What a read! My heart was in my mouth at various points throughout, quite a chilling read in parts as you would expect from this type of book.
This is the first in a series and I am off to read the next part now. The flow of this book was absolutely perfect and I couldn't stop reading.
A very well deserved 5 stars from me.

This is my first book by this author and the story was well plotted with explanations of the past leading to what was happening. Detective Natalie Ward has issues from a previous case which affect her confidence and ability to deal with this case and this has a flattening effect on the book itself for me. The concentrated police work tracking down everyone's whereabouts and likelihood of being the perpetrator suddenly focus on the guilty party at the end of the book. The arrest and interview suddenly tie up all the ends neatly.
I did enjoy this book and would read more by Carol Wyer but there was a spark missing for me.
Many thanks to Netgalley/Carol Wyer/Bookouture for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

This book had a great premise but for me I'm afraid the execution felt a little routine. There are plenty of suspects, a new team of investigators and it's an easy read so if you enjoy a police procedural then give it a try. Natalie is fine as a lead character but I didn't feel she brought much new to the genre, although I did find her team to be more interesting. The investigation was clear but felt a little drawn out and repetitive and I did suspect whodunnit fairly early on. 3/5 stars from me and I will still try Carol Wyer's DI Robyn Carter series which I have heard brilliant things about. Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC of The Birthday.

I really enjoyed this book. There were lots of twists and turns throughout and I was kept gripped to the end...Thought I knew how it was going to end at one stage but then it threw me.
The Characters were very realistic to who and what they should portray in the book.
The settings were described well
The whole story was a good read, maybe not too easy but kept going until the last page.

I would like to thank Bookouture Publishing and the Netgalley website for this partnership.

I was immediately attracted to the cover : you can see yellow children's shoes.

One sentence immediately caught my attention: "Ava Sawyer went to a party and never came back".

It all began when Ava, five years old, disappeared at a birthday party; without any leads the police trampled until two years later the body of little Ava was found, except that Audrey, who was also present at the party, disappeared. Natalie is investigating this murder and this disappearance linked especially as the disappearances get closer she will have to do everything possible to stop this killer.

A book almost read in one go, I love the author's pen so captivating, fluid. I immediately hooked on the story so captivating, filled with suspense and twists and turns with engaging characters.

Too eager to read the book two.

I absolutely love the Robin Carter books by Carol Wyer and was looking forward to reading a new character so was pleased when I finally got around to reading the first in this series. I certainly enjoyed it, but (yes there is a but) I found it a little bit hard work at times. Natalie the lead character is likeable enough, but I didn't take to her immediately. She is a mother of two teenagers and has a husband who frankly I loathed from the second I read about him. Her home life doesn't feature in a huge way but I just wasn't overly bothered by them in any way which I always take as a negative.

The personal life aside, she has a team and together they are investigating the murder of a young child. It seems linked to the missing persons case of Ava Sawyer who went missing two years prior at a birthday party. The case itself seemed reasonably complex however I just didn't get the pull I do with other books. Her colleagues were again okay, just okay and nobody stood out for me.

Sometimes I feel like this when starting a new series so maybe the next book will draw me in a little but I felt like there were too many things that made this feel a bit too middle ground for my liking. Also when the reveal regarding the killer was made I didn't feel like it had any real impact. Did I know who the killer was? No, but I also didn't feel like there were any hooks relating to this person. Overall I just felt that it could have been a lot better. I will continue to read Carol Wyer as she is a great author and hopefully book 2 will draw me in a little bit more.

Carol Wyer has got back with her new series. Natalie Ward. As I have mentioned before in my reviews, her Robin Carter series felt like its a shadow of Kim Stone/ Erika Foster. This one feels like Patricia Gibney's Lottie Parker.

Natalie ward is a detective who is trying to juggle between her personal and professional life. With teenage kids, it doesnt get easier.

This book was extremely difficult for me because it is about kids. A lot of small children are abducted and murdered. Natalie ward has to catch the abductor before more bodies pile in.

I defenitly felt this book was really gripping. This is one of my favorites by Carol Wyer.

