A great little novel that kept my interest throughout and led to me demolishing it in under a day. Loved getting to know each of the member of red watch in their fight against Mac.

I have not read anything by Steve Liszka before, so I did not know what to expect. What I did not expect, was to read an entertaining novel, thrilling, and even some handsome firemen thrown in as a treat. (not really, you know what I mean!)
It was a good, solid read, and I enjoyed it until the very end.
Recommended!!

I wont go into detail about the story as i dont want to spoil the book, but i will say that I wouldn't normally read this kind of book but I fancied a change of genre and i can honastly say this surprised me. I enjoyed the story and i felt connected with the characters. Pleaseantly surprised and brilliantly written, a must read for sure.

Dead watch is the author’s debut novel and what a debut is it. In this story we follow a team of firefighters, What a refreshing change this book is. I know a few firefighters myself and to be quite honest I have never really thought about how hard core their job actually is until I read this. This story is a proper eye opener.

The author does a brilliant job of getting inside your head with some pulse racing scenes I don't think I could do this has a job. But the author really brings the whole story and characters to life using his own experience as a firefighter.

There is quite a mixture of characters to keep up with in this story which I didn't have a problem with because they make the story. I did enjoy all the banter between the characters, they certainly jumped out the pages at me.

The authors writing style is fast paced and easy to read. For me this is one very unique story that is full of suspense that will have you grippied from start to finish which I highly recommend giving it 4 stars

Chicago Fire is one of my favourite TV shows and so I was very excited about the premise to Dead Watch when I first read the blurb. I’ve never read a book centred around a group of firefighters before and, with Steve Liszka being one himself, the book is very authentic throughout and whilst the in-depth descriptions of firefighting could potentially put some people off, I was very intrigued and loved just how much detail Steve put into the story.

Without giving too much away, we have a team of Brighton firefighters who head off to another shout only to find a dead man inside a car with half a million pounds on the seat next to him. The crew take the money, oblivious to the danger they will soon find themselves facing thanks to this split-second decision. I recently read a book that featured a character finding a bag of money inside a vehicle and taking it and the story here was executed so much better than the one in that story. Whilst you’d never expect a team of firefighters to steal something from a scene like this, for the purposes of fictional storytelling I could overlook that and a believable case was made by Steve for the actions of his characters as we meet each of them and discover more about their lives.

The cast of characters here is what really shines through in this book. Each of them are so well-drawn with individual personalities and stories to tell. I truly enjoyed reading about each and every one of them. The camaraderie amongst them is fantastic to read, but that’s not to say that there isn’t animosity amongst them at times. Particularly from those who don’t agree with the rest of the team stealing money from a dead man. I would love to go into detail about my favourite characters however this is a story where you should just discover them for yourselves. There’s a real drama here amongst the characters and whilst the story itself is at times sensationalised, the characters are all believable and I had no trouble seeing them as real people. There’s plenty of humour laced throughout this story and I had a lot of fun reading it.

I enjoyed as well how the story was told. Rather than the conventional numbered chapters, each chapter is titled with something that relates to the scenes within that chapter and I felt that worked really well. The storytelling is strong and the plot here was executed brilliantly. Whilst you might envy someone for suddenly having thousands of pounds in their pockets, it soon becomes clear that this money is tainted and I couldn’t read quick enough to see how the team were going to make amends for what they had done, and how they were going to get themselves out of the situation they had found themselves in. Some unsavoury characters make this story an at times tense and unpredictable read. The ending particularly was a highlight for me and I loved how everything came together in the closing pages.

Steve Liszka is definitely an author I will be looking out for in the future. I enjoyed reading his note at the end of the book, I have a fondness for those books that received dozens of rejections only for someone to finally come along and take a chance on them and I am glad Bloodhound books did that for Steve as Dead Watch is a fantastic thriller and features a cast that are different and stand out in a crowded genre. I could easily see this book working as a TV show. I will be eagerly awaiting Steve’s next book.

As soon as I read the description of this book, I knew I needed to read it. What really caught my attention is the fact that the book is Fire Fighters. (nothing to do with my obsession of Firemen, Honest!) The fact that it was something a little different from the usual Police procedural books I love reading, really got my attention.

