Gone to Her Grave: A totally gripping and jaw-dropping crime thriller and mystery novel (Detective Madison Harper Book 4)
Book Description
In the golden morning light, a beautiful young woman lies diagonally across the bed, dressed for a night out, her long lashes pressed against her cheeks as if she’s sleeping. But the crimson that creeps across the sheets tells the story of an innocent woman who has drawn her last breath… Detective Madison Harper is pulled away from Thanksgiving preparations when a local care worker, Terri Summers, is found dead in her home on the outskirts of Lost Creek, Colorado. Terri’s inconsolable mother can’t understand who would hurt such a kind soul who had dedicated her life to helping others. But analysis of the blood spatter at the scene indicates Terri knew her attacker, that she looked them right in the eye before her life was taken. The awkward way Terri’s body is positioned catches Madison’s attention. Carefully moving her, she finds a bracelet—possibly a child’s—with a single red bead clenched in the woman’s fist, as if she was hiding it. It’s the lead Madison so desperately needs, but the sudden death of one of her own team sends the investigation into a tailspin. With her coworkers crumbling around her, Madison must work day and night to trace the bracelet and crack the case. But when she’s dragged back into the disappearance of a woman and child from years ago, and finds a link to someone in her own family, can Madison stop this twisted killer before another precious life is taken? And at what cost? An absolutely addictive and twist-packed crime thriller guaranteed to get your heart racing and make your jaw drop! Perfect for fans of Lisa Regan, Melinda Leigh and Kendra Elliot.
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'Gone To Her Grave' by Wendy Dranfield.
Read and reviewed via NetGalley for Wendy Dranfield, Bookouture publishers and Bookouture anonymous
Publication date 13th April 2022
This is the fourth book I have read by this author. It is also the fourth book in the 'Detective Madison Harper' series but it can be read as a standalone. I have previously read 'Cry For Help' which is the second book in the 'Detective Madison Harper' series, 'Little Girl Taken' which is the third book in the 'Detective Madison Harper' series and 'The Birthday Party' which is a standalone. I would highly recommend each of them.
I was originally drawn to this book by its beautiful eye catching cover and its intriguing synopsis and title. The synopsis stated that this book is 'Perfect for fans of Lisa Regan, Melinda Leigh and Kendra Elliot.' I am a huge fan of Melinda, Lisa AND Kendra so am looking forward to seeing if this lives up to this statement. I am also a fan of Wendy Dranfield and if this is half as good as 'Cry For Help', 'Little Girl Taken' and 'The Birthday Party' it is sure to be a page turning read. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Bookouture. I have yet to read a book published by Bookouture that I haven't enjoyed. Hopefully this won't be the first... Watch this space! (Written before I started reading the book).
This novel consists of a prologue and 58 chapters. The chapters are short in length so possible to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!
This book is based in Lost Creek, Colorado, USA 🇺🇸.
This book is written in third person perspective and the main protagonists are Detective Madison Harper, Nate Monroe and Ruby Rader. The benefits of third person perspective are that it let's you see the bigger picture of what's going on and you get to know more characters more, what they are thinking and what they are doing. It feels like you get to see the whole picture and not miss out on anything.
Wow!!!! Just flipping wow!!!! What an absolutely epic page turner!!! Well done Wendy you have done it yet again!! Absolutely smashed it!!!!!!!
This book is extremely well written with vivid descriptions creating the perfect atmosphere for the storyline. The book cover and synopsis works perfectly with the book plot and I am most definitely looking forward to reading the next book, and the previous one in this series.
