Member Reviews
“Devil’s Way” is a gripping cold case thriller with a very clever twist! I am excited to discover this author—I have not previously read any of his books and didn’t realize that this was part of a series—and look forward to reading more, especially the three Kate Marshall books that precede this one. Kate and her associate Tristan are PIs with personality and I loved their approach to solving the mystery of a child who had disappeared eleven years earlier. The audiobook was beautifully narrated and I found myself wanting to keep listening even after I should have turned my attention to other things. The characters and setting are compelling, and I was thoroughly engaged. Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this audiobook.
A great plot and plenty to think about with all the twists and turns in this mystery. A chance meeting at the hospital leads Kate to pursue a missing child case from eleven years ago. I found some of the decisions made by certain characters to be slightly unlikely but enjoyed the story nevertheless. I didn’t realise it was part of a series, so I’ll look forward to reading some others by this author. Thank you to Net a galley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.
Devil’s Way
Kate Marshall #4
Robert Bryndza
Every morning Kate Marshall, Private Detective took a swim in the sea. One morning a riptide pulled her under, she fought to stay alive. Two surfers came to her rescue. Kate Marshall came very close to drowning. She woke up in a hospital bed with pneumonia. Jean, an elderly patient, occupied the other bed in the hospital room. The two women became friends and Jean shared the story of her missing grandson, Charlie. The young boy disappeared eleven years ago while on a camping trip. Jean wanted closure and asked Kate to look for her grandson; she needed to know what happened to him. Kate and her partner Tristan began the search for Charlie; they quickly discovered Jean’s past which was colorful to say the least. The case left many questions? What happened to little Charlie, was he kidnapped, or could he have fallen into the bog or the gorge; there were many places in the surrounding area that was very dangerous especially for a small child. The investigation took the Kate and Tristan to the police officers that were on the scene eleven years ago when Charlie disappeared. They discovered a murdered social worker that could or could not have something to do with the missing child. Rather than answers the investigation seemed to bring more questions. The investigation took the Private Investigators from talking with the police officers on the scene when Charlie disappeared to the campground.
This is the first book I have read by author Robert Bryndza, it won’t be the last. The plot was like an onion with layer upon layer that you slowly peeled away. Main characters Kate and Tristan have great depth. Kate is a recovering alcoholic, sober for 13 years. Kate was my favorite character, she is flawed. She is struggling with her near-death experience, the physical, mental and emotional toll it is taking on her. Tristan stands by her even when she loses her temper with him. The descriptions of Dartmoor are stunning and set the atmosphere. Great writing, great plot, great characters, what more can you ask for?
Devil's Way jumps forward in time but we're still with Kate & Tristan now as a well established detective agency. I still really like the relationship between our two lead characters & will continue this series, but this one fell a little flatter for me, lacking the intricacies & twists of the previous books. I think this is because I had worked out what had happened very early on & was just left following the story to see how it all came together.
Having said that I have seen so many fantastic reviews for Devil's Way that I know it is only because I lucked (or unlucked) out in twigging the twist very early on 😬
This is the first in the series that I have listened to & Kate didn't sound how I thought she would in my head so that took a little getting used to. Once I'd settled that the audio was good, easy to follow, different voices for each character & very engaging.
My thanks to Raven Street Publishing for a review copy via NetGalley of the unabridged audiobook edition of ‘Devil’s Way’ by Robert Bryndza. The audiobook is narrated by Jan Cramer.
This is Book 4 in his Kate Marshall series of crime thrillers. Kate is a former Met police detective now running a private detective agency in Devon with her former teaching assistant, Tristan. Background is provided for readers new to the series.
June 2018. Kate Marshall swims every day in the sea but one morning she is pulled into a riptide current and nearly dies. After rescue she is rushed to the hospital. During her recovery he befriends Jean, an elderly lady on the same ward. She learns that eleven years previously Jean’s three-year-old grandson, Charlie, went missing during a camping trip on Dartmoor. Was he abducted? Or did Charlie fall into Devil's Way, a rushing river that vanishes into a a gorge close to where they were camping?
By the time Kate is well enough to go home, she has agreed to take on the case. Kate and Tristan look into the events of that fateful night and uncover that there may have been aspects of Jean’s past that could have put Charlie in jeopardy. The brutal murder of the family’s social worker not long after Charlie vanished is also of concern. Is this crime related? No further details to avoid spoilers.
