This is the tenth book in this series, and my first thriller from Steve Parker. The author gives enough context to mentions of past events that this episode worked as a standalone. While being brash and rollicking, this novel has so much depth to it that I increased my star rating the next morning because the themes are staying with me.

This novel caught my attention because of the author's career in the Metropolitan Police. Parker brings an eye for detail, a quick mind, and an ear for dialogue to his crime fiction. I finished the book in two days and had some good laughs. The chemistry between the lead characters is a lot of fun. Some of the attitudes toward women and frequent rudeness grated on me, but as the events gained momentum and the characters were revealed through intense situations and emotions, the novel captivated me.

I found it well worth reading. The dark undertow in this novel reaches a gratifying peak.

The book is written in British English and has a glossary at the end. I found the language highly entertaining. Alrhough I had mixed feelings about abrasive content, there is a trans character and strong women. I've been around a lot of guys who put on aggressive humor, so most of it doesn't get under my skin. I could appreciate it as a release valve in dealing with social change and the stresses of a job that involves danger, dealing with the worst things people do, and witnessing horrific acts and their aftermath. In this context, the old maxim rings true: Actions speak louder than words.

There are some implausibilities that probably won't bother the average reader. The same as with watching over-the-top spy thrillers, it works best to ride along with it and shrug off the unbelievable bits.

There are great fight and action scenes, moving moments–and a lot more heart and darkness than I expected.

Recommended for readers who are comfortable with detailed violence who enjoy thrillers, gritty crime fiction, and action and adventure. This would be a good series to read from the beginning. Enjoy.

Thank you, Joffe Books for the e-ARC via NetGalley for consideration. These opinions are solely my own.

This is book ten in the Patterson and Clocks series and while it is very readable as a standalone book, I am guessing that the character relationships make more sense if you have read the others. I really enjoyed this one but it definitely needs a trigger warning for the graphic violence if you are not into that sort of thing.

Patterson and Clocks are chalk and cheese. One with a taste for the finer things, good education and more what you would expect from a team leader in the Met. The other a sociopath with a heavy London accent, terribly in need of some sensitivity training (likely for the 100th time) and a quick temper. But somehow they work. You can tell the characters care about each other and are well written even if Clocks’ dialogue sometimes needs to be reread to understand him. Guessing that in person, some people would need him to repeat himself too.

There are a few minor things that didn’t seem to be explained but for several storylines involving threads with British Intelligence, people running their own missions outside of the police and obvious past traumas/issues between the characters, it comes together at the end. By the middle of the book, the suicides that they are investigating are the last thing on your mind.

I look forward to catching up on some of the older books in the series when I have the time. Thanks to Netgalley and Joffe Books for the ARC.

Clocks is a fantastic character and I found myself heavily invested in his experiences and role in this book. With his partner, they make for a very human pair of officers - certainly not perfect, which made them very believable. I really hope the information on the traffic management system was factual as it was so interesting that I want to know more. This is a terrific police thriller, but it is also a bit different to what you usually get from this genre and I really recommend it.

Monday morning. 8.30am. Chris Striker has seen it all. But nothing like this. He’s in charge of London’s Traffic Management System. Now he stares at his screen in horror. A woman deliberately steps into the path of an oncoming lorry at Tower Bridge. Killed on impact.

At the same moment, a man steps in front of a bus on London Bridge. Two other people stare at their phones, then launch themselves into the rush hour traffic. Something about Striker’s account doesn’t add up. Detectives Paterson and Clocks race to his flat to interview him - and find the place ransacked. A note is taped to the kitchen door. One word: Retribution.

Fascinating. This is the first Steve Parker book I've read, and I will definitely be back for more. I loved the banter between Paterson and Clocks. I loved the thrill of everything coming together. Gripping page-turner from the very beginning. Highly recommend this! 4⭐

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy. This is my honest opinion of the book.

Wow! What a great book and an unputdownable read. I could not stop once I got started. This is an action packed read, plenty of tension and thrills. But one thing that I do need is to go back and read some of the other books in this series. This is an intriguing read and I enjoyed delving into it and going for the ride it took me one.

There is a lot of violence though which I think was a bit over the top but it was also balance out by the storyline and the intrigue and tension of the whole book and story. A great read.

Thank you NetGalley and Joffe Books for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

It started off as what I thought was going to be.a decent read, but quickly faded into something that became boring, when meant to be funny. Some might enjoy the read, but sadly, it wasn’t for me.

Paterson & Clocks #10

Several officers of the Traffic Management team are watching from their monitors when four mysterious suicides take place simultaneously in Central London. They all walk out in front of various vehicles. DS Ray Paterson and DI Johnny Clocks are investigating the case.

This story is action packed from the beginning. There are several threads running throughout this story, but they are all tied up neatly by the end. I really like Paterson and Clocks, they are completely different characters, like chalk and cheese, but work well together. There was quite a lot of violence, so I don't think it's a read for the faint hearted. There is some humour along the way. This is a twisted and addictive read.

Published 26th November 2024

I would like to thank #NetGalley #JoffeBooks and the author #SteveParker for my ARC of #ThrownUnderTheBus in exchange for an honest review.

Captivating mystery from page one.
Very chilling beginning to this interesting tale of murder and mayhem within the upper
echelons of British intelligence.
When 4 people die within minutes of each other in central London, by stepping off curbs in front of oncoming traffic, it is anything but a tragic coincidence.
And ace investigators Clocks and Patterson are assigned the case.
What follows is a hunt for the culprits through a trail of red herrings.
The characters are well defined but having just read this particular book as a first of these, I
found the vernacular to be too off putting.
I did not realize how completely it was enveloped in the English way and found it a bit much
to follow at times.
The p!ot was intriguing but fighting the language lines was too often distracting.

.

