Newly promoted and now settling into London life DI Harbinder Kaur cannot believe that she has been asked to run an inquiry into the death of a prominent MP. The man died at a 21st Anniversary Reunion at his old school, a progressive leftie comprehensive in Chelsea. The pool of suspects includes another MP, a rock star and a tv star as well as one of Harbinder's team, and all links back to the death of one of their peers at the end of the Sixth Form.
Elly Griffiths is a great writer of mysteries and this is a solid outing for her newer character Harbinder Kaur. The final plotting feels a little stretched but the narrative leading up to it is up to the usual incredibly high standard.

Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Ely Griffiths never disappoints. This book is certainly one of her best. Another great read in an excellent series. Recommended.

EXCERPT: Is it possible to forget that you've committed a murder? Well, I'm here to tell you that it is. Not entirely, obviously. But, day to day, it just doesn't register. Pete and I even had a phase of going to murder mystery parties. We'd get all dressed up and go to a friend's house and act out a script. There'd be cue cards, props, even background music. The setting was usually a country house or a Mississippi river boat. Something like that. I progressed from playing Miss Ellie, high spirited daughter of Black Jack Roulette, to Mrs Beacham the cook. We'd start off in character but, as the evening progressed, everyone would get drunk and forget the clues. This annoyed me. I like following rules.

The kids used to love playing Murder in the Dark. It really is a very easy party game and kept them quiet for ages. They would all shut themselves in the downstairs bathroom, about ten of them. The detective would be left outside, sitting disconsolately on the stairs. After a few minutes of giggling, a blood-curdling scream would ring out and the door would open to reveal someone lying on the floor between the loo and the basin. The law enforcer would then have to solve the crime, sometimes with a little help from me. 'That's not fair Mum,' Lucy and Sam used to say.

The actual murder was so long ago that it genuinely feels like it happened to someone else. I suppose we all think of our eighteen-year-old selves as different people, but I could honestly look at pictures of the blonde, smiling girl and not recognize her. What did she think, who did she love, what music did she listen to? I simply couldn't remember. Dissociation is a word I remember from my psychology degree. I think I once wrote the definition on a cue card. 'A mental process where a person disconnects from their thoughts and feelings . . . . . often linked to trauma in childhood.' But I never thought it was possible to live so happily with this condition. Who was the girl in the school photo? Nothing to do with me.

ABOUT 'BLEEDING HEART YARD': DS Cassie Fitzgerald has a secret - but it's one she's deleted from her memory. In the 1990s when she was at school, she and her friends killed a fellow pupil. Thirty years later, Cassie is happily married and loves her job as a police officer.

One day her husband persuades her to go to a school reunion and another ex-pupil, Garfield Rice, is found dead, supposedly from a drug overdose. As Garfield was an eminent MP and the investigation is high profile, it's headed by Cassie's new boss, DI Harbinder Kaur. The trouble is, Cassie can't shake the feeling that one of her old friends has killed again.

Is Cassie right, or was Garfield murdered by one of his political cronies? It's in Cassie's interest to skew the investigation so that it looks like the latter and she seems to be succeeding.

MY THOUGHTS: Bleeding Heart Yard - what an evocative title! It refers to a courtyard in Holborn, London, where Lady Elizabeth Hatton was murdered in the seventeenth century.

Bleeding Heart Yard is the third in this series, but it can easily be read as a stand-alone.

Harbinder Kaur, although the central character in this series, seems to almost be overshadowed by the school friends around whom the investigation is concentrated. I wonder if this is why I didn't enjoy Bleeding Heart Yard quite as much as its predecessors which focused more on Harbinder.

While I raced through the earlier two books in one sitting, I merely dawdled through Bleeding Heart Yard, not fully involved in the storyline like I usually am.

I enjoyed, but didn't LOVE this. The murders didn't really make sense to me until the perpetrator is revealed. There are a good range of suspects and motives, but Harbinder is convinced that the murder relates to a historic accidental death. Is she right? Read Bleeding Heart Yard to find out. The answer shocked me!

