I haven't read the first book in the DI Eve Hunter series but Out For Blood does fill in the pieces somewhat so I didn't feel like I needed to apart from knowing the characters a bit better. I thought from the information about the previous book, the formula might be the same - lead detective gets taken hostage (or something similar) so I was pleased to see this storyline didn't go down that path. However, this novel seemed to cover the same trope that is used for most crime fiction. It would be nice to read a story of a detective that has a normal home life and a non-gruff chief, just for a change.

That said, the plot involved human trafficking and privilege/wealth which I found interesting. I would have like to have read more about what happened to the girls after everything was solved but I feel like it was left open on purpose......perhaps as the seque onto the next novel.

It was a quick and easy read and I appreciated the ARC.

This was an enjoyable police procedural and it accomplished all it aimed to do. The issue with this book is that it doesn't really do anything new or exciting. The story was good and i liked the character of DI Eve Hunter overall. The plot and action was quick and fast paced enough that i did not lose interest but the killer and the outcome was a bit too obvious for me and the outcome could have been done better.

Having enjoyed #1 - I was very much looking forward to reading this! Love the relationship developing with Eve Hunter and her colleagues! Two murders - both victims complete opposites, but we can rely on Hunter to get on top of things! Cannot wait for the next one.

Well written but lacks the tension of a normal crime thriller which was a shame.

I would have liked it to be faster paced, not a 'I couldn't put it down' kind of book.

With thanks to Netgalley and Random House U.K. A new author to me and a new detective although this is a second outing for DI Eve Hunter. I greatly enjoy crime/detective fiction and this is fast paced, tense and well plotted. Eve Hunter is an interesting detective- edgy, angry, and with a checkered professional record. It’s clear that there is a difficult history behind this team and this makes working relationships more tricky and trust fragile which brings its own tensions. Two bodies are found at the start, seemingly unlinked. Early scenes of post mortem are explicit whilst retaining humanity - the scarred, branded and brutalised body of a young girl lies before them and shocks both the detective and the reader. I really enjoyed this book -it is that book which entirely distracts you, stops you listening to conversations and finds you postponing other tasks. There’s an almost physical feeling of the urgency of solving this and achieving justice. Although this book does not require you to have read the first Eve Hunter, I think it would be more difficult to read the preceding novel after this one. Fantastic read - I hope Eve Hunter returns soon!

I read the first Eve Hunter book in the series and wasn't sure what to expect from this one . This book didn't dissapppoint I read it in one sitting . Another brilliant story byDeborah Masson and a great case for Eve Hunter , this story was gripping but very realistic to what is happening today in society . The dynamics between Hunter and her colleagues,Cooper,Mearns and Ferguson get better and better . Can't wait for the next one

My thanks to NetGalley and publisher Random House UK - Transworld Publishers, for the ARC.

This is book #2 of the DI Eve Hunter series; I thoroughly enjoyed Book #1 - Hold Your Tongue, but I have to say that I was a little disappointed with this one. I still liked the way Eve and her team interact and work together, but felt overall that the whole investigation seemed to run around in circles and didn't seem to be believable.

A young woman's bedraggled body is discovered hanging from trees on the edge of a golf course - it appears to be a suicide but something about the scene doesn't seem right.
IT consultant Dean Johnstone is found murdered on the floor of his plush executive apartment.

Three sons of three prominent Aberdeen businessmen, friends since their schooldays at Heritage School for Boys - Andrew Shirriffs who committed suicide one year earlier; Dean Johnstone now found murdered, and Finn Miller who seems to have dropped off the map. Eve and her team determine to find the connection between all three - is Finn in some kind of danger?

The story takes us into the realms of human trafficking for prostitution, drugs and the power of the wealthy to indulge in anything - legal or not, against the powerlessness of the young girls involved - their intolerable lives as modern sex slaves.

As said, I don't think the plot was that well-thought out in this book and the investigation seemed to rely on a lot of hunches and conjecture. But I enjoyed catching up with Eve and her team.

I am offering this review having only read 50%. The formatting is so distracting, it is robbing me of my pleasure in reading this, the second of the .author's books. I WILL buy a copy once it is released as I stated in my Goodreads review on her first book.

