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

Short, sharp chapters keep the pace going from first page to last, from the discovery of a body in a wheelie bin at Brighton Pavilion's tattoo convention, to the nail biting denouement, this is a book that has it all.

Things I really enjoyed about the story include the flawed and damaged heroine, Marni Mullins and the contrast in character between her and investigating detective, Francis Sullivan. She is trying to fly under the radar, and doesn't really trust the police-she has very good reasons not to-but her discivery of the first victim of the killer who becomes known as 'The Tattoo Thief' involves her, whether she likes it not ( and boy does she not!)

A tattoo artist herself, she makes a living through her art to support her and her teen son, Alex, whilst uneasily coparenting with ex-husband Thierry. She feels a huge responsibility as the killer is attacking her community, to make sure that they are afirly represented and not marginalised, and has a great deal of dificulty doing so. ]

Francis is her polar opposite, where Marni's past and feelings are writ large on her skin in the form of tattoos, Francis' reliance on his Catholic faith underpins his moral compass and is very much internalised. Whilst he takes the holy communion and his god into his body, Marni and her fellow artists, write it on their skin for the world to see.

It's a fascinating relationship which alternates between chapters from the killer's point of view. So you develop a relationship with each of the main characters, and an understanding of their motivation, as the killings escalate and they dance around each other. The tension is like a tightrope they are all trying to maintain their balance on, killer, marni and the police alike.

And the placing of this series in Brighton makes it so vivid, and real, it feels like you are there-it's as if the city is the skin and Alison Belsham is tattooing it with her story.It makes a brilliant backdrop to the hide and seek game the police and killer play in the hunt for corpses bearing this particular villain's marks.

I thoroughly loved it, it was devoured in a single day to the exclusion of cooking, (sorry kids) and other activities. Discovering that this was book 1 in a series was a grand day, I am am so thrilled to be in the blogtour for ''Her Last Breath'! And I also fully blame Alison for my new obsession for getting an octopus tattoo

Absolutely enjoyed from start to finish, u didn't want the book to end. Highly recommended, if you like books that keep you guessing and on the edge of your seat.

Unfortunately there was an error with my kindle log in and when I was finally able to log in again this book was no longer there. It had then been archived on Netgalley so I could not download it again. I have read good things about this book and hope on future I will manage to get the opportunity to read it.

This is Alison Belsham's first crime outing, and what an incredible debut it is! This book was thrilling, entertaining and gruesome from beginning to end, and I can't wait to read some more of her.
Recommended!

I was at Bloody Scotland in 2016 when I first heard of The Tattoo Thief. Alison Belsham had just won the Pitch Perfect panel and the halls were buzzing with whispers of a story where a killer was stealing tattoos from the body of his victims. It sounded terrific. Two years later I finally read it and it was as dark and twisted as I had hoped.

The murders and the detail of the tattoo depictions were high points in the story. I became completely caught up with the murder scenes and when the investigation began to focus on tattoos I loved the detail and discussions about the art and styles. It was engaging and fascinating and gave a fresh feel to a crime thriller.

The investigating officers were a bit more challenging to like. The lead character, DI Frances Sullivan, has just been promoted and at 29 years of age is running his first murder case. His second in command feels he should have got the job Sullivan holds and there is conflict from the outset. The power struggle detracted from the investigation at times and personal rivalries seemed to get in the way of getting the investigation running correctly. That said, the conflict brought out some strong characters – more memorable as a consequence of their conflict.

Dark murder mysteries are what I enjoy and my time with The Tattoo Thief was time well spent.

Good pacy read following a young newly promoted detective trying to catch a killer targetting Brighton's tattooed community against both the resistance of that group to the police and that of his own team to his appointment. Good construct and characters, plot flow a little suspect in a couple of places but a pleasing read and an author to keep an eye on.

This was an amazing story, not only about the police trying to apprehend a serial killer but with a detailed background of tattooing.. The perpetrator steals tattoos from designated targets and cures them to order, for a collector. Fascinating descriptions of the process and lots of action on the police front. Great read.

Sometimes a book comes along that is so clever that when you finish it you feel like you have been hit on the head with a brick, like in the cartoons you watched as a child. As you exhale a WOW and sit for a few minutes in the stunned awe. Replaying your favourite parts over and over in your head. A fantastic place to be may I say, it doesn’t happen a lot. So when it does, the book is truly magnificent.

