Dead Inside is the debut novel by Noelle Holten and it definitely kept me hooked throughout as I read the book in one sitting.

The author uses a difficult subject, domestic abuse, as the main theme of the storyline and uses her knowledge of the subject to handle what is a serious topic very well.

The pace of the story never stops until the final twist at the end.

This is a book that I thoroughly recommend and I look forward to reading further books by this author in the future

Wow, this is a very graphic first novel by Noelle Holten and I absolutely loved it. DC Maggie Jamieson is assigned to the domestic and abuse unit and in her first case 3 men have been killed. These are no ordinary men, they are wife beaters. Domestic abuse features very heavily in this debut novel and is very harrowing at times. Also in the in the story is Lucy, a probation officer who works closely with the DAHU and abusers. But Lucy is married to a wife beater and struggles to keep her private life under wraps away from her work. The two storylines come to a head with devastating consequences. A fantastic novel, brilliantly written and you will empathise with the characters. Noelle Holten herself is a former probation officee withexperience in this field and it adds to the authenicity of the story. Cannot wait for book 2 by Noelle. Read Now!!!!!!

5 Stars from me

This is a stonking debut from Noelle Holten!

Focusing on a difficult subject - domestic abuse - without trivialising or sensationalising is a hard line and Holten walks it well. I really enjoyed Lucy's character and found her a very engaging lead to follow. For me, DC Maggie Jamieson didn't come across as clearly as Lucy which I hope will be put right in book 2.

Lucy's imperfect relationship with Patrick was artfully described, a professional woman who 'should have known better' is portrayed here with complete honesty and shines a light on the complexity of domestic abuse / domestic violence situations.

I found the probation officer role to be a fascinating one and I hope Noelle will bring us more from her experience in future books.

Great debut - can't wait to read more from this author.

Synopsis: When three domestic abuse offenders are found beaten to death, DC Maggie Jamieson knows she is facing her toughest case yet.

The police suspect that Probation Officer Lucy Sherwood – who is connected to all three victims – is hiding a dark secret. Then a fourth domestic abuser is brutally murdered. And he is Lucy’s husband.

Now the finger of suspicion points at Lucy and the police are running out of time. Can Maggie and her team solve the murders before another person dies? And is Lucy really a cold-blooded killer?

I absolutely loved this book. It gripped me from the very first page and had me hooked on to the very last. I was able to guess a lot of the things in the book, but it didn't make the book any less interesting. And kudos to Noelle Holten for the wonderful style of writing. This certainly didn't feel like a debut novel but it felt like the work of a well seasoned author with already books in the double digits. I'm certainly now looking forward to the next book in the series. A big thank you to NetGalley and Harper Impulse and Killer Reads for giving me this ARC in exchange of my honest review.

An alarming read that delves into the secretive world of domestic abuse and the appalling lack of support available to the women and men who suffer at the hands of a loved one.
This aspect of the book is so well written that you are drawn into the lives of the various women whose abusers are still at large, including Lucy, the probation officer charged with dealing with the men full of hate and righteous indignation at being accused of any crime whatsoever.
As the bodies began to pile up so did my suspicions of several of the characters, each of whom seemed to have a good reason to seek revenge against these men. Maggie solved the case before I did though, with an interesting twist that, with afterthought, should have been obvious but at the time of reading was not (to me at least!).
Although a work of fiction the book certainly makes you think about the circumstances these victims find themselves in and how true it is that abused people find it very hard to leave the abuser.
Well written and well paced!

