This was by far the easiest 5 stars I’ve ever awarded a book. Time and time again, Angela not only proves herself as top of the class in crime fiction but an expert story teller.

It’s becoming a little insane as to just how much I anticipate a new DI Kim Stone book. ‘Fan Girl’ doesn’t quite cover the depth of devotion I have to Angela and her truly remarkable mind in developing such a wonderful series! Just knowing a new book is on its way, or about to be published is enough to set my world in a spin to (probably) the same extent that fans go crazy at gigs or buy up all of the paraphernalia from cult movies. The DI Kim Stone series is the cool aid in my world!

Onto the book itself... 14 books later (!) and Angie has maintained and finely honed this magnificent ability to come up with yet another very distinctive plot that is intensely researched and can serve as a stand-alone novel or part of the series.

This book is very gory, those of a weaker disposition may need extra reading time for ‘light relief’! That said, none of the gore is gratuitous, as bad as it is, all the ‘details’ serve a purpose and we are indulged with a wealth of historical, medical and factual data that only goes to prove just how much research must go into building a story like this!

Notable differences with book 14 were that it was actually more in-line with her earlier novels than the previous 3. In wrapping up the need for Kim’s backstory we are given alllllllll the treats: Easy banter between her and her team, a rekindling of friendship (albeit probably short lived) with Frost, a bit of limelight for both Stace and Penn to develop their individual traits and most importantly...
Barney time!

In terms of character interaction this book feels more relaxed and natural than book 13. I felt at times the humour between her and Bryant was a bit overkill and forced. Whereas in this book it just moulded into the plot a lot more seamlessly. I was also pleasantly surprised to see my hometown of Bristol pop up in Stone’s investigation.

As previously mentioned this book also rekindles the love/hate (or should I say ‘respectfully hate’?) relationship between Kim and Tracey. These two women are more alike than either would care to recognise and often find it more comfortable to dislike each other than admit that they might actually agree or hold the same values. In book 14 we are granted full access to Frost and her skilful ways of investigation. It allows her to open up more as a person and shows her for more than just a teeth baring, blood demanding journalist. Instead we see a determined, often career driven woman who’s not afraid to back down from doing what’s right - no matter the cost! After reading TWISTED LIES I’m finding myself wanting more of Frost. Not just for interaction with Kim which is often hilarious but because she’s a fascinating creature in her own right.

And this... is the crux of all that is the Kim Stone series. Yes I LOVE Kim but Angela Marsons has done so much more than deliver brilliantly written novels featuring a wicked lead female role. She’s created a whole world, a whole host of characters that are all so integral to the series no book could be without any of them. That, alone deserves a huge acknowledgement!

I go into the details of the book because I don’t want to spoil it for anyone that hasn’t read it yet. But I do want to express my extreme gratitude to NetGalley and Bookouture for providing me with a copy for my reading pleasure. And my warmest regards to Angie and her partner for, without them I wouldn’t have become the crazed fan I am today!

Twisted Lies is the 14th book in series, at this point in a series I have normally lost interest, the excitement you get when you pick up a new book in the series has long gone. But that’s not the case here, because once again Angela Marsons has written another stellar episode in the ‘Kim Stone’ series, it’s gripping, intense and just as compelling as previous books in this much loved series.

The plot follows two threads: there’s Kim’s investigation into a series of victims who are horrifically tortured prior to their deaths, and then there’s the upcoming retrial of an abusive husband who has killed his wife. The latter is being covered by Kim’s adversary and thorn in her side reporter Tracy Frost. Although Kim much to her dismay develops a grudging respect for Frost.  

 Another reason this series is such a success is the characters, the author has created a ‘real life’ team, that feel like old friends as the series has developed I’ve laughed and cried with them, been a witness to their troubles in their personal and working life’s, and felt their every emotion.

I love the camaraderie between the members of Kim’s team, the banter, the way they torment each other in a way that only close friends can, It’s the wisecracks between Kim and her team that add a dose of humour to counterbalance a dark and gristly plot. 

Twisted Lies is probably one of the darkest and most gruesome books in the series, just the way I like them, and I admit there were a couple of macabre scenes that made even me grimace! Gruesome crime scenes, a fast-paced investigation, a mystery steeped in suspense, Angela Marson has combined all the ingredients every crime thriller lover looks for in a read, mixed them up and created an exciting and gripping read that will keep the reader on tenterhooks. Highly recommend.

