The Rule is a great novel with well-drawn characters and an engaging plot. I'm a fan of David Jackson and he has undoubtedly triumphed again.
This is such an emotional and thrilling story which drew me in from the start. Recommended!!

I love it when i find a new author and it’s thanks to authors that I read and follow, that like this one, I have found some amazing new to me authors.
Daniel is a big 22 year old man with the mind of a child. He is obsessed with Adam-9 a fictional action hero who saves people all the time against the baddies. So when his father, Scott inadvertently gets involved in a drug deal, Daniel comes to the rescue and accidentally kills the bad man.
Hannah is the detective leading the case of the man found chopped up in bin bags at the dump. She feels this case has been heaped on her in the hopes she will mess it up and it will be the departments excuse to get rid of her. As she closes in on the killer, Scott is going to desperate measures to keep his family safe. I will definitely be reading all this authors work.

#netgalley #therule

I have been a fan of David Jackson’s books for a while now and particularly enjoyed his Nathan Cody series and his recent stand alone, “The Resident,” so I was delighted to receive his latest for review.

Scott and Gemma Timpson live in a tower block with their son, Daniel. Daniel is an adult with learning difficulties who has a very placid nature but who is physically large, and his parents have always given him a rule which should never be broken, in order to keep him safe. When he accidentally kills someone, his parents worry that Daniel will be taken away, so they decide to cover up the crime. Covering up a murder though is no easy business and, before long, Scott finds himself under the scrutiny of those on both sides of the law.

This is a fast paced, interesting mystery, with great characters. Daniel is an absolute delight, and I really enjoyed the side story of the detective, Hannah, who has her own sacrifice to make in this excellent read. Highly recommended – if you do read and enjoy this, you will certainly love the Cody series. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.

A very impressive sophomore effort from David Jackson. Whilst reading his first book The Resident, I kept thinking - this is a great idea, but how the hell is he doing to drag this idea out for 300+ pages? I was pleasantly surprised and ended up loving the book. I had the same thought for The Rule and again, absolutely loved it. Except the ending.

When I read the premise, I thought this was a story about a mentally challenged young man that exacts murderous control over his parents. In actuality, it's the story of loving parents who will do anything to protect the son, who at 23, has the mental capacity of a child. Scott Timpson finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time. In a split second, his life changes and the snow ball effect almost rips apart his entire family.

I was completely engrossed in this book. From the very start, I was hooked albeit unsure where the story was going to go. Around every corner there was another surprise, with layers and layers of underlying stories that added even more to this epic story. Unfortunately, that ending was terrible! I never root for a happy ending, but after everything that happened I think it was earned. Also, 'The Rule' was broken many times throughout the book and I really dislike it as a title. Definitely doesn't suit.

Overall, another amazing story by David Jackson. I can't wait to read whatever he comes up with next.

**I received a free review copy from Serpent's Tail via Netgalley in exchange for honest unedited feedback.

What they say: Daniel is looking forward to his birthday. He wants pie and chips, a big chocolate cake, and a comic book starring his favourite superhero. And as long as he follows The Rule, nothing bad will happen. Daniel will be twenty-three next week. And he has no idea that he's about to kill a stranger. Daniel's parents know that their beloved and vulnerable son will be taken away. They know that Daniel didn't mean to hurt anyone, he just doesn't know his own strength. They dispose of the body. Isn't that what any loving parent would do? But as forces on both sides of the law begin to close in on them, they realise they have no option but to finish what they started. Even if it means that others will have to die... Because they'll do anything to protect Daniel. Even murder.

What I say: A great thriller, very enjoyable with well-drawn characters and an intriguing plot. A seemingly ordinary family pulled into a tricky situation. The writing flowed very well and I was kept intrigued as t what was going to happen next. I would recommend!

Great follow up to The Resident which starts from a 'What would you do in their shoes?' situation and develops into a twisting game pitting a good guy trying to do the best for his family against, well, a polar opposite family. There's a thread of humour throughout (I had thoughts of Lock, Stock and 2 smoking barrels at some points) and works at it's best when focussing on the family at it's heart, rather than the police trying to uncover what's going on. I raced through this - it keeps you page turning with an ending that does take one leap, but also feels real and right for the characters, especially Scott who's motivation was preservation over gain and for me that ending seemed right.

So how do you review The Rule by David Jackson?

Dark,
Humorous,
Pacy,
Twisty,
Full of one liners
Moral dilemmas raising,
Very well written.

Would be my best attempt but overall it is just a fantastic read that I thoroughly recommend

Daniel is 22 and has learning difficulties. He is strong - very strong and this means his parents had to come up with The Rule, so he can’t cause damage to anything or anyone.
When Daniel breaks The Rule, his parents, Scott and Gemma, make a decision to do anything to protect their son.

