This was a real edge of your seat thriller, with so many twists and turns, you wont know which way is up! Fantastic and gripping read!

Another great Geraldine Steel book. A homeless man if found dead in a doorway and another soon follows. With the bodies piling up Geraldine has to determine whether or not it is the same killer or a copycat. A gripping thriller.

I am definitely a fan of this series and am shocked that we are already on book 13. For those that haven’t read the series although its not absolutely necessary to read them in order I think it’s a lot better to have Geraldine’s back story. There are things I just cannot get my head around and that don’t sit right with me in this book and that’s why I ended up rating it with a 3/5. Geraldine is now in a role following a demotion. It was certainly a good move to see a character dealt with how they would be in the real world BUT the end result doesn’t seem right.

Geraldine as a character and a copper has worked primarily on instinct and has always been surrounded by great colleagues. The last book in the series made me think her colleagues were not the brightest but this book makes me think they are just morons. I feel like the characters just aren’t that real and they don’t sit right with Geraldine and overall this was the feeling that I had all the way through.

Because of this, the story just took a back seat as you see Geraldine questioning herself and then seemingly have to take a backl seat to people that are clueless and this gives it an edge of unrealisticness (is that even a word?). Anyway, although my review doesn’t cover the actual storyline, it’s because that took a backseat to the characters not feeling authentic anymore. However, I am LOVING the last chapter and am goign to eagerly pick up book 14 with the hope that things change going forward!

I agree with a previous reviewer as to how on earth have I missed this author? A bonus is that I now have a whole new to me series to read! Excellent book.

Deathly Affair is the 13th book in the Detective Geraldine Steel series by Leigh Russell and it is the first book that I have read not only in the series but also by the author.
It is a police procedural crime thriller with quite a few twists and turns thrown in - it certainly kept me guessing!
From what I can tell Geraldine has very recently been demoted from Detective Inspector to Detective Sergeant for reasons I don't know. She does not for one second let that stop her from being driven in her hunt for the truth. She will stop at nothing to solve the case. She is a very strong female character who is actually very admirable in her role.
In this most recent case in Deathly Affair the team are investigating the murder of two homeless men living on the streets in York. Where some members of the team seem to want to close the case as quickly as possible due to them not being important enough, DS Steel is not willing to forget about them and pushes to find the truth!
When a 3rd is murdered in very similar circumstances but with a big difference the rest of the force start to take notice.
After quite a few errors of judgement the puzzle finally starts falling into place.
I can't believe I have never read any books by this author, I won't be missing any more that's for sure. I now want to read the previous books so I can find out Geraldine's back story.

Thank you Netgalley and Old Castle Books for my ARC in return for an honest review.

This is the thirteenth book in the series Featuring DI Geraldine Steel. She is on the case of a killer who seems to be targeting homeless people. She has recently been demoted but she still is relentless in her pursuit of the truth. Her fellow officers are convinced theY have the killer but Geraldine follows her instincts and disagrees. When the third body, Mark Routledge, is discovered they realise that he wasn’t a homeless person and Geraldine was right,. The story is told in chapters by Geraldine, the killer and by the family of Mark. I found it a gripping book with an unexpected twist. An enjoyable read.
Thanks to Netgalley and Avon for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

I am a great fan of Leigh Russell, and once again this book didn't disappoint. Recommended for anyone who likes a good solid read that's entertaining until the end. .

I am a great fan of Leigh Russell, and I was looking forward to reading this book and it did,'t disappoint, although it was a trifle predictable in places. Recommended

For some reason, even though I enjoy the crime genre, I have never read a Leigh Russell novel. I was inspired to read this from reading the synopsis on NetGalley, but hadn’t read any of the previous novels in the series. I was very pleased to find I was able to read this without feeling there was a massive piece of story missing or that I didn’t know my central character. I was mainly interested in the fact that this was a crime procedural set within the homeless community, a community I feel is very overlooked and mistreated in today’s society.