Insightful, moving and dramatic!
Lucy is a probation officer, dealing often with men who have beaten their wives and are still a threat to them....but Lucy also has her own terrible hidden secret from colleagues and friends...
3 of these men are found murdered, Maggie Jamieson is on the case, but is anyone really that bothered about these evil men being murdered, and who could have actually done what many had threatened.....Lucy seems to be the ideal suspect, but is she a bit too ideal...
The book is a fascinating, often harrowing and a very real to life story of domestic abuse, abusers, victims and the Police and Probation work and workers and how they all fits together when the above mentioned murders happen
The detail and obvious knowledge of the Probation Service makes the book flawless in that respect and gives a very clear understanding of what it is like to work in the service, this was intriguing to me as a reader with little knowledge of it
Sadly the abuse side of the story, how it affects victims and how their lives are is also very close to the author and I found this very moving and powerful
The story is in quick easy to read chapters and once you get to know all the characters flows well and moves quickly
A book that you can read and say ‘this author knows 100% what she is talking about’ via her experiences, well written and a great start to a series
10/10 5 Stars

When three domestic abuse offenders are found beaten to death, DC Maggie Jamieson knows she is facing her toughest case yet.

The police suspect that Probation Officer Lucy Sherwood – who is connected to all three victims – is hiding a dark secret. Then a fourth domestic abuser is brutally murdered. And he is Lucy’s husband.

Now the finger of suspicion points at Lucy and the police are running out of time. Can Maggie and her team solve the murders before another person dies? And is Lucy really a cold-blooded killer? 

Even though this series is about Maggie Jamieson, the story is largely about Lucy Sherwood, a probation officer, who, as well as helping other abused women, is also one herself. I really liked Lucy, she was the ultimate professional on the outside, but behind closed doors she was a broken woman, regularly abused, physically and emotionally, convinced that she was a nobody, because that's what Patrick had done to her and she saw no way out. This is the author's debut novel and she has dealt with this very difficult subject perfectly, showing she's had first hand experience with situations like this from her previous work as a probation officer. There are a lot of characters in this book which crammed my head in the beginning but didn't alter my enjoyment of the book as I continued to read. It's a great start to a new series and an author with a natural talent for writing. A difficult, emotionally charged subject, which made it a compelling read.

I'd like to thank Killer Reads, Harper Impulse and Netgalley for sending me this book, I will post my review on Goodreads now and Amazon on publication day.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Impulse Killer Reads for this arc.

I have to admit to being somewhat daunted when I first started to read. It had 95 chapters!. I figured I'd be reading until cross-eyed for a week (I have a somewhat short attention span). But it had gotten so many good reviews that I started reading anyways.

Thankfully, the chapters are very short ones and it was a fairly fast read for me in spite of having 95 chapters.

But it wasn't a particularly easy read for me. Having so many different departments involved on the law enforcement side.... the police, social services, victims advocacy, civilian consultants (psychiatrist & profiler) parole and probation... not to mention all the various characters! I needed a spreadsheet to keep them all straight. Then there were the abuse victims and the abusers/parolees. Throw in an assortment of family members to everyone mentioned above... it was difficult keeping all the various plot lines straight in my mind.

I had a tough time connecting to any of the characters as well. Maybe because of the sheer volume of the characters, maybe the very short chapters, I'm not sure, but they all felt rather flat to me. Even Lucy. There were also a lot of hints and innuendoes about their various backgrounds and experiences but not enough to explain or understand their current actions and attitudes. Seemed like a lot of undeveloped plot lines leading to nowhere or maybe they were meant to be the proverbial "red herrings" required by the genre.

I also found the very vague timeline of the book to be distracting. Sometimes days were mentioned, sometimes hours, a couple of places seemed like months. But just judging on the number of week-ends mentioned, I suspect this took place over a period of two to seven months. It was hard for me to tell, there was so much to-ing and fro-ing instead of a more chronological presentation. Overall it made the various agencies involved in the story seem more like the Keystone Kops to me rather than experienced professionals.

Wow! What a fantastic first book.
I loved this and am so glad there’s more to come in this series.
Maggie is on secondment and is soon involved in a murder case.
We also get to know Lucy who works for the Probation service with abusive/violent people and their victims.
Lucy is living her own nightmare as her husband is abusing her and she feels trapped.
Soon another body is found of a known domestic violence criminal and Maggie and the team try to tie the two deaths together.
We also get an insight into the local pub and one girl’s struggle with alcohol and men. Vicki unfortunately comes across the wrong man and whilst she thinks she knows the signs, she’s not prepared for what happens.
Another body is discovered and the pressure is really on for the Police to find the killer, until another death provides them with the identity of the killer - or does it?
The story races to a conclusion and will have you on the edge of your seat.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more in this series.
Thanks to Killer Reads and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this brilliant book.

