There were many things I enjoyed about this book at the beginning.
The premise: fabulous.
Narration: on point.
Setting: yes please.

But, as the book continued, I really struggled. I think this book had a lot of things going for it, like I listed above, but I quickly got lost with the myriad of characters and how they connected to the plot of the book. And I really wanted to like this book, but there was just something that was just not quite there for me to make it four or five stars for me.

I know that this is a series, and I honestly cannot decide if I will check out book 2 or 3, but I may give them a chance- I really do enjoy this main character, even if she has horrible taste in men.

Back from holiday Detective Lola Harris is given the lead of a murder investigation and work with a very unpopular detective. A well paced novel with good characterisations. This is the first in the series and a very good start it is. Karen Bartke is an excellent narrator and her accents are good. She flips through characters easily and you know who's speaking. Thanks to Bolinda audio and Netgalley for this review copy.

This book did take a little while for me to get into it. It felt like I was missing something, almost like it was a Book 2 of a series and not Book 1.

But once the story started to change it's pace it was really engaging, and I started to enjoy it.

I did love the narration. It was fantastic. How the narrator went seamlessly through characters and accents, it was so well done.

This book covers graphic details of murder, cheating, child abuse, paedophilia, alcohol abuse, control & coercion.

So I’ll start by saying that the premise to this book was terrific!

However, I received an ARC of the audiobook from #NetGalley and it was VERY difficult to understand. It takes place in Scotland, so I guess the feeling was that the narrator should have this type of accent. Instead, I felt like I had to listen closely to UNDERSTAND what she was saying. Sorry, but this was not for me… I listen to audiobooks EVERYDAY, and this was just too difficult…


Also, there are A LOT of characters in this book, and unless you start writing them down, to keep track of them, I feel you’ll get lost pretty quickly…(and no, I did not write them down…)

That being said, this was an intriguing book with a bunch of twists…
A lot of action, and one that kept you guessing throughout…

3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ for me, so it was ok (good) but not great, IMO.

As I said, I had a really hard time with the narrator, so maybe if I had actually read it (hard copy) instead, my opinion would’ve been different…

#MurderInTheGallowgate by #DanielSellers.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #BolindaAudio for the ARC of the audiobook.
Narrated by Karen Bartke.

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What an interesting character, Lola, the lead police officer is strong and gutsy, Through the main plot, there’s conflict between her and her senior officer which I found interesting and could relate to her anger and frustration at his attitude.. Very realistic. The opening chapter is shocking. Not unduly graphic, but chilling and sets the scene, The plot is complex and there’s a slow lead into the main story which has roots in past events. Lola has to join the dots to make the right connections in this take of revenge and abuse. It’s convincing, dark and I loved the narration which adds to the experience. Great Scottish noir and I’m hoping for more from this author.

The storyline was hard to get into but with perseverance it ended up a wonderful book. Some books take patience and this is one of them. It was worth the taking the time to finish. I started listening to it but had to finish it by reading. I had a hard time with the reader.

A gripping audiobook to listen to, telling the story of the mysterious disappearance of a prominent local politician with links to an art gallery in Glasgow. The gallery is planning an exhibition of lost works by a controversial artist who died in mysterious circumstances several decades earlier, an event which, it emerges, has strong links to the more recent crime. The investigation is led by DI Lola Harris, a plain speaking former hairdresser who is juggling her own personal problems and a toxic working relationship with DS Aidan Pierce. I particularly liked the character of Lola and anybody who has dealt with narcissistic personalities will relate to her relationship with DS Pierce and the mediation attempts by HR (Human Remains). The Scottish accent of the narrator was particularly easy on the ear and did justice to the excellent storytelling. I will definitely be seeking out the sequels in this series.

This is a great mystery with many twists and turns, rumors and suspects. The murder seems to be centered around an art opening of a controversial photographer who has been rumored to be a pedophile. But what is true and what is rumor is hard to figure out as the rumors and the body count mount. 

