The Tattoo Thief by Alison Belsham

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Trapeze (20 Sept. 2018)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1409175138
• ISBN-13: 978-1409175131

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Synopsis

A policeman on his first murder case

A tattoo artist with a deadly secret

And a twisted serial killer sharpening his blades to kill again…

When Brighton tattoo artist Marni Mullins discovers a flayed body, newly-promoted DI Francis Sullivan needs her help. There’s a serial killer at large, slicing tattoos from his victims’ bodies while they’re still alive. Marni knows the tattooing world like the back of her hand, but has her own reasons to distrust the police. So when she identifies the killer’s next target, will she tell Sullivan or go after the Tattoo Thief alone?

Review

The Tattoo Thief  is Alison Belsham’s first crime thriller, and won the Pitch Perfect award at the Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Festival.  After reading this book I understand why.  The Tattoo Thief is a fast paced, edge of your seat thrilling read, with a fantastically dark plot and intriguing characters.  The story is narrated by four very different voices; DI Frances Sullivan,  DS Rory Mackay, Marni Mullins and finally the tattoo thief themselves.  All bring a different perspective to the crimes, and all have different personal agendas.

DI Frances Sullivan is newly promoted, and the youngest DI on the force.  The tattoo thief  is his first case and he has a lot to prove especially as his superior officer and his team don’t think he is up to the job.  I really felt for his character, not only trying to find a serial killer but dealing with lack of respect at work and having personal problems with his mother and sister.  What I found really interesting was his strong faith and how that both helped and hindered some of his choices with this case.  DS Rory MacKay should have got the promotion to DI, and from the start is against DI Sullivan and undermines him at every opportunity.  It is interesting to see the changing dynamics of their relationship change throughout the book, as Sullivan starts to earn MacKay’s respect.  My favourite character was Marni Mullins.  Marni has an air of mystery about her; she has secrets in her past  and has a dislike of the Police and authority in general.  She has a strong personality with an edge and coldness to it, she certainly isn’t going to let a killer get in her way.  There was certainly some sexual tension between her and DI Sullivan that made this book even more compelling.  The killer tells their own story in their chapters; their childhood, their motives and their hopes. It was compelling to be inside the killers warped mind.

I found this to have an original plot line, a bit gruesome in parts in the description of flaying a human while they are alive to remove the tattoos from the victims. I enjoyed each of the characters having hidden agendas, all wanting to catch the killer but each wanting something different from the outcome of this case, which get in the way of the investigation.  There are many hold your breath moments, and surprises along the way as expected from a crime thriller, but the inventiveness of the crimes makes this stand out in the crowd.

The Tattoo Thief is a book I won’t forget in a hurry. Its dynamic, dark,  disturbing and gripping story makes this book hard to put down, and I read it in one day.  The characters are all multi faceted and bring their own stories to the plot, adding an extra dimension.  This is an exceptional debut thriller and one I can’t recommend highly enough; I hope Alison Belsham is going to make a series from theses characters.

 

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