I want to express my sincere thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for an advanced copy of Twisted Lies in return for an honest review. This is the 14th book in the Detective Kim Stone series, and I have followed her career since the first book. This works well as an excellent standalone police procedural, and it has been a pleasure to see that the books have maintained their high quality. It has been a pleasure witnessing the professional and personal growth of the individual officers from the beginning. The team has learned to work well together. The author always manages to create new and unusual criminal cases.

There are several different series where the lead detective has suffered early traumatic events. Like Kim, they have experienced difficulty with interpersonal relationships but have developed superior detective skills and leadership. Angela Marsons has maintained her role as the leading writer in this category with her Detective Kim Stone series. When there is a new book in the series, I drop everything else to read it.

Kim and her team are investigating a series of horrendous torture scenes resulting in the victim's death. The unique, diabolical torture methods are disturbing to read and even worse to visualize. The crimes revolve around and are connected with Witness Protection, a subject the general public knows little about.

Another storyline involves Tracy Frost, a local journalist and an old foe of Kim. The reporter has appeared in previous books, and she and Kim have a long-time animosity. The conversations between the two are amusing and witty. Tracy is working on a series of articles about the upcoming retrial of a prominent and wealthy man. He is accused of murdering his wife after a history of horrible abuse that resulted in her hospitalization a number of times. She never laid charges out of fear of him and made excuses to doctors about the cause of her injuries. The defence team is planning to explain her long list of injuries due to clumsiness, and the man has hired a top-notch PR team to praise him and elevate his reputation. It looks like he will be found not guilty. Tracy is determined that his long-suffering and murdered wife will not be forgotten and that he will be brought to justice for his crimes, found guilty and punished. Tracy has every reason to be in fear of her life after some threatening incidents.

The biggest twist in the story comes in connection with Tracy's investigation as a journalist, and it was an unforeseen shocker that I never saw coming. Only the readers are aware of this twist. Amazing!

This was an excellent, suspenseful police procedural and is sure to entertain previous Detective Kim Stone fans and gain new fans who read this book. Recommended.

Wow! Buy your copy now!
A man is found tied to a rolling rack and slowly burned to death.
Someone is using extreme torture to kill seemingly unrelated people.
Kim is facing her worst case yet. With the help of her team, she discovers their burned man had entered the witness protection agency five years earlier- with his wife and two young sons. He testified against an organized crime gang - did they finally track down their snitch?
Stacey has been recommended for promotion - Kim and Woody feel she's ready.
Frost shadows Kim and Bryant - meeting with the family of a domestic violence victim. Trisha's husband had been arrested but granted a mistrial. The second trial about to start, Nick hired a PR firm to compel the public. Frost is determined to do something for Trisha, something to help remind the public she was a victim.
Fresh. Creative. Fast paced. Love the characters. Get it.

Twisted Lies is another utterly brilliant addition to the fabulous Kim Stone series and a novel once started you won't be able to put down.

The shocking discovery of a brutally tortured body is just the beginning of another case for Kim and the team as they try to come to grips with a complicated and gruesome series of events that will test them to their limits.

Loved the sub plot running along side with Journalist Tracy Frost researching the events and upandcoming retrial of barrister Nick Morley.

What can I say other than Angela Marsons has most certainly "DONE IT AGAIN" Absolutely LOVED it.
Full of catch your breath suspense, spine chilling tension and always such a joy to catch up with the wonderful team of Kim, DC Tracey Wood, DS Penn and Bryant.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for an ARC for my honest review.
Roll on book 15 - I CANNOT WAIT !!!

I'd been a big fan of the first ten or so Kim Stone books but then found that I was struggling to keep up with them. In this novel, a body is found on an industrial estate having been brutally tortured. I had initially enjoyed the relationships between the detectives but I find now the books rely too heavily on them and as I may have missed a couple this didn't really work as a stand alone thriller. I liked the idea of the crime taking place but there were too many central characters and I got too lost and ended up being unable to finish. Maybe one for diehard fans of the relationships between the detectives.

Angela Marsons has done it once again! She cannot fail with the Kim Stone books, yet another gripping, page turning instalment and I throughly enjoyed every second!