The Tattoo Thief is a debut novel by Alison Belsham. Set in Brighton, England. We meet two key characters Marni Mullins and Di Francis Sutton. When Marni discovers a murdered victim, their life’s become entwined in a way neither could imagine.

The plot is genius and I don’t think I am giving much away, the clue is in the title. It includes a killer who is a thief of tattoos. A tattoo, something so personal and of course you would think once it was on your body, that was it a permanent addition. But this killer has other ideas.

I loved the gory gritty descriptions and the unpredictability of the storyline. I was never bored and it was an extremely enjoyable read.

Marni Mullins is my new favourite crime fiction crush. She is ballsy, tough, strong and underneath all that hard exterior has a beautiful heart of gold. It was refreshing to read about a female character who wasn’t afraid to speak her mind and who wasn’t feeble and girlie.

I was as very lucky to hear the talented Alison Belsham read from The Tatto Thief at the Noir at the Bar Edinburgh event and hearing an author read from their own book is always special. But having Alison Belshams voice bring it to life was so delicious and moreish. I wanted to read it again.

I loved The Tattoo Thief, if you are looking for something different to tantalise your crime fiction taste buds then buy it today. Let Marni Mullins into your life, you will be so glad you did.

Thoroughly enjoyable crime-thriller set in good ole' Brighton. Plenty of noir elements to this book, and some gloriously graphic scenes about flaying (so definitely not for the faint of heart).
The characters were well written. and with a strong female lead, and you do get a real sense of tension as the protagonists try to catch the killer.
It certainly isn't for everyone as it is rather dark and unsettling in parts, but the general premise, character and world-building is very good.

I really enjoyed this debut.
With a slight twist on the typical police procedural, Belsham brings us a young officer promoted before he maybe should have been. And his case as the boss is that of a serial killer who collects the tattoos of his victims.
I wasn't sure about Francis Sullivan at first. In fact, the whole police team seemed a little off at the start but perhaps it's because the teams in other books typically get along. Sullivan has been promoted young, which I believe is something that is happening a lot in the real world nowadays, people who perhaps have little hands on police experience being brought in to positions above those with years on the ground. His DS, Rory, isn't impressed with this and the tension between them creates a sense of foreboding for the team. Is Rory really that upset by the promotion of the whippersnapper that he'd risk the whole investigation?
Then we have Marni Mullins.
Marni finds the first body and is then asked to help the police identify the victim's tattoo.
Marni and Francis have a strange relationship at the start, they have secrets and a distrust of each other, but at the same time they seem to need each other. It was great to watch their relationship develop as they became closer and more comfortable with each other.
Told in chapters that switch between Marni, Francis, Rory, and the killer, it was a little hard to be fully immersed in each character and it felt a little disjointed in places – especially with the police chief and his constantly changing feelings towards his new DI.
All in all, a great debut with some thrillingly gruesome parts and a team that has the protentional to grow and develop in future books.

The tattoo thief is a good crime thriller that grabs you from page one, it starts with a mutilated body being found in a bin near a tattoo convention by a tattoo artist Marni Mullins, She is no fan of the police but she does call it in but then she finds herself reluctantly dragged in to the investigation by the newly promoted DI Francis Sullivan, He's on his first murder case since his promotion and it seems everyone wants to see him fail, The only thing that I found annoying was his boss who has no respect for him and is forever throwing him of the case for the smallest of reasons but apart from that the story line is engaging and kept you guessing to the end at who the culprit was. And I will definitely look out for more from this author.

Set in Brighton, the reader is taken on a journey of discovery and knowledge of a community that is being robbed of its skin…literally! We face payback, jealousy, bitterness, secrets, the past, art, proving oneself and a search for the truth in this clever and creepy debut novel!
The opening chapter of this novel definitely grabbed me by the throat and I must admit, I thought it was a brilliantly gripping start to the novel! What a clever premise too! I loved the idea that someone was collecting tattoos. Told from various POV’s there was a fantastic build up of tension in this perfectly paced story. The novel, in my opinion, is mainly character driven but the fascinating plot is what contributes to you wanting to keep turning the pages!
I thoroughly enjoyed “meeting” the various characters that come across each other in The Tattoo Thief. DI Francis Sullivan – as a newbie DI – was a fabulous choice to lead this gruesome investigation – his naivety, clean-cut background could not be a more delicious contrast to Marni and this pairing was awesome! Poor Sullivan is having to prove himself to his own team while keeping Marni, who is not very open to the police, on side. Marni is a superb character, though she did frustrate me at times – you know when you’re watching those moves and you want to shout at the screen “NO, don’t go down there”? THAT! But pairing her with Sullivan was awesome as her skills/knowledge of the tattoo community is exactly what is needed to inform the reader and move the story forward! LOVED it!
So many characters, but the only other one I want to mention is The Tattoo Thief – cunning, no fear and a total narcissistic – the gruesome killings make you shiver. I did figure out a few of the key points in this book at various stages whilst reading, but I was never 100% sure, so was thrilled when my detective work turned out to be on form!
Would I recommend this read? OMFG- you bet I bloody well would! A dark, twisted, graphic crime novel with a unique twist on a serial killer thriller – this debut ticked #alltheboxes for me! Make sure you add this #badboy to your TBR!

