Cover Image: Unforgiven

Unforgiven

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Member Reviews

What a great read! I really enjoyed this one from the start and found it hard to put down. It’s been sitting on my shelf for a while, I should’ve got to it earlier. Great, strong female characters and a fast paced plot, it’d make an excellent TV show. The subject matter focused on a paedophile serial killer is a difficult one but handled well. I’ll read the next in the series soon!

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*5 Stars*

Copy kindly received via NetGalley for an honest review.

Wow! This book had me absolutely hooked right from the start! I really enjoyed learning Lexie's story, and the different POV's with her, Rachael and Finn. Normally multiple POV's like that annoy me, but this was done really well.

This case was very very intriguing and also disturbing. Lots of details woven in and out, past and present, and a bunch of turns I didn't see coming. There were secondary characters I truly loathed (oh hey Turner) and ones I truly loved (can we get a round of applause for Dawny? Oh and I hope to see her in future books please!).

Lexie is a really strong characters with some vulnerability underneath. She's been through a lot in her life and she's a very interesting person but with dogged determination. I love the way things played out for her in this book, and I'm already diving into the next.

New favourite series right here. Highly recommend.

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I love Sarah Barrie's suspense novels and Unforgiven (#1 in the Lexi Winter series) was no exception. This story delves into the dark world of child predators and really gets under your skin. Lexi is a survivor of childhood abuse and uses her advanced computer hacking skills to lure child predators into the open in order to see revenge and save other children's lives. I couldn't put this book down and look forward to #2. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital copy.

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Book blurb…

Once a victim, she's now a vigilante. An addictive and suspenseful thriller for readers of Candice Fox and Sarah Bailey.
Lexi Winter is tough, street-smart and has stood on her own two feet since childhood, when she was a victim of notorious paedophile the Spider. All she cares about now is a roof over her head and her long-term relationship with Johnny Walker. She isn't particular about who she sleeps with ... as long as they pay before leaving.
Lexi is also an ace hacker, tracking and entrapping local paedophiles and reporting them to the cops. When she finds a particularly dangerous paedophile who the police can't touch, she decides to gather enough evidence to put him away. Instead, she's a witness to his death ...
Detective Inspector Rachael Langley is the cop who cracked the Spider case, 18 years earlier - but failed to protect Lexi. Now a man claiming to be the real Spider is emulating his murderous acts, and Rachael is under pressure from government, media and her police colleagues. Did she get it wrong all those years ago, or is this killer is a copycat?
Lexi and Rachael cross paths at last, the Spider in their sights ... but they may be too late ...

My thoughts…

A terrific storyteller. This plot is full of suspense. The subject matter (paedophiles) is a little confronting at times but well handled and cleverly told by the author.

Lexi is a very strong character (love a survivor story) who has endured at the hands of a trusted family friend and now spends most of her time trying to right the wrongs by undertaking her own investigations. When a new case with familiar ties to her past comes along, she joins forces with the law and discards her trust issues to help save a child.

Great plot and a well written story. Five stars.

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Lexie was once a victim of the notorious paedophile the Spider but now she’s a vigilante anonymously tracking down paedophiles and reporting them to the police.

18 years after Detective Inspector Rachael Langley who originally captured the Spider receives a call telling her that she got it wrong, that she never captured the real Spider. Rachael begins questioning herself. Did she get it wrong all those years ago?

Lexi is reluctantly brought into the investigation by Rachael to help track down and capture the murderer before it’s too late.

Unforgiven is Aussie writer Sarah Barrie’s latest novel and all I can say is WOW WOW WOW and please let this be a series! What an amazing character Lexi is. She projects this tough character but we get to see her vulnerable, tough and humorous side.

Add in the mysterious older neighbour Dawney (who made me laugh out loud) and her “friend” Desmond, DI Rachael and Detective Finn you have a great list of side characters which make a story that I could not put down.

While this book was an absolute 5 star read for me please check the TW’s before picking this book up as it has crimes against children and I found it a hard read in certain sections.

Don’t miss out on adding this to your TBR!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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From a young age, Lexi Winter had been made to stand on her own two feet and she was someone you wouldn’t want to get on the wrong side of that’s for sure. Lexi knew how it felt to feel unloved as she had lived on the streets and been abused, but all of that only made her a tougher person.

