Thanks to Penguin Random House & Gytha for an advance copy of A Killer in the Family. I actually did read this book on time and promote it on instagram but writing the review is another story…

Title: A Killer in the Family
Author: Gytha Lodge
Genre: Adult Mystery / Crime
Series or Standalone: 5th in the DCI Jonah Sheens series, but can be read as a standalone
Rating: 3.5 / 5 stars

Ainsley is a single mom living in Southampton with her two teenage boys. She’s been trying to locate her father, whom she last saw decades ago in Ireland, so she uploads her DNA to a site.

Meanwhile bodies are turning up in bonfires and local officials have dubbed the murderer the “bonfire killer” and are encouraging residents to exude caution when out and about.

When Ainsley receives a match to her ancestry account, she’s thrilled to see that she may be one step closer to tracking her dad down. Unfortunately it’s not her dad or any other relative. It’s a detective working the Bonfire Killer case and he has some questions for her, because her DNA is a very close match for the person they’re after.

The idea for this story is great - nearly everyone has heard how sites like Ancestry and 23 & Me have lead to a variety of things from finding out there are relatives people never knew existed to solving notorious cases like the Golden State Killer - so I absolutely accepted when I was offered the chance at this book.

I also really enjoyed that even though this is in a series that follows DCI Sheens the story was more focused on Ainsley & her family than on Jonah. Often times what loses me in procedural or crime books is the detective aspect of it. With this book I felt like I was reading a book about Ainsley with DCI Sheens as the side character. The multi-POV (including the murderer) was great as well. I always love a killer POV.

I enjoyed Ainsley, I liked that she was very much her own person. There aren’t a lot of single mom characters that I read and feel like there’s more to them than being a mom, and Ainsley was very much invested in her sons, but she had her own personality that shown through as well. I also liked both sons as characters.

What knocked this one down for me was that the reveal and conclusion felt kind of jumbled and rushed where as the majority of the story was more of a slow burn. I needed either a more drawn out ending or a little quicker beginning rather than a 0 to 100.

I would probably not read the first 4 in this series now that I’ve read the fifth, for no other reason other than we do get glimpses into DCI Sheen’s life and to backtrack would throw me off, but I’d absolutely continue with this series in the future.

3.5⭐️ I struggled to finish this one sadly. While the summary sounded right up my alley, it never fully held my attention. It had too many characters and different POVS for me. I started to lose track of who was narrating each chapter. The overall who done it did keep me entertained enough to want to finish it. This mystery just
wasn’t for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Ok to read as stand alone, I enjoyed.

Thank you to Random House Publishing and NetGalley for providing an advance copy in exchange for an honest review

The beginning of this book was very slow and I found myself struggling to keep with it. Once I got past 35% it picked up, but I was confused keeping all of the names straight. There were a couple of good twists. By about 55% I had figured out who the killer was, but was waiting for the rest of the characters to get there.

I’m torn on this one. I was intrigued but also a little bored. The second half was much more interesting and faster paced, especially the last 20%. I would say most of my time spent reading this was the first half which kind of dragged. But the end has me curious about the next one! Overall I enjoyed it enough.

A woman uploads her DNA to an ancestry website in the hopes of locating her father. It’s not her father who contacts her though, it’s a detective looking for a killer.

A Killer in the Family is the fifth book in the DCI Jonah Sheens series, but it can be read as a standalone. This series has some gripping mysteries, and I suggest reading the other books.

This book uses multiple points of view – the detectives working the case, the woman with a DNA match to the killer, the killer, and a victim. The characters are interesting and the mystery is intriguing.

A Killer in the Family is dark, tense, and twisty. Recommended for fans of British police procedurals.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Y’ALL!!! THIS WAS A WILD READ!!!! oh my gosh my mind is SPINNING! I absolutely adored this book! I’ve never read anything like this and I could not get enough!

Gytha Lodge does not disappoint! I’ve enjoyed all the books in this series and A Killer in the Family continues great characters and story lines..

I love the premise of this, since its not something i have read in a lot of other books! and it is something that you see starting to happen in real life. so super relatable to the times-ish. could not put down!

Unfortunately, this title is one that I could not get to. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity.

This is my first book by this author. I did not know it was part of a series until I was finished with the book. It flows that seamlessly.
I don't normally do the cop books but this was okay. I was really into the story.
It is creepy and interesting.

WOW what a book! This kept me guessing the entire time! I thought I knew what was going to happen but I didnt and was suprised throughtout this entire book! It has a very psychological thrill aspect of the book and really did have that aspect. I thought it was captivating too and did that from the start and stayed that way throughout the entire novel.

This was an excellent read! I have read Lodge's work before and loves it. The description hooked me right away. The DNA matches you to a serial killer? Yes please!! One twist after another this read kept me on my toes and reading way past bedtime. Highly recommend

This is probably my favorite of the series. I have absolutely enjoyed the thrills that DCI Jonah brings with every new addition.

This procedural focuses on genetic genealogy, such a popular topic in both fiction and nonfiction right now for its complications, legal challenges, and the potential for case solving. It has some shocking reveals and twists, and a nice balance of investigative work with character development for both the family that finds itself embroiled in the case and the team of investigators, advancing storylines for the series. While this is part of a series, I have only read the first book in the series years ago, and this one works fine as a standalone.

Thank you Random House and NetGalley! This was a mystery surrounding a single mom who uploads her DNA to a site and finds out she is related to a serial killer hating her town. This book was a little slow for me, taking about a quarter of it to pick up speed. The twist was very easy to see early on, leaving me not too excited to finish the book. The detectives were also not very good making it almost unbearable to watch their investigation.

This book will appeal to some. I have a difficult time with books that area slow to start and this one was. I hung on and finished it. I liked the plot. It was different and the characters were appealing but I would have liked to have been clued in a little sooner on the rest of the story. Thanks to #NetGalley#A KillerintheFamily for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I enjoyed this thriller. There was a lot of potential and I enjoyed the read. It had a unique plot line to it and I was super excited for it, but I'm just not a fan of slow burn so this wasn't for me.

I liked this! A solid thriller with a great twist. I found the character development to be strong, and enjoyed how it kept my attention the whole way through.

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed all the twists and turns and turns in this book! I never really knew what was coming and love guessing who the murderer is! I didn’t realize initially when I started this book that it was the fifth in the series but it read well as a standalone and I didn’t feel like I was missing any information. It was suspenseful and at tines heartbreaking but I felt it wrapped up perfectly! if you like mysteries and police procedurals, be sure to check this book out!