In this debut novel by Noelle Holten we are taken into the lives of women suffering domestic abuse and also the agencies that help victims and deal with offenders. It is a well written, intense, emotional and fast paced read. It is sometimes quite graphic, which I sometimes found hard to read. The author is an ex probation officer so the book comes across as being very realistic in its portrayal of the probation service.

Although this book is the first in the DC Maggie Jamieson series, I didn't feel that Maggie had a very prominent role, and to be honest I didn't really warm to her, much preferring the goth Dr Maloney. I did warm to the character of Lucy even though I was screaming at my Kindle for her to leave her abusive husband, and would like to meet her again in future books.

This is a great debut novel and I look forward to the next in the series. Thank you to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

A debut novel that grips pretty much from the get go. Domestic abusers are being beaten to death and DC Maggie Jamieson is on the case. These men are despicable creatures and trying to uncover why they may be a target isn't hard, figuring out who would want to is! The investigation is on, in between this we have the main character, Lucy Sherwood, probation officer and link to them all. When the fourth victim turns up Lucy is very much a figure of interest with her own secrets and issues can Lucy prove her innocence? Is she innocent?

There is a lot of focus on Lucy, her personal circumstance, her job and what she has to endure, these men are vile "human beings" and we see two sides of Lucy. Lucy the probation officer who takes no snash and faces these men, their intimidation/threats. Then we see Lucy Sherwood, abused wife living with a controlling, aggressive, violent always ready to trigger husband.

I do like a book where yes we have crime/action/murder etc but you very much get the human aspect with deeper insight into the characters. What they endure, survive and how they manage to put their face on to mask it to the world, their colleagues and those closest, very accurate of how some people live in the real word. Whilst we are getting better at talking about domestic abuse and admitting it exists we still have so much more we need to do. I think if you have experienced this in your lifetime this book will hit more than one emotive tone with you, memories, emotions may well be evoked. It is a book that deals with very disturbing scenarios, characteristics and hard hitting themes, it is hard to believe it is a debut. I very much look forward to more by Holten, a star is on the rise, 4.5/5 for me!

A decent debut novel. Quick and fast paced so didn't take long to read. The murders took a back seat to the characters and their development so when they were solved it all felt a little rushed. Definitely worth a read though.

Domestic abuse turned this once vibrant, confident, and intelligent woman into an empty shell of sadness, insecurity, and fear.
Domestic abuse and substance misuse was a growing concern in Staffordshire. Lucy’s a probation officer whose caseload included victims of domestic abuse. DC Maggie Jamieson worked the murder cases involving three abusers linked to Lucy.

A debut crime novel and the first book in the DC Maggie Jamieson series. While I appreciate the time and effort put into creating a story about domestic abuse. I wasn’t bouncing in my seat with excitement over this book. Being that this was a character driven story I felt this hindered the growth of the story taking away from the investigation. Too much time was spent on following the lives of each of these spousal abuse cases.

Characters:
DC Maggie Jamieson
Drew Talbot domestic abuse
Lucy Sherwood Probation Officer
Robert Millard and Louise Millard domestic abuse case
Mick O’Dowd and Moira domestic abuse case

Overall:
There’s nothing thrilling or exciting about violent abuse cases. The murder investigation isn’t the main focus, it’s the lives of each of these characters who have suffered some form of abuse.

I think there was missed opportunity with Lucy’s character as a Probation Officer. Her sessions with these three men were too brief.
Maggie’s character took a backseat to the three men and the lives of the other characters. Not much was being done to solve these cases other than some conversations.

I don’t doubt Noelle’s expertise on the job requirements of a Probation Officer working with domestic abuse and violence considering she was one herself. As far as this being her debut novel it needs to be darker and edgier in order for it to be a page turner. I thought it was drab in areas. The characters were lacking pizzazz. There was too much going on. Simplifying the story would help clean it up.

