Even though I did end up buying a physical copy of this copy, I would still like to thank Netgalley and the publishers for also providing me with a copy to read and review.

Riveting and utterly captivating from start to finish! This book series is one of my absolute favourites and I swear the books just keep getting better and better!
Again we have social media posts, texts, interview formats, and the latest addition - podcasts, alongside of the cleverly-written, gripping story. This adds another element to an already fantastic read that makes the story seem more real, and somewhat interactive. I was fully engrossed and just completely fascinated the whole way through.
The characters, again, are great, well-developed and add to the believeable police investigations.
There are a couple of storyarcs happening here, but with a mind-boggling he said/she said case, a murder, a stalker and some unpredictable twists, - I was left desperate for the next book by the end...
Book 6 can't come quick enough!

This is fantastic - stands up against Morse at his best. Multiple mysteries barrel alongside one another, building to a climax I simply couldn’t guess. The characters were interesting and it was helpful to have some background information on them provided up front. Touching on modern concepts which continue to challenge generations of gender based assumptions, the book is highly relevant in calling these out and getting the reader to question their own responses, My only complaint I have is that some of the non-text images are not easy to read on kindle. This author deserves a place up there with the best.

Well this was another brilliant addition to the DI Adam Farley series! I loved it!

This is a series that just grows in strength and it was so lovely to get back with the team. In a way this book works as a standalone however there are a few key things that come into play which are linked to previous events. Plus I have to highly recommend starting with book one because it is such an amazing series!

The pacing as ever is just right, keeping me invested completely. Interspersed with the story are social media snippets, various reports and articles. This adds a little interesting twist especially the social media posts. It brings a realistic edge showing how the public responds in various ways.

You get a great insight into not only the case but the detectives investigating it. I think this combination works so well. There is a brilliant amount of tension and twists that kept me entertained from start to finish!

Five big shiny stars from me!

Omg ............ this book was amazing I e read all the other cara hunter books and I loved them I'm a big fan and this one was the same thrilling exciting on the edge of your seat read and once you think you've got you've worked it out here comes a massive twist that leaves you sat there with your mouth open in shock well done for all your books never stop writing please

I have read the previous four books of the Adam Fawley series and was really excited to read The Whole Truth which is the fifth book.
This was somewhat different from the previous ones in the way it was styled but it worked and really well too.

The storylines in this were great, a sexual assault case between a professor and her student, and the true-crime podcasts about the Roadside Rapist Gavin Parrie and how flawed the original investigation was, this was new to see in a book.
Like the other books in the series, we also get to know Adam Fawley in his personal life as well as his DI role.
I found myself getting so cross with some characters there were a lot of plot twists and it kept me guessing to the end.
The Whole Truth was a fantastic read and I am excited to read book 6 in the series now.

Thank you Penguin etc and NetGalley for another great read by Cara - the author who just keeps giving to all of us avid readers.
I really look forward to the next one and definitely recommend this one.

The Whole Truth is the fifth book in the DI Adam Fawley series and is set in Oxford. Until now, I’d only read the first book, Close to Home, but this series can be read as standalone stories so I was really looking forward to reading this one.

It’s July 2018 and the novel begins with the disturbing accusation of a sexual assault at Edith Launceleve College in Oxford. What makes it even more shocking is that the victim is a 22-year-old male mathematics student called Caleb Morgan and the accused is a 42-year-old female academic, and his supervisor, Professor Marina Fisher, an expert in artificial intelligence. The incident took place at Professor Fisher’s Georgian town house after a university fundraising dinner at which she was a keynote speaker.

DI Adam Fawley’s 44-year-old wife, Alex, is 35 weeks pregnant and exhausted – she’s struggling with the heat and her emotions. The last thing Fawley needs is a complicated case involving gender and university politics, with familial links to key figures in various fields.

Fawley was involved in an investigation in which a man called Gavin Parrie was convicted of the rape and attempted rape of seven young women in Oxford in 1998. As he was led away to serve a minimum of 15 years in prison, Parrie made death threats against Fawley and now, 10 years later and out on licence with a tag, Alex is concerned that Parrie will seek out the family and carry out his threats.

