Detective Lexi Bennett finds 2 bodies out in the hills dressed as princesses when she is out for a run, this was not what she was expecting after her return from Quantico.
Everything in the crime scene seems to be a set up done by the killer only to remind Lexi of her past, when she and her siblings were kidnapped and tortured. While Lexi’s boss thinks she is too close to the case given her past, Lexi wants to get the killer at any cost – even if it means risking her own life again!
Lexi and her team have to find the 3rd girl who may or may not be alive as there’s no proof of what was really done to her.
This was a good detective series, and a really fast paced one – thank you netgalley, Alison Belsham & Bookouture Audio for approving the Audio ARC in exchange for honest review. Looking forward to the 2nd book in this series already

When DI Lexie Bennet stumbles upon the bodies of two teenager girls with their throats slit left on display on a hill popular with joggers, she is startled not only by the grotesque nature of the crime.... but of the reminder of her own past.

I loved the writing in this book, it's an interesting story and well crafted.... however.... i am sick to death (no pun intended) of stories where the cops/DIs are investigating things they would in absolutely no way be allowed to be anywhere near in real life. I was expecting a story where Lexie is kept on the outside of the investigation, sleuthing on her own after being barred from the case. Instead what I got was a DI who had absolutely no business investigating this case being told by her superior that she has no business investigating the case.... and then being put in charge of it anyway. As one would predict, Lexie's history clouds her judgement multiple times and nearly derails the investigation.

I absolutely admire the writer's style and skill... but this one was just way too unrealistic for me. That being said, I assume not every case the author has in store will be directly related to Lexie's past. and would absolutely read more as long as that's true.

I was wary going into this book as I generally dislike "the detective is the killer's special one" trope. This author gets the balance right however, and I really enjoyed the snippets into the killer's past (would have liked more of that tbh). Well paced, a little heavy on the clues making it predictable but this doesn't distract from the tension. I'll be coming back for more Lexi Bennett in the future.

Thanks to NetGallery for the ARC in exchange for my honest review

This was a solid mystery. It started really strong, and captured me quickly. The writing was good, but it was heavy on the exposition and got a bit slow in the middle. I also felt like the reveal at the end was sort of underwhelming. But, there were certainly a few points that made my blood run cold, as well as moments that made me emotional. I'll likely read the sequel. Highly recommend the audiobook, as the narrator did an incredible job of giving a voice to the characters. Thank you to Netgalley, Bookouture, and the author for the advance copy.

Thanks to NetGalley and to Bookouture Audio for the availability to preview this audio book.
Also, thanks to the narrator for making the story a gripping one! What a great job was done!

In this first of the Detective Lexi Bennett series, DI Bennett has come back to work in her hometown after working abroad in the United States with the FBI. Her first day back, before she even meets her new team, she goes for a run and stumbles upon two teenage girls. The girls, who look identical are dressed up as princesses and their throats cuts.
The two females are soon identified as Lucy and Eden, two sisters of a triplet set and the third sister, Paige, is still missing. This creates panic in the team, but mostly for Lexi, who begins to relieve the nightmare that happened to her and her sisters so many years prior.
Lexi herself is part of a triplet set and her and her sisters were kidnapped seventeen years prior. She and her sister Amber escaped, but her sister Rose was never seen again. Lexi has been haunted by the decisions she and Amber made the night they escaped ever since and has been on a quest to seek answers.
Despite Lucy, Eden, and Paige hitting a thread so close to home, Lexi focuses on her job and puts all her effort into finding the missing teen before it’s too late. As she finds more answers she begins to believe Paige has been abducted by the same man who abducted her and her sisters and she will stop at nothing to find Paige alive and to find justice for her sister.
As the book went along the intensity of the story increased, which I loved. The individual who was behind the abductions is someone I never would have guessed and truly right under one’s nose. The kidnapper wants Lexi, as he is obsessed with her, so he taunts her and dangles items from her sister in front of her, which adds to the level of intensity and intrigue to the book. Can’t wait to read book 2!

Thank you so much Alison Belsham, @bookouture, @netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review! 🫶🏼🖤

I first want to say I’m excited that Lexie Bennet will be featured in more than one book. I absolutely loved her & her determination. 💪🏼👏🏻🖤

This book was hard to listen to as a parent but I feel like that’s been a major theme in thrillers these days. It’s never easy to read about kids being murdered— especially when they are kids all from the same family.. but if you’re into this genre then it shouldn’t really deter you too much!

