Hangman by Daniel Cole

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Trapeze; 1st Edition edition (22 Mar. 2018)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1409168794
• ISBN-13: 978-1409168799
• Product Dimensions: 24.4 x 3.4 x 16.3 cm

 

 

 

 

 

Synopsis

he new thriller from the bestselling author of Ragdoll

A detective with no one to trust
A killer with nothing to lose

18 months after the ‘Ragdoll’ murders, a body is found hanging from Brooklyn Bridge, the word ‘BAIT’ carved into the chest.

In London a copycat killer strikes, branded with the word ‘PUPPET’, forcing DCI Emily Baxter into an uneasy partnership with the detectives on the case, Special Agents Rouche and Curtis.

Each time they trace a suspect, the killer is one step ahead. With the body count rising on both sides of the Atlantic, can they learn to trust each other and identify who is holding the strings before it is too late?

 

Review

Hangman is the long awaited sequel to Daniel Cole’s debut novel Ragdoll. The story picks up eighteen months after the conviction of  Masse and the disappearance of Detective Fawkes.  Emily Baxter is now a DCI and finds herself working with the FBI and CIA on copy cat killings both sides of the Atlantic.  There are many of the characters from the first book and of course several new characters.  I do think that you have to have read Ragdoll to understand the premise of this book and the characters back story.

I was glad to see Baxter was still as caustic and sarcastic with everyone, maybe more so after the events of the first book.  The only person she seems to trust is Edmunds, now working for Fraud, but who helps her in this case as well.  The two new characters, Curtis from the FBI and Rouche from the CIA are the opposite of Baxter but the dynamic between the three works well, with a blossom of friendship growing between Rouche and Baxter.

It did take me a few chapters to really get into this book but once it grabbed my attention I was hooked. The plot gathered momentum and I am honest when I say I didn’t know where this was book was going.  I’m not going to say much about the plot or the twists and turns apart from that it was brilliant with a few heart in the mouth moments, and some parts that chilled me to the bone.

If you enjoyed Ragdoll, then Hangman is a must read.  It builds brilliantly from the first book and doesn’t disappoint in it’s dark plot line, with an underpinned tension throughout and some heart stopping moments.  I can’t wait for the third in this trilogy next year.

 

Thank you for reading my review of Hangman by Daniel Cole.  I reviewed Ragdoll last year so you can check out my review of that if you fancy reading both books.  I appreciate all the follows, likes and shares and comments.