I'm sorry but this just wasnt for me. Tried reading it twice but it just dragged. I just couldnt get into it.

A bit too gruesome for me, maybe I just wasn't in the right mood for it. I have enjoyed previous books by this author.

At first this book hooked me, and then it b started to drag, and I had a hard time finishing it. It was decent but not great.

The first chapter of this book had me hooked and then it all went downhill from there. The pace slowed right down and I found the dialogue really hard to keep track of. I didn’t really like any of the characters and the book just dragged. It was a struggle to read and I kept finding myself either confused or bored.

The Death Messenger, by Mari Hannah, is a police procedural novel set in the UK. This is a second novel in this series follows O’Neill and Ryan. There are several references to the first storyline, and it might have been helpful to have had some experience with the first novel.

In this novel, O’Neill and Ryan have joined forces on an elite squad known as the shadow squad. The Shadow squad investigates crimes that are unusual or exceptional. They catch their first case in the form of a series of high profile disappearances. The bodies soon start to stack up, and it becomes clear that the cases are linked when cryptic videos show up linking all the cases to an unknown woman, and her accomplice. Because of her knack with technology, the team nicknames her Spielberg, and coins her the Death Messenger. Ryan and O’Neill are joined in their efforts to apprehend the Death Messenger by a bullish retired detective named Grace, and her slick, covert spy husband Newman. Together the four of them must track down the killer and her accomplice as the bodies stack up.

The storyline was fresh and interesting. I would like to read the previous novel in the series to gain a little more understanding into the characters. The villain in the story is unique. The storyline does unfold on the slow side. Overall, a worthwhile read. Novel supplied by Netgalley.

It was extremely difficult for me to want to finish this title- it dragged so much and I completely lost interest almost immediately.

Let's see: Good news first, or bad? Let's go for the good. The Death Messenger delivered a motley but frighteningly competent crew of investigators and an unusual medical plot thread. It was rich in atmosphere and geographic detail.

Not only are the detectives playing a bizarre cat-and-mouse game with their perpetrator(s), who deliver high-quality video of the crime scenes, but they are also being toyed with by those above them in the chain of command.

The bad: The book was way longer than it needed to be, perhaps due to a complicated, even convoluted plot. Or maybe it was those countless passages that were downright romancey -- Detective Superintendent Eloise O'Neil is quite a dish, and Detective Sergeant Matthew Ryan is the very epitome of a Sensitive New Age Guy, who agonizes over his feelings for his boss. At. Great. Length.

This is Book 2 in the series featuring these two, and I might have enjoyed it more had I read the first book. Thanks to NetGalley for an advance readers copy of the book.

DNF at 34%. I can’t pinpoint what exactly was wrong but the story seemed to drag for me. It was a struggle to read and I do not like that in my books. I kept waiting to be drawn in but it didn’t happen. Sorry...It just was not my cup of tea.

Excellent crime thriller/police procedural featuring a killer with a very unique motive.

This second in the series (regretfully, I missed the first one), starts as Detective Superintendent Eloise O'Neil and Detective Sergeant Matthew Ryan of the Northumbria Police are setting up a newly formed unit that could have the potential to deal with international issues or really hot assignments. Their first case starts when they receive a DVD depicting a bloody murder scene in a lock-up close to the River Tyne. There is no body, but the detectives don't imagine for an instant that this is a hoax. From the beginning, the pair is stymied by a lack of evidence, motive and suspects. They are joined by husband and wife Frank and Grace Newman -- both with the type of experience and skills needed by this new team to figure out what's going on as several high profile murders subsequently take place -- all seemingly at the hands of the videographer sending the DVDs. The team gears up and follows where the few leads take them to seek out the person or persons behind these deaths where the victims appear to have no connection. What is the link and, despite being thwarted by higher ups in the government, how in the world is this new unit going to work it all out. NO SPOILERS

I enjoyed this and definitely will want to read the next in the series. The major drawback for me, and what really detracted from my overall rating, is the constant and ridiculous crushing that Matt is doing on Eloise. Give me a break! If he'd spend less time thinking about and mooning over her and worrying about her safety and mental well-being, he might be a better, more effective sleuth! It got old really fast and if that romantic pap was left out of the story, it would have hummed along at a better pace instead of dragging with all that sappy stuff. She's his boss, they are a two-person team with support personnel, so either get it on or let's get over it. It really diminished my perception of Eloise as a super duper strong leader with all her mopey sensitivities and he was like a love-sick puppy around her. ENOUGH! That said, when all that wasn't being focused on over and over, I liked the premise and the complexity of the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the e-book ARC to read and review.

