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![MURDER ON THE LEVELS a gripping crime thriller full of suspense (Detective Kate Hamblin Mystery Book 1) by [DAVID HODGES]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51Jp1ep8e+L._SY346_.jpg)
MURDER ON THE LEVELS a gripping crime thriller full of suspense (Detective Kate Hamblin Mystery Book 1) Kindle Edition
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PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS BOOK WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED AS FIRETRAP.
Detective Kate Hamblin is doing surveillance on the Somerset Levels, trying to catch a crazed arsonist. She leaves the van for a moment. Then it goes up in flames, killing her two colleagues.
Kate is accused of abandoning them and is excluded from the murder hunt and effectively suspended from duty.
She is desperate to nail the killer herself and clear her name. She risks all by entering into an unholy alliance with the murder team’s chief suspect.
Kate finds herself not only targeted in a personal vendetta by her own DCI, but stalked by the very killer she is pursuing.
A VICIOUS CRIMINAL NAMED TWISTER WITH AN AGENDA OF SLAUGHTER.
Can Kate catch the killer before he takes out the only witness? And will her career go up in flames before it’s even really started?
DISCOVER A NAIL-BITING NEW SERIES OF MYSTERIES THAT YOU WON’T WANT TO PUT DOWN.
Perfect for fans of Rachel Abbott, Robert Bryndza, Mel Sherratt, Angela Marsons, Colin Dexter, or Ruth Rendell.
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT MURDER ON THE LEVELS:
“This is a suspense that grabs you.” Pam
“Quite a nail biter!” Penelope
THE DETECTIVES
Kate Hamblin is a feisty, young police detective, with a dynamic approach to her job. She is plucky and tenacious, but prone to being impetuous and headstrong, which often lands her in tight spots and does not exactly endear her to her crusty boss, DI Ted Roscoe.
In stark contrast to Kate, her detective partner, Hayden, is an overweight, untidy ex-public schoolboy, with a pompous, laid-back attitude, which drives her to distraction. But he is also highly intelligent, with a keen, analytical mind and a practical, reasoned approach to everything, which often acts as a brake on some of his partner’s more impulsive actions.
THE SETTING
A patchwork of fields, peat moor and marshland, dotted with picturesque villages and criss-crossed by man-made irrigation ditches or rhynes, the Somerset Levels covers an area of about 160,000 acres between the Mendips and Quantock Hills, in the County of Somerset. Sparsely populated outside the local towns of Bridgwater, Glastonbury and Street and prone to flooding, it is a haven for wild life, a wild, secret place with an atmospheric brooding stillness, which creeps into the very soul; a place where the booming call of a bittern or the beating of an owl’s wings in the mist is bound to fire the imagination of any self-respecting crime novelist, whose thoughts will invariably turn to . . . murder.
THE AUTHOR
A former police superintendent, with thirty years’ service. Since ‘turning to crime’, he has received critical media acclaim, including a welcome accolade from Inspector Morse’s creator, the late great, Colin Dexter, and he is now a prolific novelist with eleven published crime novels and an autobiography on his police career to his credit. His previous police experience has enabled him to provide a gritty realism to his thrillers and his Somerset Murder Series, featuring feisty female detective, Kate, and her partner, Hayden, has gone from strength to strength, attracting interest in the United States as well as in the UK.
DETECTIVE KATE HAMBLIN MYSTERY SERIES
Book 1: MURDER ON THE LEVELS
Book 2: REVENGE ON THE LEVELS
Book 3: FEAR ON THE LEVELS
Book 4: KILLER ON THE LEVELS
Book 5: SECRETS ON THE LEVELS
Book 6: DEATH ON THE LEVELS
Book 7: POISON ON THE LEVELS
Book 8: WITCH FIRE ON THE LEVELS
Book 9: STALKER ON THE LEVELS
Book 10: VENOM ON THE LEVELS
- LanguageEnglish
- Publication date15 May 2019
- File size1055 KB
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Next 3 for you in this series
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Next 5 for you in this series
£8.95
From the Publisher
Looking for a series of addictive crime thrillers full of twists?
Look no further and meet the feisty young detective, Kate Hamblin, and her highly intelligent laid-back detective constable husband and partner, Hayden.
This bestselling series from a former police officer is perfect for fans of Rachel Abbott, Robert Bryndza, Joy Ellis, Mel Sherratt, Angela Marsons, Helen H. Durrant, Colin Dexter or Ruth Rendell.
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MURDER ON THE LEVELS | REVENGE ON THE LEVELS | FEAR ON THE LEVELS | KILLER ON THE LEVELS | SECRETS ON THE LEVELS | DEATH ON THE LEVELS | |
Kindle Unlimited | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
eBook | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Paperback | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Product description
About the Author
Product details
- ASIN : B07RY1FRL1
- Publisher : Joffe Books crime mysteries (15 May 2019)
- Language : English
- File size : 1055 KB
- Simultaneous device usage : Unlimited
- Text-to-Speech : Enabled
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Print length : 235 pages
- Best Sellers Rank: 17,289 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- 1,620 in Police Procedurals (Kindle Store)
- 1,926 in Police Procedurals (Books)
- 2,102 in Crime Thrillers (Kindle Store)
- Customer reviews:
About the author

A former superintendent with Thames Valley Police, David Hodges is a prolific crime writer and author of fourteen crime novels plus an autobiography on his life in the police service. His debut crime novel received critical media acclaim and a welcome accolade from Inspector Morse's creator, the late great Colin Dexter, and since then he has become the author of several successful stand-alone thrillers, including BLAST and TARGET (formerly Endeavour Media, now Lume Books).
In particular, his Somerset Murder Series (Joffe Books), set on the mist-shrouded Somerset Levels in England and featuring the exploits of feisty detective, Kate, and her easy-going partner, Hayden, has gone from strength to strength, attracting keen interest in Europe, the USA and Australia as well as in Britain. Audible have now also released the first six previously published thrillers in the series and September 2021 saw the author's debut short crime story, CREEPER ON THE LEVELS, published by Joffe Books in a 'MURDER MYSTERY & SUSPENSE SHORT STORY COLLECTION box set.
His last novel, STALKER ON THE LEVELS, was published by Joffe Books on 24 November and his new novel, VENOM ON THE LEVELS, is available for pre-order now on amazon prior to full publication on 28 April 2022.
David has two married daughters and four grandchildren and lives in the UK with his wife, Elizabeth, where he continues to indulge his passion for thriller writing and to pursue his keen interest in the countryside.
He is a member of the Crime Writers Association, The Crime Readers Association, The Society of Authors and International Thriller Writers Inc.
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Very disappointing
Very well written and no bad swear words.
Awesome story right to the climatic conclusion.
Will definitely be reading the rest in the series.
It begins when she leaves a police surveillance van in the middle of the night. Moments later, it’s blown up, killing her two colleagues. The killer then hunts her down , but she escapes, only to be accused of abandoning her colleagues, perhaps knowing they were about to be killed.
Kate not only has to clear her name, she has to uncover a resourceful killer, who still wants her dead. The story becomes a cat and mouse affair, which is cleverly plotted and executed as the killer tries to complete the job before he’s identified and arrested.
With some deft dark humour and plenty of twists and narrow escapes, the story rattles along to the climax. While a couple of the characters seemed wooden and stereotyped, it remains an enjoyable and different police procedural story.
I’m looking forward to finding out what happens to Kate in her next adventure.