Lexi is a character that drew me into the storyline straight away and as I turned each page and I was nearing the end, I was so intrigued to know how this book would finish and I can honestly say I wasn’t disappointed. Aussie author Sarah Barrie has done an excellent job in writing and creating a character like Lexi and I’m hoping this won’t be the last we see of her. With thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for my digital copy to read and review. Highly recommended.

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Thanks to Netgalley for a copy of this book for an honest review.

Another great book by Sarah Barrie!! As much as I loved getting to know Lexi and Finn, I'm hoping Dawny makes an appearance in any future books to what could be an amazing series.

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Unforgiven wasn't at times an easy read, based as it is around themes of historical child abuse and organised paedophile rings. However, Sarah Barrie has undeniably created an unflinchingly gritty and compulsively readable crime-thriller. Readers who, like myself, don't mind some darkness and confronting themes in their crime fiction, will find Unforgiven difficult to put down once started.

The style of Unforgiven is quite distinct from earlier works of hers that I've previously read, which sit in the romantic-thriller subgenre (the Calico Mountain trilogy).

The story opens with Lexi Winter, a tough loner who struggles with alcohol abuse and other risk-taking behaviours as she tries to reconcile herself with her horrific past. On this particular morning, Lexi has a more immediate issue - the body of a man named Jonathan Davies is outside her Central Coast (NSW) unit, in the boot of her car...

As the narrative unfolds, we learn more about Lexi's disjointed life as an occasional sex worker and her personal crusade hunting child sex predators online.

Meanwhile, Detective Inspector Rachael Langley maintains a demanding career as a member of the State Crime Command's Homicide Unit. Despite her significant professional achievements over the years, notably in bringing notorious serial child murderer Thomas "The Spider" Biddle to justice, she remains haunted by her role in a child abuse case early in her career. When she receives a frightening phone call while enjoying a romantic dinner with her partner, Homicide Commander Superintendent Ed O'Hanlon, Rachael's attention is immediately drawn back to the investigation that defined her career. The stakes are raised when a child is found murdered in Gosford, the body staged in a way that seems to mirror the crimes of Thomas Biddle twenty years previously.

As Rachael's team heads to Gosford to investigate, Lexi comes to rely on the unlikely assistance of her neighbour Dawny in dealing with the little problem in her car boot. This storyline gives rise to many welcome moments of black humour as Lexi scrambles to stay barely one step ahead of authorities investigating Davies' disappearance.

The parallel storylines converge as our two very different heroines join forces to identify a cunning killer and desperately strive to prevent more children falling victim to a vicious web of paedophiles active on the Central Coast.

Sarah Barrie's plotting is well-paced and complex, without ever becoming convoluted, maintaining the reader's interest in both parallel storylines and skilfully using foreshadowing and the drip-feeding of historical details to maintain suspense. Both female main characters are well-conceived and convincing, the attitudes and behaviour of the highly intelligent but damaged Lexi providing an intriguing foil to Rachael's more orthodox police perspective.

Unforgiven raises some confronting moral questions about seeking vengeance for past wrongs, vigilante justice and the grey areas in the criminal justice system. However, it's hard not to cheer for a character who leverages her own appalling past experiences into a quest for moral (if not strictly legal) justice on behalf of others.

I found Unforgiven compulsively readable, despite its dark subject matter, and look forward to reading Sarah Barrie's future work in the competitive Aussie Noir genre - she's up there with the best! Substantial trigger warnings notwithstanding, I'd wholeheartedly recommend Unforgiven to any reader who loves gritty crime fiction in a contemporary setting. Readers who enjoy Candice Fox, Val McDermid and Stuart MacBride will gobble this one up - and those are not associations I bestow lightly!

My sincere thanks to the author, Sarah Barrie, publisher Harlequin Australia, HQ Fiction and MIRA, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this fabulous new title.

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Unforgiven by Sarah Barrie.

A gritty crime thriller that follows Lexi, a female vigilante who takes on the underworld of paedophiles in her area. Lexi has had an very sad upbringing and chooses to to fight it head on.

I could not put this book down, although it tackles some very confronting issues, it does so in a delicate way.

I cannot wait to hook in other Sarah Barrie books.

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Once a victim, now she is a vigilante. Lexi is delving into the computer and finding some of the monsters who hurt children. Lexi was hurt as a child but a police officer helped her.
But now the monsters are back and they join forces.
Wow this is one of the best books I have read this year. Excellent.