The Death Messenger is the second novel in the DS Matthew Ryan and DS Eloise O'Neil series based in Northumberland, the area in which I live, and once again Ms Hannah has absolutely smashed it. Although part of a series the book works well as a standalone, however, you will miss out on the characters evolution and growth from The Silent Room. Here, a depraved and heinous killer taunts the police by sending disturbing DVDs of their kills to police headquarters. The killer escalates and begins killing more and more and sending each of the videos to police forces around the country. It was interesting to learn about the newly-formed Specialist Investigative Unit who are having trouble finding anything that links the victims, identifies the location of the kills or determining who the brutal killer may be. Can they discover something that breaks the case before more innocent lives are taken?

As always with Ms Hannah, the writing pulls you into the story almost immediately, and from then on putting it down is simply not an option. There were twists and turns galore and plenty to keep the reader riveted. The chemistry between DS Ryan and DS O'Neil is excellent, there may even be some romance between them in upcoming books. Together they are tenacious and like a dog with a bone, they go after their target regardless of how little information they have to go on. It's elaborately plotted with wonderful attention to detail and flows smoothly from one page to the next; there's no question about this being a page-turner! This is a dark, disturbing, intense, brutal and hard-hitting police procedural that is full of nail-biting moments. Bravo!

Many thanks to Minotaur Books for an ARC.

A very enjoyable novel, with several twists and developments throughout the plot to keep readers enthralled.

I particularly enjoyed reading about the specialist investigative unit, and how it operates. The relationships between the central characters are also intriguing.

The plot contains several elements to ensure interest is sustained; the motivation for the crimes committed in the book is thought-provoking.

A recommended read for those who enjoy crime/mystery/thriller/detective novels.

DS Matthew Ryan is back working with Detective Superintendent Eloise O’Neil in a newly set up unit. A DVD is delivered to Northumbria POlice and when Ryan and O’Neil view it they can clearly see that someone has filmed and narrated in great detail a crime scene but there is no victim and no clue as to where it was filmed. Then they receive a phone call with details of where the crime scene is but still no victim.
More DVD’s are being delivered to police forces in Scotland and Brighton. Ryan and O’Neil find themselves chasing around the country looking at crime scenes and as the victims begin to turn up they are facing pressure from above to solve the murders before anyone else dies.
I loved all the twists and turns and the relationship between Ryan and O’Neil has so much chemistry it sizzles!

I tried so hard to get into this book. It just didn’t hold my attention and I didn’t connect to the characters at all. I think I need to read the first book in the series and try this one again. I never felt like Ryan and O’Neil had any chemistry working on this case. I struggled to keep turning the pages. Thank you for the chance to read and provide honest feedback.

Mari Hannah is a new author in my repertoire. Very talented. Good plot and character development.
I look forward to her next book.

I admit to being a Mari Hannah fan. I very much enjoyed the first Matthew Ryan novel but I don't think you need to have read it to appreciate this cat and mouse game with a clever serial killer. Ryan is now working with DS Eloise O'Neill, who's a cracker of an investigator. They are up against a woman who is sending DVDs of the murders- which take place across the UK. Tying things together and figuring out what's going on is tough but these two, along with others on the team, are good at what they do. The. mystery is just twisty enough. I also liked that there are references to several other mystery writers and characters. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. For fans of British procedurals.

It's hard to review a book that took me 10 days to read and then feel like it dragged out a bit. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed parts of it but some of it just seemed a little too convoluted and dare I say again...dragged out.

Although THE DEATH MESSENGER is the second in the series, this is the first book by Mari Hannah I have read and while I was a little disappointed with the overall book, I really enjoyed the camaraderie between O'Neil and Ryan. Despite him being her subordinate, she really seemed to value his input and hold him in high regard. While they are colleagues, they do appear to have a personal friendship that works well alongside their professional relationship. I wouldn't like to see them fall into bed together as those story arcs tend to spoil the comradeship of the main players.