Wow!

Wow!

WOW!!!

Where to start!

When I see a book written by someone that has worked or works in the area that the book is set in, my interest twitches up an extra notch. This means that I kind of expect some extra details or the author will try to impart some of that experience onto the page of the story.

When you read Noelle’s career resume I think you will agree it is impressive. As I started to read the story I became aware immediately that she had very successfully transferred her experiences into an extremely gripping read.

Lucy is a deliberate dual personality character. By this, I mean that she has her career persona and then her at home as a wife persona. The contrasts, or the reasons behind having these two faces soon becomes apparent as the story emerges. As a Probation Officer, Lucy needs to be strong, she cannot afford to get caught up with her clients. She is aware that while this works very well at work, she knows it will not work at home. Knowing this, she reacts and responds accordingly!

Maggie is one of the investigators who has been brought in as a murder has been reported. She is apprehensive as she starts to work with a new team and she soon begins to find her feet and settle into her role. Now I have to say that there is something else about this character that has intrigued me. I am beside myself to see what is revealed in the next book!

The thing I liked about this book, well actually there was lots of things I loved, not just liked. Hang on! Scrap that!!! I loved everything about this book! The story is set out in very quick chapters that flitted back and forth between the main characters. It meant that the pace was good and had me eager to read what would happen to each character, I wanted to know about everyone all at the same time!

This was a read that had two main storylines that were intermingled in an absolutely brilliant way. There is that of the investigation into the murders. Then that of Lucy with her job and home life. Along the course of the reading, I found these gradually merged and meandered into each other. It left me with such a feeling of suspense, trepidation and also fear. Yes fear for one of the characters, what would happen, would it happen… I know I’m not being helpful, but I am petrified of giving spoilers!

I have to mention other characters in this book they are colleagues, friends and if you are a Book Blogger you will discover they are somewhat familiar!

I am just going to stop here and get to the very basics! If you want a hard-hitting crime thriller then you seriously need to get this book. A fabulous story that is the beginning of what I feel will be an amazing writing career.

Dead Inside by Noelle Holten gets an Absolutely and Highly Recommended from Me!

Lucy Sherwood is a probation officer with the Domestic Abuse and Homicide Unit. Ironically, Lucy is unhappily married, and a victim of domestic abuse at the hands of her husband, Patrick, an unrepentant alcoholic.

Meanwhile, DC Maggie Jamieson from the Major and Organised Crime Department has just been transferred to the Domestic Abuse and Homicide Unit (DAHU) and is keen to start working there.

Lately, there’s been a string of murders in the area; all three men missing only to turn up dead and with no signs of struggle. Moreover, the victims are all connected to Probation Officer Lucy Sherwood. DC Maggie Jamieson has been assigned to investigate their murders, and when Patrick’s husband goes missing, she must find the killer before more bodies turn up.

I enjoyed this book. The chapters are short and the story moved along at a fast pace. The characters are interesting and have depth. Though I cannot for the life of me understand why Lucy put up with her obnoxious husband. Sometimes, I tried to sympathize with her, other times, I read on with a sense of detachment.

This is a moving story about domestic abuse, which I found a bit unsettling to read at times. Overall, a well-written thriller with a captivating storyline. Noelle is one author to look out for. I’m looking forward to reading the second book in the series. I highly recommend.

Many thanks to Noelle Holten, Harper Impulse and Killer Reads, and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Wow - what a debut novel Dead Inside is! Well done Noelle Holten! This book had me absolutely hooked and wanting to keep reading . It deals with a difficult theme but the authors obvious experience in this area was clear. It was realistic and powerful and I really enjoyed reading it. I look forward to more from Maggie Jamieson in the near future, with a start like this one it is going to be a cracking series. I have followed Noelle's reviews for a while now and am so pleased that she is now a published author. I will be recommending this book to my book loving friends to enjoy as well.

