Amazon.co.uk:Customer reviews: Blood Lines: An absolutely gripping thriller that will have you hooked (Detective Kim Stone Crime Thriller Series Book 5)

Top positive review

Another thrilling read about DI Kim Stone and her team

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 13 April 2017

This is the fifth outing for DI Kim Stone and her team and once again I found myself not wanting to put the book down.
The book starts with what looks like a case of a robbery gone wrong but you know when DI Stone and her team get involved that it will turn out to be far from simple. Another victim turns up however the only thing that seems to link them is the way in which they were killed. To add to this Kim’s mother is now trying to gain her freedom, as is a face from one of Kim’s previous cases - Dr Alexandra Thorne. The last time these two met it nearly didn’t end well for DI Stone but just because Alex is behind bars Kim knows she has to keep her guard up and not let her get inside her head. Alex is a master manipulator and is not to be trusted. The reasons for this become more evident as the story progresses.
In Blood Lines you get to learn a little more about Kim Stone and the events of her past that have shaped the person she is today. Alex Thorne forces her to finally confront her mother, something she has managed to avoid since she was very small and takes her to places in her memories she would rather not visit.
I have to say that I love Kim Stone. Yes she is a bit of a loner in her personal life and she doesn’t really trust anyone, and yes it can be a bit dangerous to be around her, but she also values her team, the strengths they have and the input they can bring to an investigation. She can be a bit sharp when dealing with the public but in Bryant she has the perfect partner and she will often let him handle the softer sides of the investigations and he always seems to manage to calm her down. Her past is the reason why she is so dedicated to her job and always determined to do the best for the victims no matter what danger she finds herself in.
Dawson can be a bit of an idiot at times in an effort to prove he is every bit as good as Bryant. Even when he messes up Kim manages to not totally wipe the floor with him but explain her choices in how the team works in a way that does not make him feel like he is not appreciated.
The fact that the series is set in the Midlands is another tick in the box for me as I can connect with some of the areas that the investigations take the team to. Added to this is the fact that Angela doesn’t shy away the local dialect that would often make me chuckle (probably not always at an appropriate moment in the book – but then again have never been told I have a normal sense of humour)
This is the first book in the series that I would say you need to at least have read Evil Games to understand the dynamic between Kim and Alex however, if I am honest then I think that you would be mad not to start at the beginning and work your way through the entire series as there are little hints to what makes DI Stone tick in every book and Blood Lines brings a lot of this together.
I have to thank (or blame) my sister for introducing me to the world of Kim Stone but I am glad she did. Angela Marsons is one hell of a story teller and each book is better than the one before making them for me compulsive reading (so much so I read her first 4 books in 4 days). I can’t wait to see what Kim and the team have to tackle next and if she has finally laid the ghosts of her past to rest.
I would like to thank Netgalley and Bookouture for the copy of this book in return for my review

8 people found this helpful

Top critical review

All critical reviews›

A Scary Man

As I feared

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 17 March 2020

After reading book 2 I sincerely hoped Alex Thorne would not reappear as Kim's perma-obsessed nemesis. Unfortunately that was the main premise of this book. Alex's ability to control events from behind bars didn't make a great deal of sense. Prison seems like the one place her tactic of finding a person's deepest weakness/fear and playing on it wouldn't work. The moment she came up against a violent criminal with nothing to lose she'd be torn apart.

Anyway the murders Kim and her team were investigating were well-written (3 stars for that) but sadly had to play second fiddle to Alex's tedious manipulations and yet more agonising over Kim's mother. We get it. Please move on.

3 people found this helpful

Sort by

Filter by

4,502 total ratings, 2,095 with reviews

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

From United Kingdom

A Scary Man

As I feared

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 17 March 2020

Verified Purchase

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Mandie Griffiths

Another thrilling read about DI Kim Stone and her team

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 13 April 2017

Verified Purchase

8 people found this helpful

Helpful

C Knight

Bring on book 6!!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 29 January 2017

Verified Purchase

I'm going to put this out there at the beginning, I love Kim Stone! She's brilliant. She's a hard nosed, not-to-be-messed-with police detective with a gut that sniffs out clues like my kids can sniff out chocolate and sweets.

