Doll Face

Wow what a great read. This book had me captivated from page one and didn't let me go until I had finished. The story line and characters were interesting and there was plenty of twists in the plot to keep me guessing. There was everything in this book, darkness, anger, despair the punches just kept coming. I really enjoyed this book, my first by this author. I will certainly be reading more.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Bloodhound Books for an advance copy of Doll Face, the second novel to feature Anglesey based DI Tudor Manx.

Manx as he prefers to be called and his team are called in to the murder of Sian Conway who has been stabbed and mutilated. The ritualistic nature of her murder has the words serial killer hovering on their lips and it is confirmed as the bodies stack up. While all the victims have links to local millionaire Kimble McLain the motive is far from clear.

I enjoyed Doll Face which is quite an exciting hunt for a twisted serial killer. The novel is told from two points of view, Manx and the investigation and the initially unidentified killer who shares his thoughts, motivation and history. I'm not a big fan of this approach, preferring a straightforward hunt narrative, and I didn't particularly warm to the same old story of abuse and religious mania although I can admire its skilful unfolding piece by piece over the course of the novel. I also liked the pacing of the investigation as Manx starts to put things together although I never feel it's as enthralling a read when the reader is waiting for the detective to catch up with their knowledge.

I haven't read Anglesey Blue so I don't know exactly what brought Manx back to Anglesey after 30 years with the Met but he doesn't like being back to where he grew up. Is that why he drinks so much and has no significant social relationships, even with his family. He's a hard man to figure out.

Doll Face is a good read which I can recommend.

Having read the first book in the series, Anglesey Blue, I was very much looking forward to Doll Face, the latest in the series featuring DI Tudor Manx, and I was not disappointed. The combination of crime fiction and the island of Anglesey works very well and Dylan Jones paints a vivid picture of the wild terrain. Manx is a fascinating character with an interesting back story, and this novel is fast-paced and intriguing, dealing with a serial killer with a religious connection. But for the surfeit of errors and omissions I would award the book five stars.

“Three months after solving his last case, DI Tudor Manx leads a harrowing investigation to catch a killer terrorizing the Isle of Anglesey.
After the body of the first victim, Sian Conway is found, the suspicion quickly falls on her boss, Kimble McLain, and her volatile ex-husband, Liam Fowler.
The autopsy soon reveals Sian was eighteen weeks pregnant and when the coroner finds a religious text hidden in the victim’s liver, Manx suspects this could be the work of a serial kill

Manx is tasked with trying to find the killer and when further murders are committed they all keep coming back to McLain. McLain is a wealthy businessman and Manx’s superiors are not happy that he wants to question him.
Manx continues to follow his gut instinct but when one of his team ends up in a life or death situation he has to take action.
This is a gripping crime thriller and I will certainly read more of this series.
Thanks to Bloodhound Books and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

4 stars

DI Manx Tudor has returned to Wales after spending several years at he Met in London.

Manx and his team are called out initially to investigate the brutal murder of a woman named Sian Conway. Sian recently left her husband Liam and, initially he is the suspect. He has a very bad temper and proves it by punching Manx upon meeting him.

During the autopsy, the pathologist discovers that Sian is eighteen weeks pregnant. He also finds some very odd and perplexing clues. The presence of these added factors makes Manx wonder if perhaps they have a serial killer on their hands.

Sian was Skyping a friend when she was killed and the police manage to track down the footage. At first, the woman to whom she was speaking wants nothing to do with the police; she won’t even talk to them.

A very wealthy man named Kimble McLain seems to have a connection to their case. Manx goes to interview him and basically learns nothing. But they do ferret out yet more suspects.

Then Manx gets a visit from an old friend CeeCee Cartwright from the Met.

When one of his team gets kidnapped, Manx goes into high gear. Armed with clues from another colleague, Manx is determined to get his officer back. He only takes Nader with him to confront the killer and rescue his subordinate.

This is a well written novel. The plotting tends to wander here and there, but overall, it’s good as well. It may have help had I read the first book in the series. The tension in the story begins with the murder of Sian and continues through more murders, until reaching a pinnacle at the denouement. This is a step-by-step police procedural which follows the exploits of DI Manx Tudor and his team in Wales. I liked Manx and the members of his team. I also liked that he enjoyed music and was a “song specialist” for his Friday night pub quiz team.

I want to thank NetGalley and Bloodhound Books for forwarding to me a copy of this good book to read and enjoy.