3 wife beaters are dead - and not many people seem to feel sorry about it all. Maggie Jamieson has to track down this killer - easier said than done when the victims are not seen as victims to all. Probation officer Lucy Sherwood is linked to all of the dead men but could she be a killer. On the outside she is a strong woman, who is good at her job. But at home she is a victim of domestic abuse. Her husband Patrick is a pig to be honest, who constantly belittles Lucy and also physically hurts her. She knows she has to leave but there is a step daughter involved. But then her husband is victim number 4 - and Lucy is the prime suspect.

This book is dark and graphic and is hard to read in parts. But it makes it real, shows just what these men are doing to the women that they supposedly love. And shows that it is not always easy to leave or change things for the women. It is fast paced and will leave you wanting more. The ending took me by surprise and I did not pick who the guilty party was - that is something that I love in a book. There are a lot of familiar names on this books as well, writers and book bloggers are all there.

A pleasure to read and enjoy this book. Thank you to Harper Impulse, Killer Reads and Netgalley for my advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own and are in no way biased.

This is an enjoyable story which deals with the disturbing topic of domestic violence. In Noelle Holten's debut, she uses her experience in the probation services to present a credible picture which is, at times, alarmingly graphic. What I found a little disappointing was the number of errors of punctuation, grammar and spelling, and the use of the names of book bloggers as characters in the book was unnecessary.

Below review will go give tomorrow on 25 May.

Hi and welcome to FromBelgiumWithBookLove!
Today, I’d love to talk to you about Dead Inside, Noelle Holten’s debut novel. I loved the premise of Dead Inside and I “knew” Noelle as a blogger, so I was thrilled to be approved for the eARC through NetGalley. Now with a website called “CrimeBookJunkie”, a career as probation officer on the one hand and PR / SM manager for Bookouture on the other, one would assume Noelle Holten knows all about crime and has an extensive list of all the magic ingredients it takes for a crime thriller to be a success. Knowing something, and bringing that knowledge to fruition, though, is something else entirely. So, frankly, to my mind, this could go either way. And so I was delighted to find myself totally absorbed in this book, loving the execution just as much as I loved the premise. Noelle had me smile, she had me well up, she put me through all the feels, and I loved every bit of it.

Lucy is a probation officer and as such she’s responsible (among other things) for preventing that the criminals in her care commit the same (or other) crimes again. Some of those criminals are guilty of domestic abuse. But what very few people realise, is that Lucy herself is a victim of domestic abuse too. She of all people should know better, shouldn’t she? And she does know better and she is in fact well aware of what her husband is doing to her. But there’s her step-daughter to consider, she can’t just leave the little girl to fend for herself, and what about her career, what would her colleagues say, her superiors? She’s damned if she does and damned if she doesn’t, so for the time being, she’s staying put. That entire scenario, Lucy’s inner turmoil, that feeling of being damned either way, felt very, very real and all too plausible. Admittedly, I have zero personal experience with this, something I thank my lucky stars for every time I read a book like this one, but Lucy’s thoughts and feelings are so realistic, and I do believe that in the same circumstances, I might well have the same thoughts and experience the same feelings. To me, what was even worse than the physical abuse, was the insidious psychological abuse, and the effect the physical abuse has on Lucy’s mental state. This is related rather stoically, almost devoid of emotions at times, and therefore all the more striking. This got under my skin so badly, I can’t even tell you.

In the meantime, there’s DC Maggie Jamieson, trying to find the person killing off domestic abusers. One of her superiors secretly wonders if these casualties can really be called victims, and whether the culprit shouldn’t be praised instead of hunted, and I tend to agree. No, obviously I don’t endorse murder! But I do confess to having a few wayward “good riddance” thoughts. This storyline is suspenseful, shocking at times, and I caught myself thinking along with Maggie and her team, trying to find the person responsible for the rather heinous murders, so when the perpetrator was comprehended it didn’t come as a huge surprise, but it was a satisfying reveal nonetheless. I especially liked that some background info was provided afterwards, explaining the killer’s motive and opportunity, but not in a pedantic way.

