A sound start to this Stockholm set series, which sees protagonist Ellie giving up her London life, for new Nordic adventures with her boyfriend Johan. You will find yourself easily lost among the pages as the story wraps itself around you and holds you in a bear hug that will only end when you finish.

Really enjoyed the premise of someone trying to find the truth when separated from all that is familiar. Good, fast paced storytelling

Behind Blue Eyes is the first book I have read by this author and hope to read more in the future!!

In this story, we find investigative reporter Ellie has just moved to Sweden to be with the man she loves only to stumble upon a half decomposed skeleton. As she dives into the investigation she is at a disadvantage as she does not speak the language and does not know anyone except John. However, the more she investigates she starts to realize John may know more than he is telling about this murder.

A very well written psychological thriller with enough twists to keep you guessing until the very end. Well done!

A small group of friends, and the outsider who wants to know the truth. Moving somewhere new for the person you love, no big deal right? Except their friends don't seem to like you, you can't really speak the language, and then you find a skeleton. I love Ellie and her determination to find the truth. I was definitely trying to guess who the killer was right up until the reveal. A great mystery/thriller for those who enjoy the genre.

Ellie’s boyfriend, Johan, is perfect. He’s caring, thoughtful and he has a body that Adonis would be jealous of and he adores Ellie. Ellie adores him back but not his friends so much. Having moved to Johan’s hometown in Sweden, Ellie is struggling to settle in as she doesn’t understand the language or know anyone but she soon finds an ‘Outsiders’ club that consists of other incomers to Sweden. Things start to get better but when Ellie finds a body floating in the water near Johan’s friends’ home she begins to question everything and everyone she knows.

This is a highly readable book with a great, fast flowing storyline and characters that are interesting and true. Ellie is definitely my favourite, she is portrayed as being very human with insecurities and flaws that other readers would instantly recognise. Though I wouldn’t describe it as the deepest novel I’ve read, I really enjoyed it nonetheless.

Many thanks to BooksGoSocial and NetGalley for allowing me to read this book. All opinions are my unbiased and my own.

The first book I have read by Claire Duffy, and I really enjoyed it. A good deal of suspense, the sense of being isolated away from all that’s familiar, and the perfect new man who you’re beginning to think might not be perfect after all. Highly recommended.

Our story begins with Ellie, who is an investigative reporter flung into a murder investigation where she doesn’t speak their language and cooperate correctly. The only person she knows is Johan, the man she believes to be the love of her life. She begins to question Johan and her belief in him begins to wane. She starts to wonders if he is telling her the whole truth. I found myself really enjoying this book, especially the setting. This novel is full of lots of secrets and surprises. I definitely recommend it 2 lovers of thriller and mystery novels.

I would like to thank C.S. Duffy, BooksGoSocial Publishing and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I really enjoyed this murder mystery by Claire Duffy and thought that the mystery was well put together and strung throughout the novel.

This was my first book by Claire Duffy and as this is a first in a series I think it probabaly won't be my last. The book was well written and it grabbed my attention throughout, which I had to admit I was suprised about. There were some rough bits int he books but overall it was a good read.

Really enjoyed this novel So well written so engaging full of twists and turns looking forward to more from this author more with Ellie woud be perfect #netgalley#behindblueeyes

This was a very engrossing and suspenseful book! I was in the edge of my seat throughout the entire story. I did not see a few of the twists coming and was quite surprised.

Erfrischend anders, tolle Charaktere und ein Sprachstil, der Lust macht auf mehr...
Perfect life, perfect man, perfect book!

I received a complimentary copy of this book through Netgalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Ellie James is a journalist who leaves everything she knows in London to move in with her boyfriend Johan in Sweden. She feels isolated, not able to speak the language, and his small group of friends aren't exactly welcoming her. At a party, she wanders off, only to discover a body on an isolated beach...a woman that Johan was dating when she disappeared. The initial investigation was that it was accidental, but everyone suspects that Johan is her murderer, even his own family. Ellie sets out on a quest to clear his name and discover the truth.
This is a fast paced thriller and I couldn't wait to find out what happened next. Just when I thought I had it solved there was a new twist!

Overall, I really like this book. The first few chapters were good, then slowed for me. I was intrigued by the main character, Ellie, though and wanted to know more about her situation. I'm glad I stuck with the book because it turned out to be a good story. I will rad more from Ms. Duffy.

Where many other crime novels fall flat with unrealistic protagonists, Behind Blue Eyes excels.

Ellie is a likeable and decidedly ordinary character. She is intimidated by the beauty and ease of Swedish women and often compares the informality of her previous life with the stoic attitude and confidence of her new Swedish community. This 'ordinariness' is one of the great draw cards of Behind Blue Eyes. As the first of a series, Ellie's character is relatable with a lot of room to grow. She is realistic, reasonable, and level-headed.

As far as murder mysteries go, Behind Blue Eyes is a reasonably unique entry to the genre. The novel is a great combination of 'The Journalist Detective" and Scandinavian Crime. Duffy has imbued her novel with both the crisp and suspenseful atmosphere of the Swedish Crime novel and the sly and smart characters Journalist Detective stories.

If you're after a chilling mystery where everybody's a suspect, Duffy's Behind Blue Eyes is the book you better pick up.

A really good interesting read, well written and well developed story.
A good psychological thriller with action and suspense.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book

A great novel, beautiful depiction of the characters with some tense moments thrown into the mix. Will definitely pick more books by this talented author.

This was an advanced copy from netgalley - many thanks

LOVED this !

This is not my usual genre but thanks to netgalley I am really getting into them

The story was engaging but easy to follow - a great read.

Well written thriller - great characters - wonderful twists and turns and for once, kept me guessing right to the end - can't say better than that

Can't recommend highly enough - I will certainly be searching out more of this author

This is the first in a series and I look forward to reading another. Ellie, an investigative reporter, leaves England and moves to Sweden to be with her lover, even though she has no job lined up and no knowledge of the Swedish language or culture. Oh Ellie, what we do for love. So what does Ellie do, well she finds s decomposed body/skeleton and off we go on a case! Well written characters and Ellie is a joy - full of black humor, knows her job and how to do it with her eyes closed. Which they are, when it comes to her dream man, With the current interest in Scandinavian noir and psychological thrillers this series could go on forever.

This is the first book I've read by C.S. Duffy and what a read it was!

"Behind Blue Eyes" is the first in the 'Stockholm Murders' series, and it had a soupçon of Scandi noir to it. Utterly compelling, intriguing and mysterious, I was hooked from the very beginning.

The story centres on Ellie James, an investigative reporter from London, who moves to Sweden after an intense, whirlwind romance with her true love, Johan. The author, C. S. Duffy's descriptions of Stockholm were beautifully written and the setting was refreshing and vibrant, though there was a dark netherworld alluded to as well, adding to the tone of the tale.

The story is told from Ellie's viewpoint with smaller chapters from the killer. "Behind Blue Eyes" was immensely thrilling, thought-provoking and tense. Dashes of humour broke down the tension only for it to soar again a few minutes later. I loved the many cover ups that effected all of the twists and turns.

This was an extremely worthwhile read, very suspenseful and filled with secrets, lies and so many surprises that kept me glued and held me there until the final revelation.

I'm looking forward to the next book now, and I will be following this 'new to me' author.