Doll Face is a dark and addictive murder mystery thriller. It has a surprising opening and short pacy chapters to start with which really get the story going and I was immediately gripped. It is the second in a series, but I read it absolutely fine as a standalone and loved it.

It is also a solid police procedural and the evidence is discovered in a systematic but compelling way. The characters include a mix of police officers and technical or medical staff, and the workplace banter provides some lighter moments in what is at times a pretty gruesome story. Dylan H. Jones has a really good writing style and demonstrates some deft sleight of hand as he sprinkles the clues throughout the story.

There are several dramatic plot developments throughout, as well as some disturbing elements to the story.  It has a thrilling conclusion and I really was racing through the final few chapters.

The descriptions of Anglesey and its scenery are very evocative and atmospheric. It depicts a bleak but beautiful landscape and reminded me in some ways of my recent forays into Nordic Noir.

Tudor Manx is a convincing lead, with an intriguing background and story arc. I need to read the first in this series asap and I hope there is a third to come soon!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloodhound Books for the ARC of Doll Face.

DI Tudor Manx has just recently returned to Anglesey after an incident in London but it has been a bittersweet homecoming. Some of his old friends seem glad to see him but others don’t. It has also dragged up feelings about the day his sister Miriam went missing years ago (something which he is still investigating on the side).

When Sian Conway is killed in a bizarre way, with a Bible quote stuffed into her liver, Manx is tasked to investigate. Before long more bodies turned up, all killed in the same way. The Island of Anglesey has a serial killer on their hands.

You when you think to yourself, why have I not read this author’s books before? That’s exactly how I felt reading this novel. This is the second in the Tudor Manx series and can be read as a stand-alone, which I did myself having not read the first Anglesey Blue.

This has everything an ardent crime fan like myself could want. A vicious serial killer that keeps the police on it’s toes, an interesting cast of characters and plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing. The chapters are short, keeping the pace fast and me turning page after page.

I loved how individual the characters seemed, even the lowly PC Priddle (In a lot of books I’ve I feel that the PC often blend into the background just there to give the main officer some information to drive the plot forward).

I have to be honest I did sort of guess who the killer was but I enjoyed finding out through the book the motive behind the killings and watching the Manx unravel the puzzle.

I won’t say to much more, in case I give away any spoilers but I can’t wait to read more from this author. I will definitely be buying his first novel Anglesey Blue.

DOLL FACE by Dylan H. Jones is a twisted, dark, and terrifying crime fiction novel that will have you double checking the locks on your doors and leaving the light on when you go to bed.

DI Tudor Manx has only recently wrapped up his last case when he is called in to investigate a gruesome murder which strongly points towards a serial killer, and as the bodies begin to mount up, Manx will have to get one step ahead of this twisted killer if he is to have any chance of catching the culprit. But how is local millionaire Kimble McLain linked to all of this? And has the killer got a personal reason for choosing his victims? And as Manx tries to unravel the clues, a blast from the past will shake up everything.

Gripping, and at times gruesome, DOLL FACE by Dylan H. Jones is an excellent story with a great cast of characters and a somewhat desolate but stunning setting. While this is the second book in this series it can easily be read as a standalone novel, which is what I have done. The story is told from two perspectives - DI Manx and his team and then from the unknown killer's perspective - with alternating chapters that are snappy and engaging. With plenty of twists and turns. this police procedural story really does tick all of the boxes, and I highly recommend DOLL FACE by Dylan H. Jones to crime fiction fans everywhere.

I really loved this book! Excellent story with brilliant main characters. I would recommend this book.

This is the second book from this writer I have read and this one follows the first book Anglesey Blue but it can be read without reading the first book.

I really enjoyed this book, I wont go into detail as I do not want to to spoil it for those who have yet to read it but the plot is very interesting and kept me guessing until very late on in the book, got me interested right from the start and kept me interested right up until the end. The characters are really believable and knowing many of the locations I will look at them in a new way when I visit from now on.

This is a fantastic crime book and I really enjoyed it, it is so well written I found it a little disturbing in places and it has a really dramatic ending that will keep you guessing.

Just to say I've never read anything by this author. I haven't read the 1st of the series yet, but I will.

This was suggested for me to read as I like crime/thrillers. It confused me slightly as I hadn't read book 1, but as I slowly got into the story and what the characters was like, I felt like it was going to a page turner for me.

It makes you think you know who the murderer is, who's involved and for what reason the killer's motive was, but it had me guessing at each corner. I was shocked when they told us who the murderer was and who the characters was (in relation to who). I'd definitely would read Dylan Jones' first book and any more that he writes.