I've loved all the stories so far, they've got better each time. The author's writing has drawn me into Kim's world, I feel I'm right there in the thick of the investigation! This time round Kim's got more than just unconnected murders to deal with. Alex Thorne is back! I loved the devilish character that first appeared in the second Kim Stone book "Evil Games". She's so calm and calculating. She knows how to mess with someone's head, a master (or mistress to be precise) of mind manipulation. She can wrap someone round her finger and not in a good way. Alex Thorne is one of the more evil characters I've read about - I think that what makes her so dark is the fact that she doesn't get her hands dirty, she's removed herself from the dastardly deeds that she meticulously plans.

Blood Lines is no exception to the series, we find out more about Kim, her angst, her history, the things that make her who she is. This does not detract from the storyline, in fact it adds to it - I'm not going to say anymore as that would be a #spoiler and no one likes a spoiler!!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for my e-copy of Blood Lines. I cannot wait for Book 6!!

8 people found this helpful

Helpful

A. Woods

Utterly brilliant!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 28 November 2017

Verified Purchase

How do you catch a killer who leaves no trace?

A victim killed with a single, precise stab to the heart appears at first glance to be a robbery gone wrong. A caring mother and social worker lost to a senseless act of violence. But for Detective Kim Stone, something doesn’t add up.

When a local drug addict is found murdered with an identical wound, Kim knows instinctively that she is dealing with the same killer. But with nothing to link the two victims except the cold, calculated nature of their death, this could be her most difficult case yet.

Desperate to catch the twisted individual, Kim’s focus on the case is threatened when she receives a chilling letter from Dr Alex Thorne, the sociopath who Kim put behind bars. And this time, Alex is determined to hit where it hurts most, bringing Kim face-to-face with the woman responsible for the death of Kim’s little brother – her own mother.

As the body count increases, Kim and her team unravel a web of dark secrets, bringing them closer to the killer. But one of their own could be in mortal danger. Only this time, Kim might not be strong enough to save them…

Ms. Marsons has managed to do it to me again. She provided me with a book that had me captivated from the first word right through to the last one. I was so caught up in this book that I had to see it through. I finished it at 1am (it's now 6am) and had to close my eyes for a little while before I picked up my phone to write this review.

This book sees Kim face to face with the vile Dr Alex Thorne yet again. I was, I have to admit, a little sad to see her again at first. I felt she had made Kim suffer enough. However, after a few chapters I began to understand the author's rationale for re-introducing the character. Bringing her back made for a fascinating and twisted plot that picks you up and twists and tosses you about like a leaf in the wind.

I can't say too much more about the plot because I don't want to give anything away. It is, yet again, absolutely impossible to guess who the killer is right up until the very end of the book.

I read several reviews of the book and one in particular stood out in my mind. It said that they found the book difficult to get through so they skipped ahead to the last few chapters to find out what happened. That doesn't make the book difficult to read! The book slips through your mind and right into your brain like fine wine settles into your system as you drink it. That makes the writer of the review the sort of person who really should not be reading crime novels because they can't control the impulse to skip ahead to the end of the book! One suspects they may have been the sort of child who sought out Christmas gifts and picked up the corner of the wrapper to peek at what rests beneath before frantically sticking it down again so as not to get caught! ;-p

Kim proves to us yet again just how strong and ballsy she is despite the hell she has been through. Her character development throughout this series of books shows what an incredible protagonist the writer has created.

I am super excited to dive into book six in the series but then realised that I only have one more book to read before I have to wait for the next release. Noooooo! What will I do without Kim to keep me company? I know. I'll start from the beginning!

Thank you to the writer for yet another stellar instalment in the series. Oh, and please, never ever let Kim retire!

Absolutely brilliant! A five out of five star read!