D.I. Hannah Washington hasn’t grieved properly for her daughter, Tilly. She still sometimes sees her daughter and can’t bring herself to let go. She feels as though she isn’t taken seriously at work and is being given all the mundane jobs because she has made some mistakes.

My goodness, what a thriller! I felt for Scott and Gemma, especially the lengths Scott had to go to. I loved Daniel’s character and wanted to mother him.
Hannah’s grief was written about in a sensitive way and I found myself drawn to her. This is an extremely tense story and I found it also played on my emotions. A riveting story that I couldn’t put down as I needed to know the outcome.

My thanks to NetGalley and Viper Books for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

Wow! What a book!

Daniel is a nearly 23 years old who has learning difficulties. Due to this he doesn’t realise his own strength so his parents have given him The Rule, to hopefully keep him out of any unwanted trouble. Sadly living in a rough estate, trouble never seems to be far away.

I absolutely adored Daniel’s character. He is so childlike and innocent and he will certainly tug on the readers heart strings. It’s definitely a story about how far you would go for your child. It leaves you with that burning question as to whether you would do the same as the characters within this story. I felt for Scott and Gemma, Daniel’s parents, more so as Scott’s decisions really aren’t the best which has them all facing danger.

Along with Daniel and his family, we have a detective working the case who is going through her own personal demons. It’s a good mix of good old detective work and a man doing his best to protect his family.

The Rule had me going through so many emotions of which by the end, I was a bit of an emotional wreck, which I wouldn’t have expected with this genre but Daniel really gets under your skin and you can’t help routing for him and his family. The story gets more tense as the danger to Daniel and his family ramp up. I can’t help but binge read this author’s books, they are so good and he has a great way of telling a story that grips hold and doesn’t let go. I thought The Rule was another enthralling and thrilling read that had me hanging off every word. Brilliant!

This was an interesting concept - how far would you go to protect your family? Turns out that Scott would go quite far. I did enjoy this, but it felt like many of the characters made dumb choice after dumb choice. It did keep me wanting to know what was going to happen to everyone, and there was a twist near the end that I did not see happening, but I felt that it dragged on at times, especially around the parts with the police.

I loved this! Dark, humorous and heartbreaking, The Rule explores how far parents will go to protect their child. Ordinary people forced into turmoil. Such brilliant characters and superbly plotted. This could be my favourite David Jackson book, so far - though it's a close call! Keep them coming.

An exciting twisting tale of a family with a vulnerable 23 year old son with the mind of an 8 year old. He’s over 6 foot and powerful so the no touch rule is designed to protect himself and others. An unfortunate meeting with a gangster in a lift leads to a fight and the son intervenes leads to the gangster’s death. The disposal of the body is rather gruesomely described and after the body parts are discovered in a local tip the murder is investigated by a D I with a history of her own. There’s an escalation of violence as the gangsters family seek revenge all building to a blood soaked climax and a shock clever result.

The Rule by David Jackson is a story about bad things happening to good people. The premise is simple, yet interesting and original, and the author spins it into a page turning thriller where none of the characters seems to be able to catch a break.
Daniel is looking forward to celebrating his birthday, but unlike most 23 year olds his plans include a chocolate caterpillar cake, a chip shop dinner and multiple issues of his favourite comic book. Despite his size and strength, Daniel is vulnerable, and when he and his dad encounter a local drug dealer in the lift of their building, things go very badly wrong. Daniel is so innocent that he has no idea of what he has done, or the consequences, but his father knows that neither the police nor the criminal gang the now dead man was affiliated with are likely to be understanding , so the race is on to cover up the truth.
The book moves at a fast pace, and I was entertained by the storytelling and the characters. The ending was satisfying, which I appreciated as I was not sure how the author would be able to leave the readers feeling like justice had been served.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

The rule is there to protect Daniel and to also protect people from Daniel. Now that Daniel broke that rule, everything is ruined.

Although Daniel has the mental age of an 8 year old, he is actually a large, strong 23 year old man who doesn’t know his own strength, so when a stranger picks on him it results in a lot of trouble. With the strangers dead body on their hands, Daniels parents know that if they speak the truth to the police their son will be taken away from them. How far are they willing to go to protect Daniel? And to what cost?

I can’t express enough how much I enjoyed this book! I thoroughly devoured it! I have been a fan of David Jackson’s work for a long time now and ‘The Rule’ has to be one of my favourites so far! Fantastic!