THE DEATH MESSENGER begins with a Prologue that doesn't seem to tie in with the first chapter or so, and I admit to being a little puzzled as to its relevance. It referred to another place, another victim than the one they were investigating.

DVDs are being sent to the police around the country of crime scenes with no bodies...and no obvious links. Whoever is behind the DVDs and the killings takes great pleasure in death as the murders escalate. The victims are diverse and the locations are all over the place. They don't even appear to know each other. It's not long before Ryan and O'Neil are on their way to various crime scenes from Northumberland to Scotland to Brighton and then Denmark! Their only clue is the voice on the DVD to link the scenes but who is she? And why is she killing?

Ryan and O'Neil shine as they delve into the mystery of this demanding case. With personal histories, they fight, they talk and they learn to trust each other. They have integrity and it makes them a passionate and likeable team. I'm not sure about Grace and Newman. She is not backward in coming forward and he is a secretive spook. I don't that in her or anyone and I don't trust him. But Ryan and O'Neil, I love!

This is a dark story, gritty and chilling. Ryan and O'Neil are a formidable pair that work well together. I look forward to more stories featuring them, but I don't like the spook-MI5-MI6 angle. I like cut and dried. Spooks-MI5-MI6 are not. They are secretive and they are always lurking, always watching. I don't like that and I Don't trust that. Get rid of the spook angle and the stories will be far more enjoyable.

The story on the whole DID confuse me a lot in the beginning. They started referring to "Spielberg" and I had no idea who that was although it became clear that when using that name they were referring to the killer. Did I miss something where they coined that term? There were a few places where I found myself confused as to what was taking place, as some of it didn't seem to make sense. I think it's that that spoilt it for me.

I was also confused as to why this was an ARC from the publisher when the book has appeared to have been released for some time - a year in fact. Why is it listed on NetGalley as being released 15th January when I've since come across it available for sale on Amazon since 2017.

Overall, THE DEATH MESSENGER was an average story. I think Ryan and O'Neil alone saved it as without them I would have given up long ago, and there were times I was tempted when I was just confused as to what was going on for a while. The story has promised but didn't entirely deliver with all its confusion and the whole lengthy process which just seemed to drag it out. And the spook. Get rid of the spook angle. That does nothing for me. This is not James Bond, nor do I wish it to be. But it does have promise. I won't give up. I will test the waters with another in the series, however it sounds as if I will give the first one "The Silent Room" a miss since that featured spookness heavily from what I've read.

Thank you to #MariHannah, #NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of #TheDeathMessenger in exchange for an honest review.

When a mysterious DVD is delivered to Northumbria Police Headquarters, DS Matthew Ryan and Detective Superintendent Eloise O’Neil are among the few to view its disturbing content. With little to go on the only lead comes from the anonymous and chilling woman’s voice narrating the blood-soaked lock-up depicted on screen.

No victim is visible, nor any indication of where the crime scene is located, Ryan and O’Neil get the distinct feeling someone is playing with them. What is certain is that the newly formed special unit has just taken on its first challenging case.

The book seems really well written and the characters well fleshed out. Yet, for some reason, it was a struggle to stay interested and to actually finish it. Might be worth another read later on.

DNF at 45%. The second in a series, reading the first may have helped me connect with the distant and broadly drawn mcs, who felt more like a collection of traits than actual characters. I also found the fast start that then dove deep into previously set up and slow moving internal politicking dragged The Death Manager to a pace that never recovered.

This was Book 2 of a series (I did not read Book 1, The Silent Witness), but I really don't think that was a problem. It may have helped with the character development but did not distract.

The book held my interest throughout, but did not blow me away. Police Detectives Mathew Ryan and Eloise O'Neil receive a very disturbing video and must unravel the clues before more victims start to pile up.

Many thanks to Netgalley and St Martins Press for this advanced readers copy.

The Death Messenger is a police procedural with a bizarre serial killer sending videos of her kills. Ryan and O'Neil are the oddly matched set of British investigators who work well together despite all kinds of tensions between them. The book seems really well written and the characters well fleshed out. Yet, for some reason, it was a struggle to stay interested and to actually finish it. Might be worth another read later on.