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Clair_B

My favourite book of the series yet....well no doubt until book 6 comes out :)

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 19 November 2016

Verified Purchase

Wow, I honestly don't know how Marsons keeps doing it but I'm extremely glad she does! Blood Lines is the 5th book in the DI Kim Stone series which just keeps getting better and better. This time, a previous character is also back, Dr Alex Thorne from Evil Games. Alex is one evil, twisted individual so makes a fantastic villain and I was thrilled that she was back and we could see more of her twisted ways.

Blood Lines opens with the wrapping up of a serial rapist case but Kim and the team can't rest for long as a few hours later a body is discovered and they are thrown into a new investigation. The victim is a well-dressed woman which is clearly not a robbery gone wrong as all her valuables are still present - just who wanted to kill this woman and why did she not appear to fight back?!

In Evil Games Alex manipulated her patients into committing murders as a social experiment - Alex is a sociopath with no remorse or guilt and thrives from the manipulation of others, very chilling for a psychologist! Alex is now stirring things up in Drake Hall Prison, Kim put Alex behind bars after nearly succumbing to her ways herself, now Alex is appealing her conviction and wants the attention of 'Kimmy' once again, to finish what she sees as unfinished business.

Alex is an absolutely brilliant villain, I was both intrigued and horrified by her actions and the level of manipulation she can deliver -frightening! Alex is somewhat obsessed with Kim, almost like the one that got away as she did not completely fall for Alex's manipulation - so Alex is giving it another go, this time using her mother to hit Kim's weak spot, her beloved and missed brother, Mikey. What I particularly love about this book is seeing the vulnerable side of Kim and the insight we are given into Kim's mother. Kim is a ballsy woman, a strong leader of her team but also has a softer side that not everyone is allowed to see.

Interspersed between the investigation and Alex's life behind bars, we are privy to chilling diary entries from an unknown author from 2007.
This is a fast-paced book with lots going on which builds both the tension and confusion as to what is happening! My favourite book of the series yet....well no doubt until book 6 comes out :)

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Mags

A very readable crime thriller.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 12 June 2021

Verified Purchase

Blood Lines: book five in Ms Marson's DI Kim Stone series was an interesting read, as the story on the whole was very readable, well-paced and packed with twists basically everything I've come to expect and love from a DI Kim Stone story. But it also featured an old enemy Dr Alexandra Thorne and unfortunately for me, I'm not a fan, and just as in Evil Games I found her to be a rather uninspiring adversary.

Yet, everything else about this crime thriller was on point, especially the characters who are all really coming into their own and I am looking forward to seeing how this series develops.

Would recommend.

Helpful

Addicted to books

Absolutely brilliant

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 10 November 2016

Verified Purchase

This is the 5th book in the Kim Stone series and they just get better and better. This book recommences the battle for sanity between Kim and Alex that began in Evil Games (book 2).

Kim is a very complex character damaged by events in her childhood that would have finished a less strong person off but she has fought her way through life and is now a very focussed Detective Inspector who tends to barge through everything and everyone who gets in the way of her search for the bad guys. Although she doesn’t always play by the rules she does get results and is very protective of her team and in return has their complete trust and loyalty. Her character has built throughout the previous 4 books and I now feel I really know Kim who has a soft spot for the disadvantaged and waif's and strays.

Alex is her nemesis who appeared in Evil Games. She is an evil sociophobic woman who used her position as a psychiatrist to manipulate fragile people. Kim saw through her 'games' and became a target as Alex tried to destroy Kim's sanity.

This book has several threads and I did wonder how Angela was going to bring them all together but she does so skilfully to end up with a book that is totally gripping and full of twists and turns with a totally unexpected finale. I also like the story with Kim's mother that is interwoven through the book. I am now totally addicted and really hope there are many more of these books on the way to feed my addiction.

Excellent Angela, I am sure this will make the best seller list. My actual score is 6/5 but unfortunately 5 is the maximum.

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Another brilliant Kim Stone book.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 26 April 2020

Verified Purchase

I’m so excited to be getting back into this series. The whole series is brilliant and I’ve finished book five. Yet again a brilliant, tense, edgy, suspenee filled and page turner of a read. Loved it. I highly recommend you read this series in the correct order as this book links very closely to the previous book.

