Set in 1994 Yorkshire, The Lollipop Man (2025) by Daniel Sellers is a historic crime mystery. Adrian is eighteen years of age and works at the Calder Valley Advertiser, a small local newspaper. He is required to chauffeur the paper’s photographer around the local events and take notes, so the journalist can write the articles. Adrian was also the only child survivor of The Lollipop Man, who abducted and killed three children in 1986. When the body of a young girl is discovered in the reeds by the river, locals fear the return of the serial killer. Police are less certain, despite similarities to The Lollipop Man case. An interesting murder mystery with lots of characters and their complicated backgrounds makes for an enjoyable three and a half star read rating. As always, the opinions herein are totally my own, freely given and without any inducement. With thanks to Allison & Busby and the author, for an uncorrected advanced review copy for review purposes.

DNF-ed at 22% - just wasn't engaged enough to care. Some parts were kind of interesting but I felt like there was so much repeating. Like when you're watching a show and it has that "after the break" segment and when after the break the "before the break" segment where it recaps stuff that literally already watched. Well that's how this writing feels. Bit too spoonfed for me.

Synopsis from what I read:
The lollipop man is a crossing guard who stole 4 children. 3 of which were never seen again and the last, and the only boy was released after a shower amount of time. He grew up and changed his name and then boom - the lollipop man is back, or so it seems. Strange things start happening to the now young man who was once captured by the notorious killer.

In *The Lollipop Man*, a chilling mystery unfolds as eerie parallels emerge between a recent child abduction and a string of unsolved cases from years earlier. Adrian Brown, now an eighteen-year-old journalist, was once a victim of the notorious "Lollipop Man," who abducted several children before Adrian managed to escape. As another child goes missing, Adrian’s past resurfaces, and journalist Sheila Hargreaves, haunted by her own role in the earlier cases, becomes determined to uncover the truth.

With atmospheric tension and a compelling mix of suspense and psychological drama, this gripping thriller delves deep into the lingering trauma of past crimes and the dark secrets people are trying to bury. A must-read for fans of crime thrillers that keep you guessing until the very last page.

The Lollipop Man is the story of 18 year old Adrian, working his first job in a newspaper office in 1994 West Yorkshire. Adrian has a secret in his past - he was abducted as a child by a serial killer known as the Lollipop Man but was let go. But now another child has been abducted in similar circumstances: is the serial killer back and does Adrian hold the key to his identity?

An enjoyable and engaging story that took me right back to my teenage years in the 1990's. Recommended for lovers of crime fiction.

A bit of a slow starter, it took me a while to become familiar with the characters. However after after getting over the first part, I was really hooked. It's a good star for a new author, an enjoyable thriller.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

A young girl goes missing in West Yorkshire and an 18-year-old Adrian who si working at a local newspaper, is dragged into the story. He was abducted as a 10 year old but survived and people think the same perpetrator is back. Three young girls had previously disappeared by a name nicknamed the Lollipop Man and they have never been found. The novel is set in the 1990s and captures the mood well with the Yorkshire Ripper and police misogyny. Adrian has other demons as he struggles with dealing with his homosexuality and worries about what people will think. Xxx captures the 18 year old male brain well along with the guilty conscience of local journalist Sheila Hargreaves who was involved in the original disappearances and is guilty about her behaviour at that time.
A clever read.

An interesting if a bit heavy going read. The plot was good but I did find myself a bit confused with the number of characters present. I enjoyed the 90s setting, looking back to a time with minimal mobile phones, social media etc.

A new author for me, but will definately add to my must read list. Set mostly in 1994, in West Yorkshire, the book is told from 2 different viewpoints, Adrian, a young man currently working at a local paper before he goes on to university and Sheila, a reporter on a local tv. It was difficult to find the connections between the two at first and to sort out who the many characters were. Adrian has had a troubled past and although he is Gay, is not out to his parents or in his local area. Young girls have disappeared, in the past and as the book starts, Sarah is also kidnapped. Rather than the plot being told by the investigating team or the victim's point of view, Sheila and Adrian (and Gav) are reporters, interested parties. In the first few chapters, both gain information and follow clues but the book really came into its own once they had decided to work together.
I liked the descriptions which gave a good sense of place, a smallish West Yorkshire town and an almost deserted hamlet, the locals and life in the 90s when mobile phones were new and fairly unreliable. The attitudes to the events in the 80s and 90s also rang true. Were people seen as poor parents because their children were taken? Plenty of food for thought about this, as well as the social attitudes to homosexuality and child abuse in the past.
Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher Allison and Busby for a great read. Not an easy book to get into, but once I had it was an excellent read.

