspense to the read.

However, I felt the lack of character development for both Louise and Caroline meant the read was lacking depth. Louise is a complex character, every so often we are given a random glimpse into her dark side, like this: ‘She imagined strangling him, wrapping her bare hands around his throat and watching the life drain from him.’ When this happened, it often felt a little out of the blue and not seamless enough to be believable. The same could be said about Caroline, although not as central as Louise, she is important, but we don’t really get to find out much about her or what makes her tick.

Overall though, there is a steady pace throughout the book that kept me intrigued and enough twists and turns to keep things interesting. I found the ending a little rushed, but I did like the ideas and would recommend this as a creepy thriller with a difference.

Brilliant!

Not what I was expecting but thanks Luca Veste for freaking me out, making me loose sleep and checking and double checking my doors are locked!!

I haven't been spooked by a book like this since reading Red Dragon in my late teens and Veste has created a similarly terrifying 'monster' to make you check under your bed!

Well written, complex characters who guide you through the novel with ease, despite it scaring the pants off me!

Disturbingly brilliant Thank you!

I'm sorry but I just couldn't get into this book which was a huge disappointment to me.

I enjoyed Luca Veste's previous books and looked forward to reading this one very much. I particularly enjoy the descriptions of Liverpool and its surroundings. As the story unfolded I feared it may go down the supernatural route, which would have been a little disappointing. However the slick writing, graphic descriptions and building tension kept me enthralled. I particularly like the use of the two timelines and the fact that we weren't sure whose backstory was being described. A very polished novel from a talented writer. Looking forward to the next one!

Luca Veste's series featuring detectives Murphy and Rossi is excellent but his new standalone novel takes him to a new level. The writing is excellent, the mood of the story is dark of brooding and the supernatural element feels perfectly normal. The legend of The Bone Keeper is well-known in Liverpool and has caused fear and consternation for generations. Detective Louise Henderson was familiar with the myth from childhood and now she must face up to her demons by venturing once more into the dark woods to solve the mystery of the bodies which have been disinterred. Brilliant!

I have never read anything by Luca Veste before, but have heard his crime books are popular and, as they are set in Liverpool and I am insanely fond of the Beatles, anything set in my favourite city has to be worth investigating. “The Bone Keeper,” is a stand- alone novel and seemed a good place to start. The story opens with four children in a wood, daring themselves to go through a disused tunnel which is said to house a local legend, known as ‘the Bone Keeper.’ Four children go into the tunnel and only three emerge…

We are then introduced to D.C. Louise Henderson, who is having a panic attack in her car, when her partner, D.S. Paul Shipley calls. A woman has been found, assaulted and injured, wandering the streets. On investigation, she was singing a local rhyme about the Bone Keeper and she later claims that was who captured her.

One of the things that struck me about this book was that, although this was a stand-alone novel, written after several novels in a series, it really felt like a debut – a trifle unsure of itself. Whether that was because the author is going outside of the comfort zone of his series characters (and to be fair I haven’t read those), but this was often stilted, slightly confused and the characters, and dialogue, a little wooden. The crime escalates, but the tension doesn’t and, although there are various twists and turns in the plot, I found it hard to maintain any real interest in events.

Crime novels can be gripping, intense, sometimes scary, or emotional. This felt like quite a dry read to me – it went from plot point to plot point, with the various character secrets unearthed and the, slightly implausible plot, uncovered, but I never really cared enough and it became a bit of a slog. I would still like to try his series, but this sadly didn’t work for me. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.