I LOVED The Birthday! I try to keep away from missing murdered children plots but I’m so glad I didn’t miss this one!
Crazy, intense, heart pounding, twisted book with a lot of emotions running wild and high. I love DI Natalie and her determination to solve these cases. She reminded me of Olivia Bensen.
I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.
Side note..I knew this would be amazing because it’s publisher by Bookouture:)

Thank you #Netgalley, the author and publisher for my free ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

This is book 1 in a new detective series by Carole Wyer. We are introduced to Detective Natalie Ward and her team . When the body of a young child who has been missing for two years is found Ward and her team are out to find out who is responsible. The missing child had attended a birthday party on the day she went missing . A few days after the body is discovered any child goes missing . Could these cases be linked ?

This is a fabulous suspense thriller and is heartbreaking at times to read as there are children involved . I must admit that I found the beginning of the book a bit slow but I soon got into it and thought it was an excellent read.

My first from the author and I must say I'm impressed. I love the characters especially Natalie and her team. The mystery and thrill is great. I enjoyed following the progress of the case although there's too much coincidences. I feel the same frustrations as Natalie everytime they hit a dead end. It is definitely a great debut for a series.

Wow, I defo must read more from Carol after this one!

Great book that had me constantly guessing and swapping and changing my mind on the "whodunnit".

At a birthday party in a garden centre a young girl called Ava Sawyer goes missing, two years later she turns up dead and more kids go missing!

The lead detective Natalie was a great character, you could totally relate to her trying to juggle work, the case, and a family too and I loved her.

I can't wait for number 2 in the series.....hurry up Carol!

With thanks to Netgalley and Bookoutre for this ARC in exchange for an open and honest review.

I am a big fan of Carol Wyer `s Robyn Carter books so I was excited to read her new series featuring DI Natalie Ward.

Two years ago earlier five year old Ava Sawyer disappeared from her friends birthday party at Uptown Craft Centre. . When Ava`s body was discovered by builders buried behind the craft centre Natalie and her team began to re-examine her case. People who knew Ava said she was a difficult child and was prone to tantrums, if she did not get her own way she sometimes run off and hide.

The next day Audrey Brigg`s who was a class mate of Ava and attended the birthday party was found strangled in the local park. When Rainey another classmate of Ava and Audrey went missing after her ballet class Natalie worried a serial child killer was on the loose.

I enjoyed this book but it did not flow as freely as the Robyn Carter series. Having said that I liked Natalie and her team and will be interested to see how their characters develop over time. Natalie`s husband David had been a gambling addict and was now a stay at home father after being made redundant. She had recently had a one night stand with her colleague and David`s best friend.

Her sergeant Murray Anderson was due to donate his sperm to his colleague and friend Lucy Carmichael who is also on the team.

The Birthday included chapters from the POV of the killer which gave an insight into their motive. The plot had plenty of twists and turns, I was shocked when the killer was unmasked.
I think this will be an interesting series and I look forward to reading book 2 The Lullaby.

Loved the characters, loved the story! The search for a child murderer was a great mystery!! Look forward to the next in the series!

There is a new detective on the block Carol Wyer introduces Natalie Ward who is heading up the team. It all starts with the discovery of a child’s body. Following the Disappearance from a birthday party years earlier could this be related. If you like a good procedural book this is one to add to the pile. It becomes a race against time to find the killer before other children are killed and can it all relate back to the party that ended in tragedy? Very engaging plot that got me hooked early on I the book

Really enjoyed this book! I couldn't decide who I thought the killer was for most of the book and was a bit surprised when it was revealed. It was really intriguing to have the short interludes from the killer's childhood, shedding bits of light on the "why" aspect (without giving too much away). Also liked the character of Natalie and looking forward to following her more in future books in the series.

THE BIRTHDAY (Detective Natalie Ward #1) is a new crime fiction series from author Carol Wyer, featuring Detective Natalie Ward.

A five-year-old girl, Ava Sawyer goes missing at a birthday party held at a local garden center. She never came home!

The police have no leads, until her body is discovered two years later. Shortly after the discovery, another little girl, Audrey Briggs who attended the same party goes missing. Audrey also attended that party ...

Leading the investigation is Detective Natalie Ward. A mother of two teenagers, this case chills her to the bone, and is a disturbing reminder of the last job she worked on. One that ended very badly.

Natalie soon discovers that there are discrepancies in the alibis given by Ava's mother and father as well as Elsa, the owner of the garden center holding back information! Why?

Were Ava and Audrey killed by someone close to home? Then the worse nightmare happens… another little girl from the party doesn't come home from her ballet lesson.