This book was an excellent page turner, it’s full of twists and turns that keeps you on the edge of your seat all the way through. The plot was fantastic, the characters were great and the style of writing was perfect. I literally couldn’t put it down and didn’t want it to end. The best book I have read all year. I’ll certainly be keeping my eye out for more by this author in the future. I will recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading this genre.
Thank you netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a honest review.

I really enjoyed #TheRule where tense writing kept me engaged and I couldn’t have guessed what the plot had in store. I really liked the characters, and hoped against hope for the underdogs who were just an ordinary family in a very scary situation.

I recommend this book if you like thrillers and will be looking for more from this author.

Thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher for my free advance copy in return for an unbiased review.

The Rule by David Jackson.

I read the superb ‘The Resident’ last year so when I saw David had a new book on Netgally I just had to read it and I'm delighted that I did.
Daniel is twenty-two and a vulnerable adult and Jackson explores how far would parents go to protect a child and for me to say more here would get into spoiler territory.
The story flows of the page and Jackson's writing is gripping the characters are well fleshed out and I felt a real connection with Daniels Father and just how far he would go to protect his child as he just keeps digging a bigger hole for himself.
To say I was captivated right from the start would be an understatement I found myself with the book in my hand every spare moment I had, this is yet another superb book from Mr. Jackson and one I feel I will see all round the poolside come the summer.

Gripping from the start-up to the end with enough twist to keep everyone happy.

I would like to thank both Netgalley and Serpent’s Tale for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Latest #Russelreads is THE RULE by David Jackson (
@ViperBooks, July 2021). I loved Jackson's previous book, THE RESIDENT, and while this one is utterly different in tone and focus, it retains that knack for unusual perspectives and twisting narrative that made the first book such a pleasure to read.

Daniel's birthday is coming up. Chippy-chips, and presents based around his favourite cartoon hero, he couldn't be happier. Daniel will be 23. His life is happy, as long as he doesn't break The Rule-- the one his dad had to institute when he realised his son had no idea of his own strength. But when his dad is threatened, and Daniel accidentally breaks The Rule, his life is turned upside down. His parents rush to hide an accidental crime, but as they do so, they realise its not just the police that could threaten their son.

This is a tough one to write about without giving too much away, but while I was initially a little nervous about Daniel as a character, that he could be portrayed as a little one note if the author wasn't careful, what delighted me was that he began to feel quite real and complex in his own way as the book went on, and he realised that the world beyond his flat was more complicated than he could ever realise.

Equally involving was the story of Daniel's father, faced with an impossible choice and trying so desperately to do the right thing. The question of responsibility for criminal actions is something that's not always questioned as deeply as it could be, and I think that The Rule makes a very good effort to explore how seemingly moral people can be forced by circumstance into making very poor decisions, marking the start of a downward spiral that can be very difficult to escape.

Its a surprisingly empathetic noir novel with a keen sense of its own characters, and the smarts not to cast a blanket morality over its characters, meaning that you can still sympathise with the "bad guys" and become frustrated with the protagonists for their attempts to justify certain actions.

All this, and it moves at a cracking pace too!

David Jackson's books are dark, smart, gripping stories with unusual perspectives and unexpected characters, meaning they stand out from the crowd. And let me tell you, now I've read this one... well, I'm looking forward to whatever moral mess his twisted mind can come up with next!

I got my copy of THE RULE from
@ViperBooks via @NetGalley. The book will be released in July this year.

I am becoming a fan of David Jackson’s writing. I read The Resident last year which I really enjoyed, and The Rule is another brilliant offering from the author.
22-year-old David has a mental age of a little boy. It’s his birthday next week and he wants fish and chips and a Caterpillar cake. His favourite superhero is Adam 9 and he has all his comics etc. David also a gentle giant who had unbelievable strength. Because of his strength and previous incidents David’s dad Scott has set a rule. But when one day when he is in a lift with his father, and they encounter with Joey Cobb, a local gangster who threatens Scott, David breaks that rule and ends up killing Joey. This incident starts a whole heap of events for Scott who tries to protect his son by getting rid of his body. But the body is found, and it is a race against time before the killer is found.
This is another brilliant book from David Jackson I could not get enough of it. This had a unique cleverly written story line, great characters, and plot, that had me hooked until the last page. I loved it. This is an author to watch. 5 stars from me.

Bit of an odd one to review this one...

Great plot, likeable characters and the storyline flowed quite smoothly.
It just felt like it was never going to end and I was jealously looking at all my other books, dying to get to them! It made me want to slump this into the DNF pile to be honest!

Which is rude really... given the above mentioned points about it actually being quite good! 😂

Quiet innocent family gets dragged in to what feels like gangster land... which of course leads to mishaps galore.
Enjoyable of you're in the mood for it (which I obviously wasn't I guess) 🤔