Newly-promoted Detective Inspector Francis Sullivan is called to investigate a grisly murder. A body was found in a dumpster near the Brighton Tattoo Convention, cut up and chewed by rats. The woman who found it made an anonymous phone call to the police and fled before they could find her. The case grows evermore horrific as Francis and his team realise that a section of the victim’s skin has been flayed and it was mostly likely done while he was still alive. When a second body is found under the pier, decapitated, they realise that the killer is taking his victim’s tattoos, cutting and stealing them from their very bodies. Francis nurses a terrible fear that they have a serial killer on their hands, someone unlike any other. Someone they must find before he finds another victim for his collection.







Marni Mullins is a tattoo artist with a sixteen-year-old son living in Brighton. She is desperate to leave her past behind but all the running in the world won’t carry her away from it. Having a break from her intense work with the tattoo iron at the convention, she takes a walk and stumbles across something terrible. A body left in a dumpster. When the police finally track her down, she agrees to help Francis. What better way to find a tattoo thief, then with the help of Marni Mullins.







Marni is quite an elusive character in the beginning. You’re given clues to her background and as the story progresses, the author feeds in more details about her life. She has her reasons for wanting to stay away from the investigation, for keeping that phone call anonymous. She is a fascinating character and I was sad to say goodbye to her and Francis come the end. Alison Belsham depicts a truly terrifying killer with searing imagery and description. He gave me a huge case of the chills.







If you like your thrillers dark and original, you’ll love The Tattoo Thief. A spine-chilling, thrilling read that will have you gripping the edge of your seat! Brilliant!







Gripping. Dark. Original.

The Tattoo Thief is a pacy and addictive thriller that I read all in one go – it is dark and quite brutal with an excellent twisty plot and some intriguing characters.
I liked Marni, tattoo artist, who gets caught up in a serial killer case despite her best efforts to stay out of it and the mystery elements are well plotted to keep things unexpected. It is gripping and often darkly violent, descriptively this is not for the faint of heart.
We get a glimpse into the world of the Tattoo artist, which was fascinating, the author also does a good job of looking at prejudice and politics – often unsettling, The Tattoo Thief is one of those books that can affect your dreams, the imagery staying with you long after finishing it.
I really enjoyed it – an addictive crime thriller for those upcoming cold dark nights.
Recommended.

This is Alison's first crime thriller, and it won the Pitch Perfect competition for new crime writers at the 2016 Bloody Scotland Festival. It's easy to see why. This is one hell of a genre debut and I raced through it in two days. Original, exciting, and just a wee bit gruesome. At Bloody Scotland this year, I was lucky enough to meet Alison and hear her talk about the book at a festival event.

Firstly, I have to say I really like the cover - it's very striking and dramatic. This is the second cover. My ARC had the previous, equally stunning black and red cover, but my bought copy has this one.

Francis Sullivan has recently been promoted to Detective Inspector at a relatively young age, this is his first case and his boss is just waiting for him to fail. His immediate subordinate Rory Mackay feels he should have been promoted to DI in place of Sullivan, so isn't keen on working for him. Antagonistic Mackay tries to oppose his boss, but also begins to recognise his wisdom and skil. I found Sullivan really interesting. He seems quite innocent, despite his job and senior position. He lives a quiet life and has a strong faith, in which he usually finds support and solace
The first body is found by tattoo artist Marni Mullins, who I adored. She's a woman in a man's world, gutsy, with a no nonsense, no bullshit attitude. But she has a dark history and is not a fan of the police. Can Sullivan change those views?

I was delighted to find that the book was set in Brighton. I lived there for several years, and knew many of the places mentioned. It remains one of my favourite places, and offers a real eclectic mix of people, activities and places. The perfect setting for this story.