The parallels between Lexie’s current case & her past made this book even more intense if that’s possible. I loved that the story was told from her POV as well as the POV of the killer. It’s rare we get to hear what’s instead their head & their motivation so I thought that was really neat.

I did think that it was dragging on a little bit & I was kind of waiting for it to be over. I then checked out how many pages it was & it’s over 400 so that made sense. I definitely think it could have been a tad shorter but I still loved it!

A detective novel

A set of triplets have been kidnapped. 2 of the 3 have been found dead. 1 is still missing. Lexi was a triplet, too. And they were also kidnapped. 2 made it out to freedom. 1 did not.
Is it the same man who kidnapped Lexi and her sisters a decade ago
Can Lexi find the last triplet before it is too late
Will this case bring back triggers to Lexi
The countdown is on now

This is an explosive 'first in the serues'. Lexi has trained with the FBI on serial killers and brings her knowledge home to Kent.

When teenaged triplets go missing, Lexi's own gruesome background can both help and hinder her find the abductor. She has to navigate the pitfalls that open up at every turn,in order to save lives.

Lexi Bennett is a triplet. When she was just 16 her and her sisters were abducted by a strange man, only two of them came home. Years later she is a talented detective on a case that seems eerily similar to hers. Could it possibly be the same man that abducted her and her sisters 17 years ago?

If you love British procedurals, you will love this book. I cannot wait to see where this series takes the characters. The initial development of the characters leaves readers wanting more. This is a great mystery thriller that holds its own without gore and a ton of trigger warnings. I am on the edge of my seat for the next book in the series!

I thoroughly enjoyed this mystery/thriller! The narrator was great and the storyline had some great twists. The slow telling of the past and how it fits with the present was well done. The story included some police procedural, some family drama, and some creepy thriller. It was a great mix and I am looking forward to an assumed Book 2 in the series! Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC audio book.

I have really struggled with mysteries lately, but this psychological thriller lived up to the hype!

This story follows Detective Lexi Bennett on her quest to solve the murders of two girls and find their missing sister alive, all while struggling with her own emotions dealing with the aftermath of her own similar trauma. Not only does Lexi feel the mounting pressure to solve this case quickly to find the missing girl, but she feels the walls closing in from the scrutiny from colleagues, as well as a sinking feeling that her own abductor is back and that the two cases are 100% related. Haunted by her past and her own paranoia, Lexi will stop at nothing to solve this case.

This audiobook had me gripped from the start. It was fast paced, full of suspense, and really kept me guessing. There were many times where I, along with Lexi, thought I had figured out a clue, just to be proven wrong.

I was so engaged by the writing right from the beginning, but things intensified so much more by the introduction of small chapters in the killer's voice, it had me on the edge of my seat. The narration was so great, even down to the killer's lisp!

I was thrilled with how this book wrapped up, all questions answered. I can't wait to read Lexi's next installment!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for this audio-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

4.25 Stars

Alison Belsham’s “The Girls on Chalk Hill” was a near perfectly executed debut for the story’s heroine, Lexi Bennett. I adored solving the mystery alongside Lexi while also diving headfirst into her tragic backstory. Within a day I had finished the entire book, unable to stop before the mystery was solved. I also really enjoyed the family dynamics between each and every character and felt myself relating to the sibling bonds they shared.

The story became more and more twisted as it continued and finally culminated in a thrilling ending that I felt was well earned. Narrating the story in a dual POV with the unknown murderer having a voice added so much depth to his motive and transformed the novel into a treasure.

Alison Belsham has earned herself a new fan with this book and I can’t wait to read more of Lexi Bennett’s story in the future! Thank you to Bookouture Audio + NetGalley for providing a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review!

I actually really enjoyed The Girls on Chalk Hill and the investigation it took us through along with the emotion of Detective Bennett solving her own case. This book may have been a 4 star if I had felt more emotion from the narrator. It felt a little robotic most of the time which made it more difficult to get into the writing of the book. Overall, I enjoyed the experience and would still recommend.

The first book in a D I Lexi Bennett series certainly left you wanting more. On her first day in her new job Lexi literally runs into a gruesome murder scene that has troubling similarities to an event in her late teens and with one girl still missing the race is on to find her. The narrator Sophia Zervudachhi caught the characterisation of the characters and plot just right. A fast paced and addictive audiobook I’ll will certainly be looking forward to more from this author in the future. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this novel in return for the return for an honest review.