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*5 Stars*

ARC kindly received via NetGalley for an honest review.

This was a really interesting read. There were great characters. The book had me thinking what was going to happen, and to who. Parts of the ending were good and some had you thinking.

Definitely recommend.

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From page one, I was all in, and this page turner didn't let up. I definitely recommend it, I have read other Sarah Barrie books, and will continue to seek out her books. Great, real characters, and storyline!

Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Wow! Unforgiven sure packs a punch! The shock impact in the prologue hooked me right away and from that moment I was reading it every chance I could get. This is definitely not a book for the faint-hearted and if child abuse or family violence are triggers for you then it’s best avoided. If not, well can I just say this is one of the best books I’ve read recently. It’s gripping, filled with plot twists right to the very end and packed with brilliantly crafted characters. This book had me up reading at 4.00am because I just had to know how it ended. I can’t recommend it highly enough.

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After reading just the first paragraph of this book I was hooked!
Lexi is a prostitute/escort who earns enough to keep herself afloat, but having grown up on the streets after a traumatic childhood, she is feisty and independent. During her own time, she cyberstalks paedophiles and tries to bring them down. After being caught in the wrong place, at the wrong time, Lexi finds herself a person of interest to the police and they are getting far too close for comfort as far as she is concerned.
The downside of the book, which is also its strength is the content is heavily based on child abuse and paedophilia. For some, this will make it a most unpleasant read.
Having said that, the story is told with a good dose of humour (without detracting from the seriousness of the. content) and wonderful characters.
I can highly recommend this book! Thank you Harelquin Australia, HQ &MIRA, and netgalley for the opportunity to read this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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Unforgiven is a compelling, gritty thriller from Australian bestselling author, Sarah Barrie.

When the body of a young girl dressed in a mermaid costume is discovered among bushland on the central coast of NSW, doubt is thrown on the conviction and imprisonment of serial killer and paedophile, Thomas Biddle aka The Spider. Lexi Winter has no such doubts, as a victim of Biddle and his paedophile network which included her own parents, she has never forgotten the man who orchestrated her abuse. Determined to prove the latest murder is the work of a copycat, Lexi is reluctantly reunited with Detective Inspector Rachael Langley, who arrested Biddle 18 years ago.

Offering plenty of tense moments, Unforgiven offers a well crafted, fast paced plot. I was caught up in the hunt for the murderous ‘copycat’ as Rachael and Lexi, along with Lexi’s younger sister Bailee, and the members of the task force, work together to expose the truth and prevent the death of any more innocent children.

I liked Lexi a lot, she’s a complex character, essentially a functional alcoholic, who makes her living as an escort. Hardened by her life experiences she is a survivor, tough, resourceful, and sometimes reckless, but also not without her vulnerabilities. It’s brave of Lexi to become involved in the ‘copycat’ case, given both her past, and present (which includes a dead man in her boot), and her general antipathy for authority.

There’s an interesting backstory between Lexi and Rachael which results in tension between the two women that also spills over into Lexi’s relationship another detective on the case who happens to be Rachael’s nephew, Finn Carson. I found both Rachael and Finn to be appealing characters, and I really liked their dynamic with Lexi.

Though Unforgiven deals with the grim subject of child abuse, there is unexpected levity to be found in Lexi’s sarcastic wit, and the behaviour of her remarkably helpful neighbour, Dawny.

Unforgiven is a terrific, riveting read, I’m left with the impression that there will be more books featuring Lexi and her role as a police consultant in the future, and I really hope there will be.

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Wow! Sarah Barries writing has matured so much in this latest offering.
I have read quite a few of her other books and have found them all gripping and fast paced.
In this one she takes it up another notch.

Lexie is a tough streetwise character who is trying hard to prevent other little girls from suffering the same fate that she was subjected to in her childhood.

Detective Rachael Langley failed to protect Lexi when she was a child. Can they form a team to crack the hidden character The Spider portrays.

This is a suspenseful thriller for fans of Sarah Bailey and Candice Fox.
I couldn't put it down.

Thanks to Netgalley and HQ Fiction for an advance reading copy.
Loved it.

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Let me just start by saying that this book hooked me from page one and left me wanting more by the time I reached the end.

