I always enjoy police procedurals, especially when the protagonist has a troubled personal background. DS Craig Wild certainly fits the bill.

The setting and the police team were interesting to become acquainted with. The murder investigation was a tad convoluted, and hard to follow. The motives seemed insufficiently strong for the crime, in my opinion. Also, in concurrence with the Wiltshire murder enquiry, DS Wild still has a residual case ongoing in London, which further muddies the waters.

My favourite character was the rookie policewoman Marnie Olsen. She was smarter and more ambitious than her male counterparts, and I can see a bright future for her. Apparently the author thought so too, as she figures prominently in the second book.

All in all, a decent series debut, but not my personal favourite. I did enjoy it enough to have the second novel “West Country Murder” already loaded on my Kindle.

Great thriller that kept me turning the pages. Great story, great writing and characters. Really enjoyable and would read this author again.

Long Shadows by Derek Thompson is the first book I have read from this author and I was hooked within the first few pages and I loved it This book is the first in a new series featuring Detective Craig Wild, Craig is transferred from the met to the peaceful countryside in Wiltshire and he is not expecting the crime and criminal activity he left behind Craig is called
to investigate the suspected suicide of a local farmer. He then soon realises he was murdered.........WoW what a book.

I will be reading more books by Derek. I highly recommend this book

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, Joffe books for a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review

Rural Wiltshire....
When Detective Craig Wild makes a move to rural Wiltshire he is faced with an unexpected murder case. Wild, along with collegue Marnie, works through the suspects and their histories to uncover the truth. A very slow burn with a rather thin plot and characters that could be so much more. A relaxed read.

A new series featuring a troubled police officer who leaves London for the quieter...he hopes...town of Mayberry. Detective Craig Wild has secrets that we will learn as the series advances, but for now, we get hints of things he'd rather not make public knowledge. His partner in crime detecting is PC Marnie Olsen, a good fit to the duo and the community.

A farmer has been found dead in his fields in a scene that was supposed to look like a suicide, but the shotgun used is missing. With multiple suspects and lots of supporting story threads weaving through their investigation, LONG SHADOWS has the twists and turns thriller readers are fond of and lots of back story that gives author, DEREK THOMPSON plenty of room for more stories in what has started as an excellent series.

I really enjoyed this book and will give it a huge thumbs up. With a great story line and excellent main characters - I would highly recommend this book.

Detective Wild is transferred in peaceful countryside in Wiltshire and soon after that, a farmer is found dead in his own field with a shotgun which can't be found.
Can he solve the dilemma? With the help of his colleague, he will try to prove himself.
Thank you Netgalley for this thriller.

I've read a good number of books published by Joffe Books which was partly why I tried this one. It's the first in what I assume will be a police procedural series. It was a pretty undemanding read with a sometimes confusing back story but I enjoyed the characters and would certainly read on in the series.

An English farmer is found dead in his own field. Detective Wild is eager to prove himself by solving, what he believes to be a murder, and not a suicide as others believe. This story was too slow for me, and I lost interest in all the interruptions to the mystery made by explaining Wild’s past.

I have mixed feelings about this book. I liked it once I ‘got into it’, but I found the secondary story a little distracting (I wanted to get back to the main story). I liked how the character was developed throughout the story. I would happily read the next book in the series.

Slow start to this new series by Derek Thompson.
A disgraced police officer being sent out to the countryside to find redemption.
The story did pick up after a few chapters, the characters were likable, and at times I felt like the storyline went a little wonky. It was enjoyable read, not one that I just wanted to devour. I am hoping things improve for the second installment of the series.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy of the book.
#netgalley #LongShadows

I found myself engrossed with this. It was a compelling mystery and had some great characters. It was quite a convulated mystery but it was so well written that it had me gripped. Looking forward to reading more.

3.5 rounded up. Another misfit detective sent out to the country after screwing up in London. He was marginally likeable. I did like the other characters that were brought in. But the mystery in London was an unneeded distraction that never flowed for me and part of the local mystery did Telegraph the solution. Some potential here.

