A gripping and tense thriller, with a well written plot with plenty of twists and shocks

Thank you Netgalley for a copy for an honest review

What a chilling prologue – I really felt the girl’s fear as she realised her fate! This has to be a good sign for a brutal police procedural, if ever I read one!

The cast who played out the story before me were a miss-mash of reprobates. Fenton with his parenting issues and guilt, Blake with his PTSD, Ince with… well his interesting issues and then our psychopath.

Getting insights into the murderer’s thoughts was very interesting and chilling. Such bravado! The killer is brutal, real psycho; feeding on the response received from the public. Almost addicted to the attention the sick I, Killer followers gave!

I was slightly disappointed that the blurb suggests (to me anyway) this is the start of a series but there doesn’t appear to have been a follow up since. I liked Fenton and Blake as a pairing and I’d have liked to seen some more from them.

All in all, Now You See is a good police procedural that kept me on my toes. The jumps between character perspective gave the story plenty of momentum. Great debut from this former journalist.

This was a brilliant read. As soon as I started reading this book I just knew I was going to love it. Highly recommended

This was a gripping and tense psychological thriller with an emotional plotline. I loved the writing style and was kept on the edge of my seat. Another brilliant book from the author.

I love the structure of this book with short quick paragraphs. It makes it that much more of a page-turner. Very clever. This is definitely a must read to add to your collection.

I found this book quite enjoyable but quite predictable at times. Maybe I read too many crime books but overall I felt that I knew where this story was heading. Despite this I managed to read it quite quickly and it hasn't put me off reading the next instalment. I'm quite interested to see what happens to DCI Fenton.

Absolutely addictive read. A total page turner that was one of those books where you say ‘just one more chapter’ even when it was late into the night. Have to confess didn’t get the killer early so was an ‘ of course’ moment once I found out. Would absolutely recommend this book to friends and family

This book knows how to keep you on your toes, there’s a twist at every turn.
This book was deliciously brilliant and I had had to eat it all up in one sitting.
5stars

Now that's better!
Admittedly, this is one of my favourite genres but I seem to have ploughed through quite a few mediocre crime novels just lately and it was beginning to feel like a slog.
Along comes 'Now you see' and I am enjoying Saturday Sofa Time once more.
Excellent delivery of a strong plot, relateable characters and several twists.
Many, many thanks to Netgalley and Mr Manning for putting me back on track.

This was a great, thrilling and entertaining read from beginning to end. This is the first book in the DI Dan Fenton series, and I can't wait to read some more! Recommended!

Max Manning has created a modern serial killer who likes to upload photos of his victims moments before and after their deaths. He is always one step ahead of the police and taunts them with his messages and following on Twitter.

Chief Inspector Dan Fenton is in charge of the investigation but things become personal when his daughter's nanny is targeted by the killer.

Blake's ex-girlfriend is the first to be murdered and is a prime suspect for no reason other than being the ex-boyfriend. When Fenton finds himself thrown off the case, he and Blake set out to catch the killer.

This is quite a clever concept, well written, very fast paced and kept me guessing to the end who the killer was.

This sounded like it had a very interesting concept and take on the serial killer plot that we normally see as it has managed to incorporate our love of social media into the murders! So this follows a serial killer as I mentioned before who is killing his victims and putting a picture of them before their death and after their death on social media. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again but I’m loving the incorporation of social media into the newer crime novels; cara hunter does the perfect representation in the actual print media in her book but I did think this was a great example of sensationalising the murders and for the serial killer to get more attention that he/she needed. It did also touch on why people look at upsetting and disturbing material online when it becomes available, especially when it helps validate the killer and their actions.
One of the main characters we follow is DCI Fenton who has a daughter and who we also find out, has recently lost his wife to cancer. He is one of the detectives on the serial killer case and to be honest, I didn’t really get much from him. He didn’t feel that fleshed out and I wouldn’t say that he’s anything special in terms of a police detective in a police procedural. The other main character we get to follow and hear from is Blake; this is the first victim’s ex-boyfriend and actually has quite an interesting plot. He used to be an investigative journalist who has a very interesting past which he is still trying to escape from. I feel like we definitely got more of a backstory for Blake and he definitely felt more fleshed out that Fenton which was weird as this is meant to be DCI Fenton’s series.
I thought the plot was intriguing, but I did feel like that was mainly because of the social media aspect. We were led to believe that a certain person was the killer, but it seemed way too obvious that this was what we were supposed to think. I did figure out who the killer was before it was revealed but that may be because when you read so many crime and thriller books, it starts to take a great plot twist to really surprise you.
This wasn’t a bad book by no means, I just didn’t feel like it was anything special. If you’re looing for a more modern crime book which isn’t too heavy with actual police procedural work in an office or station, then this could be a good novel to pick up. I also really enjoyed Blake’s involvement in the story the most and I would really like it if we saw him again in the next book!