A couple of murders almost immediately and insight into modern slavery.... Deborah Masson does not fail to give readers value for money when it comes to murder mystery. A follow on from her first published book, this story does not disappoint. The second in a series that I sincerely hope has many to follow. This could be read as a standalone but with only one book before it, why would you? I look forward to the next.

This book returns to DI Eve Hunter and her crime team, based in Aberdeen. They are investigating the murder of a privileged young man from a rich and highly regarded family. It has links to an apparent suicide of a young unknown woman, her body found hanging from a tree on a golf course.

This had all the elements of another 4/5 star novel, as the author’s first title was. But this one didn’t quite live up to its promise. It is well written, but it lacks the edge-of-the-seat tension which I expected. It does not have the same unputdownable quality as the first book. I was disappointed by this one, particularly by the ending, which was overly contrived and seemed rushed.

The plotting is all over the place, and there is a lack of character development. If the reader hadn’t read the first book which set the scene and the characters in the investigating team, I suspect they might be a bit bemused as to some of their actions and comments.
Whilst the central theme of human trafficking is very current, the means by which this was purportedly exploited, and by whom, I felt was implausible. Aberdeen is a small insular city, and events on such a scale happening so frequently, would not go unnoticed for long. (I lived there for a long time, until recently.)
My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my advance copy of this title in return for my honest review.

This is the first book I’ve read featuring DI Eve Hunter but it won’t be the last. She and her team are investigating two cases: the death of a businessman’s son in an apartment in Aberdeen, and the body of a young woman found hanging. There are people that Eve shouldn’t upset, but all she wants is the truth. Battling against their own personal issues and the residue of previous cases, plus a group of people who are less than forthcoming with being helpful and catching who is responsible. I love Eve; she is flawed and funny but a really hard worker and keen to do her best.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for this ARC.

I really enjoyed this book and found it to be a great read. The subject matter is current and it was thrilling, full of suspense and had many twists and turns, most I didn’t expect. The characters are really growing on me, both as a team working together and as individuals. DI Hunter and her team investigate two murders and quickly realise that all is not as it seems and not everyone is being honest during their investigations. I thought the book was very well written, it was engaging and held my attention from start to finish. The last 25% of the book was a fab and very tense read that tied all loose ends up nicely. The subject matter - people trafficking - is very current. Overall a great second police procedural and I look forward to the next book. Highly recommended.

And she's done it again I loved loved loved this book. With any series there's always the anxiety that the second won't be as good as the first but she smashed it and her greatest continues!

Was great to see what Eve and her team had been up to since the last case and I would recommend that book one be read first so you can enjoy the book to it's fullest! (just my opinion)

This one has me gripped from start to finish I couldn't put it down, a real true edge of your seat crime thriller and I loved seeing how the characters have developed since the last book.

Defiantly in my top ten of 2020! Can't wait for more!

I really enjoyed this second book by Deborah Masson. DI Eve Hunter and her team have two murders to investigate. The links between them are woven into the overall plot. Out For Blood is a well written police procedural with a pacy plot and characters you want to hang out with. Highly recommended.

The body of young man is found in his apartment, at the same time the body of a young women is found hanging in an apparent suicide. DI Eve Hunter and her team quickly conclude that neither case is as straight forward as they appear. The cases intertwine and Hunter comes up against the old boys system of power, privilege and private education contrasting with the human trafficking that underlines both deaths. I thought Masson accurately portrayed the effects of inherited wealth and reputation with the younger men, seemingly destined to repeat their fathers mistakes. We see the fall out when people are protected from consequences because of some misguided notion of importance. The contrast with Andreea, the descriptions of the girls and how they were being treated as bodies not people was shocking, how easy it was for them to be controlled through fear. As the story builds and the links between the cases get revealed we find out more about Hunter and the other officers, glimpses in to their personal lives and their working relationships which leads Hunter into a dangerous situation. The ending is not quite what I expected. The secrets go further back and the flashbacks are not quite what I thought they were. A cleverly woven plot, I can't wait to read more about DI Eve Hunter.