Detective Craig Wild is the new man in sleepy Wilshire Police Department. He has come from London after a divorce from his wife and some psychological problems, and almost immediately has a murder to solve. A farmer, Alexander Porter, has been killed in his own field with a shot gun which can't be found, although the killing appears to be designed to look like a suicide. Craig declares that it is a murder, but has trouble getting possibly witnesses to talk with him. He gets help from a uniformed police woman, Marnie Olsen, who appears to be much smarter than he is.

Marnie and Craig find out a lot, and figure this goes back to family history as far as WWII. They gradually find three different wills, each giving a different beneficiary. The son is first a suspect, but he has left town before the time of death. The two farmers who rent the fields are suspects who were each named in one of the wills, and there is an American visiting and researching who is also a suspect. Although Craig does make some good decisions, and finally solved the case, he doesn't appear to be as sharp as the detectives in most mysteries, and I found it a little confusing trying to follow all the leads and keep track of characters.

Thanks to Netgalley for allowing me to read this book for an honest review. I enjoyed reading it; it was good, but not one of the best I've read recently.

I had the opportunity from NetGalley to read Long Shadows by Derek Thompson
A brand new detective series in the vein of Peter Robinson’s DCI Banks, I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish.
Opening on the central character of Craig Wild, it’s hard not to take to him straight away and want to find out more about what forced him to move to a quiet village after being in London.
Luckily we get to find out little bits about the detective as the story progresses, but happily it doesn’t distract from the main narrative. The story does take us back to partly explain events in London but not to a deep level. This might be further explored in further books, as it’s left with a bit of an open storyline.
I enjoyed the historical theme running through, as the author delves into the villagers past secrets.
We get to see tiny side stories exploring a couple of the other characters and again I would be very interested in where these characters are taken and explore the relationship their building with Craig Wild.
Overall I give this book 4.5 stars.
At no point did I put it down because I was bored of the story, and once I’d reached the halfway point I really wanted to find out what actually happened.

A solid police procedural thriller which ticks all the boxes and will provide a good weekend's entertainment.
I hadn't read anything by the author before and I wasn't disappointed.

The first in a new series featuring Detective Craig wild, transferred from the met to the peaceful countryside in Wiltshire he is not expecting the crime and criminal activity he left behind

called to investigate the suspected suicide of a local farmer he soon realises that suicide is in fact a murder....

Already waiting for the second instalment in what looks to be a great new series

Derek Thompson has written a mystery novel with a new detective character Criag Wild who has moved to small town Mayberry from big time London. A new tricky case involving eccentric farmer Alex POrter who is found shot dead in his fields A suicide is at first assumed but Craig knows there is more to the case than a simple solution. Teaming up with up and comer PC Marnie Olsen the two try and uncover history, family relationships and hidden agendas in the small town. Soon another beloved small town character is killed and they must race against time to solve the case before more deaths occur. Well liked characters and a good plot keep moving the story along even though some times I felt there were a bit too many details that were a bit confusing.

A solid but far from stellar new crime series where the lead character is another damaged detective with a chip on his shoulder and a point to prove. The plot is standard and there's a bit of humour thrown in for good measure.

Long Shadows is the first in a new detective series by Derek Thompson, having read his spy thrillers before I was excited to see how he would take on a police procedural.

Long Shadows is a solid, well plotted mystery and a really good start to this series.

Craig is an interesting character. Forced out of London he moves to the countryside, where he’s finding it hard to fit in with the close knit community. He’s desperate to prove his worth but still carries scars from his previous case. I also liked Marnie Olsen, an ambitious PC. They make a great team and I feel there’s a bit of a spark between them which I enjoyed.

I did feel that the side story concerning Criag’s past distracted me slightly from the main story. I thought it could have done with a bit more expanding upon or maybe even its own book altogether but of course that’s just my opinion.

Long Shadows is a smart and compelling mystery and a definite must if you enjoy a British set police procedural. I’m looking forward to reading more from DS Craig Wild.