I found this a good read, it had a degree of depth developing the characters through gradually building them up, often through their history. it became increasingly interesting to find out more. I hadn't realised that it was the second book in the series and although there were references to the previous story, it didn't affect the enjoyment of this one.
The ending was a surprise, a surprise in itself!

Close to Home is book #1 in the DI Adam Fawley series. This was a great read that I would have given a 5* rating, but because I found the Twitter and Facebook entries very boring, annoying and distracting to read, I'm only giving a 4* rating. I guess some readers may disagree with me about the tweets etc.

Close to Home is about the disappearance of an 8 year old girl called Daisy Mason from her Oxford home. The Mason family are dysfunctional and basically the parents don't give one iota about their children, Daisy and Leo. Sharon, the mother, is totally vain and is even jealous of her own daughter. Barry, the father, is a builder from hell and a womaniser. Even Leo has problems that stem from his birth and his ever so unloving parents.

No one knows exactly when Daisy disappeared and DI Adam Fawley, together with DC Gislingham and DC Everitt are trying to piece everything together. According to her parents, Daisy was at the family BBQ, but police enquiries discover that it was another girl wearing Daisy's costume who was at the BBQ.

The parents very quickly become suspects and even Leo's behaviour is suspicious. More and more information is revealed to the reader, with plenty of twists and turns, causing you to chop and change who you think is guilty. I did manage to suss out who I thought was the perpetrator, but couldn't think of a reason as to why. Not sure if an 8 year old girl would actually do some of the things that Daisy did, but this is fiction so I guess anything goes. A very good ending.

Looking forward to book #2 in the series and reading more of DI Fawley.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the advanced digital copy.

'Close to Home' is the first book in the DI Adam Farley series and what a fantastic first book!! The book is a fast paced, gripping police procedural and psychological thriller with DI Adam Fawley, a man who has lost his own child searching for another missing child.
This book is well written, I was addicted from the start and excited at the prospect of a new, promising crime series!
I really enjoyed the story and devoured it in one sitting, it kept me interested as to what was to come!
A very secure 5 stars and thoroughly recommended.
Thank you to Net Galley and Penguin Books for my copy in return for an honest review.

Firstly thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me a pre release copy of this book in return for an honest review.

The basic plot of this book revolves around Barry and Sharon Mason and their missing 8 year old daughter, Daisy. Daisy disappears one summer night while the family are hosting a barbecue for friends and neighbours, without anybody noticing. DI Adam Fawley and his team take up the investigation.

As for the novel itself, well I can honestly say it's been a while since I was that glued to a book. I really couldn't put it down. Theres a really good pace going on, there are characters that you believe in enough to either like them or really, really hate them. And there are plenty of twists and turns to keep your head in a bit of a spin right up to the end so you really have no idea how it's going to end until it actually ends. And that, for me, is the problem. The book ends satisfactorily, believable ending. But then the author goes and tags an epilogue onto the end of the ending which gives a completely different ending which is far less believable and, if I'm honest, one which I thought was quite far fetched. In my opinion, I thing the author should have ditched the epilogue and left it with the more believable ending. For that reason, I've only given the book 4 stars - had the ending been more believable then I would've given a full 5 stars.

That said, it's still a cracking book - definitely one of my favourites of the year and one which I would highly recommend to anyone who likes a good police procedural. I would absolutely read more from Cara Hunter and I hope this isn't the last we've heard from DI Fawley.

Read this if you like Rachel Abbott, Mel Sherratt or Angie Marsons.

I have just finished this book and found it to be utterly compelling and page turning, to the extent that I've sought out time to keep reading ! The characters were credible and the plot kept me guessing until the very end, with a final twist I just didn't see coming!!

Absolutely loved this book, a new author for me and I will defo be reading much more!

The book had me gripped from page one and didn't let up, basically 8yr old Daisy goes missing in the middle of a party at her parents home and the search begins, her parents are seen as suspects and rightly so as both are very odd to say the least and very defensive. The mother especially doesn't seem very interested at all and comes across extremely cold, selfish and is more concerned about looking good for the cameras than finding her daughter! The father isn't much better; really snide and evasive and we see why both behave like that later on in the book. Daisy I thought seemed far too old for her age in her mannerisms and character and way she spoke, and so I found that a bit odd, she seemed far older than her years and if you hadn't of known her age I'd of put her more at 13 than 8!

