DEADLY LIES

by Chris Collett

Joffe Books
Mystery & Thrillers

Pub Date 29 Sep 2017

I am reviewing a copy of Deadly Lies Through Joffe Books and Netgalley:

DI Tom Mariner thinks he’s seen everything. But he soon faces an investigation that pushes him to the limits.

Eddie Barham a Journalist is found dead in his own home, at first it seems to be a clear cut case of Suicide but is it?

A woman was at the scene of the crime.

Is this an open and shut case of Suicide, or was the Journalist Murdered? And if he was murdered who could get close enough to him to kill him?

Find out in Deadly Lies!

Five out of five stars.

Happy Reading!

Deadly lies was previously published under the name of The Worm in the bud however is being re-released on the 29th September under the new title Deadly Lies.
This is the first in a series of police procedurals featuring DI Tom Mariner. I enjoyed the book on the whole, it has plenty of twists and turns however I couldn't warm to Mariner which made it a slow read at times.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my advance copy in return for an honest review.

3 stars

DI Tom Mariner and his PC Tony Knox respond to an apparent suicide. The victim is journalist Edward Barham. Not long ago Mariner saw Barham in a bar picking up a prostitute. Under the stairs in the house, Mariner finds Jamie. At first he thinks that he is high on something but it turns out that Jamie is autistic.

What follows is a police procedural. It focusses on the investigation, but also on Mariner’s personal life. He is a solitary man who enjoys long walks and has trouble trusting himself or others – especially women. He has trouble relating to women and seems afraid of them.

Mariner tries to connect with Jamie with little or no result. Anna Barham, the sister of Eddie, is greatly put off and frustrated by Mariner’s attempt to what she sees as almost subverting her brother Jamie. It turns out that Eddie was investigating a crime kingpin at the time of his death. Is this why he was killed? Is it some other reason? Mariner must sort it out.

The name of the murderer turns out to be a surprise, but the reason for the murder is more than a little twisted.

This is a fairly well written and plotted novel. The characters are interesting, although Mariner is more than a little draining at times. This is an average book, with average writing. It is not among the best books that I have read certainly.

I want to thank NetGalley and Joffe Books for forwarding to me a copy of this book to read.

Thank you Netgalley and Joffe Books for the eARC.
This re-issue of the first Tom Mariner book in the series (formerly The Worm in the Bud), out on September 29, was an unexpected treat. It was surprising to me it didn't get the many positive reviews it deserves. I liked it a lot, one of the better books I read this year.
Tom is called out to a supposed suicide, Edward Barham, a journalist who died of a massive heroin overdose. He leaves behind his severely autistic brother Jamie and his estranged sister Anna. Anna is now faced with the task of looking after Jamie, which is out of the question for her. She has a high powered job and a lover and cannot afford to be the 24/7 carer Jamie needs.
As an autopsy reveals Eddie was murdered, the case is turned upside down and leads Tom to an untouchable crime boss and the world of drugs and escorts. A dangerous world Eddie was trying to expose.
The book is set in an atmospheric Manchester and tells a sad story of the difficulties families face caring for the severely autistic. I grew to like and empathize with both Tom and Anna and will definitely be reading the rest of the series. It's always exciting to find a new author to follow!

This is the first of a series featuring DI Tom Mariner. Mariner is a committed officer of the law ... steadfast and unwavering in seeking justice. Personal issues? Yes, he has them... but he's working on them. He's not materialistic ... things don't matter to him that much. In many ways he is a simple man, yet very much complicated.

Sitting in a bar one evening, he sees journalist Eddie Barham picking up a 'lady of the evening'. While on his way home, he gets a call ... possible homicide. To his surprise, the dead man is none other than Barham .... a needle in his arm and a suicide note.

He finds something else ... the dead man's autistic brother, Jamie, locked in a cupboard. He is a possible witness, but he doesn't seem to be able to communicate at all. His sister, Anna, is located. Disbelieving that her brother committed suicide, she also confesses that she hasn't been in touch with him in ages and really doesn't know much about Jamie, either.

Mariner believes this death is murder .... but is it connected to his investigation of a local crime kingpin? Or something else entirely? And will Jamie be targeted if it is known that he is a witness?

The definition of well-written is 'composed in a competent, and often entertaining style'. That certainly describes this book. It's well paced with a few twists along the way. The characters are solid and lead credibility to the story. I enjoyed the mix of professional with personal, making the characters come to life.

The nature of autism is handled very well. There are levels of autism and this book deals with the highest level... a young man unable to communicate with words, sleep difficulties, anxiety. The character of Anna finds herself living an entirely different life than she had been when she becomes responsible for her brother.

Many thanks to the author / Joffe Books / Netgalley for the digital copy. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Joffe Books for an advance copy of Deadly Lies, the first in a series of police procedurals to feature DI Tom Mariner of the Birmingham police.

Tom is at a loose end when he does a uniform call in reply to an anonymous call. When he gets there he finds Eddie Barham dead of an overdose. As it appears to be suicide he should be handing it over to uniform but he keeps niggling away at it and when the post mortem says murder he has a head start.

I enjoyed Deadly Lies which is a good start to a new series although it is a reprint as it was originally published in the early 2000s. It has plenty of twists and turns before Ms Collett takes it in an unexpected direction. Eddie Barham was an award winning investigative journalist until he took a demotion to look after his autistic brother, Jamie, and as his computer was infected with a virus at his death the suspicion is that he was working on a new story.

Jamie's sister Anna had always refused to have much to do with him so her efforts to look after him are sad, funny, heartbreaking and extremely hard work. It is interesting that even then, when it was flush, the state wasn't interested in the plight of carers or the adult disabled. Autism is not something I know much about so I found the detail informative.

Tom Mariner is a solitary individual with not much personality so it is difficult to get to know him although as a fictional detective he needs a tic. In this case it is loneliness and impotence with a glib explanation of why half way through the novel. TMI. It dates the novel, however, that he hunts for companionship through the personal ads in the paper rather than the ubiquitous dating sites we have nowadays.

Deadly Lies is a solid read which I have no hesitation in recommending.