We meet DS Geraldine Steel as she has been demoted to sergeant and a serial killer is targeting the homeless in the city of York. The first killing is discovered when a homeless man is found strangled in a city centre doorway, The police believe they have the killer, but realise their mistake when a van is pulled for having no MOT and another homeless man is found grilled up, dead, in a carpet. I enjoyed getting to know Steel, who is as strong as her name suggests, She is thorough and soon realises there is a toxic web of love and passion at the centre of this investigation. We hear the story through several narrators, which lets the story unfold gradually and from other perspectives. I really appreciated that the author examines the plight of those living on the streets carefully and with clear research. I think people forget that we are all only a few missed rent payments or a redundancy/relationship breakdown away from living on the streets, I felt this book put a human face on people who are often dismissed and abused.

Having not read the first 12 books (yes 12!) in this series, I was unsure if I would get the gist of this one. Steel has been "demoted" and this means she is even more eager and a very thorough detective. I like the veracity of this character. You might even call her analytical. She thrives on investigation, and getting answers. This is the kind of detective I like to read about. She is a good person.

In this novel, Geraldine investigates a serial killer that focuses on homeless people. These poor people are vulnerable and this is highlighted very well throughout too. I loved this read, and so will you!

This is the 13th book in the Geraldine Steel series and I can't believe that it's only the first one I've read!

The book opens strongly with a person attempting their first murder on a homeless person. The story then flits between DS Geraldine Steel who is investigating murders of homeless people and Ann who is married to David, 20+ years her senior. She is also having an affair with a music teacher named Mark. The two stories tie well together and I was convinced that I knew how it was all going to pan out. It kept me gripped and I liked reading about the personal life of Steel too.

Although it is part of a series, it was easy to follow along as a standalone and I didn't feel confused with anything. The ending was great and left me wanting more so I will definitely be reading the rest of the series both previous books and any that come after this one.

Not read this book, but gave it 5 stars as it cannot fail to be a thrilling read. I’m going through her Geraldine books from book one

There are two bodies of homeless people that have been discovered. DI Geraldine Steel is on the case but her suspicions are raised when more bodies start to appear, is this the same killer or is there a copycat killer out there?
Alongside DI Geraldine Steel and from multiple points of view, the story comes together to find out who is killing homeless people and why. As the investigation continues and suspects are found, DI Steel finds herself looking at a love triangle filled with lies and infidelity. Is this just a romance gone wrong or is there something more sinister behind the deaths?
This was an OK read for me. I liked the characters and the story line had me intrigued but it didn't live up to what I was hoping for. I found myself not believing in the outcome towards the end and I was disappointed by the ending. It seemed to be rushed and there was a twist that did not make sense to me. I thought I had maybe missed a bit of the story as there was quite a jump and I couldn’t quite understand why the killer did what he did, and to me it made more sense for one of the other characters to be the killer.
Although the story wasn't what I expected, I enjoyed the characters. They were built very well and had a lot of potential. Some really good characters throughout the story that brought it together. It was an easy read even if I wasn't too sure about the ending.
Unfortunately the biggest appeal for me was that the story line hooked me in, again; I think it has a lot of potential but I liked it enough to continue reading as I did want to know how it ended.
I didn't realise this was part of a series but it was nice that it didn't read that way. It wasn't like I was part way through and realised I'm missing out on something. I’m not sure I would want to go back and start the series as a whole but I did like the DI Steel character from this book.
Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. This is the first Geraldine Steel book I've read and I wasn't confused or lost with her story so this works perfectly well as a standalone.

There are many different characters in this book, each with their own backstory. The characters are interwoven to connect them to the shocking murder of a homeless man in York. I really enjoyed the writing in this book; the way each of the characters were developed and the unfolding story of the murder. For a while it looked like the police just couldn't figure out this case which makes it more enjoyable because it's not immediately obvious where the plot is going.

