This is the first novel I’ve read in the series although it’s been on my radar and wish list for a while. I loved the character of Nikki and the atmospheric Yorkshire setting and it’s certainly a gritty storyline. I did find it hard to connect with some of the plot lines and so I feel it would be advisable to read this series from the beginning which I’m now planning to do.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC.

Very gritty thriller featuring Detective Nicki Parish. Two main strands a personal one and a professional one. Excellent descriptions, I felt the cold on the moors!

Gritty, tense and gripping, Dying Breath is the nail-biting new thriller by Liz Mistry featuring Detective Nikki Parekh.

The arrival of a series of threatening postcards mean only one thing for Nikki Parekh: the man who escaped after murdering her mother two years ago is back and he has vengeance on his mind. With each postcard getting closer and closer to Bradford, the threatening words scrawled all over them only increase Nikki’s determination to do whatever it takes to keep her family safe and to put her mother’s killer behind bars before it’s too late.

With work being as hectic as ever, Nikki must not get distracted. However, the discovery of human remains in a remote barn on the Yorkshire moors pulls her attention away from her quest and when Nikki and her team meet a dead end, she realises that she’s going to have her work cut for her if she wants to solve this case and protect her family at the same time.

Can Nikki finally get justice for her mother’s murder? Or is she going to be the killer’s next victim?

When readers pick up a Liz Mistry thriller, they know that they are in very good hands and with Dying Breath, she has once again penned a nerve-jangling and heart-stopping crime novel that will keep readers guessing and on the edge of their seats from start to finish.

In Dying Breath, DS Nikki Parekh has her toughest case yet and as the lines between the personal and professional get blurred, she will need to use all of her intelligence, ingenuity and perception to get to the truth.

With Dying Breath Liz Mistry has delivered a first-rate thriller readers will thoroughly enjoy.

A new Nikki Parekh book is always something to look forward to and Dying Breath, the fifth in the series is another dark, twisty read that kept me engrossed from start to finish. In many ways it feels as if this may be a crossroads novel and I'm intrigued to see what comes next.
In the previous book, Blood Games, DS Nikki Parekh was in a bad way; she is much stronger here but is still an often tormented figure, weighed down by guilt, regret and her responsibilities to her family. There are many opinions as to what makes a good crime novel but as important as plot and pacing may be, I believe that it's the characters who really make the difference and Dying Breath is as reliably strong as ever with regards to the people – whether good, bad or downright evil – who populate its pages. Nikki is a sheer delight because she is completely believable and therefore so relatable. She is an ambitious, resolute woman but she is damaged by her past, scared, angry and often very funny – whether intentionally or otherwise. She is also a working mother whose family comes first and the interactions with her partner and children, most notably her eldest daughter, Charlie are warm, turbulent and entirely authentic. She knows her family are at risk from a twisted killer with a vengeful plan and is doing everything she can to protect them. However, the steps she has taken to try to ensure their safety leads to a different sort of conflict, resulting in one of the many fascinating subplots woven into this cleverly plotted thriller.
There's a growing sense of foreboding throughout the novel and the chapters which follow her nemesis are particularly chilling. He leaves her a terrifying message which leaves her in no doubt of the danger they are all in and the tension is ratcheted up still further with the gritty, brutal case Nikki and her team are investigating. The sense of place is always a highlight of this series but the action moves away from the city of Bradford in Dying Breath as Liz Mistry makes full use of the remote Yorkshire moors. The icy weather and sense of isolation really adds to the bleak atmosphere which permeates throughout the whole book. The investigation is almost too horrible to even contemplate and although most of the violence happens off the page, readers are left in no doubt as to the terrible suffering inflicted on the victims.
There are very few leads to follow and it's vividly clear just how frustrating it is to work a case with so little to go on, especially as the escalating danger Nikki and her family are in threatens to distract her from her work and to engulf her once again in darkness. The switching viewpoints follow Nikki, the killer on her trail, Jacko, a man out of his depth and horrified by what he has become a part of, and an unnamed young man who is in a piteous state and seems likely to face something even worse than the torture he has already been subjected to, and it's a real rollercoaster ride of fear and emotion. Eventually all the strands of this cleverly plotted novel are brought together and the pulse-racing climactic scenes are the stuff of nightmares.
Change is an ongoing theme throughout Dying Breath and as I said at the start of this review, it does feel as if we have reached a pivotal point in the series. What doesn't change, however, is that Liz Mistry writes compelling thrillers that explore the darkest recesses of humanity but still imbues her books with insightful compassion and a generous helping of humour. Dying Breath is no exception, I thoroughly recommend it.

Postcards plot the killer's plans closing in
Nikki Parekh is determined he won't win.
He killer her mother and now threatens her, too,
Along with her family, what can they do?

The search for this twisted killer,
Is a totally enthralling crime thriller.
With hunting, dog baiting and murder, too,
This is a dark story all the way through.