Once a victim, she's now a vigilante. Lexi Winter is as tough as they get, she’s had to stand on her own two feet and when a man claiming to be the Spider, a case that Detective Inspector Rachael Langley cracked 18 years ago things are sent into doubt. Did she get it wrong all those years ago, or is this killer is a copycat?

With a cast of interesting characters Lexi was definitely a standout, I loved her engagement with people, there was one particular police officer she didn’t bother mixing her words with and I just loved the interaction between them.

I’d love to find out more about Dawny and Desmond, I think their past and future would make for a great story.

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EXCERPT: On the edge of oblivion, images drift through the fog of my mind and hold, refusing to let go. Last night. The very dreamy Jonathan Davies of the chiselled features, stunning baby blues and long, dark lashes. A tall, muscular powerhouse, precision toned and sculpted to be appreciated. So commanding, so sure of himself. The images form into a memory and I groan in resignation.

'Shit'. I have to get up. His body is still in the boot.

ABOUT 'UNFORGIVEN': Lexi Winter is tough, street-smart and has stood on her own two feet since childhood, when she was a victim of notorious paedophile the Spider. All she cares about now is a roof over her head and her long-term relationship with Johnny Walker. She isn't particular about who she sleeps with ... as long as they pay before leaving.

Lexi is also an ace hacker, tracking and entrapping local paedophiles and reporting them to the cops. When she finds a particularly dangerous paedophile who the police can't touch, she decides to gather enough evidence to put him away. Instead, she's a witness to his death ...

Detective Inspector Rachael Langley is the cop who cracked the Spider case, 18 years earlier - but failed to protect Lexi. Now a man claiming to be the real Spider is emulating his murderous acts, and Rachael is under pressure from government, media and her police colleagues. Did she get it wrong all those years ago, or is this killer is a copycat?

Lexi and Rachael cross paths at last, the Spider in their sights ... but they may be too late ...

MY THOUGHTS: Absolutely brilliant! Unforgiven was an overnight read for me. I just didn't want to put it down.

Unforgiven is a fast-paced thriller detailing the devious workings of a group of paedophiles (Please note: there are no graphic details) and how difficult the police find it to catch up with those involved when their hands are tied by legal restrictions.

Lexi is a wonderful character. She is a survivor in more ways than one. She is determined that no other child should be subjected to the abuse she suffered as a child. She uses her earnings as an escort to subsidise her under the radar infiltrations into paedophile rings, providing the information to have participants arrested and the rings closed down. But then a man who abused her as a child manages to have his conviction overturned and is freed and her fragile existence is about to be shattered. She also has a talent for sarcastic wit that I envy, and the ability to think on her feet.

There are some wonderful characters in this novel. As well as Lexi, there's Bailee, Lexi's sister; Rachel, DI now but also involved in the original Spider case; Finn, and his daughter Ava; 'Neutron', police computer whizz; and let's not forget Lexi's wonderful and hilarious neighbour Dawny. She was a ray of sunshine in the darkness and provided me with more than a few belly-laughs. There are also a number of absolutely despicable characters who will turn your stomach and have you calling for a mandatory death penalty for these crimes.

Unforgiven is not an easy read, dealing as it does with child abuse and murder. But there is a lot more to this book than just that. As well as the underbelly of human nature, we get to see the inherent goodness of the people who fight for these children, and learn of the extraordinary lengths they will go to in order to catch their prey.

I became very attached to a number of these characters, and I sincerely hope that Sarah Barrie is not yet finished with them.

A 'must read'.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

#Unforgiven #NetGalley

I: @authorsarahbarrie @harlequinaus

T: #AuthorSarahBarrie @HarlequinAUS

#australiancrimefiction #contemporaryfiction #crime #detectivefiction #murdermystery #thriller

THE AUTHOR: Sarah Barrie is a bestselling Australian author writing suspense in rural settings, with a generous splash of romance. Her debut bestselling print novel, Secrets of Whitewater Creek, earned her a spot as one of the Top 10 breakthrough authors of 2014, and her next three books, the Hunters Ridge series, also reached best seller status. She has finaled in several major awards, twice in the RUBY, the Romance Writers of Australia’s premier award, and three times in The Australian Romance Readers Award for favourite Romantic Suspense.