Overall, this is a very intense crime thriller, tackling a difficult theme with the utmost respect. I can’t wait to see what Noelle Holten comes up with next, and what DC Maggie Jamieson will have to face in the future! Highly recommended!

# Dead Inside # Netgalley
A very well written storyline, it was gripping with enough to keep you interested in the book. I can’t say it was a book that I didn’t want to put down, it’s not quite there for me that bit. However having said that, as a debut novel I can’t fault the book. I am sure it’s only a matter of time, not that long either where I will be at the stage of not wanting to put the book down. I have read books nowhere near as good as this from well established writers. So I can see good things coming for this author. It’s got all the elements of being one of the better authors, just around the corner for a debut novel I am literally full of praise for this author, the right amount of twists and turns to throw you off balance to make you doubt where your own head is going. But most of all despite it not being a book I didn’t want to put down, I didn’t really want to put it down but with some books I literally would definitely go without sleep to continue reading. As I said I didn’t want to actually put the book down. It just hadn’t gripped me enough to give up sleep for yet. Now that my personal opinion. I do also believe sometimes it’s not necessary the book that you can put down easier than others. It could even be the person who is reading the book at the time. A typical example is in myself, sometimes no matter what we do in life and depending on situation at the time on how you maybe feeling can affect the outcome of a book, and effectively alter a review. We are all creatures of moods I will stand up and actually say yes the odd occasions my mood can have a effect on whatever I am reading. Not a lot of people will admit to this. I have read a book and thought yuk not for me, yet something in some books even if I did that say yuk to a book. I have gone back and read it again and it becomes a totally different book, so yes our own moods can and do effectively alter a review. I only wish other people Would admit these things. This one doesn’t happen to me but a very close friend of mine we like most of the same book, not every single one. We had both read a book and we met for coffee first thing I do is bring the subject of books, a couple I had recommended I asked her, what she thought. She did say I made the book sound better than it was. All I said I take it you had been arguing with your partner. She asked me how I knew. I told her what I thought and said every time you argue and your reading your not reading properly, because your letting the argument affect your reading she could not see it until I pointed a few things out. She did say in her own words that had she not have had a argument then she knew she would have enjoyed the book more. So the moral of this is accept things around us before we review a book, because I honestly believe we may not be giving a worthy review. On that note. I definitely think you should give this book a try, and I am looking forward to her next one sorry for such a long review but it need pointing out how we the public can give a better review or would do. Once people accept we can be affected by our own moods. It’s like I said I didn’t feel it wasn’t a book I could not put down, that how I actually felt, but was that feeling being swayed by the fact I was coming down with pneumonia. It’s bound to affect my reading. Taking that into consideration it does not show always how bloody good this book was. Without people being aware of this they could get the wrong impression. I would hate that to have a impact on any author. So based on how I was I will rate everything one star above because, if I had not been ill I do believe this book would have had a 5 star from me, and as a debut novel deserves a 5 star I will read this again and I will review it again on Amazon because you deserve a far better review poppet you definitely do

DC Maggie Jamieson is an experienced detective who, having been scarred by her last case, has been seconded to a specialist police division, the Domestic Abuse and Homicide Unit, or DAHU, for a change  of scene. She likes her new colleagues immediately and hopes the work will be a necessary distraction from her recent past.

Unfortunately, almost straightaway, one of the abusers they are obligated to keep tabs on is found dead in unnatural circumstances and immediately are under pressure. Working together with the probation service and victim support they struggle to find any evidence to suggest who their killer might be.

Lucy is a probation officer working with sex offenders and domestic abusers who are free on licence. What no one knows is that she herself is in an abusive relationship and nearing the end of her tether.

This was a fast moving, exciting story and although I worked out some of it there was still the satisfaction of discovering things bit by bit as the story reached its conclusion. There is a second DC Jamieson book to come, it will be on my to read list without a doubt.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers in exchange for an unbiased review and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys finding new authors or new series of books to devour.