​What a book it was. I really did enjoy it. I couldn't see at first how a story around a fire station and the firefighters could go, but it certainly went in the right direction for me.
This story is based around Red Watch, A superb set of characters make up this fire fighting team. Attending a road traffic accident, gives these firefighters a chance to do something they have never done before. A perfect opportunity has arisen for them to take a bag of cash from the scene of the crash. There is no one around and no one will ever know they did it. Will they?
How you go from good guys to bad guys in the blink of an eye. Brilliantly told story that will keep you turning those pages.
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I love a story that takes a different path than the norm’ and that is what Steve Liszka has done with his book. This is a story about Red Watch, who make up one of the shifts of firefighters in East Brighton, or Dead Watch a nick name they acquired by being the watch that seemed to attend the highest number of fatalities. They are a mixed bunch from a wide spectrum of backgrounds that have a real wicked sense of on the cuff humour. They are the good guys right?
But one night a few of them have the chance to grab a life changing opportunity, when they are first on the scene at a fatal road traffic accident. A snap decision moves them from heroes to wanted men and woman by a bloke that you just don’t cross. It’s not like they can go to the police, not unless they all want jail time themselves.
This was tense, very tense, whoa these guys were going down that never-ending spiral of up to your neck in it, faster than a fireman’s pole! and boy I really didn’t like the mystery man when he turned up, even on paper, in real life I would have been bricking it!
Now one thing that really shines through the story is how these firefighters have each others backs. I suppose that the situations that they face each day make it second nature. Some of them may be darn right angry at their fellow workers stupidity but they are a team. This is another of those books that I find myself cringing and giving advice out to the characters, all to no avail!
This is a super story with a real different edge to it. Love how the author has used his own personal work experience, just the firefighting side of course, to centre the story on. It all works a treat!

This book intreged me from the blurb, I was fascinated to read the story. It didn’t disappoint, very well written, and throughly gripped me through out. Look forward to more from this author.

As soon as I read the blurb for this book (the title wasn't confirmed until a few weeks later) I was intrigued, and then when I saw that cover I knew it was one I had to read - the cover is absolutely perfect for a book that has firefighters at the centre of it!!

It is quite clear from reading the story that the author knows his subject very well and I think that really helps with the descriptions of the fires, backdrafts, etc. and how the Watch would operate together when they are on call outs, even own to how they would deal with an RTC, it is done in a very good way where it explained to you as a reader for you to get even more out of the book and I loved the fact I was learning as I read without it being rubbed in my face.

There are quite a few characters on the Red Watch team which could have made it confusing but the book is very good at telling the story from their different points of view without making it confusing at all and it is definitely a great way for the story to be told. It all helped add to the sense of camaraderie and teamwork.

I loved the pace for the story and it really did hook me in and I read it in a few hours. Will definitely be looking out for more books from this author in the future and I wouldn't mind reading more about Red (or Dead) Watch if he gets the urge!

A solid four stars from me, a really enjoyable read!!

This book is completely different from any book I have read recently and I loved it.

Instead of being based around the police this book follows a team of Firefighters who end up in the wrong place at the wrong time due to a stupid decision they made.

One of the things that made this book different is that the firefighters all come from different backgrounds and there is nothing linking them all expect for their jobs, leading to them all thinking differently about stuff and the way they react to the situation they get themselves into.

The book is extremely tense and nerve-wracking, more so because they are not trained police officers so their reaction is similar to what I would assume a non police officer’s reaction would be.

The book is a brilliant read, which I thoroughly enjoyed and will be looking into reading more of Steve’s in future.

The blurb reeled me in. The book itself kept me intrigued from page one. The characters were fascinating, the plot divine. This was an explosive story and I was sorry to see it end!

I was hooked by the blurb of this book. as it was different. The firefighter aspect intrigued me.. The character descriptions of the firefighting team were so good that you felt you knew them. As for the plot, it made for a a gripping, tense read. The firefighting team of Red Watch in Brighton have a dangerous enough job but their lives have now become even more dangerous . The camaraderie, of the team is very humorous, but also very strong. The knowledge of firefighting by the author is evident and also interesting. A heart pounding read !

There are quite a lot of characters in Dead Watch, thankfully the author does a great job in introducing us to them all so that we get to know them and find out a bit more about their background. I think readers could have struggled otherwise but I for one didn’t feel lost and took to the whole team within no time at all.

I’ve read a few books to do with fire fighters and even though you can tell the authors have done their research, I have to say that the authors own background in the field really makes this story in particular stand out. There were so many new things I learned and it was great to find out how they deal with some of the horrific sights that they get called out to.

Without a doubt Dead Watch would make a great series on the television. I loved the banter and relationship between the characters and they all brought something into the story.

A moment of idiocy brings a whole lot of trouble to the Red Watch door. I think it’s hard to say what anyone of us would have done if we were faced in the same position. Not only do they need to watch out for themselves in their job, but they need to work together like never before outside of Red Watch also.

Dead Watch is an engrossing and thrilling read. It has a great cast of characters of which it is really hard to choose a favourite. Packed full of suspense of what was going to happen next, I really did struggle to put it down. Look forward to more books by the author.