A very readable/unputdownable police procedural/detective story which sees the return of DI Fawley to solve another mystery. The starting point, the murder of a young woman in Oxfordshire. Limited evidence as to the potential culprit other than DNA which matches that of an 8 year old girl who was believed to have been killed by her mother. I liked the way this book both took you along with the detectives investigating the murder and the potential murderer but at the same time provided insights into the mind of others involved in the story, with both perspectives coming together to neatly tie things up at the end. With thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

I have read all the other books in this series and thoroughly enjoyed them. Unfortunately I didn’t like this one at all. I struggled with the format of all the different emails and reports jumping back and forth. There were also too many characters in it that made it confusing and hard to follow

4.5 stars rounded up.

When I first read Close To Home a few years ago, I thought it was just your typical run of the mill procedural. However, much to my surprise it proved to be anything but typical in my eyes. The same can be said for Making a Killing.

This story held my focus from beginning to end. It reads to me like a crime show series that we look forward to cozying up with on the weekends after a long hard week. The characters are well written and everyone contributes to the storyline in some way. I love the fact that even after a few years since reading Close to Home, I was able to follow along with the investigation so well. Hunter conveniently incorporates all the necessary information so that readers can easily keep up.

I must say, the addition of being able to get a look into Daisy's mind was the icing on cake for me. It almost feels like the author is laying the foundation for her character and I am here for it. There's something so twisted yet intriguing about Daisy so I am hoping to see more of her.

This book makes me feel like a detective on the case. I feel like I'm involved in everything that's going on. It is so well written and so well crafted. That ending was mind-blowing. I just know there's more coming and I cannot wait for it.
Thank you to Netgalley, HarperCollins UK and Cara Hunter for my eARC of this read. All opinions are my own

I've read a couple of the DCI Fawley range before coming to this latest one from Cara Hunter and "Making a Killing".
Time has progressed and the usual team has spread out into different police avenues but re-visiting a previous case - Daisy - forces them back together for a re-investigation and to right a wrongful conviction.

I enjoyed the ride with this one. With some mysterious scenes with witchcraft and legends hints thrown in for good measure it's a bit of a romp around the countryside as well as off to Northern Ireland to discover what's happened.

I must admit I was expecting a proper conclusion but readers should be warned that there no definite end to this. I turned a page and it was done. It was all a bit sudden for my liking and I felt a bit cheated in all honesty.

Good dialogue, good story (if a bit unbelievable at times) but I did feel cheated.

4 stars from me.
Many thanks for the ARC.

I did enjoy this for the most part, I like that it brings back an old case to reinvestigate and I did find the concept very clever. I did work out some of the twists as I went and I found there were a lot of point of views to try and keep up with. But over all a great book

Another excellent instalment of the Adam Fawley series; I was gripped from the start and loved seeing the mystery unfold as new evidence was found.

I'm a huge fan of Cara Hunter's DI Adam Fawley series, so I was excited to get stuck into the 7th installment. This particular book has an interesting twist, as it links back to the case from the first book in the series (the disappearance of an 8-year-old girl).

Unfortunately, I found the first half of this book to be quite slow and tedious. A lot of the build-up will be helpful if you haven't read the first book, but I found myself feeling bored.

Thankfully, the pace picked up in the second half, so while I didn't love it as much as the previous books in the series, I would still recommend the DI Adam Fawley books as a whole. The rest of the series is fantastic, and despite this being my least favourite, it's still worth reading.

Making a Killing boasts the superb return of a much loved detective inspector - Adam Fawley. He is called back to an old case, which was the missing and presumed dead 8 year old Daisy Mason. Her mother is serving a life sentence for the crime, but a body was never found. In Making a Killing, a body of a woman is found, with hair from Daisy, which could only have been placed there i recent times. Could Daisy still be alive 8 years on from her disappearance? The case is reopened alongside the current case with detectives from both units on board. The format cleverly uses excerpts from case notes, profile pages, interviews and calls to relay the story. There are clever links to other books like Murder in the Family and the podcast that will please fans of the series. You could read or listen as a standalone as you are given the bones of the first case, but you would be missing out on such a fab series! #makingakilling #carahunter #netgalley

I was so excited to read this follow on Daisy Mason story and it didn't disappoint. I love the Adam Fawley series, only downside is having to wait now for the next one. I'm a huge fan of Cara's.

🎧Audiobook Review🎧

#adprproduct

I want to thank Netgalley for approving me for the ALC of this book.

This book is part of a series but it can be read as a standalone (which is what I did). When evidence found from a murder scene is linked to an old case DI Fawley and the team have to start their investigation again.

I enjoyed listening to this one and got through the audio very quickly. I love cold case stories so this was right up my street. There were a few twists and turns along the way and we were left with a bit of a cliffhanger. However I did find the ending felt a little flat.

🌟🌟🌟🌟

A welcome follow-up to 'Close to Home' where 8-year-old Daisy Mason disappeared from her parents' home. Her was convicted of her murder despite no body being found. Now 8 years later Daisy's DNA is found in a recent murder victim. Can DCI Adam Fawley correct his past mistake? A clever plot with a fabulous ending.

Another superb read in the DCI Adam Fawley series. The series is recapped so this can definitely be read as a standalone, but I decided to re-read the first and sixth books to fully immerse myself back into this fantastic series, which combines gripping and twisty plots with fully formed characters vividly brought to life with true crime prodcasts, TV series and public messaging boards.

The first book centred on the disappearance of 8 year old Daisy Mason from her family home on the night of a party, leading to bombshell discoveries which deeply impacted the entire family. Eight years later, further revelations are about to surface.