Kim is back and I bloody love her. One of my favourite characters ever. However, more cases are here and she needs to figure it out. But this time an old convict behind bars is back to torment, test and push Kim. Will she succeed? Or is Kim still hot on her heels and won’t let her win, always one step ahead? We see more of the relationship between Kim and her mother in this story.

Brilliantly written. Enjoyed it all. I cannot wait to see what lies ahead for Kim and her team in book six. A well deserved four stars from me.

Helpful

A gripping crime thriller that is enhanced by first reading Angela Marsons' novel 'Evil Games'.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 9 October 2018

Verified Purchase

When I read that this novel features Dr Alexandra Thorne who appears in the novel 'Evil Games' I was in two minds about buying it. My main concern was if 'Blood Lines' was going to be a simple 'follow-up' story to 'Evil Games', rehashing old events and characters. My concerns were totally unfounded. This story is every bit as gripping as 'Evil Games' and, in addition, it also has a second, equally gripping, separate story-line about the search for a serial killer. As a result, there are a lot of characters to keep track of - something that is made slightly easier if you have read (and remembered) the characters who appear in 'Evil Games'.
For followers of the series, one learns even more about Kim Stone's background and the events leading to the death of her twin brother when they were children. There is also more involvement of Stone's police colleagues in this story, something that for me, enriches the enjoyment of the series.
Overall, 'Blood Lines' is a terrific novel that will appeal to readers who enjoy a complex plot featuring plenty of suspense and, for armchair detectives, plenty of twists and turns and a few red herrings. However, while it can be read as a stand-alone novel, to fully appreciate this novel I would recommend first reading Angela Marsons' gripping 'Evil Games' novel.

Helpful

Fran Crockett

Oh dear

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 17 January 2018

Verified Purchase

Alex Thorne is back!?, im quite disappointed, I didn't enjoy her the first time round and then she manages to rear her ugly head again! And seems to be able to perform miracles from behind bars. No, not a good storyline! If it wasn't for my affection for Kim Stone. I'd have stopped reading this book. I stopped for a while but forced my self to finish it. There are some good parts but mostly just irritation!
I cannot fathom why Angela would bring Alex back when there are a million other stories she could have introduced.
Having said this, I will finish the rest of the series! I hope I don't read about ridiculous Alex Thorne again, she's utterly UNbelievable!

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Need customer service? Click here

‹ See all details for Blood Lines: An absolutely gripping thriller that will have you hooked...

5 star		78%
4 star		16%
3 star		4%
2 star		1%
1 star		1%

Amazon Music Stream millions of songs	AbeBooks Books, art & collectables	ACX Audiobook Publishing Made Easy	Amazon Web Services Scalable Cloud Computing Services

Audible Download Audiobooks	Book Depository Books With Free Delivery Worldwide	DPReview Digital Photography	Goodreads Book reviews & recommendations

Amazon Home Services Experienced pros Happiness Guarantee	IMDb Movies, TV & Celebrities	Kindle Direct Publishing Indie Digital & Print Publishing Made Easy	Shopbop Designer Fashion Brands

Amazon Warehouse Deep Discounts Open-Box Products	Amazon Business Service for business customers	Whole Foods Market We Believe in Real Food

Select Your Cookie Preferences

Blood Lines: An absolutely gripping thriller that will have you hooked...

›

Customer reviews

Customer reviews

Blood Lines: An absolutely gripping thriller that will have you hooked (Detective Kim Stone Crime Thriller Series Book 5)

Top positive review

Top critical review

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

From United Kingdom

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

Select Your Cookie Preferences

Blood Lines: An absolutely gripping thriller that will have you hooked... › Customer reviews

Customer reviews

Blood Lines: An absolutely gripping thriller that will have you hooked (Detective Kim Stone Crime Thriller Series Book 5)

Top positive review

Top critical review

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

From United Kingdom

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading the comments at the moment. Please try again later.

Blood Lines: An absolutely gripping thriller that will have you hooked...

›

Customer reviews