This is the second book in a series featuring Detectives King and Lane and is a well written read filled with suspense and a bit of mystery. The characters are good, especially Chloe who is trying to move on from previous events in her life. The plotting centres around friendship and betrayal and is well thought out. This would make an ideal holiday read as it has a steady pace throughout and is an easy read. thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

The plot of this detective novel starts off strong with a mysterious death, but it didn't fully engage me. The introspective nature of the detectives and their friendship was a refreshing touch. It's rare to have female detectives as protagonists, and their dynamic was interesting.

The resolution of the plot was well-done, with unexpected twists and all loose ends tied up.

However, the suspects felt one-dimensional and their motives seemed weak and self-serving. It was hard to find empathy for them.

I also wished for a more gripping pace. The tension and urgency that keep you hooked in unstoppable detective novels were missing, and I found myself reading it at a leisurely pace.

Overall, it's a decent read, but it didn't have that addictive quality that keeps you glued to the pages.

I liked this, but didn’t love it. I really loved book 1 it started out really good this series but I didn’t feel this story was up to par.

It danced around suspense and wasn’t as gripping.

Some things were over the top however it did sorta make sense eventually although my brain was concentrating on the fact of the negative so I had to push it to fully “get” why it was written a little OTT.

I’m glad I read it.
It wasn’t so bad I had to put it down, just more like it wasn’t exciting me like I expected it too.

Maybe after reading book 1 my expectations were too high.

THE FIRST ONE TO DIE is the second detective/crime thriller book in the Detective King and Lane Series by Victoria Jenkins. The series of novels features Detective Constable Chloe Lane and Detective Inspector Alex King, who are the lead investigative characters that solve some mysterious murders in their hometown.

The Detective King and Lane series of novels include:

The Girls in The Water (Book1)
The First One To Die (Book2)
Nobody’s Child (Book3)
A Promise to the Dead (Book4)

This is the review of The First One To Die (Book 2). Her books keep getting better!

Four friends. A house full of secrets. And a killer picking them off one by one...

Keira North, a young college student falls to her death at a party. An accident? Detectives Alex King and Chloe Lane suspect foul play, they are dealing with a murder.

When the detectives start to investigate, they soon find that all of Keira's closest friends have secrets…enough to kill.

Keira’s killer is stalking the group of friends, and picking them off one by one.

The First One to Die is a fast-paced detective thriller with believable characters that bring it to life. A very enjoyable read.

Many thanks to the author, Bookouture via Netgalley for my digital copy.

A young college student falls to her death from a rooftop. An accident? Was she pushed? Picked up and tossed?

DI Alex King and DC Chloe Lane are called to investigate. Interviewing her housemates, they find that the victim was well-liked, had no enemies ... but someone did hear her arguing with someone a few minutes before she went off the roof.

Postmortem examination reveals that she was 5 months pregnant ... but who was the father? Alex’s team soon finds that all of her closest friends have secrets that someone might kill to keep.

She was only the first to die.

Although second in a series, this one is easily read as a stand alone. The characters are finely drawn and credible. Alex has some issues that she's dealing with, but maintaining her professionalism to find a killer. There are several plot changing twists and turns that keep the reader engaged and rapidly reading each page to the surprising ending.

Many thanks to the author / Bookouture / Netgalley for the digital copy of this crime fiction. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

A new author, a great story and characters. Wish I had read the first book in the series, before but it doesn't matter. Great story!!

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book in return for my honest opinion.

The blurb for this book promised a great story and that is definitely what it was. This is a great read for summer beaches; make sure you use plenty of sunscreen, as you won't want to miss a minute. I love these characters so much I went and bought the first book in the series so I could see how it all started. Alex King and Chloe Lane are a great team! I have enjoyed getting to know them and this book was a rollercoaster of a storyline. There were lots of twists and turns and a killer ending. I am definitely looking forward to more books in this series.

The First One to Die is the second book in this Detectives King and Lane series by Victoria Jenkins and I loved it. I haven't read the first one which was “The Girls in the Water” But purchased now to read.
A young girl called Keira North falls to her death at a party, Detective Alex King Chloe Lane are called to the scene of the young girls death. However, it all seems like a accident at first. But they suspect foul play and may be dealing with a murder. There's lots of suspects in Keira's death more appear when they look deeper.
Are they going to catch the killer in time? Before they kill again?