It all seems to stem from a summer on an island where the photographer died. Was it an accident or murder? A man who works at the gallery may hold the key but he can't remember, his sister is mentally fragile and his mother seems to have stepped off the wagon.  Not to mention that the DCI has to deal with a pompous subordinate who seems to undermine her at every turn. 

This was a great audio and the narration was spot on however, if you have a hard time with accents particularly Scottish accents you may have trouble with this.  I listen at 2x the speed and was fine but accents actually add to my enjoyment rather than take away. I'm not sure if it would be easier to follow at 1x since to me it sounds like the audio is underwater so just my little warning about accents.  

I really liked the lead detective and have found that these books can be found on kindle unlimited for free! So as much as I enjoyed the audio I may switch in order to finish the series. The mystery itself was frustrating as it kept going round and round I knew there was something else going on but I couldn't put my finger on it until the very end at the reveal.  I was actually a little shocked which is great because that doesn't easily happen.  Great read with a character that want to follow.

A brilliant start to the series. I'm already looking forward to reading the next book. Great cast of characters with lots of twists in the storyline. I listened via audiobook and found the narrator to be very engaging

This is suitable gruesome and lives up to the title of the book. A blood dripping murder with historic ties to a child sex abuse scandal makes for a great book. The author lays all the murderous thinking out slowly weaving in different points of view. The police have their view and their frustrations, but it really adds to have a member of the team working at the gallery where the body is found giving their views, the weaving of different view points, old and new crimes is very well done and this added to the plots success for me.
The narrator captured the weary frustrations, the pride filled challenges as well as the fear and tears of different characters. This isn’t easy when there is baby Barney and his mum and grandma involved and needed to be voiced.
The twists are excellent, and I am still unsure how I feel about the very last lines of the book and the final twist.

Lola is a multi-faceted, flawed but relatable lead detective in this new series that I'm pleased to have come across. It took me perhaps the entire book to acclimate to "human remains" not referring to a dead body but to what we call "human resources", but was smile-worthy whenever it happened, however unintentional it was.

There are some interesting characters and one you love to hate, waiting the entire story for him to get his just desserts, and given this is a first in a series, I'm sure this guy will be around to hate for a while.

There's politics, a well-paced mystery, rumors of pedophilia, a new age cult on an island, an old death, survivors possibly connected to the new murder, and pressure to solve this high-profile case. Oh, and a drippy ex, a much-abused Kirstie, a good boss under a lot of pressure, and for down time Lola visits her sister and takes her "kids" on a beach adventure. All of which made Lola more endearing.

There are a few folks with mental health issues, substance abuse, possible pedophilia, a cult, and PTSD, so getting to the truth is harder than expected. I really enjoy this and look forward to more in the series.

I thought this was a good story and I would read the next in the series.
However I listened to the audiobook version and I just didn't gel with the narrator. This is down to personal taste, I don't gel with them all.

I did like the story, I think it could be a great series and would happily read more!!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I am review the audiobook version of this book in particular.

I think I would have enjoyed this a lot more in paper form rather than audio. The Scottish accent is nice to listen to but I didn’t get on with some of the voices put on for characters. The story was quite difficult to listen to and I found my attention drifting a lot. I usually love crime fiction but this format didn’t work this time. I’ll probably give the book a chance rather than writing this one off as I did like Lola as a lead character.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc copy in exchange for an honest review.

Firstly, despite loving the accent, I found the narration off putting. The different voices the narrator put on were awful and detracted from the story. The story itself was decent but would have benefitted from being cut down a bit, as it really dragged. Shame as I did like the characters and the story itself

An old chair in a basement is covered in blood but where is the body? A local politician is missing so can Detective Lola Harris and her team find out what is going on? Work is complicated by an officer in her team unwilling to do his job.

Excellent, well paced novel. Well written and well narrated (I listened to the audiobook). Strong, down to earth characters who have to tackle a complicated case, with its twists and turns. How does an Art Gallery come into the picture and will anyone else be in danger. Enjoy finding out who is responsible.