An entertaining page-turner that I'd definitely recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley, Leigh Russell and Oldcastle Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This isn’t really my cup of tea. I had a hard time connecting with characters and there seemed to be certain things missing. It started off interesting but I ended up losing interest.

Homeless men are being killed on the streets and yet some of the people investigating seem to think that because they were homeless their lives don't matter as much? Wanting to dig into this further, Geraldine Steel and her partner, Ian Peterson, are sent off on their trail. Turns out one of the homeless men found was not homeless after all, and in fact a music teacher. A music teacher of which we have just been reading about in a subplot, that was having an affair with a married woman. And so begins the real plot and the search to uncover the truth. Have they got a serial killer on their hands who has made a mistake, or does this murder go much deeper?

This is an established series of which I have not read any of the previous books, an although I couldn't quite call it a standalone, the backstory was easily explained and I quickly fell in step with the story. It was a bit convoluted at times, with so many story lines all blending together, and then several twists and turns later all became clear, but with quite a sudden ending. Overall it was an entertaining, complex read told though multiple points of view, which made me search for clues about the real killer as I read.

Thanks to #Netgalley, #OldcastleBooks and #LeighRusssell for the ARC of this book in return for an honest review. 3.5 stars.

Deathly Affair is the latest book in the DS Steel series by Leigh Russell and whilst it is an ok read at times it felt very superficial and a little too lightweight which was a disappointment after reading other books in this series

DS Geraldine Steele #13

A homeless man has been murdered while he slept. The community is shocked. At the same time, three of Yorks residents come under scrutiny.

DS Geraldine Steele is determined to find the person who killed the homeless man. Ut some of her colleagues derogatory comments regarding homeless people sickened her. Along with her partner, DI Ian Peterson, they are given extra resources to interview at homeless shelters. Then another homeless person is killed in the same way. A third ody is found. Mark Routledge had been a music teacher. He was having an affair with a married woman. There are lots of twists and the loose ends were all tied up together. The ending was a bit of a surprise but it did seem to go on a it longer than necessary. The story is told through multiple points of view. An interesting read.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Oldcastle Books and the author Emma Jane Unsworth for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This author is not new to me as I have read a few of the Geraldine and Ian stories, and I have also missed a few as D I Geraldine Steele is no longer a D I but a DS and Ian Peterson is a D I so their roles are reversed and Geraldine has relocated to York, but she is not bitter by all accounts she is glad she still has a job she enjoys. This escapade starts with a loveless marriage so the female has a love affair with a music teacher, and hopes that one day she will leave her husband, when her daughter leaves home for college/uni, and move in with her lover. He is not that keen as it turns out all he wants is the attention and the sex, and she is not the only one. A homeless person is murdered and nobody at the police can think why the only reason they don't like the growing number of homelessness on the streets. Then another is murdered, so somebody has it in for them, and as its, the homeless people that's murdered they are put on a back burner because another murder has taken place and this also is made to look like a homeless person but police soon find out who he really is and its the music teacher. When they start looking at the teacher and the people surrounding him Geraldine who has always been meticulous with her work think it's all connected. A very good story but a bit confusing, without giving the plot away Mark the teacher when he was being murdered it seemed as if there was more than one person present, and then there was a lull in the middle as if the author was not sure which way to go., it stopped rather blunt and we all know that any evidence you can always find someone suitable that it will fit, and this happened a couple of times, so found this one a bit disappointing, and ragged in the middle but when it got going again was good, will I give this author another go,? most probably, unless it happens again hope not as these have always been good saga's. I would like to thank Oldcastle Books and Netgalley for a copy to read and review.

Leigh Russell is a good writer, fact. Starting to churn them out as they did with Patricia Cornwall and others and it shows. Publishers need to understand that waiting for the next book can be part of the experience.

That said it stands up on its own as classic good reading in the genre.

Looking forward to the next one - hopefully it will be a while !