With respect to the audiobook, given my vision problems, I am always pleased when I can do a combined read/listen. Jan Cramer is one of my favourite British narrators. While this is her first time reading one of the Kate Marshall novels, she has been the narrator for the audiobook editions of Robert Bryndza’s Detective Erika Foster series. Her voice is warm and clear and a pleasure to listen to.
Overall, I felt that ‘Devil’s Way’ had a strong plot and was a definite page-turner that was also rich in characterisation. This is a series that has become a must-read for me.
Highly recommended.
4.5 stars rounded up to 5.
This book is another good addition to a fantastic series. Kate takes on a missing person cold case of eleven years past. The author blends some amount of atmosphere to the plot. It gives a nice touch and I would prefer some more of it. At some point I could guess what the twist is. The reason for the second crime is not strong enough.
Narrator ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Author Robert Bryndza
I really enjoyed this book. The pace was really good, the characters were interesting and the story keep me engaged the whole way through.
I didn't realise this was part of a series but it was super easy to pick up and after listen to this I bought Nine Elms from the kindle store and can't wait to start this series from the beginning.
This is the first novel I have requested by Robert Bryndza although I have now found out that it is the fourth instalment of the Kate Marshall series but I found it worked fine as a standalone novel as well and I didn't feel I needed to read the previous books to enjoy this one I did like the characters and although I found the plot was glaringly obvious I was enjoyable.
My only criticisum would be the narrator of the audio book, as she was so slow and mainly when she narrated Kate she gave her a really whiny voice and I can't imagine a lady, like kate, who used to be in the police and is now a private detective being whiny and I had to speed up the listening speed just to make it bearable.
Devil's Way introduced me to Robert Bryndza and his Kate Marshall series. Although not the first in the series, it can absolutely be read and enjoyed fully as a standalone.
In this, the audio version, the narrator Jan Cramer absolutely brings the characters and story to life.
The case of a missing 3 year old boy is the central focus of this novel but as Kate and Tristan unpick clues and gather information they are led in many different directions, uncovering other crimes that 'seem' linked.
I thoroughly enjoyed this crime thriller and liked the private investigator aspect. I thought the characters vulnerabilities added to the overall picture which I'm sure will continue to be explored in future novels.
Although Devil's Way was my first Robert Bryndza, it won't be my last!
Thank you Net Galley for an audio ARC of Devil's Way by Robert Bryndza. This is a story of a cold case of a 3 year old boy who went missing. I thought it was well done!
This one was awesome despite me not ever liking books about missing children. Great plot and believable characters. I absolutely loved the character of Kate and of her sidekick Tristan and the intricate relationship that they have.
I really enjoyed listening to this one! It was thrilling and had me on the edge of my seat, and it was incredibly deep. Highly recommend.
Book Title: Devil’s Way
Author: Robert Bryndza
Series: Kate Marshall #4
Narrator: LJ Ross
Publisher: Raven Street Publishing
Genre: Mystery Thriller
Pub Date: January 12, 2023
My Rating: 4 Stars
This was a surprise read for me. There was more to it than what I was expecting.
I am a big psychological thriller fan and always suspect everyone – this one threw me way off!
Kate Marshal loves to go for a daily swim in the sea, however she didn’t check current conditions and on this particular day and she nearly drowns when she gets caught in a deadly riptide and ends up in the hospital. While in the hospital recovering, Jean an older woman who is her roommate tells her about Charlie her three year old grandson who went missing eleven years ago while on a camping trip at Devil’s Way. Once she learns Kate is a private investigation, she hires Kate in hopes of finding what happened to her grandson.
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Cold cases are always interesting to read as the technology has made a lot of advances. Which is this case as Kate and her partner Tristan are able to uncover things – one is that Jean wasn’t upfront about all that happened.
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This is my second Kate Marshall and I certainly am looking forward to reading or listening to another. Narrator Ross did a great job in performing the characters.
Want to thank NetGalley and Raven Street Publishing for this entertaining early e-Galley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for January 12, 2023
Private Investigator Kate Marshall and her side kick/partner Tristan Harper are back, and, in this installment, they are looking for a child who has been missing for eleven years! This is the fourth book in the series and as always, it was fantastic! Plus, that cover!
Kate Marshall loves her early morning swims in the Ocean. It is integral to her wellbeing and sobriety. One morning she gets pulled into a riptide current and wakes up in the hospital, lucky to be alive. While hospitalized she meets Jean, who lost her grandson, Charlie elven years ago on a camping trip. Kate naturally agrees to help and once she has recovered, she and Tristan begin their search.
As they investigate, they learn things about Jean's past and Charlie's early years. Did Charlie wander off in the night? Was he abducted? Was foul play involved? Could he have fallen into Devil's Way, a rushing river near where they were camping?