While embroiled in the ‘he said, she said’ Morgan and Fisher case, the team are asked to look into the disappearance of a woman and, before long, both investigations are stretching police resources and having far-reaching and shocking repercussions for certain members of the team! I certainly didn’t see that coming!

The story is cleverly told using text messages, emails, social media posts, newspaper articles, podcast and phone call transcripts, handwritten notes, official police interviews and paperwork, as well as from the points of view of various characters. This works very well and enables the reader to follow the story and all the evidence for themselves and gain a bird’s eye view of the investigations as they unfold.

I loved the way the author kindly included a useful table at the beginning of the novel as an aide-mémoire for those who’d read previous books and also for those who hadn’t! It was very handy and gave me a quick summary of the key members of the team and some background information.

Overall, I really enjoyed this cleverly plotted and well-written police procedural. There were some startling revelations in the novel and some great twists and turns, as well as a few red herrings, which I totally fell for! The book had a great pace and tension to it and it kept my attention throughout, with never a dull moment. Just when you thought things were calming down, something else dramatic would happen!

It’s a gripping and compelling read and I raced through it in a couple of days, frantically turning the pages as things got worse and worse for various characters! The story is action packed and engaging – I became fully immersed in the cases myself and nearly started making notes!

This is an excellent series and I’m looking forward to going back and reading the earlier books in the series: In the Dark, No Way Out and All the Rage.

I didn't realise this was halfway into the series otherwise I wouldn't have requested to read. It was ok but I definitely felt I would have benefited from reading the previous books

I didn't realise The Whole Truth was book #5 in the DI Adam Fawley series when I requested it. I haven't read the previous books in the series and I was concerned I wouldn't be able to pick up the story as well as if I had done, but I needn't have worried. There's a short chapter at the start which catches the reader up on all necessary information and from then onward, the plot was very easy to follow.

The prose was absolutely sensational. The characters were all very well-rounded and nuanced, the plot was fast-paced and exciting and the twists were brilliant. There wasn't a single character who annoyed me, no one behaved stupidly just to advance the plot, and although there was slight mention of political issues occasionally in the book, I was very happy that there was no lecturing and the author remained neutral on the subjects. I don't usually enjoy police procedurals as much as other thriller subgenres, but this author has such a great talent with storytelling that I now want to read the entire series from book 1.

I can't praise this book enough. I'm so glad I had the opportunity to read an ARC, thanks to Netgalley and the publisher.

5*

It was a ok book.
I liked all the investigation and the final pages but I think that this book have so many pages that don't need to be there.

I chose this book as I was drawn to the big glass of fizz on the cover! 🥂 It certainly caught my eye.

I didn’t realise it was part of a series, but the introduction to the main characters at the beginning was great and not something I’ve seen in many books before.

The story begins with a student at a prestigious Oxford college, accusing a professor of sexual assault. The professor is a huge asset to the college.
DI Adam Fawley is tasked with investigating the case.
Something isn’t adding up, who’s telling the truth?

Adam’s station are also investigating a missing persons case, which unfortunately turns into a murder investigation.
Adam’s wife thinks she’s being watched. She’s worried that the person watching her is a recently released rapist, and she was one of his victims. Adam helped to convict him, so he definitely has motive to want to go after the family.

There’s a lot going on in this book and at times it was a little confusing to keep track of what was going on.
I’m not sure if there’s maybe just a little bit too much happening. At one point, I had almost forgotten about the sexual assault case as the book was focused on what was going on with Adam.

The format of the book is a little different to normal and includes podcast transcripts, texts, notes etc. I thought this broke it up a bit and made it more engaging. The only downside was it was difficult to read some of it on my Kindle, even zoomed in.

I quite liked the characters but felt Adam didn’t feature as much as I would have expected. Maybe if I had read the other books in the series I would have a better idea of his character.

I enjoyed the story and found it easy to read. It’s certainly a page turner and I wanted to find out what was going to happen. The plot is quite twisty and just when you think you have it sussed you’re proved wrong.

