The Death Messenger (Matthew Ryan #2) by Mari Hannah
Genre: Crime Fiction, Thriller
Read: 29th December 2018
Amazon: Purchase
★★ 2 stars
It's hard to review a book that took me 10 days to read and then feel like it dragged out a bit. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed parts of it but some of it just seemed a little too convoluted and dare I say again...dragged out.
Although THE DEATH MESSENGER is the second in the series, this is the first book by Mari Hannah I have read and while I was a little disappointed with the overall book, I really enjoyed the camaraderie between O'Neil and Ryan. Despite him being her subordinate, she really seemed to value his input and hold him in high regard. While they are colleagues, they do appear to have a personal friendship that works well alongside their professional relationship. I wouldn't like to see them fall into bed together as those story arcs tend to spoil the comradeship of the main players.
THE DEATH MESSENGER begins with a Prologue that doesn't seem to tie in with the first chapter or so, and I admit to being a little puzzled as to its relevance. It referred to another place, another victim than the one they were investigating.
DVDs are being sent to the police around the country of crime scenes with no bodies...and no obvious links. Whoever is behind the DVDs and the killings takes great pleasure in death as the murders escalate. The victims are diverse and the locations are all over the place. They don't even appear to know each other. It's not long before Ryan and O'Neil are on their way to various crime scenes from Northumberland to Scotland to Brighton and then Denmark! Their only clue is the voice on the DVD to link the scenes but who is she? And why is she killing?
Ryan and O'Neil shine as they delve into the mystery of this demanding case. With personal histories, they fight, they talk and they learn to trust each other. They have integrity and it makes them a passionate and likeable team. I'm not sure about Grace and Newman. She is not backward in coming forward and he is a secretive spook. I don't that in her or anyone and I don't trust him. But Ryan and O'Neil, I love!
This is a dark story, gritty and chilling. Ryan and O'Neil are a formidable pair that work well together. I look forward to more stories featuring them, but I don't like the spook-MI5-MI6 angle. I like cut and dried. Spooks-MI5-MI6 are not. They are secretive and they are always lurking, always watching. I don't like that and I Don't trust that. Get rid of the spook angle and the stories will be far more enjoyable.
The story on the whole DID confuse me a lot in the beginning. They started referring to "Spielberg" and I had no idea who that was although it became clear that when using that name they were referring to the killer. Did I miss something where they coined that term? There were a few places where I found myself confused as to what was taking place, as some of it didn't seem to make sense. I think it's that that spoilt it for me.
I was also confused as to why this was an ARC from the publisher when the book has appeared to have been released for some time - a year in fact. Why is it listed on NetGalley as being released 15th January when I've since come across it available for sale on Amazon since December 2017.
Overall, THE DEATH MESSENGER was an average story. I think Ryan and O'Neil alone saved it as without them I would have given up long ago, and there were times I was tempted when I was just confused as to what was going on for a while. The story has promised but didn't entirely deliver with all its confusion and the whole lengthy process which just seemed to drag it out. And the spook. Get rid of the spook angle. That does nothing for me. This is not James Bond, nor do I wish it to be. But it does have promise. I won't give up. I will test the waters with another in the series, however it sounds as if I will give the first one "The Silent Room" a miss since that featured spookness heavily from what I've read.
Thank you to #MariHannah, #NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of #TheDeathMessenger in exchange for an honest review.
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