⭐⭐⭐.8

#BleedingHeartYard #NetGalley

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T: @ellygriffiths @QuercusBooks

#crime #detectivefiction #murdermystery #mystery

THE AUTHOR: Elly Griffiths' Ruth Galloway novels take for their inspiration Elly's husband, who gave up a city job to train as an archaeologist, and her aunt who lives on the Norfolk coast and who filled her niece's head with the myths and legends of that area. Elly has two children and lives near Brighton.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Quercus via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Bleeding Heart Yard by Elly Griffiths 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 and others are also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

I love Elly Griffiths and I really don't know how she manages to keep all of her series going at the same time but still bring something interesting to each new story.
This is the third Harbinder Kaur book. Harbinger is in her thirties, gay and was still living with her parents until promotion to Detective Inspector meant a move to London and the Met.
Harbinder's first murder is high profile when a Tory MP is killed at his school reunion. During his last year at school the victim was part of an elite group which produced two MPs, a pop star, an actress, the current head of the school and a member of Harbinder's new team.
As the team investigates the death of a fellow pupil in their last year is raised again and again. Just how important was this and are the group all telling the truth?
There are so many issues in this story; including palliative care and false memory all handled with skill as we would expect from this author.
Although I did guess the identity of the killer quite early on it in no way detracted from my enjoyment of the book.

Bestselling British author Elly Griffiths has built up a strong international readership thanks to her long-running series featuring forensic archaeologist Dr Ruth Galloway, who lives in a cottage on the Norfolk Coast, and some award-winning standalone thrillers.

Griffiths’ latest novel eschews Dr Galloway to extend the adventures of sparkplug Sikh detective Harbinder Kaur, who first appeared in The Stranger Diaries (2018), winner of a prestigious Edgar Award in the United States. In Bleeding Heart Yard, Kaur has moved to London for new opportunities. Now a Detective Inspector, she’s faced with a tough case when a Tory politician is killed at the reunion for his exclusive high school. Kaur and her team must trawl though the lives of his enemies and 1990s classmates, which include a famous actress, a popstar, a Labour politician, and one of Kaur’s own team, DS Cassie Fitzgerald. Meanwhile DS Fitzgerald tries to steer her colleagues away from digging too closely into ‘The Group’, as she and her classmates killed a fellow student back in the day. Can Fitzgerald find today’s killer while protecting her past?

Griffiths does a fine job grabbing readers early with the high school reunion setting and confessions that a serving cop is a killer herself, then takes us on an engaging journey full of secrets via multiple perspectives and shifting timelines. A good read.

[This review written first for Good Reading magazine in Australia]

I enjoyed this book, it was easy to read and held my attention. I will be reading more from this author :)

For me i found this difficult to get into, I am a regular Elly Griffiths reader but I usually read her Ruth Galloway books I tried something different Bleeding heart yard I did get into it in the end and enjoyed it I loved the cover and the characters four me i give it 4 stars . This would make a great holiday read. I would like to thank Elly Griffiths, Netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to review this book.

Bleeding Heart Yard is the third novel to feature detective Harbinder Kaur, but you don’t need to have read the preceding novels to enjoy this one. Leap right on in here if you want to.

A Conservative MP is found dead at a school reunion and what appears to be a simple overdose soon reveals itself to be anything but. We follow a cast of characters bound together by an incident from their school days whilst Harbinder Kaur tries to determine which of them is responsible for their old school friend’s death.

The book is told from multiple viewpoints, which for me made it a little harder to get to know the main protagonist, Harbinder Kaur. That’s a minor quibble though; all of the characters in the book are enjoyable to read.

A solid, entertaining whodunit.