Another addictive DI Hunter read from Deborah Masson!

Masson is the master of drip feeding clues and notching up tension. I raced through it!

This is my second DI Hunter book and it was brilliant to rejoin the team on two new murders. Masson is now officially my go to author for gripping police procedural reads.

This book is great. It twists and turns in a great way. DI Eve Hunter and her team have to investigate the death of a young man in strange circumstances in his flat and then their next case is that of a young woman found hanging on a Aberdeen golf course. This happens too quickly and they have to run both investigations together. Are the two cases connected. Yes they are. They eventually find that the young man went to a private school where another of his friends had passed again the year before and this sets the ball rolling to establish how the elite like to maintain distance and secrecy. It transpires that there is an illegal trafficking ring working in the area and also that the parents of the boys who died are all connected too and that is to do with the school where they met. The boys abuse their privilege as did their fathers and this culminates in a drama which causes a terrible situation for East European girls who are shipped into the UK and are very young. Eventually DI Eve Hunter and her team work their way around the homicides. I must say I did not see the ending coming as it did which, as I have said before, makes for a great read. Really enjoyed this story. I also liked the team under DI Hunter and could visualise their personalities really quite well

This is the second DI Eve Hunter crime novel. In this one, her team investigates the murder of Dean Johnstone a twenty five year old IT consultant who comes from a privileged and wealthy background. They are also summoned to a golf course for a possible suicide of a young woman. If you like your police procedurals gritty then you’ll enjoy this series set in the granite city of Aberdeen.

This is another well written novel that draws you into the storytelling. The plot is plausible and the pace is fast. The characters in the investigative team are great - there’s Eve, rash, dogged, fearless with a temper, you’ll definitely want her in your corner. She is all the more interesting because she’s flawed. DS Mark Cooper is a perfect side kick for Eve and I like how in this one we get a more personal side to him with a glimpse at family life which is never easy for a copper. Then there’s hardworking DC Jo Mearns and the growing on you DS Scott Ferguson who is definitely having his more arrogant edges rubbed off! It’s a really good team whose personalities compliment each other. This case is very dark and explores relevant issues such as trafficking for sex workers and also how powerful people can cruelly control others right from school days and with the right connections can get away with far too much. The author captures emotions extremely well especially of trafficked Andreea. It’s a story full of twists and turns as the original investigation grows bigger and more widespread. My only reservation is the ending which I fully appreciate is leading up to this but it feels a bit contrived although it can’t be denied it makes for exciting reading.

Overall, another winner from Deborah Masson. I love Eve’s character and so I hope number three is well under way!

With thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House UK, Transworld (Corgi) for the ARC.

I do like a good police procedural and this is a good police procedural! Set in Aberdeen - centre of the Scottish oil and gas industry and all the wealth and skulduggery that goes with it, the book describes two murders and the machinations involved in solving them. DI Eve Hunter, still under close supervision after the drama of the previous book is in charge of the team. Her fellow officers are all well defined and characterised, as is Eve herself, and the varied cast of nasties and victims who populate the book. The underlying themes of grooming, trafficking and enforced prostitution are cleverly woven into the story and explored with empathy and sensitivity. The action dragged a little at times and some of the detail of personalities and personal problems seemed to be superfluous, but there was more than enough to keep the reader engaged and the ending was a real cracker, unexpected and riveting until the final word!

Having read the previous book this one was no disappointment! Enjoyed it from start to finish, Love the characters but could do with a little more meat on the bones. Have no idea what any of the characters really look like and don’t get a feel for the granite city. Do like to know whether I’m imagining tall, short, thin, fat, blonde, brunette people plus a picture of their surroundings! That said., it was a good read!

I really enjoyed this second book with DI Eve. I read the first book hold your tongue & loved it also. The chapters were nice and short, some of the characters were hard to know who was who but I think that was my issue and the story flowed nicely. It does reference back to some bits from the first book but you could read this as a stand alone if you wanted to. Two people are found dead with suspicious circumstances & DI Eve Hunter takes on the two cases to prove herself after the first book drama. It's a tug of war between poverty & privileges and the people at the top have had power for too long