The one thing I hate about samplers is they just aren't long enough! Brilliant

You know when you're really hungry and you start take a few bites of the best meal you have ever had? Then someone comes along and takes you plate while you're mid bite... Reading this sampler made my feel like that. It was very intense and attention grabbing. It definitely left me wanting MORE...

Fantastic sample of Ragdoll, I'm off to buy the book this very minute!

For an initial look at this novel, I'm already hooked. The use of casual dialogue and local knowledge is always enticing for a fellow Londoner. I will definitely proceed to read the entire book to give a more in-depth review.

This is a Sampler of the first 5 chapters of the actual book. My thanks to the author / Orion Publishing Group / Netgalley for the uncorrected manuscript proof. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

For a short taste of this book, I got a lot of mouth-watering details.

Detective William Oliver Layton-Fawkes .. the man they all call WOLF - has an unfortunate past. No spoilers here ... but his actions drove his wife away and makes him very unpopular with other law enforcement types. But he is exceptionally good at hunting down the bad guys.

And that is what he is doing now. Getting a post-haste call to an apartment building, which is ironically the building directly across from his own building, he finds one body ..but six victims. The head belongs to someone from Wolf's past ... an arm belongs to a white woman. A leg belongs to a black man. All sewn together with thick black thread. Like a puppet.

The killer has strung this poor soul ..or souls ... so that it hangs prominently in one window. He has arranged a finger to be pointing directly into Wolf's window across the way.

Let the games begin! . This is a different kind of serial killer .... he has a list of another 6 victims that he shares with Wolf's ex-wife.

I am definitely going to get this book. I cannot wait to see what lies ahead for the detective. I think WOLF would make a terrific series character.

I don’t usually read sampler but I decided to make an exception for this one. I thoroughly enjoyed the first three chapters and it has without a doubt left me wanting more, so I’ll definitely be looking out for the full novel so that I can read the whole story to find out what happens and how it all ends.

I loved this sample .The introduction to why this novel was written was inspiring. I can actul visualise it.

I hope to read the book soon.

A gripping teaser of what is to come, cant wait to read the book!

I NEED this book right now!!

I picked this sampler up and could not put it down, it didn't take me long to read it at all and then i got upset because I didn't have the entire thing in my possession!!

The prologue is slow build and shocking leading into violence, the meeting of the team and humour, I do so love the humour in this, it helps to bring a balance to the story and cushions the blow of the violence and death.

So good and I will neither sleep nor stop thinking about this until I can read the entire thing!!

This sample is incredible and I am desperate to read the full book!

I was only granted access to the sampler of this book, but it was intriguing enough for me to keep my eye out for a purchase.

You think that you know someone and what makes them tick but you really don't. How far will one policeman go to catch the killer? Wolf has pushed himself and he has just recovered yet the past won't leave him behind. Someone wants him to pay but why? And no one is safe anymore.
As soon as I finished reading this small sampler I had to start the full book and just WOW! I was lucky to receive a copy in exchange for my honest thoughts via Netgalley & the publishing house.

Just read a sampler of this book and all I can say is WOW! The book opens with the dramatic climax to the trial of a serial killer. When the verdict is read there is pandemonium and she the dust settles it looks like a brilliant detective's career is over. The story then moves on to the discovery of a body in an empty flat. and the detective that seemed to have lost everything in the prologue is investigating. Don't want to say too much as it would spoil it for others. I''ve pre-ordered the book now as I really need to know what happens in the rest of the story.

Thank you Netgalley, the publisher and author for giving me the opportunity to read and review this sampler,

RAGDOLL by Daniel Cole is a brilliant debut novel that began as a rejected TV screenplay, that was later adopted to a novel. I am so glad the story was told. This novel reminded me of SE7EN but with dark humour throughout. This novel is not for the squeamish.

“The Cremation Killer”, as the press had dubbed him had become London’s most prolific serial killer in history…27 victims in 27 days…each a female prostitute between the ages of fourteen and sixteen.

Then eighteen days after the final murder, Detective William Oliver Layton-Fawkes (Nicknamed WOLF) was the arresting officer of Naguib Khalid, a British Sunni Muslin of Pakistani origin, working as a taxi driver in the capital. But Wolf was accused of arresting Khalid, without reliable evidence as a means to close the case. At the end of the trial, the accused was found not guilty.

Wolf knew that Khalid was the Cremation Killer. What Wolf did on the case, (planting evidence and assaulting the prisoner) while it was wrong…he did for the right reasons. No one stood by Wolf when he cracked under pressure. He lost everything including his marriage and went to rehab.

Four years later, Detective William 'Wolf' Fawkes, recently reinstated to the London Met, and his former partner Detective Helen Baxter are assigned to a new horrific case. Baxter has inherited a 25 year old rookie, a transfer from Fraud, a trainee. Baxter was not impressed and was waiting for him to be transferred back to Fraud!

“A body is discovered with the dismembered parts of six victims stitched together like a puppet, nicknamed by the press as the 'ragdoll'.”

ONE DEAD BODY-6 VICTIMS

The victim is pointing in the direction of Wolf’s flat. What is the link to Wolf?

Detective Sergeant William Hawkes and part of the team are assigned to investigate the multiple homicides and identify the victims.

“The 'Ragdoll Killer' taunts the police by releasing a list of names to the media, and the dates on which he intends to murder them.”

Will Fawkes and Baxter be able to save the victims on the list? Who is the Ragdoll Killer?

I was so impressed with this debut novel with its fast-paced complex plot full of great characters with an abundance of black humour. Definitely one of the best crime books I’ve read in quite some time, a easy 5 Star Rating!

Many thanks to Daniel Cole, Orion/Trapeze, and Netgalley for this ARC.

I am lucky enough to have been sent a copy of the full book so will do a separate review, However, the first chapters are gritty and riveting, I could not do anything else other than read on. Grisly and dark, this book has potential to be a top selling thriller. With solid characters who appear to have depth (and secrets of their own) I am gripped and cant wait to read on.

This review is based on the 1st five chapters of the novel 'Ragdoll' by author Daniel Cole.
This is the first novel in a new series based around the character Detective William Fawkes by author Daniel Cole.
A disturbing case is assigned to Detective William Fawkes and his partner Detective Emily Baxter when a body is discovered with the dismembered parts of six victims stitched together like a puppet, nicknamed by the press as the 'ragdoll'. The ragdoll killer taunts the police by releasing a list of names to the media, and the dates on which he intends to murder them. With six people to save, can Fawkes and Baxter catch a killer when the world is watching their every move?
An excellent start to this novel but it is difficult to judge on such a brief sampler. I look forward to reading the complete novel and will give a full detailed review then.

So far so good. Enough to wet my appetite for the full book.

Wonderful story! Looking forward to reading more by this author!

I really enjoyed this sampler for Ragdoll.

I think what I really enjoyed was the introduction. He did a great job getting my attention and building the anticipation for what was to come.

It was amazing and I cannot wait for the full novel to come out. If you read the synopsis, you'll already be hooked. I wish I could add more, but being just a sampler, there isn't too much to give away!

Thanks to the publisher for the sampler in exchange for a review.

Wonderful sampler! I am excited to read more. I hope I am approved to read the full galley.