I do love discovering new (to me) authors, so when invited to read this book by the publisher, I didn't hesitate. The plot sounded intriguing and right up my street. Begrudgingly, I acknowledge that this is (technically) historical fiction, but for anyone old enough to remember the 90s (I am, I do, and I am also - sadly - older than protagonist Adrian), then this really does feel like a bit of a blast from the past. When mobile phones were somewhat of a novelty, social media was a concept of only science fiction, and the internet was, at best, something that could only be accessed via use of a compact disk and a dial up connection. Remember those days?

Those of us who are nostalgic (i.e. old) remember the 90s as simpler times. Not so for this book's protagonist, Adrian Brown, a young man who is working for a newspaper as somewhat of a gopher, whilst trying to achieve the grades he needs in college to get to University. Now this should be a relatively trouble and worry free time for any eighteen year old, but Adrian has a bit of a past, and more reason than most to be anxious about the latest crime to demand the attention of the media. A young girl has been abducted in a manner that is scarily, reminiscent of a long silent presumed killer, the eponymous Lollipop Man. As one of the mystery abductors previous near victims, could Adrian hold the key to this latest investigation?

I actually found this to be quite a quick read, finishing the book in a couple of days. Daniel Sellers sets the story up really well, creating a fair amount of intrigue and making me wonder just why Adrian should feel so much dread when he hears about the scene he is being asked to drive the paper's photographer to. It's clear it has some meaning to him, and the sense of mystery only builds from there. As reluctant as Adrian is to get involved, it is clear from the start that this is inevitable. As the author pulls us further into the story, and more of Adrian's history, and that of the Lollipop Man is revealed, the faster I found myself turning the pages, curious to see just how Adrian's past and present intersected. There is an undercurrent of threat that you can feel pulsing around Adrian, and although the author manages to make his fear clear, you also get the understanding that beneath it all is a courageous young man who will do what is right, regardless of how much he is told to stay away, or how much danger he might be in.

The pacing of the book is actually pretty quick, driven by a the dialogue which helps to create a real feeling of the time in which the book is set. I did get a sense of the setting too, the descriptions of the Yorkshire towns and countryside coming through clearly in the narrative. Because this book is set in the 90s, there is a fair amount of prejudice and homophobia that comes through in the book, particularly from certain characters, but this is very reflective of the time, and only really from specific characters. It lends itself to the story, and one of the reasons that Adrian is perhaps less than transparent about some if the things he is a party to. It also leads to him making a few questionable decisions which put him in a very difficult position, and add conflict to the already growing tension.

I liked the character of Adrian, and his best friend, Gav. He doesn't always make the best decisions, but his heart is in the right place. Sheila was perhaps a bit harder to warm to, and I wasn't initially sure if she was just after a scoop, or if solving the case was going to be a kind of cathartic moment for her too. She came good in the end though, with an unlikely friendship between her and Adrian offering them both the clues they need to uncover a killer. Speaking of which, their identity remains a well hidden secret until nearly the end of the book, the author using plenty of red herrings to steer our attention in other directions. There are clues a plenty, but only of use when you understand their context, and it is a real team effort to get to the bottom of what is really going on.

Whether Adrian and Sheila catch their Lollipop Man you'll have to read the book to find out, but I really enjoyed my foray into their. An entertaining and engrossing read, perfectly plotted and executed to keep the suspense and mystery going right to the very end.

A bit of a slow starter.
Adrian is a newspaper reporter and when a child goes missing it brings back memories of years ago when three children go missing but only one turns up alive and that`s Adrian.
When another child goes missing the police think it`s the same man as years ago.Sheila was a journalist when the first three children went missing and so is now determined to find out who the killer is.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC and I give my honest review.

