Detective Max Wolfe is a great character- I’ve read all his adventures and have loved keeping up with his life as a single father too. However, now his daughter Scout is nearly a teenager and he is facing different problems. As well as having to manage this he discovers a dead body on Hampstead Heath when walking the dog and recognises the man as an ex villain connected to one of his first cases as a young Constable. When someone else from that case dies it looks like there is a conspiracy to exact revenge on those who were instrumental in putting the girlfriend of one of the villains in prison for 16 years. Could Max be next on the list?
There are also two other investigations- one of some corrupt policemen and one concerning a murdered homeless woman which could be connected.
I like the way Max’s personal life is interlinked with the investigation - Scout is keen to help the homeless but is not going about it in a sensible way and is also missing school which is problematic for Max who spends a lot of the book worrying about her whereabouts and the speed she is growing up. His comments about these aspects of their life together are very poignant, particularly if you are a parent. You never stop worrying about your children, even if they are adults.
A great return for Max Wolfe- I will definitely be looking out for the next one in the series and hope it’s not too long to wait!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for my advance copy.

I quite enjoyed this book and love the detective and his daughter storyline but I thought the main story was a bit weak . Was a bit disappointed with the ending . I would still recommend this book as I think it will appeal to a lot of people. 4 stars from me

The latest in the Max Wolfe series is an enjoyable read without quite reaching the standard of the earlier books .There are several non intertwining threads to the story which at times makes some of them feel like padding. A woman arrested by Max at the very start of his career has been released on licence and her former associates start dying in strange circumstances. At the same time women are being assaulted by someone carrying a warrant card and one ends up dead. Throughout the story Max is being troubled by the rebellious actions of his daughter Scout.
The plot moves along at a good pace and will appeal to fans of this series of which I am one.

It's great to have Max Wolfe back after too long a hiatus! Single dad bringing up his daughter on his own and trying hard to be a good cop. Twelve year old Scout features heavily in this instalment and her story is as interesting as the central crimes. Excellent.

Tony Parsons writes about relationships insightfully and authoritatively making it easy to empathise with his flawed central characters. ‘Murder for Busy People’ is as much about Max’s changing relationship with his daughter Scout as it is about investigating murders. Both strands of the plot are complicated and enriched by Max’s emotional responses to them. Underlying the actual story is Parsons’ appreciation of how difficult it is to be a police officer in the 21st century when people are quick to find fault with those who try to enforce the law and keep us safe.

Although this is book 7 in the Max Wolfe series, it can easily be read on it's own, although I can recommend the whole series! I love the mix of police life plus the insight into the personal life of Max and his daughter, Scout. There is a good flow to the story and I liked the intricate plotting as well as the interesting mix of characters. There are three separate investigations going on and I loved the unexpected twist at the end. I never saw that coming! I do hope there is a lot more to come in this series and a bright future for Max and Scout. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

This is my first introduction to DS Max Woolfe, I havent read any of the previous 6 books, however this was not a problem as this book can be read as a stand-alone. If i had read previous books I would have a better knowledge of how Max became a single parent to his daughter.

Sixteen years ago there was a break-in at a grand house. The first constable on the scene found a hole in the wall, two dead bodies, and a young woman. The wet behind the ears constable was Max Wolfe, the hole had previously contained a safe, the bodies were the security guard and the gardener, and the young woman was Emma Moon. After her arrest she refused to name any of the gang, and was jailed for life for joint-enterprise murder. Now she has been released on licence, still saying nothing about the crime or her fellow criminals. It is well known who the latter are, but no evidence has ever been found. And then they start to die and the suspicion is that Emma is killing them, although how is unclear. DS Max Wolfe is suspected to be on her kill list. Max must investigate of course, but not officially because there is no proof that the deaths are actually murders. Meantime, he is involved in babysitting two trainees, investigating corrupt police officers and the murder of a homeless person.
This, the seventh in a series, purports to be a police procedural but nothing in it is actually correct procedure. Quite a lot of it is political commentary on police corruption and social support for the homeless. Max’s daughter, Scout, is twelve going on thirteen and has a social or humanitarian concern for people living on the street, but is also on the inevitable path to independence from her father. This also takes up some of the story, and also presents an interesting dilemma: would any parent, let alone a single parent, let alone a police officer, allow a child to wander alone around London late at night? All of the cases get solved, and one of them involves an unguessable (because I don’t believe it is clued anywhere) twist. There are also too many repeats, reminders, reprises (for example whenever the two trainees appear we are reminded of their position and its constraints). Overall, the three investigations are good ideas and the writing is sound, but I found all of the repetitive political and social material a major distraction. However, it is the seventh in a series and is clearly popular and will command an audience, so maybe I’m an outlier.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.