The book features a fair amount of social media and I took far too much enjoyment from reading all the "trolling" and comments people posted about the parents and have to say I'd of probably done and said the same myself as they didn't really help them selves in all of this.

Mainly though the book concentrates on the search for Daisy and the backstory unraveling a bit at a time just giving you enough and then throwing you off guards with another twist!

There's quite a few twists in fact and I didn't guess who the culprit was though I did guess a few times lol. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and can't wait for the 2nd in the series.

I read this on holiday in literally a days sunshine, a must read! ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Thank you Cara Hunter and Netgalley for a copy of this book.
Oh Cara Hunter, you are so clever. You totally had me sucked in by "Close to Home" I was totally at your mercy. The way you mixed social and print media throughout the book really had me second guessing what I thought. I really liked how you as a reader were alerted to a situation but that thread cut off just as you were left in suspense for another couple of pages.
This was a fair sized novel that honestly seemed like a short story the way I devoured it so fast.
I will be champing at the bit until Adam Fawley #2
I highly recommend this book.

The story was good but I just didn't like the style of writing. The twitter/facebook posts were pointless and spoilt the read.

Interesting thriller with lots of twists and turns,although I never quite believed the parents had done it. Still didn't see the end coming.

This book was brilliant and kept you guessing right until the very end, well written and i can see this bei ng made into a series.

A child goes missing and suspicion falls on the immediate family. The story follows the police investigation and the twists and turns of lies that are uncovered. Brilliant twist in the end that I didn't see coming!

What happened to Daisy Mason? That's the question posed in "Close to Home" by Cara Hunter. Losing a child is every parent's nightmare, but Daisy's parents don't react in the way you'd expect, making them suspects. Meanwhile, a local paedophile gang could be involved, and with the garden where Daisy was last seen backing onto a canal path, she could be anywhere, with anyone.

Whenever you think you've got the story figured out, Hunter takes you in a completely different direction, leaving you guessing right until the very end. I absolutely loved this and devoured it in one sitting.

Was drawn to this book by the cover and description initially. Glad to say the book lived up to my expectations. It was a great read. well written. Good characters and a good plot

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book. The first word that springs to mind about this book is WOW. I was never expecting that storyline. It was absolutely brilliant, although some of the twitter/Facebook tweets left some words out so I had to use imagenary ones. And also no number chapters , that kind of put me off a bit. It didn't take away from the story though. I definitely thought I knew early on as to who done it, but never did I imagine the ending. It was brilliant, it is without a doubt the greatest book I've read in a long time and definately worth 5 stars and more.

Close To Home
An excellent start to a crime procedural series featuring DI Adam Fawley. I was hooked from the beginning of this book, plenty of twists and turns with a surprise ending. Can't wait for the next instalment. Anyone who enjoyed Broadchurch will love this.

Truly excellent. Lots of common ingredients - missing child, secrets, troubled detective, evasive parents - and yet far from formulaic.
This is a real edge-of-your-seat thriller which would make a very exciting tv serial. It's impossible to guess the ending. And the final denouement is a master stroke.
A must-read.

A brilliantly written crime thriller, wish I could have read it all in one sitting. Are people who they really make out they are. Final twist was totally unexpected. A definite must read.

Brilliant read. Great plot that winds and weaves shattering your assumptions as it goes. You've decided on the culprit, though you didn't think so to start with. Cut to the court case and you are surprised by whom is on the stand and then the final unexpected explosive ending. A cracking good read

WOW!! This is definitely in my top 3 books I have read in over 40 years. It usually takes 20%-30% reading for me to determine whether or not this has really got my interest. This one took 2%-3% and I was hooked. Pace is superb and facts/red herrings come thick and fast. I loved the way Twitter feeds were intermixed - mostly drivel but the odd one inserted is actually correct (if you realise this at the time). You have no idea if the little girl is dead or if so who did it. other than it must be someone close to her (hence the title). The court case is brilliantly written and the whole book would make an excellent film/tv drama (as long as it doesn't get swapped to the USA!). The ending was (for me) not expected and leaves you realising how good the book it. Thoroughly recommended)

This book had a storyline which was interesting, but in my opinion, didn't seem to flow right. There was just something missing. It felt 'bitty' for want of an expression.