I really enjoyed this book it was paced really well, the tension and suspense worked really and it was so atmospheric. I also thought the idea of the lollipop man was great and I haven't anything like that before

The Lollipop Man by Daniel Sellers is an atmospheric novel set in Yorkshire in the early 90's and late 70's/80's, it is a story of child abduction and who might be carrying out this heinous crime, the only thing anyone knows is a man dressed as a lollipop man is luring little girls away, sadly they are never found. As to the overall story it does highlight some of the predjudices of the time and there are a lot of characters to keep track of which does distract from the thread of the story, but its not a bad read.

"The Lollipop Man" by Daniel Sellers is a gripping and twisty crime mystery that transports the reader to a Yorkshire village community, home of the Lollipop Man who kidnapped and killed three children in 1986 before a ten-year-old boy named Matthew escaped. Seven years later, another child goes missing, the community fears that the Lollipop Man has returned.

Adrian Brown discovers the body of the missing child and reports it anonymously to protect his identity. As a child Adrian's parents changed his after his escape from the killer. Sheila Hargreaves, troubled by her involvement in the reporting of the previous abductions is determined to atone for her mistakes by finally bringing the Lollipop Man to justice.

I found the beginning a little difficult to follow due to the abundance of information. However, once the story picked up and the tense atmosphere was established, I was consumed with piecing together the mystery. Although the reveal was not a huge surprise to me and somewhat convoluted, overall, it was still and worth the read.

Thank you Netgalley for this Arc in exchange for my honest review.

This is a solid read with a very confusing storyline but it is still an interesting read. There is a host of characters to get to grips with, which I found difficult, and the plotting centres around the disappearance of an 11 year old girl. I really felt sorry for 18 year old Adrian, the main character, and his friend Gav, as he struggles with the investigation. The media circus is very of it's time in 1974 and is well described, as is the Yorkshire setting but the book just failed to work for me. There are a few twists along the way to what felt like a rushed ending. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

This was one creepy and emotional thriller that I did not want it to finish. I was completely hooked during this fantastic ride of a great story.
There are many aspects to this book which are intertwined very well, the previous kidnapping of young girls but ne boy let go unharmed, the modern kidnappings and the constant reminders hanging over the village of the Moors murders and the Yorkshire Ripper murders. The plot was extremely well executed with indepth character descriptions that kept me on the seat of my chair trying to evaluate who was responsible and with every new clue I kept changing my mind. I did feel sorry for Adrian who was depicted as an insipid male who did not know why his father hated him so much and could not work out why he was taken by the murderer and then released without being harmed.
It is a very well written story by an author that I have not read before but I will certainly be on the look out for more by him.

A dark and twisted crime mystery set in 1994 following the disappearance of a young girl and echoing a similar case from a decade earlier. This is a multi layered story, set in a community still haunted by the terrible Moors Murders and Yorkshire Ripper. I was disturbed and enthralled.

When young Sarah is taken, the locals feel it’s by the Lollipop Man who terrorised their town over ten years ago. Three children were taken and killed, with another that was lucky enough to escape. Several saw a Road crossing, Lollipop Man at the time of the abductions. Adrian is working for a local paper and starts to investigate Sarah’s disappearance, unbeknown to anyone else, Adrian has a insider’s knowledge of the previous abductions and is desperate to seek out the truth and Sarah’s whereabouts.
There are multiple layers to the plot and a twist that keeps you hooked. As a new author to me, this book will you leave you wanting to read more. An excellently executed thriller with first class writing.

I did find this a bit confusing to start with as there were so many characters being introduced but with a fairly thin storyline so it was hard to remember who was who. Thankfully it got much better and ended up having plenty of twists and turns which leads you to race towards the end so that you can find what actually happened and who did it.

Sadly this book was not for me I gave up at 50% it held so much promise but unfortunately for me it did not deliver. It was so slow and with so many pov it was confusing at times read. As I didn’t finish I’ll not review publicly.

Not sure about this book personally, I found it didn't really hold my attention in the storyline.

For me it was different to what I was expecting, a bit too slow in parts and not an edge of seater for me unfortunately.

Thank you to Netgalley and Allison and Busby for this ARC, just wish I had enjoyed it more.