This book had me on the edge of my Snuggle reading chair and I wanted more. Its gritty, all the characters worked well in this brilliant book. There's lots of twists and turns, that will leave you wanting more......So don't read before you go to sleep!

One part of the Book I found well written was Alex's relationship with her mum I can so relate to that. Brilliantly written.
So looking forward to read more from this new author for me. 10/10 read.


Thank you to Netgalley, Victoria Jenkins and the Publishers - Bookouture for this copy of The First one to Die, given in exchange for an honest review.

Well well, what a jolly good series this is turning into. I recently read book 1 and enjoyed it so I was really looking forward to getting stuck into this one, book 2 of the series. Sometimes being behind in a series has it's advantages. As soon as I finished this one, I went right onto book 3.
I found in this book we got to know a lot more of Alex and Chloe, i'm loving the characters they are turning into and I fell they work really well together. I'm enjoying as I always do with book series getting to know the individual characters.
In this book Alex is called out to what looks like a possible suicide or an accident of a young girl. It soon becomes clear to Alex that this is not an accident and that Keira North did not just fall to her death.
This book has some great twists and turns, a great storyline and it certainly keeps you wanting to read on, so much so that as soon as i finished it, I went right onto book 3. Lot's of secrets revealed and trouble caused. Fantastic read.

This is the second book in the Detectives King and Lane series, and its just getting better! I blitzed through book one, and was so happy to lay my grubby little paws on book two! I really read a lot of crime fiction these days - the blood and gore appeal to the inner psycho in me... and this one was one of my favorites of the year so far!
Highly recommended.

This is the second book in the series but I didn't read the first (which I probably should have haha). Our two main characters, Alex and Chloe, are detectives with Cardiff, Wales police department and live together.

The story takes some twists and turns that kept me reading for the most part. I feel like there are so many detective series books out there but this one unfortunately was missing substance for me. I feel like the characterization could have been more in depth. I wasn't that impressed due to all of the typical detective series I have read..

I don't think I would continue with this series... it's nothing that I was overall invested in.

Thank you to Netgalley and bookouture for the arc.

After finishing The Girls in the Water I immediately started reading The First One to Die and read 50% in one sitting until 2.30am because I became gripped to the story instantly. The plot here was fantastic and I’ve spent the morning reading the other 50% in a single sitting too.

I really liked Alex and Chloe in the first book and couldn’t wait to read about them again. We find out here that Alex’s mother is in a home with dementia. Whilst others have pointed out that it helped them to understand Alex more, I just rolled my eyes at the fact that this was yet another fictional detective with a parent in a nursing home. Honestly I feel like I know these places inside out we’ve spent that much time in them with loads of fictional detectives. It’s boring, it’s repetitive and it’s a cliche. I understood Alex more through her life experience and through her reaction (and reasons for that reaction) to the murder of one of the girls in this story. The storyline with her mother I felt was unnecessary.

Chloe was another favourite character of mine in the first book and here we see her attempting to move on with her life and career after the events of that book. One line in particular stayed with me and it was ‘One day I will be an old lady, she thought. If she was lucky enough to make it there, she didn’t want to spend her old age consumed with regret for all the things she hadn’t done’. I felt that was a really nice and relatable line that made me think about the things that I don’t do for one reason or another and how I don’t want those regrets when I am older either. I enjoy the friendship between this pairing and it’s not often we see two female detectives leading a crime novel.

The strongest element of this book though has to be the story. Victoria Jenkins has written a truly addictive and extremely twisted tale here. What starts off as the supposed accidental death of a girl at a house party soon escalates into so much more. This is one of those stories where I’d love to get into the mind of the author or find out their planning process. With so many twists, so many revelations and so many different strands to the story, I am in awe of how it was all put together. I don’t even want to talk too much about the characters or the plot except to say that some of them are incredibly hateful. My brain was also constantly working throughout in an attempt to work out who may have been responsible, I wasn’t even close! Whereas I finished book one excited to move straight on to book two, book three isn’t yet published and so the impatient wait for that book begins. Until then I highly recommend this series to crime fans.

*thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

4 stars.