Murder for Busy People Tony Parsons

4 stars

My first introduction to DS Max Woolfe

I have never read any of the previous 6 books featuring DS Woolfe however this was not a problem as this can easily be read as a stand-alone. I would have liked a little more knowledge of how Max is a single parent to his 12 year old daughter, Scout but it did not detract from the story in this book.

Sixteen years ago a very fresh-faced new Police Constable had arrested his first murder victim, Emma Moon ,and he had never forgotten her or the impression she made on him. He had been called to a house where he found two murdered men and an empty safe. The only person remaining in the house was Emma. She had been sent to prison and had never said anything about the main culprits, the Gatti brothers, in all her years inside. Terry had been her common law husband and they had had a son David, however he had moved on with a new wife and family.

Move forward 16 years and Emma has been released. Her son, David had committed suicide and Emma is out for revenge or so it seems. One by one the people involved in the crime die in suspicious circumstances, all of the accomplices until the only two people left alive are Terry and DS Woolfe.

This was an interesting story with an unexpected ending but I particularly liked the interaction between Max and his daughter. She is on the edge of maturity and has always suffered form her mother leaving her when she was 4 It is obvious how much Max adores his daughter but finds it difficult to communicate with her. This scenario was very well written particularly at the end when Max tries to articulate his feelings for Scout.

I enjoyed this book although I found some of it a little far-fetched and I still have not worked out how the title relates to the book!
!

Karen Deborah
Reviewer for Net Galley

Tony Parsons manages (yet again) to combine interesting, believable characters, real-life situations, a plot with cunning twists, and bad-boy colleagues his protagonist, Max Wolfe investigates. His ability to remain compassionate and generous in the face of his daily police encounters whilst remaining principled and detached in his investigations is enviable; his descriptions of his love and fears for his daughter tugs at the heartstrings, especially his closing interior dialogue. The bladder behind my eyes struggled not to leak. Wolfe’s engagement with Emma Moon is intriguing - part guilt, part admiration, part longing – is handled with delicacy; his pursuit of historical criminals, the murderer of a homeless girl, and determination to keep the force clean makes one want to cheer. And there is tension, action, and dilemma aplenty to keep the pages turning.

Was super excited to be given an advanced copy of this book and was looking forward to what Max Wolfe and his daughter Scout were up to.
I felt it was quite a slow burn. the antagonist Emma Moon who has just been released from prison after a 16 year sentence for her part in a robbery with fatalities has always kept her mouth shut and never ratted on her accomplices. Now she is free they are dropping dead and Max who was the one to arrest her doesn’t know if he’s next.
I initially thought I was going to give this four stars as I just wasn’t getting into it how I normally love a Max Wolfe story but then “BAM” and I loved it.
I don’t give five stars often and I certainly don’t give them just because I received an advanced copy. I highly recommend the Max Wolfe series.
Thank you NetGalley & Tony parsons

I have never read a book from from this series before, however it was easy to jump into.
Emma moon was with a group of people who committed a robbery that went wrong, and she was the only one convicted.
She has been released from prison, while she was in prison the people she done the robbery with moved on with their lives with the proceeds of the robbery.
There's the storylines of Emma Moon and the ones she committed the crime with disappearing, Max Wolfe and his relationship with his daughter and also his work in uncovering corruption.
Great Story
#netgalley #MurderForBusyPeople

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book-really enjoyed it, particularly the style of writing which is quite different for this genre. I love a good character and will definitely be picking up some more of the Max Wolfe series.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishers for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have not read any of the Max Wolfe series to date but I don't think that impacted my experience of this book. Of course, a bit of context around Max's relationship with his daughter, ex-wife and other appearing characters may have helped the 'getting to know you' part of the book but I felt this worked as a story in its own right perfectly well. However, I did find Max a bit difficult to visualise, From the description, I couldn't really tell his age or appearance so I guess reading his other stories would have helped here.