Natalie must stop this killer before more innocent lives are taken!

The Birthday is a fast-paced mystery story. I liked Detective Natalie Ward, and I look forward to learning more about her in the series. I was glued to the book to learn the identity of the killer. Did I figure it out? No. I was surprised when the killer was revealed …not who I would have expected!

I am already looking forward to starting Last Lullaby book 2, from a promising new series.

Many thanks to Carol Wyer, and Bookouture via NetGalley, for my digital copy.

A great book had me gripped from the start and kept me hooked all the way through, I couldn’t decide who I thought was the killer and kept changing my mind the author really kept me guessing and the little snippets of the killers childhood were really interesting, highly recommend this book!

The Birthday is the first book in the Natalie Ward series and I enjoyed it tremendously. With an amazing amount of twists and turns, I had to work really hard trying to figure out who the culprit was, and I enjoyed the events and journey along the way. I am a huge fan of this author and was happy to see a new series featuring a woman detective, one with two teenage children, working hard at keeping her marriage together yet dealing with a demanding job that keeps her away from her not quite so understanding family.

I usually stay away from murder cases involving children, but having read books by this author before, I knew she would treat the material with sensitivity, and she definitely did. Unfortunately, Natalie joins the force just as little Ava's body was discovered, after having been missing for two years, when a local construction company digs up her remains during an expansion. Natalie was still recovering from her previous case which didn't go very well, so finding the remains of a little girl threw all of her guards she had built around her up in the air. I really loved her character; she was approachable, but still tough as the lead detective, trying to balance a family life and work, with a husband who was suffering with a complex after being laid off from his own job. Working with a team that actually gets along (quite refreshing), she put a lot of pressure on herself to find the killer before he struck again. Her fear of failure kept her going day after day as she didn't want a repeat of the previous case, one of which we only get a glimpse.

I have always liked this author's writing, and this book is no exception, gripping the reader right from the beginning. Trying to figure out the killer was not my primary objective as I was too interested in Natalie's story, how she worked and how she interacted with her colleagues. I was quite impressed with Natalie and I have to give the author kudos for creating a complete package character, one who is strong and intelligent, but is still flawed. The book moved quickly from scene to scene, quite cohesively, and I definitely liked all of the members of the team.

The Birthday is a good start to this new series and I am looking forward to seeing what Detective Natalie is confronted with next. As with any first book in a series, we have just been introduced to a variety of characters so I am looking forward to some character development and seeing where the author takes them as I enjoyed the people on Natalie's team and would love to see more of them. The story is fast-paced and well-structured with an interesting little story line about the killer. Highly recommended.

*5 Stars*

ARC kindly received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very interesting read with good characters. I don't understand people who can kill children. Such a horrible thing. It shows how hard it would be, being a detective and dealing with these sort of cases.

Having felt that Carol Wyer’s Robyn Carter series was already starting to stagnate, I was excited to see that she was releasing a new book, The Birthday, featuring a brand-new character in DI Natalie Ward.

Natalie is a complicated character with a history, and the baggage of an unsolved case and an affair with a fellow colleague. I struggled to empathise with her at times, and also found the scenes of her home life to be dull. I was more interested in the main story of the child abductions and didn’t care enough about her husband (seemingly nor does she to cheat on him) to enjoy those scenes at home.

It might seem silly but one of the issues I had with this story was the use of outdated names for children born after 2010. I won’t list them all but even the surnames felt off too. Add in the fact that the majority of places mentioned are fictional and the story just lost some impact because of that and some believability. As said it might seem silly but it did detract from the story a little bit for me.

The Birthday is an emotional read, dealing as it does with child abduction and murder. I enjoyed following along with the case, however in reality I feel there would be a hell of a lot more police involved than just Natalie and a few of her team once more than one child turns up murdered. Where the story fell down in my opinion was the lack of suspects. Sometimes in crime fiction you get those characters who are just thrown in to move the story along with predictable reasons why it should have been them but it then of course turns out that it wasn’t. When the overall reveal arrived I felt disappointed because even though I never fully suspected this character, I just was left thinking ‘oh is that it’ and the reasonings behind it all just felt silly and the psychiatric explanations didn’t wash with me either. Overall The Birthday, whilst gripping in places unfortunately was not the best story that I felt it could be, nor was it as strong as Carol Wyer’s previous crime stories.