I am a huge fan of Angela Marsons and her Detective Kim Stone series. Her novels are some of my favourite of crime books to read. Twisted Lies is the newest book in the series and it did not disappoint. I absolutely loved it from start to finish. The plot was brilliant and it kept me guessing until the final chapters. I can't wait to read more from the author in the future!

I’ve been reading this series since the 1st book was released and I can’t believe this is the 14th book! This is my favourite book so far. Can’t recommend this series enough!

She’s gone and done it again!! Even though I know this lady knocks the ball out of the park so to speak, she still manages to amaze and astound me with her literary licence. I truly hope she never ceases to write about Kim Stone and her team!!! The ending... well let’s just say it’s not over just yet, and thank god for that!!

Angela Marsons is not the queen of crime thrillers. She is the jack, queen, king and ace of crime fiction. Not many authors can take their book series into double digits, but in Angela Marson's case I wouldn't mind if the series hits triple digits. What seems impossible is that one of the greatest characters of all times, Kim Stone, keeps on developing and growing.

The book itself is a classic Marsons. It keeps on delivering, and you can't stop reading it until the fantastic ending. The excellent slow-giving cliffhanger att the end means the next book will be something to look forward to in a way a child looks forward to Christmas day.

The main problem for a reviewer is that you don't want to give anything away from the story, because it is a masterpiece in itself, and you don't want to ruin even a teeny tiny bit of it by trying to explain it to potential readers. You don't want to ruin the read for the lucky soul who hasn't read it, and you don't want to butcher the story, because you know you can't write about it anywhere close to the way the author flawlessly puts the words on paper.

Another mesmerizing and riveting read! I find it insulting to even rate it giving between one to five stars, because how many stars should you give to the sun? This astonishing author's author never fails, and you just keep on yearning for more. Yes, please, I am ready.

You know that a crime fiction author is special when their 14th book in a series has you excited and eager to read it as soon as possible, and Angela Marsons and her character driven DI Kim Stone series is a favourite of mine. The secrets of the success of the series lies in the unforgettable Kim, socially inept, blunt and plain speaking, her mind focusing on whatever needs to be done. Her stellar police team is now operating like a well oiled machine, from Kim's partner, DS Bryant, and the recently married DC Stacey Wood, so good that Kim is advising her to go for DS, and the treasure that is DS Penn, little stands still as their characters are expertly developed. The darkness and pressure of their cases is alleviated by their banter, and with every book, Marsons focuses and researches themes that resonate with our contemporary realities.

It all starts with DCI Woodward shocking Kim by telling her she must let old foe, local journalist Tracy Frost, accompany her on the job, although she soon picks up that he has not lost his mind, and has an agenda. An agenda Kim comes to appreciate on a visit to reassure Penny Colgan, sister of 27 year old Trish Morley, abused and murdered by her human rights lawyer husband, Nick. However, with the upcoming retrial, it looks as if he is going to get away with it, having hired a PR firm that has the public believing the man is a saint. There is nothing the police can do, but a ferociously determined Tracy is prepared to do whatever it takes to balance the scales, to ensure he faces justice, despite the danger she finds herself in. There is a sickening serial killer on the loose, as Kim finds a nightmarish horror scene of a tortured dead man that she knows she will never be able to wipe from her mind. His family disappear, and the team are pushed to the limit as other murders of tortured victims are discovered.

One of the highlights of this addition is the grudging respect that Kim develops for Frost and the heavily researched articles on Trish that are slowly beginning to turn the tide of public opinion, a relationship that is cemented by Frost's love for Kim's dog, Barney. This is a dark, intense, and fast paced read with its short, snappy chapters, where the tension and suspense keeps the reader gripped right up to the last page. The twists and turns in this addition veer into unexpectedly shocking territory, and they simply illustrate just how good Marsons is as a crime writer, it is no accident she has an evergrowing army of fans. Many thanks to Bookouture for an ARC.

This book was once again a hit from the author. This book as also with the others in this series is filled with plenty of mystery and suspense. In addition, the author does a great job of weaving two themes through the storyline. This is a book which I would recommend to others. Looking for the next in this series.

Twisted Lies is the 14th book in Angela Marsons very popular Kim Stone series and unsurprisingly it's well up to Ms Marson's usual standards.