Thank you to NetGalley and Quercus Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Harbinder Kaur returns and I think this is the best of the series.
Kaur has moved to London and she is now a DI in the met , she is a little home sick but has a new case to keep her busy.
A Conservative MP Garfield Rice is found dead at a school reunion , it seems like a simple case of an over dose but is it? The others present at the reunion include a labour MP, an actress , a doctor , a police officer and her husband, a headteacher a pop star and a teacher who lives in Italy .
These characters are all bound together by an incident that happened in the late 1990’s where a follow student died after a tragic accident .
Harbinder is a great character and has a very dry sense of humour which I really enjoy, the character has grown with each book and I look forward to reading future books in the series.
There are plenty of twists and turns and I didn’t envisage the conclusion .
Overall an enjoyable and entertaining read a proper who dunnit.
Thanks to NetGalley and Quercus Books.

This is the 3rd book in the Harbinder Kaur series, but you can easily read it as a stand-alone. In this book our intrepid DS has moved up in the world and away. Now a D.I. with a new team, Harbinder has left Sussex for a new job in the Met’s Homicide and Serious Crimes Unit. She’s based in West Kensington and is sharing a house with two other women. She’s a little bit out of her comfort zone, but at the same time, relishing the challenge.

It’s not long before her first big challenge lands. A prominent climate change sceptic, Conservative MP Garfield Rice dies while attending his school reunion. The well-known Manor Park boasts quite a few famous alumni from within its ranks generally, and from Garfield Rice’s years specifically. Not only that, but Cassie Fitzgerald, one of Harbinder’s team, was part of the group that Garfield Rice hung around with at school.

It’s quickly established that Rice’s death was murder and Harbinder orders Fitzgerald to stand back from the enquiry.

Elly Griffiths gives us narration from three of the central characters in this murder enquiry. Harbinder herself, whose thoughts we are privy to and who has a lovely line in wry humour when she’s contemplating her decisions; Cassie, who is harbouring a terrible secret and who knows all of the key players in this drama very well, thus providing insight into their past activities and finally, we hear from Anna. Anna Vance has recently come back from Italy to visit her dying mother and so was also at the reunion along with her former school boyfriend, now rock music star Kris Foster, the famous and beautiful actress, Isabelle Istar and yet another MP, Henry Steep.

Cassie can’t help but think that the forces that have brought this group back together again and which have led to Gareth Rice’s death are connected to those school days 21 years ago. When another member of the group is found dead in the wonderfully named Bleeding Heart Yard, it is clear that it is this group of school friends that is being targeted. But why?

Ellie Griffiths allow us to get to know her new team, parcelling out different jobs according to the strengths she perceives in them from the off. DS Kim Manning is down to earth and great with people. DS Jake Barker is all alpha male but peculiarly star struck by the famous alumni from Manor Park School. Cassie is the unknown quantity – seemingly competent but not telling Harbinder the whole story from the outset.

Verdict: Elly Griffiths has written a terrifically engaging and entertaining police procedural that I thoroughly enjoyed. It really feels as if Harbinder Kaur is now coming into her own both professionally and personally and owns her rank with distinction. She directs her team really well and her judgement is usually spot on. The use of London settings is beautifully employed and adds an extra layer of atmosphere to evocative and historical locations used to their best effect in this gripping murder mystery.

At the 21st reunion of a posh, elite school, one of the popular group members is found dead of an apparent drug overdose that is later deemed a murder. Turns out the group members were tied to a death back in school and all went there own ways and achieved success in different fields before reuniting. Has one of them struck again or was it an attack against the victim from an outsider? Then another member of the group is murdered and the investigation is on. A well-written, intriguing mystery.

4.25⭐️

#3 Harbinder Kaur

Harbinder is now a DI working at the Met.

It’s a more cosy police procedural than I usually read, by my favourite comfort read author.

This is a double pronged but joined thread, Cassie a DS working with Harbinder is hiding a secret from her school days. They are called to the sudden suspicious death of MP Garfield Rice at a 21st school reunion which Cassie attended.

The POV are told by friends Anna and Cassie, also Harbinder’s investigation. I felt that there was a little duplication between the POV as we see the same days from the different viewpoints.

