I found this book something of a strange one and I am still not convinced if I enjoyed it or not.
To be honest, I might have given it a miss after the first few pages, as it didn’t tick the right boxes for me, but I suck with it to the end, but did consider it all to be a bit far fetched and wondered if such events would really happen.
I certainly do not doubt the research that would have gone into it all, but at times thought the storyline to be just that little bit too much.

Idris Khan runs the pharmacy in Headingley, Leeds and is known to his customers as The Chemist. He dispenses many prescriptions including ‘blue scripts’ of methadone and despite how busy he is and the long hours that he works, like many other pharmacies, he’s struggling to make ends meet. He has tough customers and delivers to even tougher areas and so is no stranger to standing up for himself or to witnessing violence. This is especially true of The Mews, home to drug addicts, ex cons and illegal immigrants. It’s a place of misery and cruelty ruled over by Johangir, leader of a drug cartel. Johangir has one competitor, a Yorkshire cartel led by Thomas Mead. When his ex-wife Rebecca doesn’t turn up for her daily dose of methadone, he goes looking for her in a very rundown area of Leeds. He finds her but steps into a nightmare scenario and a turf war between the two cartels. It’s a high stakes game. Can Idris use all of his obvious intelligence to evade the wrath of powerful organisations, to say nothing of the boys in blue? It’s fair to say that stuff hits the fan….

The storytelling is as raw, gritty, unremittingly dark and harsh as many of the characters that enters Idris’s shop and the neighbourhoods that surround it. There’s rage, violence, vengeance, and the cruelty of those lacking morality. I like the conundrum of a good man caught in a desperate trap and using his razor sharp brain to do good by doing bad. As the book progresses I find myself increasing intrigued by the character of Idris who has his own brand of toughness. As the author has a pharmacy background, this gives further credibility to both the character and his actions.

As a whole it feels real and authentic with its portrayal of harsh and difficult areas of Leeds. I’m not going to pretend that the aura isn’t bleak, it is. This is a murky and desolate world with its grim portrayal of addiction and the unrelenting cruel and evil reach of organised crime. On occasions when some of the larger than life brutal characters are on the page, the tension is sky high. It’s a buckle up, rollercoaster ride to the end and nicely set up for promises to be a fascinating follow-up.

Although I don’t find this as immediately grabbing as the brilliant Harry Virdee series, I think AA Dhand is onto another winner. I hope so as it’s an absorbing thriller which would make for a great TV series or film.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to HQ for the much appreciated EPUB in return for an honest review.

The Chemist by A.A. Dhand is a totally gripping contemporary gangland suspense that I read in just two sittings.
The reader enters the criminal underworld of Leeds as we traverse a no-go estate run by unscrupulous drug lords.
There is a tension as rival gangs fight over turf.
Within these turf wars, innocents are caught up and used by the rival gangs as pawns to force a father’s hand.
Those who would do good, find themselves spiraling downwards into a murky grey area as revenge is sought on behalf of the innocent.
Within The Chemist we meet anti-heroes who work to right the wrongs, using whatever is at their disposal. They clash with the law enforcement, even though they have similar goals.
All the characters were well drawn. There were dastardly, evil characters in contrast to those with kind hearts, although these were not pure either.
A.A. Dhand is masterful within the gangland genre. He grabs the reader’s attention from the start and we remain gripped to the end.
The ending is perfectly poised for the reader to hope that we will hear more from the chemist.
I received a free copy via Net Galley. A favourable review was not required. All opinions are my own.

Having read books by this author previously, I was keen to read this one.

This time around we are introduced to Local pharmacist and pillar of the community, Idris Khan. Based in Leeds this story unfolds around drug addiction and the characters that Idris deals with daily.
Idris is soon out of his comfort zone and it's this that leaves you wanting to read more of the book. Drug addiction, murder - this book has plenty to keep you guessing and wondering which way it going.
A decent read with some interesting characters.

The Chemist is an engaging, easy-to-read and enjoyable thriller, which follows the titular character as he gets involved in an ever-escalating situation involving rival drugs gangs in the North of England.

The plot flows nicely and the stakes are continually raised, with a good back-story to explain how the protagonists ended up where they are. There is plenty of suspense, the lead characters are likeable enough, and the ending felt satisfying, setting things up for a sequel.

Overall though, I felt the story lacked that special something I was hoping for.

A solid 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4, as I'm sure many people will enjoy this.

Thank you to Netgalley and HQ for an ARC of this crime-thriller.

A gripping drama which had me hooked from the start.
Well written characters and clever writing.
One not to be missed.
My thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my copy.

Having seen reviews for other works by his author I imagined I was going o love this book, no so much I’m afraid, quite generic and at times felt overlong

Absolutely gripping, kept me reading far longer into the night than I should have been.

From the start it's an interesting read - Idris is a pharmacist in the shadow of crime-ridden tower blocks, and has hundreds of addicts coming to the pharmacy for doses of methadone. His friend Rebecca works with a charity looking to help the area's sex workers. From the moment that the latter work leads to a dramatic and distressing incident that involves both Idris and Rebecca, I was hooked.

This is brutal, clever and interesting, my favourite book of the year so far!

Oh My! What a read.

It is filled with tension, it has drama and is really quite thrilling.

I love a good action read and this involving a drugs cartel really seems spot on in terms of reality. It is descriptive, well written and I was hooked..

This would honestly make a brilliant TV drama/film I can already imagine the thrills and spills.

Just amazing

I’ve been waiting for this book since 2019, when I discovered and binged A.A. Dhand’s DI Harry Virdee series.

The Chemist centres around Iris Khan, a law-abiding pharmacist in Leeds. A big chunk of his work is managing methadone prescriptions for addicts in his care. Inevitably this puts him in contact with all sorts of people from the criminal underworld.

Trying to protect someone close to him drags Idris into a desperate battle for survival, with rival drug cartels and the Police among those threatening to ruin his life.

The Chemist is absolutely compelling, inventive and original. It’s fast, theres a huge ‘one-more-chapter factor’. There’s plenty of threat, tension and danger but also sensitivity, empathy and a social awareness. This is one of those rare books that no other author could have written, drawing on A.A. Dhand’s years of experience working as a pharmacist, and a deep knowledge and understanding of the local area and community.

Simply brilliant. State of the art British Crime fiction. Read it as soon as you can!

Thanks to Netgalley and HQ