I've been enjoying this series from the beginning and I think this was the most compelling story, I simply couldn't put it down. The main crime was so strange it was no surprise that the detectives were mystified but I think the sub plot regarding psychologist Laura's very odd patient was almost more interesting. It is great to see in all Joy's books how the uniformed officers and the detectives all work so well as a team. I'm sure this is how crimes get solved in the real world yet so many authors have them at each other's throats. Although how anyone could argue with the lovely Jackman anyway, he's a sweetheart. Looking forward to more of his stories.

Wow, another stunning story from Joy Ellis. This is a real page turner as the motive is very unclear and the plot develops perfectly. I have to be honest in that I prefer the Galena books, but I think that’s down only to the main character leaping from the page, which Jackman and Evans don’t. They are great characters, though and have developed beautifully over the series, you immediately feel at home when you pick up a book by Joy Ellis, the characters, the setting and of course the pathologist who is an amazingly drawn character. A five star read.

Someone is sneaking into houses and stealing photos of young boys. A second man is also sneaking into houses, a compulsion he has no control over. Another character claims to be sleepwalking and is afraid of what he may be doing, but there is something not quite right about his story. There are several story lines in this book, do they all connect? Read it and find out. There is plenty of suspense and lots of twists in this story that will keep you turning the pages. The book is part of a series but could be read as a stand alone. Thank you to net galley for an advanced readers copy.

I am not familiar neither with this author nor the series and I read this book as stand alone.

To be honest at the beginning I had a hard time getting into this book because of so many different characters (most of them being cops) but the plot was so intriguing and quite unique so I pushed on. Reading this book was like watching a cop show and learning all investigative procedures, and since I like detective stories it was quite up my alley. The sleep walking part was very intriguing and I could not wait to see how it will unravel.

Overall, there are some holes in understanding how the villain became a cold murderer but I have enjoyed it and I will try another book of this author if the story plot is as good. However, I have to warn that this book is targeting the fans of the series. There are references to previous cases that might appear back in the series and to be honest, as I prefer stand alone books I would care less about serial killers from the past. Lastly, as the main characters were probably introduced throughout the series, their development is very limited so the one time reader ends up caring only about the victims and not so much about the regular characters of the series.

Thanks NetGalley for a free copy in exchange of the honest review.

My advice is don't read this before going to bed, because its an unusual but nevertheless scary opening: the mystery of waking up to an unknown occupant in your bedroom at night! Its a reoccurring theme about a habitual intruder. I just had to read on to see what would develop. After all potentially this is something that anyone might be unlucky enough to experience.
I found it interesting and captivating because its more of a narrative about individual lives rather than a complicated police procedural. I noticed lots of tea is drunk! then the occasional coffee, but then this is probably a reflection of real life!
So try not to read at bedtime and have a cup of tea at your side and you are in for an enjoyable and highly original treat.

The Night Thief is a procedural crime book, which will be out on November 18th, and I got a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. So here we go.

This book has an exciting starting point. In a cluster of small little English towns, a man is breaking into women's houses in the middle of the night and scaring the hell out of them, but all he takes from their houses is a picture of a 10-year-old boy before leaving through the front door. And let me tell you, as a woman living alone, the thought of a creep breaking into my house and watching me sleep is terrifying.

So I thought I was going to enjoy this book. I was expecting to be kept in a simmering level of anxiety throughout the book - as it turns out, not so much. Also, it turns out that going into a book with incorrect expectations hinders my enjoyment of a book.

Let me make one thing clear: this book is not a thriller. I almost want to call it a cosy mystery, but it didn't feel very cosy to me despite the small-town setting. Also, while a mystery was somewhat driving the plot forward, there was no sense of urgency, and it's not at the heart of the story. I want to say this story is character-driven, but there are so many characters, and none of them is presented in much depth, nor does any of them undergo an actual character arc, so I'm a bit at a loss. It's almost a slice of life narrative in the lives of the police department of Saltern-le-Fern.

If you go prepared for that, I guess this is a perfectly adequate book. I also found out after I finished the book that it's the 8th in a series, so I think it would help if you'd read those before as it feels there are so many characters because they probably all already had their arcs in previous books. You'd probably care about most of the scenes if you cared about the characters, but I guess I'm not the target audience after all.