With family drama, romance and more
An intriguing case for you to explore.
It keeps you on the edge of your seat
Right to the end when the story's complete.

There's cruelty, threats and danger, too,
With powerful folks in illegal activities they pay to do.
Can Nikki and the team catch the perpetrators in time
And put an end to this sickening crime?

A riveting read, from beginning to end
A page turner engrossed in which your time to spend.
For my complementary copy of this book, I say thank you,
I throughly enjoyed reading it and this is my honest review.

“Little girl, come out and play. Today’s the day, I’ll make you pay.”

Nikki Parekh has a lot on her shoulders. Her father, a murderer who killed her mother and has vowed to kill her as well, is sending her postcards. The postcards indicate that he has returned to the U.K., leading her to get protection for her family. This is difficult for everyone, but is especially hard for her teenage daughter. Nikki and her partner, Marcus, have tried to protect the children from the full knowledge of their peril. For her daughter Charlie, though, this is proof that her mother is paranoid and overprotective, not trusting her enough to be honest. In other words, a typical reaction from a teenager to a parent even under typical circumstances.

The police have a special task force set up to capture Freddie Downey, Nikki’s father. Parekh is NOT allowed to go anywhere near them, much to her frustration. Instead, she is charged with finding the missing owner of an arm. A human arm was left at the scene of a dog fight. It hardly seems possible that the person is still alive so they are treating it as a murder inquiry. Together with a taskforce specializing in animal crimes, they are seeking a dogfighting ring that seems to have escalated to something even more macabre.

And indeed, they have accelerated to kidnapping and murder. A young man cowers in a cage, surrounded by fighting dogs in their own cages. He watched his “friend” get ripped apart in the ring by those same dogs. He is sure his turn is coming…but has no idea of when.

Liz Mistry fills page after page with twists, turns, and revelations. Somehow, though, in the midst of a multi-faceted plot, she manages to bring out the deeply human aspects of her characters. Nikki Parekh is a troubled soul, though when you watch your father murder your mother it would be hard to keep your equilibrium. Still, she works hard to be a good mother, a good partner to Marcus, and a good cop. Balancing those competing demands is a constant challenge and she does not always get the balance right. That does not stop her from trying.

Freddie Downey is as cold a criminal as you will find. Cruel, manipulative, vengeful, he blames his daughter for everything that has ever gone wrong in his life. Not content with killing her, though, Downey is eager to tear her entire life apart. When he stumbles across Charlie’s rebellious streak, a new opportunity for that destruction presents itself.

Dying Breath has an involved and compelling plot with multiple facets that come together in a shocking conclusion. This is a terrific series and this may be the best one yet.

Everything about this story give me the shivers! READ THIS!!… Once you start, you will not want to put this book down.’ My Novel Addiction! Wow. This is just my kind of book!…

A new Nikki Parekh novel is always a treat – albeit a gruesome and gritty one! This – the fifth in the series – is another gem.

In this instalment, Detective Nikki Parekh is thrown into a grisly investigation when a human arm is recovered at the site of an illegally organised dog fight. Struggling to identify the body, she is also working to keep her family safe from the man who killed her mother and is back in the UK – with Nikki (and her family) in his sights.

This story cuts between several perspectives which is engaging. As well as watching Nikki and the Bradford Police investigation, there are also chapters focused on Nikki’s arch enemy and someone caught up in the illegal dog fighting operation. These are cleverly constructed and brilliantly reveal twists along the way. This is a book with plenty of pace!

As usual, I found Nikki Parekh a compelling and well-rounded character at the centre of the various events. Her family take more of a central role in this novel and it is a welcome shift – I think there’s a lot of readers who can find something relatable in watching Nikki balance her stressful job with raising children (and – more challengingly – teenagers!) She’s not a character who is always perfect but she is an interesting and credible figure.

Her partnership with Sajid Malik is also (as usual) a highlight of the novel – there is a genuine warmth and rapport between the two. Mistry presents a totally believable picture of two long-term colleagues who have a lot of shared history, but also real friendship.

As with Mistry’s previous books, this probably isn’t one for the faint-hearted. As well as the stray tattooed arm, there are some pretty brutal and violent scenes around the criminal gangs and those they exploit. The dog fighting is also quite grim – just a word of warning!

I’d recommend this to anyone who enjoys well-written and twisty police procedurals. If you haven’t followed Nikki Parekh from the start, you’ve missed 4 great books and might not fully understand the significance of the man stalking Nikki’s family – basically, you’ve missed a great back-story! I’d recommend you start with the first book, but ‘Dying Breath’ would also work as a standalone.