A homeless gentleman wanders into a warehouse ,following his nose thinking it's his lucky. Far from that what he finds is not quite what he was expecting Kim and the team are called to investigate the man's body he's discovered and see that the victim has been horribly tortured.
Kim is perplexed not only by the state of the body but also the reaction of the deceased's family when she notifies them,and even more so when they promptly disappear without trace.
Another dead torture victim is found and the investigation provides more questions than answers as it's obvious something very odd is going on in the background.

As always with this series the team dynamics play a big part in the story,as does Stone's relationship with her nemesis, local reporter Tracy Frost which evolves in unexpected ways in this book. Frost plays a bigger part in this book than usual, which I enjoyed and would like to see more of in future.
There's the usual banter between the characters,some very funny lines ,some extremely gruesome murders described in plenty of detail and the usual twists and turns that fans of this series are used to and enjoy.
Another great book in a great series.

After 14 books it must be hard to keep things fresh. I don’t have Ms. Marsons’ talent so it’s hard not to repeat myself reviewing these books. Kim Stone’s is one of my favorite series and I love the characters. All of them, including the secondary ones (like Keats, the cranky ME), are favorites. There is the usual character development (I loved how Stone and Frost get to know each other better in this one) but this time I must praise the story itself. It probably has two of the best twists in the series and they made perfect sense. The plot never lags and the murders are even more disturbing that usual. The side story in which Frost follows up on a case unrelated to the main one is also excellent and has one of the most unexpected twists I’ve ever read. I also enjoyed the fact that we get a lot of Barney in this one. There is a cliffhanger at the end that made me scream for the next one.
I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thank you, NetGalley/Bookouture!

My second time reading anything by Angie Marsons and despite there being a few bits that I had to skip past, it didn’t detract from the story. I enjoyed the banter between Stone and Frost which gave a sense of humour to what could have been a rather gruesome read otherwise. I have a few more of the series on my kindle and will eventually have the full lot read.

Another fast paced read . I enjoyed the story line with the reporter Frost and her investigation more than the senseless brutal murders of innocent people. It was ruthless how this individual had to torture people who truly did not have the information required. I am pretty sure after fifteen minutes one could have determined this. It just seemed over the top to endure what they did. It would be easier to understand if they were cold blooded killers themselves. It was educational to learn about the witness protection program and the people who are selected and those in law that have to protect them. Leanne is another Kim. Sometimes it hard to see yourself in someone else.

I have literally just finished reading this book and I’m sat with stinging eyes, a big smile on my face... and actually in shock at the mahoosive cliff hanger that Angie has left this book on!!
My words will never do any books from this series justice, but I’ll give it a go.

The thing I absolutely love about the Kim Stone series is how easy it is to just slot back in with the team and feel like I’m right in the middle of the investigations. The characters are just so brilliantly developed and I feel a real connection with each and every single one of them.

I love how Tracy Frost really shone in this instalment and the dynamic between her and Kim Stone is just absolutely bang on!

There’s a chat scene near the very end between Stacey and Kim, and the understanding and words from Kim just melted my heart. This girl is the toughest cookie ever, but has definitely got a warm heart underneath that hard exterior. Such a brilliantly written scene.

Not only does Angie have a fabulous core story around Kim throughout the book, but you also have brilliant sideline stories going on too with other characters. It’s just fabulously written!

Regarding the “technical jargon”, everything is explained so well that you know exactly what is going on, and it’s done in such a way that it just flows so brilliantly within the scene.

I just adore this series and feel like I’m “home” and amongst friends when I read them. So it is no surprise that this book gets a massive 5 stars!

It's hard to review a book like this, the fourteenth book in a series I really enjoy. I've kinda run out of ways to say that I love Angela's work and Kim Stone and all of the assorted other characters in these books. Angela's twitter username is writeangie because that's what I'm whispering to her on the reg.

You’ve done it again Angela Marsons (yes I know I wrote this at the beginning of every book of hers I review).

Twisted lies is the next book in the Kim Stone series and is gripping from the first page.

A body is found and so L and her team find themselves with a murderer to find, where will it lead them.
This book also lets us see more of Frost the dreaded newspaper reporter that drives Kim mad. I love the relationship between them and how they hate each other but respect each other a little too.

This book ends on a cliffhanger and I need to read the next one now!!

Great read, fabulous story line. Can’t wait for the next one.

Thank you