Here are some things that bugged me without giving too much away. 

1. There were too many characters, and it feels like all of them are cops (I can think of 8 off the top of my head), and I couldn't tell them apart for most of the book.

2. Because we are following so many characters, the narrative is meandering at best, making it hard to keep up any momentum or tension in the story.

3. There is a secondary plotline that is clearly set up to be a red herring, and although the author did try to tie things together, it still felt disconnected to me at the end. 

4. I don't quite know how to put this, but everyone was strangely polite in this book in a way that felt unrealistic. It felt a little like the tea-with-my-grandmother version of a crime novel: too sanitised, for lack of a better word.

5. There is a lot of telling instead of showing at the end of the book. It ends with an epilogue-style last chapter where the characters are having dinner together and explaining what happened because we didn't get enough information to fill in the gaps throughout the book.

But I guess that's the point because this book is not about the mystery, the victims, or even the crime itself. It's about the lives of these cops, but I think if that was the point, at least one of them deserved to be more 3-dimensional and have a better character arc.

What a fascinating police procedural! This story had me guessing all the time I was reading it. Jackman and Evans are working with their team to solve several break-ins as well as some murders in the Saltern-le fen area. The question is: Are these crimes the work of more than one culprit? I highly recommend this book to other police procedural readers.

THE NIGHT THIEF by Joy Ellis. Eighth in the Jackman and Evans series. A great storyline with suspense, action, disturbing and sinister criminals. A good read and catching up with Jackman and Marie is always a welcome bonus.

Thank you to the author, Joffee Publishing, and NetGalley for the opportunity to preview the book.

Love Ms Ellis and her books. Her stories are strong and keep you guessing till the very end. This was no exception. Get to reading people. You won't regret it.

Another great read in the Jackman and Evans series, two investigations running at once with an unusual protagonist in both cases. I always enjoy the backstories that are written into the books as it makes for a more realistic and believable read. Jackman really does need to chill, he worries about his wife Laura and his partner Marie in equal measure..As long as Joy Ellis keeps writing, I will keep reading. these brilliant books.

My thanks to Joffe books, Joy Ellis "who's always fantabulous!" and Netgalley.
I'm always happy when there's a new Jackman and Evans book. They and their team are my favorite coppers in the Fens!
This was another good one by Ms. Ellis. It was a bit tame compared to some, but I actually found myself kind of sad and aching for one bad guy. Sheesh, I hate that!
I loved how Evan's story has moved forward. Also, Jackman is driving me nuts. Great guy, but every one else are adults. How he's not "in hospital" with ulcers is a mystery. I'm ready for Joy to move Jackman beyond this.
I adore Joy Ellis for the humanity that she brings to get stories. I have kept reading her because her character's are friends. They are a team.
Great work Ms. Ellis!
Recommended.

Another jolly good instalment in this series with a decent sprinkling of colourful language and not one but two complex cases for the team to solve. Dr Rory only has the briefest of appearances which is a shame

A Catalogue Of Sinister Thefts…
The eighth in the Jackman and Evans series and a catalogue of sinister thefts give the Detectives much cause for consternation. When a death occurs things take an even darker turn. With the usual well constructed and well written plot, the entirely credible cast of characters and the added dimension of some psychological suspense this is a worthy addition to this long running series and an engaging, enjoyable read.

This book is one in a series of detective novels by Joy Ellis. All I can say is lead me straight to books one through to seven, because this book gripped me from start to finish. While it did reference previous aspects of cases from other stories, I didn’t find myself at a disadvantage reading it. However I did find myself wanting to delve into these characters further, read more of their stories, and what has formed them to be as they are, and what inspires them to work as they do.

In this book, there is a seemingly low level criminal at play. He breaks into houses at night when everyone is sleeping, but not to burgle. It then transpires he is taking one single thing. A photo of their young child. At first it seems just a disturbing and creepy occurrence. But then an elderly lady falls to her death. Only she didn’t fall by accident. The escalation happens fast, and the police have to race to keep track of the game the mystery man is playing.

As the body count starts to rise DI Jackman and DS Evans have to work fast to find out what is happening, and before it is too late. I loved this book, as there are almost more twists and turns than you can keep track of, and you won’t see the ending coming. With a captivating storyline, and a side plot that is just as gripping, you will be on the edge of your seat until the very end.

*I received this copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

The Night Theif by Joy Ellis is part of a detective series set in the Fens. Even though I hadn't read any of the previous titles, the book was easy to read. Although it did reference events in prior titles in the series, this wasn't relevant to the main storyline.
If you enjoy cozy mysteries, especially those set in Great Britain, you will enjoy this series.

Thank you Netgalley and Joffe Books for the eARC.
I enjoyed this DI Jackman and DS Evans book, a good addition to the series.
Someone is breaking into women's homes at night and stealing pictures of their sons, a strange action that turns into something more dire: an elderly woman is murdered and the police are on the hunt for the person responsible. Laura, Jackman's partner, has a psychiatric patient who complains of somnambulism, driving at night while asleep. There is something about the man that makes her very uncomfortable.
This was an exciting read for me with a lot of characters that I liked, particularly the women who band together to try and figure out who this man is who has scared them so much in the night; they are very worried about danger to their young sons.
As usual, Joy Ellis has managed to write another gripping story with two appealing main characters.
Recommended.

Wow. It's a very common word for me when I read Joy Ellis. Her imagination is amazing. Her books are all pretty different - overlap with the personnel of course. The excitement that living on the Fens causes makes me half want to live there and half to stay away.

Loved it.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher I read a free advance review copy of the book. This review is voluntary, honest and my own opinion.

I was so excited to have a new Jackman & Evans book, as I recently finished this author's latest in the Nikki Galena series and I was reminded how much I love her work. This latest was no exception, as the blurb got my attention right away. Why is a man sneaking into houses in the middle of the night and stealing photos of children? Just one from each house, mind you. And that’s all he does until it’s not. He escalates to causing an elderly woman to fall to her death down her staircase. No one can understand why this sweet and caring neighbor would have been the victim of the nighttime stalker. It’s up to DI Jackman and DS Evans to gather their team and dive into the investigation.

At the same time, Jackman’s partner, Laura, is having a bad feeling about her latest therapy patient. The man claims he suffers from somnambulism (sleepwalking) but there is just something about his behavior that she can’t put a finger on. She contacts her beloved mentor, Sam, who is just as intrigued and he then contacts a colleague of HIS to bring in! They can only hope that all of their combined professional experience will aid in the patient’s case.

I loved the concurrent storylines, and how each one raises so many questions. There are street officers brought in to help the detectives, and I like how their footwork on the case is highlighted, because it’s not just the detectives putting forth the time and effort. The victims of the break ins also feature prominently, along with the steps they take to feel safe again. Each case is resolved satisfactorily and leaves me in the usual way – dying for more!

369 pages

3 and 1 / 2 stars

DS Marie Evans has just returned from a vacation with her mother. She had a fun and relaxing time. There is not much going on in the station at the moment. But, that’s about to change.

A subplot is the book is the difficult patient that Jackman’s partner has. He is given to violent mood swings and strikes out at her. .

A man is sneaking into houses and taking pictures of children; nothing else just the picture. It is horribly frightening. DI Jackman and Marie will be looking into it. They have a suspect in mind, an old trespasser nicknamed “Ratty.” But Ratty just breaks in, he doesn’t steal.

When an elderly woman is murdered, the tension in the case ratchets up. What is going on? Ratty has never been violent.

The chase is on…

This book is not Ms. Ellis’ best. While I really appreciate the way the team gets along, this novel lacks something. The writing and plotting are good. But the book wanders a bit.

I want to thank NetGalley and Joffe Books for forwarding to me a copy of this book for me to read, enjoy and review. The opinions expressed here are solely my own.

Another excellent Jackman and Evans book. I love the interaction between the characters. A thief breaks into houses at night but only takes photographs of children. Why? Ah, you will have to read it. The story is disturbing and beyond creepy. I was gripped to the end! A well deserved 5 stars from me.