This isn’t the first book I’ve read in this series so when I started it I expected it to be gritty and dark and it was. It doesn’t hold back on anything. I think I’ve missed a book in the series because some of what has happened to Nikki wasn’t anything I remembered. However there was enough explanation that I was able to work out what I needed to be able to still follow the story. I didn’t feel I was at a disadvantage because of that which was good, because a lot happens in this book.

We meet Nikki dealing with the knowledge that someone is trying to get at her and possibly her family as well. However this has to be balanced with the new investigation she gets when a crime scene is found on the Yorkshire moors. The investigation on the moors has more than one strand to it, which leads Nikki and her team into a world that I think most people know exists but try not to think about. This is where the grittiness I mentioned comes in. These stories always cover something real, something that goes on all the time, but because it’s not on the news or in the papers every day we tend to forget about it or think it’s not that bad, when in reality it’s far worse than we realise.

I’m not going to be more specific than that because that would lead to spoilers and I don’t do those. What I can say is that this story, and the previous one’s I’ve read, always make me think. They make me realise that even though my own circumstances aren’t as good as I might like, I’m incredibly fortunate that they aren’t as bad as some of the people in the books.

So, while Nikki is trying to work out what’s happened on the moor and who is involved, she’s also dealing with the direct threat to her and her family and the understandable tension and worry that brings with it. These two parts are handled brilliantly. The tension and emotions almost leap off the page. When I was reading (at night at times!) I was getting spooked myself and having to remind myself it wasn’t real and no one was after me.

This is another fabulous Nikki Parekh book. If you’ve not read these before it’s probably better to start with the first one but I wouldn’t say it’s essential. What’s more important is that you discover these brilliant reads for yourself.

I have previously read 'Unjust Bias' by this author and loved it.
I was unaware this book was book 5 in the Nikki Parekh series, but I feel it is helpful to readers if they know they can jump into the series later. With this book, I feel like readers are given enough of the backstory to be able to enjoy the story from hereon in.
The plot is fast-paced and oozing drama and suspense, which I think seems to go side by side with Mistry.
I was gripped as much as Unjust Bias, and I am beginning to see why Mistry is so well recommended.
Nikki Parekh is a strong and interesting character to base a series around, and I look forward to seeing what she gets up to next.

We have reached book 5 in the DS.Nikki Parekh series and boy is it a dark tense and suspenseful.
Nikki is receiving threatening post cards that can only come from the man who escaped arrest for the murder of her mother two years ago... Her Father!
Each post card sending her the same message and gradually coming from a place closer to Bradford and Nikki and her family.
Not only does she have this to cope with,
Then an arm, no fingers, no body is found, Nikki and her team are tasked with finding the rest of the body and determining who the victim was.
The evidence draws the team into the dark and cruel world of dog fighting and animal abuse.
The fact the arm bears teeth marks and appears to have been ripped from its socket indicating something even more sinister than a dog fight has taken place.
This is a roller coaster ride with the tension and suspense building throughout, moving along at a fast pace, holding my attention from start to finish.
The backdrop of abandoned barns on the lonely West Yorkshire moors adding to the feeling of ever present danger.
Brilliant read cant wait for the next in the series!

The latest installment in the D.I. Nikki Parekh series. Not one for the faint hearted.

This latest installment, is just as good as the previous, and for the most part better.

We find Parekh being hounded via postcards, that are getting ever closer to home. Sent by her dad, taunting her, trying to manipulate fear (and succseeding), and mentally traumatising her.

Just incase you didn’t notice – her dad isn’t a very nice man.

There is a task force that has been set up, to counter act the underground sport of dog fighting. Prevelant in the North, but despite all efforts so far. The only things that have been found, is what the organisers have wanted them to find. Again the baiting of law enforcement.

However, things have been ramped up a lot. At the scene of the latest dog fight, part of an human arm is found. The ringleaders are getting more and more blase. Searching for bigger and better.

This book picks up pace as you get further and further in, the plot and characters take up a speed as things come to there climax.

As with other books in this series, you are in for a rip riding adventure into personal fears, adaptation, manipulation and criminal activities.

Status: Completed

Rating: 4.2/5.0

A quality police procedural mystery set in Bradford, Yorkshire. This time, DS Nikita Parekh (Nikki) and her work partner, newly promoted DS Sajid Malik investigate when a tattooed and fingerless arm is found. Also, Nikki is receiving threatening postcards regularly, some sent to Trafalgar House police station and some to her house, from her vile biological dad, Freddie Downey. The author's pacing is always spot on, there's plenty happening and there's certainly never a dull moment. Liz Mistry really knows how to write a story that is compelling, entertaining and all-consuming, with characters that are perfectly drawn. Very, very dark.

This review was written voluntarily and my rating was in no way influenced by the fact that I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel from HQ Digital via NetGalley.