Great narration from Karen Bartko in this atmospheric crime novel from Daniel Sellers. Loved that it was set in Glasgow, I could imagine myself walking the same streets. The plot is full of complexities, from the relationships between the police team investigating a suspicious death to the colleagues at the gallery (aka crime scene). A seemingly neurotic gallery worker is convinced that the death is linked to him, but it is way more complex than that and I really enjoyed listening to the story as it unfolded and another layer was added to the picture.

Audio Book 1 of Detective Lola Harris Mysteries and a good start Lola is a likeable character and the story has lots of twists & turns
Bring on book 2

I really enjoyed the Scottish setting but found the plot a bit too unrealistic and the payoff too late in the narrative

Rounded up for an engaging story with lots of twists, plus added layers of workplace and relationship dramas (plural).

Lola Harris is just returning from a holiday spent nursing her broken heart. With little time to adjust, she is tapped to lead a high-profile investigation into a murder at an art gallery. Unfortunately, a colleague she does not trust is assigned to her team. Will he work with her or against her?

It's also the story of a young man working at the gallery who is juggling work and raising his nephew while his sister tries to get clean. And is there a possible connection to an upcoming show featuring the work of a late photographer who died 30 years ago? Fortunately, the writing is good and the story never got too convoluted, just complicated. I like complicated.

The book takes place in Scotland and the audiobook narration is heavily accented. Thanks to all the BritBox and Acorn shows I watch, I had no trouble, even at 1.5x speed. I enjoyed the mystery and look forward to the next Detective Lola Harris novel.

My thanks to the author, the publisher, and #NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to the audiobook in exchange for a review.

Daniel Sellers writes a gripping Glasgow Scottish crime debut featuring 46-year-old DI Lola Harris who has just returned from a miserable solo holiday, she had lost the future she had envisaged with Joe, a married man who returned to his pregnant wife. Having read this, I took the opportunity to listen to it on audio, superbly narrated by Karen Bartke, who lends the storytelling extra atmospheric suspense and drama, her characterisations and grasp of accents is marvellous. Lola finds herself plunged into a complex, high profile, politically sensitive investigation she feels ill prepared for, her boss, the spineless Acting Superintendent Graeme Izatt, who lands her with the hostile and sociopathic DS Aidan Pearce, with whom she has history, on her team. Pearce wastes no time in taking every opportunity to undermine her right from the start.

At the historic Gallowgate district, in a basement, the police find a horrifying scene of what looks like a ritual murder with the ominous presence of grave candles, the ground is saturated with so much blood that its hard to believe the victim survived the apparent torture and butchery, for there is no body. As the police urgently hunt for the body, it soon emerges the victim is likely to be local councillor, Sandy MacAteer, who serves on the board of the Number Nine art gallery, and is responsible for organising the upcoming exhibition of the lost photographs of the controversial Malcolm Gemmell, who died on the small remote Hebridean island of Erray in 1994, officially ruled an accidental death. As Lola delves into the life of MacAteer, aided by her troubled, but trusted DC Kirstie Campbell, she discovers there are threatening notes, and a journalist writing a book on Gemmell, Tristan MacLeod, who appears to believe there were anomalies in the photographer's death that do not tally with the official verdict.

Lola begins to believe that the answers may lie with the art gallery's marketing manager, David 'Davey' Sinclair, haunted by what he saw as a young child, he was at the scene of Gemmell's accident, with his sister, Marianne, and his mother, Edith. She finds herself under severe pressure, personally as Joe gets back in touch, and professionally, with Pearse a constant thorn in her side, and a Kirstie taking her time in revealing what is bothering her. This is a dark, intense and fascinating crime read, with a strong central protagonist in Lola, and an investigation that has to go back to the 1994 death of Gemmell to identify a killer obsessed with revenge. Readers who love gritty Scottish crime are likely to enjoy this debut and I would particularly like to recommend the audio, it will immerse you deep into this first of a gritty Scottish crime series and its characters. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC and Bolinda Audio for an ALC.