"The Girls on Chalk Hill" by Alison Belsham is a fantastic book that had me completely engrossed. I found it incredibly difficult to tear myself away from its captivating pages. The story kicks off with the head of the major crimes division stumbling upon murder victims during her morning run. As the investigation unfolds, she discovers the possibility of a third victim who may still be alive. With the clock ticking, the detective embarks on a relentless search, suspecting a potential connection to a personal cold case. Although the book had me hooked from the start, I do have one minor gripe. In the early chapters, there was an excessive amount of explicit definitions for standard police procedural terminology. As someone who has read numerous books in this genre, the vocabulary was already familiar to me, and these explanations disrupted the flow and felt somewhat awkward. However, as the story progressed, the pace regained its strength, and I am eagerly anticipating the next thrilling adventure featuring this detective. Alison Belsham has truly impressed me, and I cannot wait to see what she has in store for her readers next.

Alison Belsham’s The Girls on Chalk Hill was a truly gripping psychological thriller with DI Lexi Bennett at the helm of solving a grizzly murder and kidnapping scheme that was strikingly familiar to one from her own childhood.

DI Lexi Bennet literally stumbled upon her first case in her new job as a detective inspector during her run. Coincidence or a crafted plan of a truly unhinged psychopath?

DI Bennett must get to the truth to save lives and to find the shadowy figure that has been haunting her and her family for decades.

Make sure that you grab this first book in what is sure to be the next great detective series by Alison Belsham

Thank you so much for this advanced audio book from NetGalley and Bookouture Audio!!!

Fast-paced, griping, rattling and haunting. Not a ton of gratuitous violence, no sexual assault, just the tension between a messed-up individual and the scarred woman he nearly killed years ago trying to rescue his latest victim.

I had a very hard time with certain elements because I work in a library. I would never give out patron information without a warrant and I certainly wouldn't be able to take the library van and hang onto it like personal property. That's a US perspective, though, and I leave room for differences in other countries. It just bothered the heck out of me.

This author is new to me, and as such I was unsure what to expect from this audiobook. However, the premise of the book caught my interest so I was hopeful it would be enjoyable.
Initially, I did find the narrator’s voice a little nasal & off-putting, but this response quickly faded as I was captivated by, and concentrating on, the storyrather than her voice.
An interesting & intelligent storyline that is a little different to many of the books in this genre as the lead detective’s experience of a similar crime plays an integral part to the plot. A couple of times I felt like I had missed something important as certain experiences were alluded to, as if the listener was aware of what had happened. Because of this I did find myself occasionally questioning myself as to whether this indeed was book one. However, this unfolded as the book went on, and eventually the listener is made fully aware of what has happened in Lexi’s past.
A fast-paced and intriguing storyline that held my interest from beginning to dramatic conclusion. I enjoy books that have strong female lead characters, and Lexi Bennett fills this role well. I will definitely be looking for subsequent books by this author, especially more in this series.

Audiobook received for review via Netgalley.

This is the first book in a new series featuring Detective Lexi Bennett. The main plot begins quickly as she discovers murdered teenage twins while out on a run. It is soon discovered that the two girls have a sister, who is still missing. Adding to the intrigue is the fact that Lexi herself came from triplets who were abducted when they were younger.... the perpetrator never apprehended.

This is a mostly enjoyable thriller, decently written, if a little heavy on the exposition. It could do with a little more subtlety in it's prose and narrative... more 'show' not 'tell'. The main character of the series didn't have enough nuance for me either, and I felt everything could do with an injection of the everyday to bring it up from feeling like a heavily scripted cop show.

A bit too safe and unchallenging, but eminently readable nonetheless.

I really enjoyed this book, I was drawn in from the start and liked the main character Lexi. It was good that she wasn't perfect as a lot of book detectives seem to be recently.

The story was intriguing and although a little predictable in places didn't stop the enjoyment. One part in particular where Lexi does something alone seems far-fetched and entirely stupid but perhaps could be explained by emotions. I can't see that she wouldn't be disciplined if this was real life but maybe we will be told more in book 2.

The narrator was excellent, the perfect choice for this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookoutour audio for an audio copy of this book.