This is the fifth book in the Nikki Parekh series and although I was able to enjoy and follow the story I definitely think it would have been better to read the series in order. There seems to be a storyline going through that would be good to follow from the start and get to know the characters better. Nikki’s mum was killed by a man who is now taunting her and impacting on her family and the trauma they've been through. This runs alongside the crime Nikki and the team are investigating. Some dark, tense moments and kept at a steady, exciting pace. Overall this seems like a fantastic crime thriller series, which is my favourite genre, so I'm really looking forward to starting at the beginning!

They say you should no judge a book by it's cover but I simply love Liz Mistry front cover collection. In this case, the book inside delivers quality police procedural mysteries set in Yorkshire. This story explores the very real, very upsetting and appalling subject of dog-fighting and I am delighted to know that just as in this book, there is a police force out there fighting this disgusting practice.

This book makes for difficult reading at some times due to the subject explored and it is all the more poignant.
This is simply another amazing British police procedural with a great strong female main character, my favourite type of book.

The backdrop of the Moors is beautifully set and adds to the bleakness of the scene.

I’ll start by saying that this book is part of the DS Nikki Parekh series, you can read it as a standalone, but in this case you’ll need a little bit of background story about Nikki’s lovely family… just to be advised! This is the 5th book of the series, but believe me when I say that they are worth the read, twisted and gripping it’s impossible to not fall in love with Nikki and her messy life.
As I was expecting, this is not a simple book, because Liz Mistry has a special talent to make her books complex and layered so that they are impossible to stop reading or wanting to know more about the characters, even the evil ones! This is a case about dog fights and something much darker, the horrible people that organize them and the worst ones that are part of it. We’ll have a first voice in the story, someone inside of the group, someone that knows how horrible is what they are doing but at the same time is scared to leave the group fearing for his life. When Nikki will start investigating the discovery of a body part, she would never have expected the case to be so dark or threatening. But, as a reader, we know that Nikki’s cases are never easy and you never get bored reading them! But this book will be part of Nikki’s personal life; her family is scared of her father, a man that is sending dangerous postcards to people around her, and he is much closer than she expects…
If you are looking for a new book, this should be your first choice; thrilling and intriguing, impossible to not love it! Are you ready for the “Dying Breath”?

A gruesome, thrilling action packed read. Although I wasn't a fan of the dog fighting ring part of this story because I am a Dog lover, it was so well written that it didn't really go into details on that side of things. Nikki is a great character and I couldn't stop reading this with my jaw clenched because it is so full of suspense. I felt really sorry for Jacko as I think he just got himself into a bad situation which he couldn't see a way out of. I loved this book as it was overloaded with suspense and action, even with the dog fighting ring I am giving this book 5 stars. Liz writes well developed characters and scenes with storylines that pack a punch. Looking forward to the next one.

Liz Mistry, what the hell have I just read?!?! I feel chilled to the bone!!! And not because we’ve not got the heating on!!! Dying Breath is a shockingly dark and twisted read!!! It gave me goosebumps and I loved it!!!!!!!!!!

Nikki is faced with a double header of a monstrous time – a fingerless body-less arm (I did chuckle at the name this body part was given) and the threatening postcards from the one who took one of the most precious people from our Yorkshire detective. What a real life pair of night-terrors to face!!!

I loved the perspective jumping Mistry put me through. Going from Nikki to headstrong rebellious Charlie and then Jacko. Despite Jacko sitting on the criminal side of the story, he seemed a slightly reluctant participant in a number of matters with Fugly having him (and his other “employees”) over a slight barrel of fear and intimidation.

But oh Fugly! What a nasty piece of work. A man ruling by tyranny. Is he all mouth and not trousers ? I wouldn’t like to test the idea given the line of work he’s developing which makes me feel sick. This man gave me the heebie jeebies!!!

Dying Breath is a seriously dark crime thriller that is not for the faint hearted. Mistry has pulled together so many horrific ideas to create such a dastardly investigation for Nikki. despite wincing at various points throughout, I was hooked from the off and I didn’t want to put it down though the real world and my sleepy eyelids enforced it at times! Blooming brilliant!!

It’s been a little while since I read a crime novel and boy have I missed them. When the case is personal for the detective, the read is so much more enjoyable for me and this one is personal for Nikki, our main character. In addition to someone putting Nikki’s family in danger, Nikki catches a case at work and she must focus on that.

Nikki is a great, well-rounded character and I relate to her. I was gripped from the beginning and the pace of the story never let up. This is an intense and grisly read. I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen.

If you love crime series, you should pick this one up. The entire series is well done and I will now wait for the next installment.

Dark and dangerous DS Nikki Parekh's latest case draws her into a menacing and immoral world that is disturbing reading. Suspenseful and twisty, the multi-viewpoint plot immerses you in a terrible world of depravity and violence. Her past threatens Nikki and all she holds dear, and the final adrenaline-fueled chapters resonate.

It's a pivotal book for series devotees with believable characters, authentic investigations and menacing and suspenseful twists.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher.