REVIEW: A Life for a Life by Carol Wyer

A Life for a Life (DI Kate Young #3) by Carol Wyer

Genre: Crime fiction, Crime thriller, Suspense, Police procedural

Read: 13th March 2022

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Published: 15th March 2022

★★★★ 4 stars

DESCRIPTION:

Nobody can get into the mind of an erratic killer—except an unpredictable detective.

When a young man is found lying on a station platform with a hole in his head, DI Kate Young is called in to investigate the grisly murder. But the killing is no one-off. As bodies start to pile up, she is faced with what might be an impossible task—to hunt down a ruthless killer on a seemingly random rampage.

Meanwhile, Kate has her own demons to battle as she struggles to come to terms with her husband’s death. And she is hell-bent on exposing corruption within the force and bringing Superintendent John Dickson to justice. But with the trail of deception running deeper—and closer to home—than she could ever have imagined, she no longer knows who she can trust.

With her grip on reality slipping, Kate realises that maybe she and the killer are not so different after all. But time is running out and Kate is low on options. Can she catch the killer before she loses everything?

MY REVIEW:

I'm a huge fan of Carol Wyer having read her DC Robyn Carter series in part, most of her DI Natalie Ward series and now following DI Kate Young on her quest for justice whilst simultaneously fighting crime on a daily basis. While every book follows a standalone investigation, each one follows on from the previous outlining a much bigger picture. Therefore it is highly recommended that readers begin the journey with Kate from the beginning in "An Eye for an Eye" and then "A Cut for a Cut", as each book is another important piece of the puzzle that Kate is piecing together. Without them, I fear the reader will flounder for the most part.

This third book continues to pack a punch in conjunction with the first two as it opens with a devastating prologue with only one possible outcome. The result is crime that falls on DI Kate Young's patch as she juggles her personal and professional investigations. This time, to the reader, the crime is not really a whodunnit as it is pretty obvious from early on who is behind the random attacks. The question is WHY? I mean really WHY?!

Kate is heading the investigation into what appears to be random attacks on random people at random places, killing them with a captive bolt gun (the kind of stun gun that is often used in abattoirs). The deaths have nothing in common, the victims have nothing in common leaving Kate and her team stumped. The only commonality is that the killer strikes in the early evening during the same window of time in public places that are winding down for the day, leaving them virtually empty and ripe for the picking.

Then a witness comes forward from the site of the third murder, little realising how narrowly she herself escaped the attentions of the killer, with her observations of someone she thought was the victim. Kate's antennae went up. Could this be their killer? Or could it be another witness? Either way, the team needed to track them down...and fast, before anymore innocent people died. But when a profiler is called in sharing his thoughts on the perpetrator, Kate starts to realise that she might have something in common with this killer, uniting them grief.

It's been over a year since Kate's husband Chris was killed and ever since she has been determined to seek justice for him and the many others who have died as a result of this domino effect. Her determination to unmask those behind the underage sex ring, and the deaths that followed, lead her to a corruption that extended high into a senior officer under whom she works - Superintendent John Dickson, who she believes was behind the death of her husband as well as many others. But if the corruption has gone that high, who knows how much higher is has reached...and will Kate be safe to go after those responsible? She must tread carefully and proceed with the utmost caution if she is to come out of this unscathed.

Parallel to her day job at hand, Kate has also been stealthily collating information to unmask Dickson and the corruption that has followed him. Her secret investigations have alienated her from everyone as she is unable to know who she trust. To date, her only ally upon whom she relies for the covert operation is a former SAS officer who has his own axe to grind in seeking justice for his friend who was murdered upon orders from Dickson. But is this a step too far for Kate? Has she crossed a line in taking the law into her own hands to garner information and find the witnesses she needs before it's too late? Is this why she no longer hears Chris' soothing voice? For so long he has been her voice of reason, her conscience, but for months now he has grown silent and Kate yearns to hear his voice once again.

Kate's behaviour has not gone unnoticed by her team. DS Emma Donaldson, who has her own demons to battle, watches her and understands her grief but is concerned she may be in over her head. DS Morgan Meredith follows her lead but is quietly observant. Young DC Jamie Webster, the newest member of her small team, sees and hears all and Kate suspects that he is a mole planted by Dickson and reporting back to her senior officer, therefore she watches everything she says and does around him ensuring nothing untoward could be communicated in any event. But is it enough? Dickson has eyes and ears everywhere...therefore, Kate can trust no one.

The case at hand challenges the team as they try to figure out who is killing innocent people and why. It is clear to the reader his identity but is there something else we're missing? This riveting installment delivers plenty of shocks and a few twists along the way filled with just the right amount of tension. But it's the ending that delivers the final shock...which I certainly did not see coming! And I eagerly await the fourth book to see what happens next.

While I had barely begun the Robyn Carter series and grew to enjoy Natalie Ward, Kate Young is a different kettle of fish altogether and the issues she finds herself up against are a whole other ball game. I can't compare this book to the previous two as they each offer something different to the story and give us yet another piece of the puzzle that Kate has worked hard to piece together. I barely have the words to express the flood of emotions I feel when reading Kate's journey. But I do know each story, as well as A LIFE FOR A LIFE, is addictive reading from beginning to end. 

Carol Wyer's expert writing and skillful storytelling weaves together a tale that draws us in from the beginning and leaves us wanting more by the end. It's engaging, enthralling and completely absorbing. Bring on book 4!

I would like to thank #CarolWyer, #Netgalley, #AmazonPublishingUK and #ZoolooTours for an ARC of #ALifeForALife in exchange for an honest review.

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Carol Wyer writes feel-good comedies and gripping crime fiction.

A move from humour to the 'dark side' in 2017, saw the introduction of popular DI Robyn Carter in Little Girl Lost and demonstrated that stand-up comedian Carol, had found her true niche.

To date, her crime novels have sold over 800,000 copies and been translated for various overseas markets.

The much-anticipated new series, featuring DI Kate Young, was published on 1st February 2021 with the first novel, An Eye For An Eye,  a second, A Cut for a Cut, published on 24th June 2021 and a third A Life for a Life to be published 15th March 2022. An Eye for an Eye was chosen as a Kindle First Reads and became the #1 bestselling book on Amazon UK and Amazon Australia.

Carol has been interviewed on numerous radio shows discussing ''Irritable Male Syndrome' and 'Ageing Disgracefully' and on BBC Breakfast television. She has had articles published in national magazines 'Woman's Weekly', featured in 'Take A Break', 'Choice', 'Yours' and 'Woman's Own' magazines and the Huffington Post.

She currently lives on a windy hill in rural Staffordshire with her husband Mr Grumpy... who is very, very grumpy.

When she is not plotting devious murders, she can be found performing her comedy routine, Smile While You Still Have Teeth.

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