Starting a series with book #10 isn't the best idea. But Thrown Under The Bus is an engaging, if incredibly violent and disturbing, read. The Met's Paterson and Clocks are unlike any detectives I've come across: they do what needs to be done to get the bad guys and hang the consequences. If you need to be as immoral and violent as they are, then do it, and do it hard.

The case revolves around four suicides that take place simultaneously in central London. Something obviously isn't right, but the duo couldn't begin to predict where the case would take them. It's impossible to say any more without spoilers.

Thrown Under The Bus is full of extreme violence, mixed with puerile humour. But somehow it works as a narrative and draws the reader into a world of extremes. Yet there are also moral dilemmas and moments of genuine bathos. It's definitely not one for the faint hearted ...

A rollercoaster of a book. It is the first book I have read in this series and I will be looking out for the others. Wonderful characters and storyline. The ending was masterly.

This book made me run through my emotions. At times it was funny with the ways the characters interacted, but other times there were tears in my eyes. I've read another book in this series and the interactions between the two lead characters are unlike those in many books I've read. There were a lot of deaths in this one, and, without wanting to spoil anything, I really hope the cliffhanger ending was just the end of the book and not the series!

banter, gripping, crime-thriller, twisty, twisted, noir, suspense, unputdownable, wry-humor, apparent-suicide, retribution, assassinations, unique, murders, British detectives, London*****

Meeting Detective Superintendent Ray Paterson and Detective Inspector Johnny Clocks has been a unique experience (but I quickly ordered book 1). This would certainly been classified as horror if it weren't for the interactions between these two who appear to be polar opposites.
It begins with the grisly scenes unwillingly watched on screen by several officers of Traffic Managment. The perfectly ordered apparent suicides of apparently innocent civilians. Enter Paterson and Clock with their limited department, and the story is off and running. WHO orchestrated this form of terrorism? WHY did they do it? How was it managed? While clock annoys and agitates almost everyone with his gallows humor and UN-PC groaners, the pair mobilize whoever they have to in order to successfully end this reign of terror. Fantastic!
I requested and reviewed a free temporary uncorrected proof copy from Joffe Books via NetGalley. Thank you!
#ThrownUnderTheBus by Steve Parker #PatersonAndClockBk10 @JoffeBooks #NetGalley

I enjoyed reading this and especially liked all the action, drama, humour and banter. Clocks and Patterson are a unique detective duo who do things their way, in an unorthodox fashion. The series has really moved on and is full of surprises. It can be read as a standalone.

The best thriller I have read this year, just wow! Clocks and Paterson book 10 started and finished with a bang, I love this duo of maverick detectives based in London, what brilliant characters they are. The book is a buzz from start to finish, with everything you could possibly want in a crime thriller. Hats off to Steve Parker for this read, where will he go next after the incredible ending? Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

This is the first of this author's books I have read, and the first in the Paterson and Clocks series. It was a clever crime thriller, with some good twists and turns. It wasn't until about Chapter 12 that the story really hit full throttle and that's when I just needed to carry on reading to find out what was going on! I think the main characters Paterson and Clocks, you either love them or hate them! Personally I found the banter funny to a point, but it could become too much and overshadow the actual storyline and spoil some 'scenes'. However, the banter was cleverly used to portray the characters, their vulnerabilities, views, feelings, etc, as well as modern life, society and culture (including perhaps police culture). To sum up, this was a fun, twisty, page-turner of a crime suspense thriller that left me wondering...what next???

Honest review in return for an ARC
4/5

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press. I started reading this book and it really sucked me in. I can't wait to get back to it but I think before continuing with this one, I am going back to the previous books in the series. If Book 1 starts as action packed and thrilling as this one, I will be racing through the series. I am rating this with 5 stars because it has made me stop and go back to the others. That is how good it has started out. I want the backstory. This is my own opinion.

This was a strong thriller novel and had that experience that I was looking for, it had that overall concept that I wanted and was glad everything flowed well overall. I enjoyed getting to know the characters and how they worked in this story. Steve Parker has a strong writing style and was glad I got to go through the twists of this book.

Round ten and here we go again. I love this series and characters.
Ray Patterson and Johnny Clocks are back with thrown under the bus, a crime thriller that's gripping twisty with lots of added banter and fun from these two at Southwark police station London.
After a terrorist situation at four locations, the traffic team have just watched four people die stepping out into a lorry, car, fire engine and a bus.
This book will send so many mix feelings as you read including a lot of sadness, these guys are chalk and cheese but they care and trust each other and know their job's they would die for each other.
Totally hooked.
Unputdownable.
Deadly twisted.
The most powerful book in the series.
Right through till the end.

Thank you to Netgallery and the publisher for this ARC. The publication date is 26th Nov. This book was a proper page turner and my mind is literally blown!

It was genuinely unputdownable and I can’t remember the last time I said that about a book. I liked the two characters they were a great duo together. I’d highly recommend this book it’s a must read!

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟stars

"Thrown Under the Bus" by Steve Parker is a gripping and fast-paced thriller that explores the murky waters of betrayal, ambition, and the dark side of human nature. The story follows a determined protagonist who finds themselves embroiled in a web of corporate intrigue and personal vendettas. Parker's sharp writing and intricate plotting keep readers on the edge of their seats, as twists and turns abound.

The characters are well-developed, each with their own motivations and flaws, making the tension feel palpable. The book tackles themes of loyalty and the consequences of our choices, prompting readers to reflect on what they would do in similar situations.

Parker’s keen observations and witty dialogue add depth to the narrative, making it not just a thriller, but also a commentary on modern life and ethics. Overall, "Thrown Under the Bus" is an engaging read that will satisfy fans of suspense and leave them eager for more. Highly recommended for those who enjoy a thought-provoking yet entertaining page-turner.