Firstly I really like this cover. It's what attracted me to find out about the story and it paid off as this was just the type of crime story I enjoy. It was a fast read which only adds to how much I liked it. I haven't read many where the two main detectives are both females so that I really liked. It was nice having a break from either two males or one of each gender. Alex and Chloe were a good team, but it was Alex who I felt I connected with more. There were so many things happening, so many paths were formed that it kept you interested the whole time. There were a few characters to juggle but it wasnt hard to follow probably because the narrator voices were kept to a minimum. There were a couple of twists towards the end, one big some smaller, but I hadnt guessed who the culprit was until it was reviled. I really appreciated that little chapter at the end. It was a nice touch to the story and filled in a little gap I had. This is defiantly an author to look out for and a series to grab.

I started this book immediately after I’d finished book in this series . (The Girls in the Water ). Having loved the first book I was slightly nervous that this one wouldn’t live up to my expectations. Well how wrong was I ! This was another gripping crime thriller involving DI King and DC Lane . These two officers work so well together and I love the way their personal lives develop in this book.
I am eagerly awaiting book 3 in this brilliant series .

This was a pretty exciting book. And, yes, it's twisty and the twists worked!

I liked our characters and I was very, very surprised to find out what really happened.

Expect a fast paced read - sometimes a little unbelievable, but suspenseful enough to keep you reading.

Alex and Chloe were terrific and I'll happily read the next book in the series.

A good read!

The first one to die is the second book in the Detectives King and Lane series which is set in the fab setting of South Wales. Now it's not that I'm biased by living very local to the areas mentioned throughout the book but I found it really easy to relate to, knowing the various locations.
I really enjoyed reading this, the way the plot knitted together so well, yet kept me keen to work out the killer worked really well and it almost felt like catching up with old friends, seeing more of Detectives King and Lane.

I really enjoyed this novel, although not quite as much as the first in the series. There's only one reason for that; there were too many times that I felt redundancy. Just one example is how many times the author had one character remind another that a suspect was lying to cover for someone else. There were a few other places where this happened with other plot points and it began to annoy me slightly. That is the only negative thing I can really say though. The book is a suspense ride from beginning to end and I love that we're seeing more dimension to Alex and Chloe. I honestly look forward to more in this stores. There is one sex scene and a bit of sexual content the first half of the book as well as some swearing throughout although the cursing is more scattered than any sexual content. Of course, as this does involve multiple murders, there is some gore but, for those that it matters to, it's described more clinically than as pure gore. As long as none of that bothers you, definitely a great mystery to read, just make sure you have the time to finish it once you start reading the last half.

I would like to thank the publisher, author, and Netgalley for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

A student party ends in tragedy when Keira North falls to her death. Everyone is quick to accept it was an accident but Detectives Alex King and Chloe Lanes spidey senses are tingling - something just doesn't seem right. And there suspicions are proven right they discover Keira's housemates all have something to hide. As they try to unravel the secrets that lie behind the door of this student home it soon become clear Keiras death was just the start.

So this is part two of the King and Lane series. I read the first part and very much enjoyed it, I just didn't quite believe in King and Lanes relationship. It felt to me a little forced. I did say however that I thought it was a great set up and was expecting the next one to be a five star effort. And good lord it really is.Both the relationship and characters of the protagonists are far more believable now and the plot, again, is excellent. What the last book lacked in execution this one has in spades. Don't get me wrong - the first part is great - I heartily recommend reading it before this one. But that one was a great read - this one was impossible to put down. A real tour de force of crime writing..... there are a few claimants to the queen of crime title - Victoria Jenkins is firmly staking her claim to the throne. Can't wait for part three!

This was a great second installment of the King/Lane series. I would even go as far as to say it was better than the first . I felt this one was a bit grittier and I liked that about it. At the beginning , we get a glimpse of someone that is going to be stabbed. From there the story takes off full speed. Alex King will find her hands full with all the deception that takes place throughout the novel. There were plenty of twists to the story that will keep you on your toes. Seems that everyone has a secret but who is really the bad guy? I also liked that we got to know King and Lane a little more personally in this book. I can wait to see what happens next!

*Thank you to the publisher and Net galley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review .

Did not know the characters as had not read the first king and lane book. Took me a while to understand who killed who it got quite complicated. Not sure I was too keen on the book, but read it and really had to,think who killed who, who was beaten up and why.