Following up on all the clues and speaking to everyone around at that time, Kate and Tristan, ruffle some feathers, discover some truths and make others nervous. With a child that has been missing for eleven years, there isn't much to go on, but failure is not an option for them, and they dive deep and won’t let anything get in their way!
I love Kate and Tristan' characters and their relationship with each other. They are both likeable characters with backstories that evoke emotion while also showing how far both have come in their lives. I also admire their dedication to their jobs. In this book, Kate's near-death experience has her reeling and thinking of alcohol. Tristan steps up to the plate and Kate gets testy with him when he asks how she is doing/coping. Both are fantastic and likeable characters and seeing them both rattled a little only serves to make them feel more real. Plus, Kate's conversations with her son were nice to read.
This book was interesting from the beginning. Knowing how much Kate loves her morning swims, it was hard to see her injured doing what she loves. But in the end, it also speaks to her resiliency and determination. The mystery of a missing child had me doing my own super sleuthing with these private investigators. I was invested in wanting to know what happened the night he went missing from his family's camping site.
As with the previous books in the series, this book was gripping and had a nice blending of Kate and Tristan's personal and professional lives. I have enjoyed their character development and growth from over the course of this series.
I'm already looking forward to the next book in this series!
This was a fantastic audiobook with brilliant narration!
Thank you to Raven Street Publishing and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
Part of a series but can definitely be read as a standalone. If anything this one has intrigued me to find out more about Kate’s back story. I enjoyed the storyline and how it unfolded. It was gripping and suspenseful which is always a good listen. The pace was perfect. I really liked the characters and the different dynamics. I couldn’t take to the narrator when it came to portraying the characters and bringing them to life. It just didn’t seem to fit right when it came to certain characters. Overall a good listen.
3.5/5 🌟🌟🌟/🌟
Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture Audio for the opportunity to listen to #DevilsWay
“Devil’s Way” is part of the “Kate Marshall” series authored by Robert Bryndza. This book was my my first time both reading, and listening to, a book written by Bryndza and that is due to the good folks at NetGalley. The plot summary: Marshall, now a private investigator after formerly being with law enforcement, sets off to solve a decades-old mystery of a three-year-old child who suddenly disappeared while on a camping trip with his family. Devil’s Way is a gorge that Charlie, the three-year-old, may have fallen into 11 years previously.
For those that enjoy your solid murder mystery you came to the right book! We don’t know whether little Charlie was murdered, but we do know that a social worker connected to the mystery was brutally killed and that mystery needs solving also. Reading this fourth book in the series makes me wish to go back and read the first three. I would categorize this book as an “ above average procedural mystery..”
Devil's Way was my first read from the author. Although this one is fourth book in P.I Kate Marshal series but the story is easy to read as standalone without readers must doing reading backlog.
The main story following Kate who struggling to healing from her personal trauma while take the old missing child case. The mystery plot started very strong and intrigued me. The storytelling was captivating, tidy plotline with tendency some repetitive facts here and there. The detail investigation procedures was slower than my personal preferences. Some suspects and facts given partials in layers of facts and adding suspense until the last revealed.
The audio narrator doing very good job with her skills. I mostly enjoyed her skills to give different voice to each characters. That's help me alot to imagined and enjoyed the storytelling.
This book will attract readers who interest with light and cozy mystery investigation with characters driven focus.
Thank you Netgalley and Raven Street Publishing for provided my copy. My thoughts always my own.
I loved the plot of this story even though I found it easy to figure out the mystery. It was so beautifully written that it held my interest until the end. The characters were so well developed that I felt like I knew them. This was book 4 in a series but it’s not necessary to read the first 3, can definitely be enjoyed as a standalone. It did get off to a bit of a slow start but that’s sometimes necessary when jumping into a series several books in. It allowed the author to give some background on the characters so I didn’t feel lost. Great read!
I really enjoyed this mystery and thought it just got better and better. It had a satisfying and realistic ending and I highly recommend.
I guess what I loved the most about this was how invested I became with everyone. The book was skillfully written with surprises at every turn.
This was my second novel by this author and I’m hooked.
I read some of this but mostly chose to listen to the audiobook. Narrated by Jan Cramer and a little over 9 hours I didn’t want it to end.
Thanks Robert Bryndza for writing this and thanks again NetGalley.
Three year old Charlie disappeared eleven years ago and has been declared dead. When Kate and Tristan are asked to find out what really happened they uncover a web of lies and deceit. A clever story with a totally shocking ending.