An addictive, nail biting, page turning, heart racing and compelling storyline which had many layers of mysteries and crimes for the reader to be kept guessing throughout. Filled with twists, turns, shocks, tragedy and red herrings throughout I had no idea who did what until the end. This is an achievement in itself as it is definitely getting harder to surprise me with the amount of crime novels I've read. There was so many explosive bombshells in this book that I actually lost count on how many times I was shocked which I didn't think would be possible!!! The plot was unique and realistic. It started straight in the action and kept you going on a roller-coaster ride of suspension throughout. I was in tears when I read certain things, absolutely heartbreaking especially when they did the end of watch call which I had never heard of previously so had to look it up and was glad I did although I ended up in even more tears when I watched a video on YouTube!! There were also several other occasions when my heart was in my throat and I was welling up but I won't mention those as not to spoil it for future readers. It's been a long time since I've cried reading a crime book so yet another huge achievement Wendy although not sure I should be thanking you for making me cry 😂 . It is so hard to say how gutted I was about certain events without giving anything away to future readers but I'm sure once people have read it they will know exactly what I mean. Well done Wendy you did absolutely amazing and everything was tied up perfectly. The twists and turns in this book left me going from laughter to tears of sadness to absolute shock!!! Prepare yourself for a rollercoaster ride of emotions!!! I just could not put this book down and would absolutely LOVE to see this whole series turned into a TV series!!! Hint, hint Wendy 😉
I have loved this series from the start but I must say Wendy you just keep getting better and better with each book and this has got to be the best so far!!! It is most definitely in my top 5 books I've read this year!!! That may not seem like much but my average is 20/30 a month.
It is set over multiple time lines. When books show what has happened in the past and what is happening in the present I find it really helps the reader (if it is well done) understand why things are happening and what has lead to the present activities and decisions. It also shows the bigger picture.
Before you start this make sure you clear your schedule because once you pick it up you are not going to want to put it down!!!!
Although this is the fourth book in the series I had would have had absolutely no problems reading it without the others. Any details or events that have previously happened are mentioned in just the right amount of detail to let a new reader know what has happened and yet not too much to bore a previous reader.
I absolutely loved meeting certain characters again which definitely included Madison, Nate and Brody along with discovering new ones!! I loved the fact that the main lead was such a strong female with alot of background and yet having gone through so much and still going through so much Madison still didn't back down!! I cannot wait to read what happens next with her. I also enjoyed Nates character but of course being an animal lover my favourite has to be Brody!!! I really like Vince's character and his obsession with all things crime and I really enjoyed meeting him again. I am looking forward to seeing how Mendes and Madison's relationship develops in the next book and although I really didn't click with her when I first met her she has surprised me on a few occasions. My mind was blown when a certain characters true colours were revealed. I wasn't a fan of them but I certainly did not expect that!! I won't say anymore not to spoil it for future readers but if you have read it I'm sure you'll know who I am talking about and if you haven't then what are you waiting for?? The same applies about not revealing who I'm speaking about here but I cannot wait to see how they fit in and how them being there will affect everybody's lives!!! All the characters were strong and well defined. I enjoyed that the author gave just the right amount of background information on the characters to let us know about them for it to be a standalone but not too much so if you've read the first book your not going over the same information too much.
Congratulations Wendy on yet another success and here's to the next explosive book in this absolutely epic series!!! This is exactly why you are one of my favourite authors and why this series is in my top 5 crime series!!!
Although this is a crime thriller have the tissues at the ready!!!
Overall a must read, pulse racing, addictive page turning crime thriller thay will keep you on edge.
Genres covered in this novel include Crime, Police Procedural, Crime Thriller and Mystery amongst others.
I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as fans Melissa Leigh, Lisa Regan, Angela Marsons, C. L Taylor, Kendra Elliot, Carol Wyer and anyone looking for a great new series.
384 pages.
This book is just £1.99 to purchase on kindle via Amazon (at time of review) which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!
Rated 5 /5 (I LOVED it ) on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon UK and Amazon US and on over 30 Facebook pages plus my blog on Facebook.
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About Wendy Dranfield
Wendy is the bestselling author of the Detective Madison Harper crime series.
She is a former coroner's assistant turned crime writer who writes a mixture of standalone thrillers, crime series and short stories. Some of her books have been shortlisted for various writing competitions and awards, including the Mslexia novel writing competition and the International Thriller Writer Awards.
You can find more information on her website: wendydranfield.co.uk
Author social media
Twitter: https://twitter.com/WendyDranfield
Website: wendydranfield.co.uk
Instagram: @wendy_dranfield
Buy links
Amazon: https://geni.us/B09QQDVJWYsocial
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