In other incarnations, Sarah has worked as a teacher, a vet nurse, a horse trainer and a magazine editor. When she’s not writing, you’ll find her ferrying children to soccer or gymnastics, or trudging through paddocks chasing cattle, sheep, chickens or the Houdini pig that never stays put very long. Occasionally, she’ll attempt to ride her favourite horse who’s quite a bit smarter than she is, and not always cooperative.

Her favourite place in the world is the family property, where she writes her stories overlooking mountains crisscrossed with farmland, bordered by the beauty of the Australian bush, and where, at the end of the day, she can spend time with family, friends, a good Irish whiskey and a copy of her next favourite book. (Australianfictionauthors.com)

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Harlequin Australia, HQ, for providing a digital ARC of Unforgiven by Sarah Barrie for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review is also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

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Lexi Winter was a survivor. A victim of child abuse, she’d saved her younger sister Bailee from a similar fate and then disappeared from her life. Now she was back in Bailee’s life, but living her life on her own terms, a vigilante and after each and every paedophile she could find, whether legally or illegally – it didn’t matter to her. She had no time for the cops after they let her down so badly and even Bailee’s constant entreaty for Lexi to speak to Detective Inspector Rachael Langley fell on deaf ears.

Rachael was the cop who put The Spider away eighteen years prior; the evil perpetrator of innocent children, but when a small child disappeared and was found dead, the killer calling himself The Spider, Rachael was suddenly hit with uncertainties. Had she put away the real Spider eighteen years ago? Was this latest killing a copycat murder?

Silently in the background Lexi continued her work, up against the worst of human depravity. Her abilities on the computer, hacking, finding paedophile sites and tracking them, then passing the information to Bailee who in turn handed it to Rachael – would they catch this latest killer? Lexi’s work as an escort paid the bills, her relationship with JD dulled the pain – but what of her future? Lexi’s neighbour Dawny, was a kind, helpful and understanding friend – Lexi knew Dawny was her only friend…

Unforgiven is the latest thriller from the pen of Aussie author Sarah Barrie and it was brilliant! I couldn’t put it down and read until the small hours to finish it last night – how could I sleep without knowing what was about to happen next? Dawny was a wonderful character; Lexi was a tough, resilient, heart-of-gold person, covering it with sarcasm and wit. I laughed out loud many times, especially in her encounters with Finn and Dawny. Ms Barrie’s books are going from strength to strength, and I’ve read every book she’s written. Highly recommended.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.

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I don’t know where to start, this is an amazing, brilliant story written with heart and caring and lots of suspense as Sarah Barrie knows how to do, she has taken us on a dark journey into child abuse but given us the fabulous Lexi Winter, once a victim herself now she does everything she can to save children, she has become a vigilante and nothing will stop her from saving the children even breaking the law.

Lexi knows what it is like to live on the streets, she knows what it is like to be abused to feel unloved and uncared for, she is now twenty eight and has learnt a lot in the last eighteen years. She was a victim of the notorious paedophile the spider but these days she is an escort and has a roof over her head and loves a good whiskey.

Lexi has learnt to be a great hacker and helps her sister Bailee who works for community services tracking the bad guys, the paedophiles and notifying the cops, gathering information brings her into a situation where she witnesses a murder of someone who is very hard to touch, this leads her to a paedophile ring that needs to be shut down and fast, but memories of the past are surfacing and Lexi is getting more determined but it also brings her closer to danger.

Detective Inspector Rachael Langley was the cop who put the spider away all those years ago but let Lexi slip through the cracks and couldn’t save her and now there is someone claiming to be the spider killing young girls again and Rachael is on the case and is under the hammer not only from the government and media but colleagues as well to prove it is a copy- cat before the spider is let out of prison.

This case brings Rachael and Lexi back together, reluctantly at first they work together to do their best to bring the bad guys down, with a cast of fabulous characters, Detective Finn Carson, Jimmy the IT guy they all work together on this case and I cannot not mention Dawny and Desmond. There are many twists and turns, that had my mind going in all directions. This is a must read book set around Gosford on the Central Coast of NSW.

I loved Lexi she is strong, courageous and so caring after all she has been through she has a heart of gold. The ending is brilliant and I really hope that we will be seeing Lexi again, Sarah Barrie is a fabulous author who brings thriller and mystery together in stories that are page turners and I cannot recommend this one enough, it really is fabulous.

My thanks to Harlequin AU for my copy to read and review

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