A well-written tense and thought provoking read. Terrifying at times, but a well-structured plot that grasped my attention from beginning to end. Fantastic read.

Seriously fast-paced political thriller! Thought provoking story with realistic and strong characters. It was not an easy read but very interesting, I don't think this book will be for everyone.

This was a fast-paced political thriller. It touched on ruthless secretive groups, conflicts and moral and ethical dilemmas with regard to the growth of the huge numbers of refugees and migrants that has become such a debatable issue.

"To the Lions" was an incredibly intense and highly relevant, fascinating read.

It was well worth picking this up. Rating: 4 Stars

I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel, at my own request, from Bloomsbury Publishing via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

DNF

Sadly, this book led me into a false sense of enjoyment. The description was brilliant and it seemed like the perfect book for me to read but unfortunately, the writing style was too difficult to follow and the plot didn't seem to be going anywhere so I did not finish it

Casey and Miranda are investigative reporters who find evidence of a group that can arrange human safaris. In order to uncover the full story they race against time and into ever more dangerous situations.

I really struggled with the writing style, indeed the first 20% really didn't make a great deal of sense to me I felt like the author had too many threads and not enough connections. As a journalist the author has obviously taken facets of her job and expanded them into a book but she has done this in the clipped style of a journalist and for large parts of the book I just wanted more narrative.

She has a really exciting, realistic plot line and some of the scenes are done really well. There is definitely horror and thrill within the book it just required better style

There is so much talent in this book. Really good to read a thriller written by a woman, about women; it shouldn't be such a change but it was and I loved it. It was complex and you did have to really concentrate to follow the plot but the intricacy and intelligence were really admirable.

Good story line that kept you on the edge of your seat. Casey and Miranda are very believable contact continues with her newspaper back home whilst they are in the desert.. The men involved looking for more and more thrills in their life away from the busy money worlds they work in. This could so easily happen in today’s world making the story worryingly real !

Holly Watt's novel 'To The Lions' is a chillingly disturbing thriller. Faced paced and very grim.
It's chilling because of its subject matter. That part of the human psyche that contemplates, maybe at first wistfully, what it would be like to take another's life.
Wherever there is weakness, there's a market. This one's for high rollers and the stakes are high, in fact the stakes are highest for the unwitting prey. This is where it gets grim and incredibly plausible too. For the unwitting prey are refugees.
We know wherever there has been armed conflict that attrocities happen but when the elite from amongst us go on a human safari.....could it be true, could it be a crime hidden because crimes don't get recorded in such situations? One would hope not but we do know of all the horrors which follow those fleeing conflict. A novel not for the feint hearted.

A minor niggle, the morphing phone from phone to torch and back to phone again all in a cave tunnel.

It's disappointing when the bones of a thrilling and intense story are present in a novel but are overshadowed by a messy writing style and unnecessary tangents that draw you completely out of the moment.

To The Lions has all the makings of an incredible thriller. Unfortunately, after having read around 20% of it, I was ready to give up. The first fifth of the book, to me, felt entirely incoherent. You're thrown in to a national paper news room and are introduced to (what seemed like endless) processes and people which did nothing for me in terms of hooking me into the narrative.

After this, once you really get into the meat of the novel and start to follow the main character Casey as she goes undercover, I have to say I was impressed. It almost felt like an entirely different author had taken over. The pacing was better, the characterisation was improved and more importantly, I actually became invested in what was happening.

So if you can make it through that first part of the book, you are in for a treat. There are unfortunately some instances where that initial writing flares up, usually in adding exposition or history to Casey's life but it's almost entirely pointless in regards to the narrative and throws you completely out of the story. I wouldn't have minded this had it been a paragraph here and there however, at some stages it was almost half a chapter worth of inconsequential information.

Overall, definitely an intense read and as I say, if you can stick through the first section of the book and get into the driving plot, it's definitely worth a read.

The author's storytelling is amazing and although I found this book very thought provoking and slightly disturbing I could not put it down and read it very quickly. I did not want to get to the end of a good story but needed to know how it ended. I thought the interaction between the two women was exciting and the story twisted in ways I was not expecting. It was interesting to be in the centre of a newsroom and learn something of their day to day existence and the pressure I guess they are under on a daily basis. I enjoyed the toing and froing from country to country and the way they worked through the problems. A great book and wonder if there will be another one to follow the story of Cassie and Miranda’s journey through the newsroom.

Compelling, thrilling & a ‘must read’! This wasn’t the easiest of books to read as the subject matter is so disturbing but I needed to get to the end to find out what happened. Do read this unusual & well written story.

I was sent an advance reader uncorrected proof of To the Lions by Holly Watt to read and review by NetGalley.
This is an engrossing, fast paced and at times disturbing read. The characters are well drawn and quite believable and the settings for the story are very evocative. Set in the world of newspaper publishing the novel follows journalist Casey as she endeavours to capture the truth of an horrific story she overhears in a London nightclub. Along with following the action we also learn some of the workings of newspaper publishing, which I found quite interesting, the author managing to express the urgency of meeting deadlines both in the office and in the field. This book, as well as being a great novel in itself, highlights the real world issues of refugees and migrants which is very thought provoking – exactly as it should be.

This was a very different story where rich people pay to be taken to Libya where they kill refugees so that they can feel what it is like to kill someone. Two journalists from The Post put their lives on the line to get the story and proof that this is happening and try to stop it. Non stop action, good cast of characters and lots of daring do. Interesting storyline..