Without wanting to give too much away, the sixth book saw Fawley's team re-investigating a neighbouring county's investigation, and now it seems the tables are being turned. With a few years having passed, many of the team have moved into different roles, and this investigation requires old and new faces to work together with fresh eyes.

In 2016, eight-year-old Daisy Mason vanished from her Oxford home.

Her disappearance made the national press and the final culprit shocked everyone. DCI Adam Fawley remembers the case well, he arrested Daisy’s mother for murder himself.

But her body was never found.

Now, forensic evidence at a current murder scene calls the whole case into question. DCI Adam Fawley and the team are brought back in to investigate. And they all have one question on their minds.

What really happened to Daisy Mason?

Wow ! What an excellent read !
So many twists and turns.

Loved it !
5 ⭐️’s

Utterly unputdownable

In 2016, eight year old Daisy disappeared, presumed dead. Her mother Sharon Mason was later arrested by DI Adam Fawley and charged with her murder - case closed. Rightly so? 
Now, eight years later, a female body is found in the woods, so DI Adam Fawley and members of his old team investigate as there are links to the erstwhile murder of Daisy.
The brilliant plot is full of twists and guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat - highly recommended!

I've been a fan of this series (DI Adam Fawley) since the beginning and was thrilled to get approval to read #7. Unfortunately it's taken me a lot longer to read it than I had planned. Because the story is told in a multi-media format, much like the previous books, it was a bit wonky in the Kindle version. Part way through reading it, Netgalley made the "NetGalley Reader" available which really improved its readability.

In July 2024 a dog walker discovers a woman’s body, bound and buried in a shallow grave in the woods. Forensic evidence links the corpse to the 2016 disappearance of an eight-year-old girl in Oxford. DCI Adam Fawley, the original investigating officer, is called in to run the enquiry. And he remembers the case well—he arrested the child’s mother for murder. A murder he now knows she didn’t commit. The investigation raises more questions than answers.

I'm so impressed by the format of this book; we have newspaper clippings, emails, interview transcripts, mug shots, even a picture from a dating website. I really liked how the author included brief bios of the members of Fawley's team at the beginning. Because the investigation is a collaboration between the Thames Valley Police and the South Mercia Police, many new characters are introduced as well so it can get a little confusing. I'm hoping there'll be an 8th book as I still need some answers! I highly recommend this whole series but you should at least read the first book before this one.

Although it's not included in the Kindle edition I got from Netgalley, the NetGalley Reader contains an Adam Fawley short story entitled "Descent" which included some interesting information about Fawley's childhood. Maybe the basis for another book?!

Thank you to HarperCollins UK, via Netgalley, for approving my request to read an advance copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
Publication Date: February 13, 2025.

This review will be posted on Netgalley and Goodreads as of March 10, 2025 and on amazon.ca under the hardcover edition on March 10, 2025. Apparently the Kindle and paperback editions and the audiobook aren't being released in Canada until May 2025.

I very much enjoyed this pacey thriller.
I have read some of the DI Fawley novels but not in order so this can definitely be read and enjoyed as a stand alone book.
The premis of this story is that previous murder investigated by Fawley becomes the focus of a true crime producer - work that then raises lots of questions. I'll not say more incase of spoilers but I really did enjoy this read.

📖 BOOK REVIEW 📖

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

#MakingAKilling by @carahunterauthor @harpercollinsuk

➡️synopsis

So this is the continuation of the Daisy Mason’s case that featured in CH first book of the series called Close to Home.

I was surprised when I learnt we’d be revisiting this case and I did feel it had ended satisfactorily and didn’t occur to me to want more from it. However, even more surprising is how much I ended up enjoying revisiting this case and how much this brought back the halcyon days of discovering and loving a new author!

It’s presented in CH signature format using all forms of media to tell the story which I loved - it makes it fun, challenging and exciting to read and although the plot is not the best situation for lead character DCI Adam Fawley to be in, I did feel he got his mojo back after becoming quite stagnant in the pervious book in the series.

Overall, I found it to be a great who ‘really’ done it which held just a much clout as the original story. I love the way CH books are presented; finding them interesting and exciting to read but they alway ensure a full plot and satisfying conclusions.

With thanks to author #carahunter #harpercollinsuk and @netgalley for allowing us to read this one!

Publishing: OUT NOW!

-EMILY

@the_book_girls_1

This was my fifth book of Cara Hunter’s and from the DI Adam Fawley series that I have read. Although this book is number seven in the series but I was really excited to review Cara’s new book. I loved how this book was a sequel to Cara’s first book Close to Home and the Daisy Mason case.

I really like how the book was laid out with all the relevant information about the case and everyone involved- it made me feel like part of the investigation as I tried to solve the case myself. There were parts that left me feeling stumped and I really enjoyed the ending.

I can’t wait for book eight but while I wait I look forward to catching up on book five and six.

I read Close to Home last year and subsequently collected the entire series. I was delighted to be approved for an ARC of the latest book, Making A Killing, but realised I wanted to do the series justice and read them in order.

The whole series is fantastic; the latest is no exception. Compelling characters who grow and change with each book. Twisty, fast-paced stories that constantly surprised me. An immersive investigation each time where you feel like you are working alongside the team but with some very clever misdirection thrown in.

I loved the dynamic between Adam and his team plus the insight into Adam’s personal life with him and Alex overcoming a devastating tragedy and finding each other again.

You know that if it is a book by Cara Hunter then you are in for a great read. A skilled storyteller she produces books with twists and turns and characters that come alive off the page.
The reader is gripped from the start and the book flows effortlessly. It is a police procedural but much much more besides.