Wow I read a lot if Crime thrillers so it’s always great to read one that has an utterly original story line. I think what makes this book so chilling is how real it seems. With the popularity of social media I think it’s probably only a matter of time until a real killer flaunts his murders in this way.

The way people react to the murders seemed very true to life and I could imagine some of the comments in the book actually being comments from real people. It also brought up some intriguing questions as to what people’s reactions would be if pictures of murder victims where posted on line. Would they look? Would it make killer famous? I’d love to say I wouldn’t but I think it’s part of human nature to have a little bit of morbid curiosity about such things.

I couldn’t decide if I liked DCI Fenton or not. In one hand he was clearly a hard working cop and a loving father who wanted to ensure they caught the killer. However he also seemed very grizzly and unnecessarily rude at times. His pedanticness annoyed me too along with his refusal to take risks.

The reader gets to see the killers point of view too as there are short descriptions about what he’s thinking, why he’s killing and his real to his ‘fame’ in each chapter. This is very chilling to read, particularly when you realise how into his infamy he is and how much of a kick he’s getting from it. In a world where people get famous for the stupidest things, it sent a shiver down my spine thinking this might be how someone achieves it in the future.

Think is a fairly fast paced book that has lots of revelations and twists that kept me interested throughout. I was kept guessing to the end who the killer was which is unusual for me as I’m normally quite good at guessing!

Now You See is Max Manning’s debut crime novel and I really hope he doesn’t keep us waiting long for his next book as I am very excited to read it.

Huge thanks to Jenni Leech for inviting me onto the blog tour and giving me a copy of this book.

I really enjoyed this book and will be recommending it to everyone! A definite must read.

This is a really solid, entertaining new crime series which grabbed me from the first page until last. The characters are well-crafted and likable - though Fenton wasn't hugely memorable, he's a solid detective who you have faith in, and I really liked (perhaps preferred?) Blake and would happily read a lot more about him!

I particularly like the fact that it wasn't all centered around the police, and seeing Blake's side gave it a different slant. I also really enjoyed seeing into the mind of the serial killer - it's been done before but I feel that it's done really well by Max Manning here.

The plot is fun to read and the social media element is a little different too. The short chapters are great at making you think 'just one chapter', until suddenly it's the middle of the night and you've got work in the morning!

Overall I found Now You See an engaging and fun read, and am looking forward to future installments in this series!

A good action packed crime drama. I had guessed who the murderer was about 2/3rd into the book, but I was still gripped with intrigue as to how it was going to pan out.
A quick read, but that could be due to the fact that I struggled to put it down so I read it almost in one sitting!
Thanks to NetGalley, Max Manning and Wildfire publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This is a 5 star modern thriller which would make a great film. There are plenty of twists and turns which kept me engrossed to the last page!

A fast paced, gory thriller that is well written and tense throughout.
Told from various viewpoints, including iKiller’s makes this book stand out from the rest.
A sick killer is on the loose, posting the kills on the internet and racking up a bizarre following and DCI Fenton is the man out to catch him until events take a turn for the worse and bring the iKillers exploits to Fenton’s doorstep.
Full of twists and turns and action packed, I would recommend this novel.