Now I’m going to add the other Fawley books to my TBR list!

3.5 stars rounded to 4.

Thanks to Penguin and NetGalley for my copy to review.

A welcome fifth outing for DI Adam Fawley and his team, in this Oxford based police procedural series. A university student accuses their professor of sexual assault. But the victim is a six-foot male rugby player and the accused, an older woman. A clever twist on #MeToo.
Fawley's past is also coming back to haunt him when a convicted rapist is released from prison still pleading their innocence. The two plots interweave seamlessly. With no proper chapters, the inclusion of podcasts, online articles and social media make for a compulsive read. With plenty of twists and turns right up to the final paragraph.

Cara Hunter’s DI Fawley series are excellent crime procedurals with interesting characters, satisfyingly intricate plots and modern twists, such as including social media comments on crime cases and covering important contemporary issues. Here we have a take on #MeToo and the abuse of power sexually by someone in an influential position, in this case a university professor accused of assaulting a student. Meanwhile, a malevolent figure from Fawley’s past threatens to destroy his chance of happiness. Although it can be read and enjoyed as a stand-alone book, much of the background to this latter plot strand was set up in Hunter’s previous novel, “All the Rage,” itself another cracking thriller. There are many twists and turns as the team slowly uncover what happened piece by piece, and the pace does not slacken as more details come to light. As well as continuing the story of Fawley, his wife Alex and their tragic history, Hunter continues to develop the other characters on the team and their preoccupations- each is realistic and well-rounded, and we care about them. A great read from a talented crime writer.

Essentially two mysteries to solve in one book. A murder and an accusation of rape by a university professor on one of the students. There was much to like in this but also quite a bit that I didn’t. There was lots of jumping around, plenty of characters (probably too many if like me this is your first Adam Fawley story). The constant “interruptions” of various kinds were a huge distraction and not a great success on a kindle. I did like Adam and some of the team and of course the Oxford setting. Despite the above it was an engaging novel with some interesting twists and worth the time invested in it.

Very good this book.
I highly recommend for everyone.
It's very intense and interesting
Thanks a lot netgalley

I do love a police procedure crime novel and this one did not disappoint. A cracking tale of two stories with brilliant twists at the end. Perfect summer (or anytime) reading. Highly recommended.

Absolutely loved this book!!! Couldn't put it down. Would highly recommend!! Thank you for the advance read!! Can't wait to read future books from Cara!!!

I have read a few of Cara Hunter’s books which are in this series and I do feel they need to be read in order to appreciate how the dynamics between all the characters work.

This was yet another excellent, well written chapter of the investigations and procedures That Adam Fawley becomes involved in

This is the fifth outing for DI Fawley and his team, and possibly the best so far. It could be read as a stand-alone novel but to understand the intricacies of the relationships between characters it's probably better to have read the series - in my opinion this would be well worth the time if you enjoy police procedurals.

I really enjoy the multiple points of view as you get an insight into the characters' personalities, their jobs, worries ambitions and their lives outside of work. As always with Cara Hunter, there are lots of surprises and a blockbuster ending (and it's clear cut - nothing ambiguous!)

The only tiny criticism is in the use of text messages and whatsapp screenshots - they were very difficult to read on my kindle as I couldn't enlarge them so felt I might have missed out. Also the messages had perfect grammar and punctuation which doesn't accord with my experience. Apart from that the book was gr8 (urgh!)

This was my first book by Cara Hunter. I did not realize that however, this is the fifth in a series until I began it. The mystery plot is pretty standalone, there was a lot of the characters' personalities and backstories that was lost on me. It took me a while to work out the characters and their relationships, though the author thoughtfully included a cheatsheet in the preface. Still, I think it would be best to follow the series in order, especially as there are multiple POVs to follow within the book. I thought the first part of the book was slow, though it picked up later. The inclusion of other materials, such as podcast excerpt, emails and articles was an interesting twist that really added to the telling of the story. I'm looking forward to reading more of the DI Frawley series. I'm so grateful to NetGalley and Penguin for the opportunity to read and review Flesh and Blood.