I read an advance copy so there remained a few typos and other distractions (changing character names) which I am sure will be tidied up before publication. However, I was more confused by trying to work out which was the main story here as there seemed to be multiple subplots going on. The Emma Moon plot was, I thought, exciting and compelling. Emma is a well-defined character, and her backstory with the Gatti brothers is intriguing. I was really engrossed in this storyline - and then it all finished a bit abruptly for me, with Max taking actions I didn't think were right for his characters, albeit the little I know of him. Then there were subplots with his daughter, as well as others - though no plot spoilers here! They just didn't gel together that well for me so I ended up a little disappointed at the end, and I couldn't work out how the title was relevant either. Perhaps just me reading on a bad day! However, I like the character of Max and may well give one of his other stories a go.

This is the first Max Wolfe book that I have read. It wasn't the usual police caper. Rather than just narrate a plot line, this was written from the perspective of Wolfe and how it affected him emotionally. A lot of the book is about his relationship with his daughter, Scout, who is twelve. I certainly would't let my twelve year old child out til 10 pm unaccompanied. It can be a bit slow at times, but it is so well-written that I couldn't stop reading. I will certainly look out for this author again.

The story is based on when rookie policeman Max Wolfe arrests a woman, Emma Moon at the luxury house where two men have been found murdered and a safe stolen. She never admits who was responsible for these terrible crimes and spends many years in prison as a result. Fast forward to when she is released and Max is now a vastly experienced officer. Will Emma ever admit her role and those of others? Max finds the body of one of the men involved on that fateful night. He has died from an apparent heart attack but is that the truth or is something more sinister going on? This was a decent enough story that was an easy read but for me I felt events were a little too convenient. For example Max stumbling across the aforementioned body. In the middle of London. Further into the book other characters seemed to appear from nowhere as though London is a small rural village where you can’t help but bump into people you know. My other concern is for Scout, Max’s daughter. A single parent who loves her and is proud of her but what sane person would let their 12 year old wander the streets of London (or anywhere) late at night and on their own without any checks or supervision. He’s a policeman and with that comes the knowledge of how dangerous this behaviour must be. It’s absolute madness and even when a girl is murdered nearby Scout is still left to her own devices. I found this unnerving throughout and detracted from the main story. I hadn’t read any Max Wolfe books before now and I understand they are best sellers. However, as a stand alone book I felt this was too contrived.

How this book stands out is with short chapters and a straightforward narrative.
This does not mean that the plot is simple or the story easy to guess.
It does mean that the reader is not easily confused.
I loved the characters and I liked the storyline, and appreciated the various insights into policing and life in London.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I found the story a little slow to start but once it got going it hooked you in. Many storylines cleverly woven together along with the family drama of teenagers and their fathers! Current story including armed police bought this right up to date.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK for the advance copy of this book.

Having read all the DC Max Wolfe series I was really looking forward to reading this book and it didn't disappoint. Whether reading this as your first Tony Parsons novel or having read all in the series the book is a definite page turner. I was hooked from the start with enough twists and turns to keep you guessing to the end.
The story was well written and for those who have read all in the series it was great to catch up on the relationship between Max and his daughter Scout and Stan the dog. Although as Scout becomes a teenager their relationship is a bit more strained than in previous books.
Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Highly Recommend.

This story intrigued me and having never read a Tony Parsons book before I now know that I must have missed out and have to go back and seek many more from his collection. A woman is released from prison after serving 16 years for a crime that she probably didn't commit, but she kept quiet for those who did. Nevertheless, many of the people involved are now being hunted down and killed and it's the original policeman that arrested her over 16 years ago that gets to interview her and perhaps finds out too much about her as he investigates the new murders. The twists are impossible to guess, but I do wonder if he should have allowed his almost teenage daughter to become as involved with potential murderers as he did. You'll find out when you read this outstanding book and although everything is wrapped up at the end you'll still be thinking that many of these characters could have made different choices and their outcomes might have been better and they may have still been alive. Of course, as is standard in all these police books these days, the policeman has to fight all those above him to get his way and you wonder if they are involved in any of the deception, while Max, the lead character, also fights some dodgy police officers during the course of this novel. Excellent story, very well written, I look forward to more by this writer.