The blurb for ‘Now You See’ says that it is a perfect read for fans of M. J. Arlidge, Robert Bryndza and Angela Marsons. This Ginger Book Geek loves all three writers and so when I read the blurb, I just knew that I had to read the book. I am so pleased that I did because I absolutely LOVED ‘Now You See’ but more about that in a bit.
The main police officer is called DCI Dan Fenton and he is called in to investigate the murder of the first victim of the so called ‘I-Killer’. What he finds horrifies him and he finds it particularly disturbing that the ‘I Killer’ uses social media to brag about his crimes and he shares photos of the victims from just before they died and from minutes after their death. The case escalates with more victims and the horrifying realisation that the killer is gaining fans. DCI Fenton is certainly up against it with this case. DCI Fenton is a hard working and dedicated police officer. However, he has suffered some tragedy in his personal life too, as his wife died of cancer, which leaves Fenton to care for their daughter. This leaves him in an unenviable position of trying to balance his work and his home life. It’s not surprising that Fenton feels that he needs help and so he hires a babysitter/ nanny for his daughter. However it is obvious from the start that the babysitter/ nanny is keeping secrets but what could they be and is she really who she says she is? Without giving too much away, I did think that the agency that supplied the babysitter/ nanny needs to rethink their policies and procedures as well as rigorously check the employment history of their employees. Fenton is determined to solve the case before anybody else falls victim to this vicious killer and before the killer acquires even more fans. The case takes a sinister turn, which has an impact on both DCI Fenton’s work life and his private life. What follows is a life or death struggle for the lives of DCI Fenton and his daughter. What secrets is the babysitter/ nanny keeping hidden? Will DCI Fenton solve the case before any further victims are claimed? Will DCI Fenton and his daughter survive being caught up in the case? Who is the murderer and what is their reason for their killing spree? Well for the answers to those questions and more you are just going to have to read the book for yourselves as I am not going to tell you.
My first thought on finishing ‘Now You See’ is ‘bloody hell what a fantastic debut novel it is’. The book starts in such a way that it will stick in my mind for a long while to come and the story hits the ground running and maintains the pace throughout. I was hooked from the first word on the first page and I just had to keep reading. The chapters are short but end in a such a cliffhanger type way that you simply have to read on and on and on. Before I knew what was happening, I became addicted to the book. The book literally came everywhere with me and I just couldn’t put it down. It wasn’t glued to my hand but it might as well have been. I have to be honest and say that at times I wasn’t sure how the different characters could possibly fit into the story but I needn’t have worried because in the end all the different strands and characters knitted together seamlessly. Reading ‘Now You See’ was like being on one of the most unpredictable rollercoaster rides ever with lots of twists and turns. There were also moments where I felt my heart rate increase and where I held my breath because I genuinely feared what was going to happen next.
In short I absolutely loved reading ‘Now You See’ and I would definitely recommend this book to other readers. Max Manning is an author to watch and who deserves to be as popular and have as much success as other more established authors. ‘Now You See’ adds a modern twist to the serial killer story in that it explores the dark side of social media. This is one of those books that will stick in my mind for a hell of a long time to come. I can’t wait to read further books written by Max Manning and I sincerely hope that we don’t have too long to wait before book 2 is released. Hint hint. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a well deserved 5* out of 5*.

A fast and easy read that keeps you engaged throughout. Good plot lines and interesting characters. Very informative and the author certainly knows his stuff. I’d be interested to see if this progresses into a series and to see how a relationship between Fenton and Blake could evolve.

Thank you to NetGalley, Headline and the author for the chance to review.

3.5 stars

This is a good start to a new series and I look forward to reading more by this author.
A gruesome murder is committed and photos are then posted on social media of the victim, before and after death.
DI Fenton is tasked with finding the killer who is leaving his mark on social media as #IKiller and his posts are creating a frenzy with the public. Even though the Police remove the posts it’s never quick enough and by this point thousands of people have viewed the disturbing images.
Blake is one of the victims ex-boyfriends and is under suspicion at first, but then he is asked to start his own investigation by the victim’s sister.
Soon Blake and Fenton are working together trying to stop the killer.
There’s a real race against time at the end which will have you on the edge of your seat.
Thanks to NetGalley and Wildfire for the opportunity to read this book.