We are thrown headfirst into the story with a gruesome first chapter from the point of the view of the killer. It took my breath away. From then the story is told from four viewpoints - Francis, Marni, Rory and the Tattoo Thief. I particularly enjoyed the chapters from the perpetrator (I hate to imagine what that says about me!) because they gave me an insight into a skewed, off kilter mind. They are quite gory and bloody, mind. Didn't bother me at all, but worth mentioning.

After this fab opening, the pacing is perfect. The story zips along, it's full of action and the tension builds towards a brilliant climax. And there are a few OMG moments. It's clearly been very well researched, and the author's acknowledgements provide some details about that.

This was a fantastic read, and I recommend it to anyone who likes their crime a wee bit on the dark side. I was excited to hear there's to be a follow up, and am waiting impatiently.

Oh I forgot to say, I'm a little bit in love with Thierry, but don't tell anyone, eh?

The Tattoo Thief is a unique police procedural with an interesting premise, albeit not one for the faint of heart and weak of stomach!

The story has a gruesome opening and - be warned - is stomach-churning at times throughout. The killer's narration is creepy and grim. From the start intriguing questions are raised about Marni's backstory and her relationship with her ex-husband, Thierry, and the police.

I must admit that, to start with, I didn't really find any of the characters particularly likeable: Marni was prickly AF, Thierry only aggressive, Francis a bit wet, Rory smug and unpleasant and DCI Bradshaw a bit of a ranting cliche. However, as the story progressed, Marni and Francis both really grew on me and Rory and Thierry both developed to be much more three-dimensional.

The plot here is original and the idea of someone murdering people for their tattoos is genuinely chilling. To begin with, I felt a little frustrated as we, the readers, knew more than the police and, with Bradshaw's constant posturing, stonewalling and interfering, it felt like the police were running around in circles. Once the plot gets into its stride though, and the police catch up, the pace really picks up and I enjoyed the second half of the book even more.

The tension increases throughout the investigation and there are some unexpected turns taken. The finale is particularly gripping; I was on the edge of my seat, racing through the pages to see how things would end up. I am presuming from the ending that there will be more to come in this series and I will be interested to see where Alison Belsham takes her characters next.

Thank you to Orion Publishing for my copy of The Tattoo Thief and to Tracy Fenton for my stop on the Blog Tour.

A really unique take on the psychological thriller genre. I must say, authors are coming up with some quite remarkable killing methods these days, ensuring that those of us who are fans of this category of reading never run out of material … I’m just a little nervous as to where they’re getting their ideas from, but I’ll leave that up to them, and I’ll just keep on reading!

This one’s a debut offering from Alison Belsham and if it’s anything to go by, I can’t wait for the next one! The Tattoo Thief is the first in a trilogy, featuring newly appointed DI Francis Sullivan. Not only is the fresh-faced Detective Inspector facing what increasingly looks like a serial killer who’s stalking the tattoo’ed community of Brighton, he’s also facing a department who aren’t a bit worried about blatantly showing him their lack of confidence in their new leader … him! It seems he’s achieved his position by being brilliant – on paper. Whether he can transfer that into action remains to be seen.

He’s thrown in the deep-end into a culture that’s completely alien to him. He has zero understanding of why you’d want to ‘ink’ yourself, and sees no beauty or art in it. It becomes the job of local tattoo artist Marni Mullins to guide him through the networks of her world. It’s not a job she relishes, but as she inadvertently discovered one of the bodies in question and recognised the work of her ex-husband Thierry on it, she’s involved, whether she wants to be or not.

Marni is running from her own demons, and as she and Sullivan find themselves thrown together on the case, the difficulties they face, both new and old, combine to add even more unwanted challenges to their already frustrating path.

The story is told in four voices: Sullivan’s, Marni’s, Rory Mackay’s – who feels he was passed over for promotion and should have had Sullivan’s position, and our twisted, blood-thirsty killer, who sees flaying skin from his still-living victims as an art-form.

I found this entire story fascinating. It’s brilliantly constructed and well paced. But apart from that, I found the information about tattoo culture extremely interesting, and the conflict between that and Sullivan’s strong Catholic beliefs were really well considered. Also, the whole aspect of intellect on paper translating into action in the field was also well explored. While I initially could understand Rory’s anger at being overlooked in favour of the cleverer candidate, I was annoyed at his superior, Bradshaw, who should have known better.

4 stars for this one. Highly recommended.