What a mind this author must have ! A story that is so relevant to today , the lengths some Hedonistic people could go to for thrills is frightening . Set in a newspaper office in London , a writer overhears about people going to Libya en route to a refugee camp for the ultimate thrill to shoot somebody with a sniper rifle just to see what it feels like . The writer and some colleagues get to join this party by subterfuge and threats , witnessing what happens and having to escape from the organisers . They get their story but are attacked after arrival in London . Well written and not obvious where it is going next .

‘To The Lions’, first novel from journalist Holly Watt, is an engaging thriller not least because, unusually, it features two successful female investigative reporters at the centre of the narrative. Initially set in London, we are taken to Libya where Casey and Miranda, along with former Marine Ed, seek to verify an appalling story overheard in a London nightclub catering for ‘rich boys’.
It seems that someone is running a lucrative business providing for those who have a very specific type of safari in mind, the prey being human rather than the usual big game. Holly Watt writes convincingly about the chaos and the misery to be found in the many refugee camps set up for displaced Syrians and her descriptions of the vast and unforgiving Sahara are also memorable. Nevertheless, whilst the story moves along at a tremendous pace and is genuinely very tense in places, the plot is sometimes utterly incredible, reading like a James Bond tale rather than a serious piece on the exploitation of the weakest. This inconsistency of tone doesn’t really work for me.
I imagine that this will be the first of a series focusing on the talents of Casey and Miranda and, hopefully, their back stories will be revealed in more detail in future. It is very difficult indeed to appreciate why these two are drawn to such extraordinary danger without understanding what drives them, other than a job well done. In order to really care about their survival, I should have liked to have become a little more invested in them both over the course of the story – and that just didn’t happen.
My thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for a copy of this novel in exchange for a fair review.

Whilst undercover on a different case, star investigative reporter Casey Benedict overhears a conversation in a nightclub that horrifies her if true, that implies people can pay large sums to get to shoot at people. So begins the story that will take her from London to the glitz of St Tropez to the remote parts of Algeria and Libya, along two colleagues, to write a story that has to be written but knowing that her own life and that of her friends is at serious risk.

The tension is good in this thriller and the subject matter very dark. On the good side, for me at least, serious political and social issues are dealt with – immigration, the plight of refugees in the many camps around the world, the morality (or not) of political and other leaders, and corruption at its worst at both a personal and societal level. It’s hard to cover such issues in such a short novel but at least a good attempt was made and I felt this book might open the eyes of some who might be unaware of such goings-on. On the other hand, I did find some of the writing a little cliched at times and I didn’t feel moved in places I felt I ought to be – perhaps because the writing was a little like a journalistic account rather than a more personal account and so it felt a bit detached and the poorer for that, I think. These things are so personal, though, and overall I reckon it’s a good tale and one worth telling.

To The Lions is just my kind of book, strong realistic characters, a tense and thought provoking story with perfectly immersive writing and a page turning quality that grips you throughout.

Investigative journalism sits at the centre of Holly Watt’s considered thriller as Casey Benedict, our main protagonist, stumbles into a dark possibility. Instincts kicking in, she sets out to expose the truth, but danger lurks around every corner.

There are some heart breaking truths ingrained into the narrative, the journalism backdrop is entirely fascinating and there is a huge dose of authenticity to boot making To The Lions a classically absorbing read that works on every level.

A snapshot view behind the scenes of those big breaking news stories, intelligent and intriguing from first page to last, I have no problem highly recommending this one. Quality fiction, the type I read for, right here. I’m very much hoping there is lots more to come.

A young investigative journalist follows a lead that suggests some unscrupulous rich people are hunting the forgotten humans – refugees, for kicks. The trail leads Casey and her fellow journalist Miranda to North Africa, to discover the truth.

This is a high octane, political thriller full of action and violence. The investigative journalist aspect of the story is realistic. The events Casey uncovers are disturbing.

The writing style is factual. The first part of the book is hard to read, but the second half is more dynamic and faster paced.

This story authentically explores the human cost of this tragedy and poses the journalist with believable moral dilemmas.

I received a copy of this book from Bloomsbury Publishing - Raven via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Not a bad story,just found the style it was written in very disjointed and hard to read. Two female leads was unusual.

“Remind me - who are we throwing to the lions today?” - Ross, News Editor in ‘To the Lions’.

My thanks to Bloomsbury Publishing/Raven Books for an eARC via NetGalley of Holly Watt’s debut novel.

Overhearing a snippet of conversation in a crowded London club Investigative Journalist Casey Benedict realised that it may lead to an explosive expose. She manages to convince her editor to back an undercover operation in North Africa. She is teamed with Miranda, another reporter at The London Post, and Ed, a former Royal Marine with whom Casey almost had a relationship some years previously.

In order to get the evidence they need to run the story they place themselves in mortal danger. Given that this is a dark political thriller I am not going to say too much about the plot. Watt, herself a former investigative journalist, confidently taps into contemporary global issues.

The narrative combines the economical style that I find is often a trait of journalists who turn to novel writing with beautiful descriptions and in places a quite poetic quality. Casey’s humanity shines through even when witnessing horrific events.

Part of me wondered whether any story would be worth risking so much. Yet I recalled not that long ago watching CNN journalists going undercover to expose the underground slave trade in Libya, a location that features here. So yes, journalists do risk their safety in war zones and to expose human rights violations.

On a side note I liked that a number of times lions were used as metaphors and that the hunting of lions in ‘canned hunts’ was also mentioned, highlighting that deeply cowardly practice.

A powerful, well plotted and fast paced thriller that had me on the edge of my seat. A very promising debut and I was pleased to read that a sequel is expected in 2020.