I was thrilled to be approved by NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of Angela Marson’s latest book. The past ties in with the present in this one and Kim is faced with a decision. To either accept the truth or deny it.

A young couple found chained to a radiator bring back a host of memories, mirroring a dark time in Kim’s childhood. Although the case has startling similarities, it becomes very clear that someone wants her to relive the pain she once suffered, Kim is not unduly phased overall. The traumatic events of her childhood—a haunting theme throughout the series—has been summarized in this tenth installment. But even though someone is ‘picking at the closed boxes in her mind,’ she is one of those exceptional people who takes strength in weakness. Tough, hard-wearing and deliciously assertive, she’s certainly not immune to emotion.

There are former felons stoking hatred from behind prison walls and other cases to be investigated. With seamlessly thick, complex plots and a crime team to die for, you can’t help loving these books for the way they’re written. I like Alison for her bottle, Woody, who appears to get more devious by the minute and, of course, tolerant and unflappable Bryant. With a cast of capable characters returning with every ‘episode’, the uber-sharp Kim Stone has to be one of the best detectives out there. A twisty, fast-paced plot stocked with red herrings, Marsons aficionados will be very happy to add this book to their bookshelves alongside other Kim Stone novels.

BIG thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC. This is an honest review for a thoroughly enjoyable read.

I always get excited when I see there is a new Kim Stone book to read, and this one didn't disappoint.They never do, I love the main character,and I love her team.I also enjoy the peripheral characters, they are all so well written, and real.The story was good, plenty going on with several threads happening at the same time and an exciting finish.No spoilers from me so can't say much more apart from I can't wait for the next book.Thanks to Netgalley and the Publishers for an ARC.

Number 10 in the series and possibly the best one yet. I love a good series. One of the reasons for this is that I buy into the subplots and characters and enjoy “meeting” them again very time there is a new book released and seeing their stories and personalities develop. This is what makes this so good as the subplot becomes the main plot. A clever, sometimes complex, twisty, turny read that is just bloody brilliant
#DeadMemories #Netgalley

Angela Marsons is fast becoming one of the best crime fiction authors going around. Whilst I love characters such as Jack Reacher, Harry Bosch, Myron Bolitar and Elvis Cole who we have come to love over the years due to the excellent writing of their fantastic authors, Kim Stone is the only character who, after finishing each book, always leaves me feeling so many different emotions. Anger, hate, disbelief, sadness and so much empathy and pride. Over the first 9 books we have learnt a bit about the awful childhood that she endured. However, book 10 sums them all up and adds in a few more horrors. For someone to have gone through so many traumatic events in her life, it is a surprise that Kim is not in a padded cell. Instead, she is a wonderful, strong willed, law abiding citizen who is a police officer determined to put away the bad guys. She is somewhat aloof at times, which is fair enough, but I think her team and Barney are her family and she will do, and does do, anything she can to help or save them.

If Kim Stone was a real person I would love to meet her and shake her hand and tell her how much I respect and admire her and how proud I am that she has turned out the way that she has and that she should be proud of herself too. I suspect she'd probably shake my hand back and tell me to "f**k off!"

Book ten of this fantastic series gets 10 out 10 from me! I was thrilled to be approved by NetGalley for the latest Kim Stone thriller, and have been greedily reading at every opportunity since, thwarted only by those pesky annoyances like work and sleep. I had hoped to write the first review here, but my new friend Janet got there first. Now I can't wait to read everyone else's.

When a young couple are found chained to a radiator in the same run down block of flats that Kim was rescued from at age six, Bryant immediately sees the similarities to her own history, but Kim refuses to acknowledge it. Then another couple is killed in the same way that her foster parents died, and she can no longer deny the truth - someone is recreating the most traumatic moments of her life to cause her maximum pain, but who hates her enough to do so? All the clues point to the prison where perpetrators of crimes from earlier in her career are locked up, but how are they managing it?

I do not know how Ms Marsons manages to keep coming up with such elaborate yet lucid plot lines, covering new material each time, but keeping all the elements we love in each story. This series is all about the characters, although the mysteries are tricksy enough to keep me guessing each time too. Frustratingly single-minded Kim, patient teddy bear Bryant, determined and brilliant Stacey, and the new chap Penn, an intuitive and resourceful detective who does more for the team than they realise. I also love the recurring characters - thoughtful Ted, sparky Tracy, crafty Woody, and loveable Barney (please don't let anything bad happen to him.) I particularly enjoyed seeing the duel between Kim and returning profiler Alison evolve into mutual respect and even liking.

It was even satisfying to catch up with some of the earlier books' villains, giving us a large cast of potential suspects, but I still didn't guess who before the reveal. I also like it when more than one case is being investigated and they don't always have to connect, Alison's determination to find the real criminal behind her previous case by trusting her profiling abilities making her a worthy member of our favourite crime-fighting team, and I hope she gets to stay with them. The writing is seamless as ever, I can't find anything to criticise.
I don't know how she does it - but I'm very glad she does!

Huge thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. Dead Memories is published on February 22nd.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for this arc.

I was thrilled to receive this as Angela Marson is a MUST read for me. Dead Memories only confirmed that. I raced through this book. Even though the team had more suspects than they knew what to do with in the beginning, they winnowed it down, but as more and more crimes happened, they ran into brick walls and had to constantly shift their thinking. Easy to feel their frustration. The current crimes were all re-staging of very traumatic events of Kim's past and left her feel particularly off-balanced. We all got to know Kim a little better and in my opinion, her team is so much better for the knowledge. Hopefully Kim will find some peace with her past. Enter Alison, set up by Kim's boss to keep an eye on her. But Alison has her own stuff going on and the team that she was supposed to observe gets involved in that, too. Hope to see more of Alison in the future.

Great characters and a very complex and convoluted story!

I’m a huge fan of Angela Marson’s Kim Stone thrillers so it was a massive privilege for me to be given the opportunity to read this instalment before publication. Thank you so much NetGalley.

Wow! just wow.
I knew I would be engrossed in this book so cleared my schedule today to read it cover to cover. I’m so glad so did!
Dead memories is a wee trip down memory lane through Kim’s past,
Each crime screen is linked to an upsetting memory for her, so her boss brings in Alice, a profiler from another station, , not to help with the current situation, but to keep an on Kim - allowing her to continue to work the case.
Alice is still reeling from being removed from a previous case in her own station and continues to investigate against their wishes.
The book switches easily between both threads as everyone works together to support Kim and solve the cases. Normally I have guessed who the culprit is long before they are revealed, but not this time.
Yet another great offering from Angela Marson, but now I’m sad that I have to wait for the next instalment