Thanks to Tracy Fenton and to Orion and Trapeze for inviting me along for this dark, twisty ride!

This book was on my radar for quite some time before I read it and once I did get my hands on a copy I just had to start it straight away. And I read it in one sitting as well as it is so completely and utterly gripping that I couldn’t bare to put it down! If, like me, you’re finding it hard to distinguish between police procedurals at the moment or want something a little bit different that really stands out from the crowd, then The Tattoo Thief is the book for you! It’s a fresh and exciting debut novel with interesting and intriguing characters whom I absolutely loved!

Marnie Mullins is a tattoo artist in Brighton with a rather complicated private life and a secret past. When she discovers a body whilst outside on a coffee break, she comes into contact with DI Francis (not Frank!!) Sullivan a newly promoted detective who needs to prove his worth. And when these two came together then sparks really did fly! Marnie has reasons to be wary of the police but when she spots a link between the body she discovered and other murders then she needs to work with Francis to bring a very disturbed serial killer to justice.

Pretty much everything about this book worked for me!! I loved Marnie Mullins, I found her to be a very strong minded individual but with a soft edge that made me want to protect her, especially as her tattoos also made her a target for this deranged murderer! I loved the idea that someone was killing people for their tattoos even though it was one of sickest collections I’d ever read about! And Alison Belsham did an AMAZING job of bringing the dark side of the tattoo scene in Brighton to life with her quirky characters and grisly murder scenes. I was completely gripped by the creepy antagonist and their point of view throughout the narrative and the twists and turns meant that I didn’t work out who was responsible until the big reveal.

I can’t wait to read more by Alison Belsham. This was an outstanding debut that took over my life whilst I was reading it. I was so utterly engrossed that I became part of its shadowy setting immediately and that feeling didn’t let up until the very end. Marnie and Francis were both characters who will stick in my mind and I would love to meet them again in the future.

Highly recommended by me!

If you’re a regular visitor to damppebbles.com then you will know that I like my reads to err on the darker side of fiction. In fact, I would go as far as saying, the darker – the better, for me! So I was immediately drawn to this book following the mention of ‘flaying’ in the blurb. But there was more to it than that. Yes, it sounded a little on the gruesome side but it is also about something that I find utterly fascinating. Tattoos. Now, I don’t have any tattoos, nor am I brave enough to go out and get one. But I can’t help but be intrigued and find myself casually gazing at tattooed folk from afar, trying to work out what designs they’ve had permanently inked onto their bodies. So in other words, this book absolutely sang out to me.

The Tattoo Thief is an unexpected, somewhat surprising mix. Some parts were dripping in beautifully vivid descriptions of blood-soaked gore, the pain the victim suffers, the process the killer goes through flaying their victim and what happens next (read the book to find out what this is). And then you have DI Francis Sullivan, a young DI in his late twenties who is purer than the driven snow. A devout Catholic, a stickler for the rules and a complete goody-two-shoes who is tasked with investigating the terrifying spate of horrific murders to hit Brighton. Out of his depth, much? You bet he is. Especially as his more senior and experienced DS is nipping at his heels. Looking for the moment when he can knock DI Francis Sullivan from his wobbly perch and take his DI crown. But I kind of liked that; a bit of ying and yang, a touch of light and dark. It worked for me.

This was an enjoyable read but I found the characters hard to like (particularly DCI Bradshaw who is an @rse and unbelievably reckless!). Even the unlucky Marni Mullins was difficult to warm to, although I really wanted to like her. It’s not often that I come across a fellow diabetic in the novels I read so that did help…sort of. Maybe I read too much crime fiction but on a number of occasions I wanted to shake Marni hard and scream ‘you’re going to do WHAT??’ in her face. Crime fiction 101, lady!

Please don’t get me wrong. This is a wonderful debut and a very gratifying read. I’m also very much looking forward to Belsham’s next release which is published in 2019! I absolutely love the idea behind this book. This is the type of storyline I adore and Belsham has done a great job of bringing it to fruition. I just found the twists a little obvious (but then I was looking for them because that’s the kind of annoying thing I do, grrrr!).

Would I recommend this book? Yes, absolutely. I am so pleased I read The Tattoo Thief. It’s a wonderful debut, and I really enjoyed the light vs dark aspect (but I will always want it to be darker. It’s fine, I know I’m weird). If you’re a little squeamish or nervous about graphic crime novels then this may not be the book for you (although I dare you to give it a go!). An absolutely fascinating read. Recommended.

Four out of five stars.