I enjoyed the unfolding of the before story, as well as the current story, getting to know the friends and the group dynamic.
It meant that the plot wasn’t over heavy on procedure which meant that I really enjoyed it. I don’t know if it’s my imagination but this book feels like it has an easier going writing style than the previous one,

There’s a good diversity of characters. We find out a bit more about Harbinders new team, and her new life. I’m still unsure about Harbinder, she’s very cutting and judgemental, but I’m starting to gel with her. . I was very surprised by one of Harbinders decisions.
Most of ‘the group’ seem a little unreliable which added to the suspense.

I didn’t guess whodunit, despite 2 guesses😂 This is my favourite of the series.

A school reunion turns into a disaster when the body of MP Garfield Rice is found. Is it an accident or is it murder? This is the question for DI Harbinder Kaur and her team.
One of her team, DS Fitzherbert, was at the reunion and has her own secret. A secret from the past. But does her secret link to the death of this prominent MP?
Things go from bad to worse when another body turns up and Harbinder starts to question everything However not even she could predict the outcome of what is about to happen.
Book three in the Harbinder Kaur series and probably the best so far.
A book that has you on edge throughout, with twists and turns galore and the authors brilliant ability to bring out her characters emotions to the fore. A wonderful piece of writing.
Simply put - I’m not sure anyone is writing finer crime fiction at the moment than Elly Griffiths. Truly outstanding.

I love Harbinder and love the mysteries that feature her. This one is excellent, gripping, and highly entertaining.
I don't think that Elly Griffith can write a bad mystery and this is another excellent book she wrote.
It's also the best featuring Harbinder as the story of Group of friends, their secretes, and their relationships is both riveting and complex enough to keep you guessing.
I was surprised by all the twists and the solution was unexpected. I had fun and thoroughly enjoyed it.
It was one of those "happy sleep deprivation" book that kept me till late in the night.
I can find no fault to this book: excellent storytelling and character development, the right pace, solid plot.
I hope there's going to be a lot more featuring Harbinder and her team in London as I like them and want to know more about Harbinder's future life.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

As always I thoroughly enjoyed this book from Elly. She always deliver.
I finished this book in two days.

The 3rd book in the Harbinder Kaur series who has been moved to the Met. A man dies at a school reunion which results prove its murder. Cassie a member of Harbinder's team was at the reunion. Is this death linked to a death which occurred when Cassie and her schoolfriends had finished their A levels. What secrets are hidden and can Harbinder solve the mystery as the death toll increases. Well written and hard to put down. Highly recommended. Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an unbiased and fair review.

Harbinder is back! With her promotion to DI in the Metropolitan Police and a high profile murder of an MP to solve, this book had a slightly different feel to the seaside setting of the previous books in the series, but I loved this new stage of Harbinder’s life. She might even be ready to find love (as well as the murderer)! Highly recommended. I can’t wait to see what Harbinder does next.

I have to admit to being disappointed with the latest (14th) Ruth Galloway book so I went into this, the new Harbinder Kaur, with my fingers crossed. Oh, and this is the third book in this series so not many for you to play catch-up with if you haven't already read them.
Anyway... obviously you can tell from my star rating that I had absolutely no need to be worried. This book hit the ground running for me. It sucked me in, spitting me out at the end, completely satisfied.
We start at a school reunion featuring an eclectic mix of characters, some very famous in their own fields. It's the 21st anniversary so they have made a big effort to attend. But soon the fun turns sour as one of the attendees is found dead in the bathroom, and newly promoted DI Harbinder Kaur is called in to investigate. She has not long moved from West Sussex to the Met Police and this is her first big investigation so she has her work cut out for her - especially when the identity of the deceased is revealed, and one of the attendees is Cassie, one of Kaur's own team.
And so begins a convoluted and interconnected case investigation which goes back to when the reunion group graduated and an "accident" which lead to the death of one of their peers.
As Kaur has moved, we get to meet a new cast of characters, including those she now lives with. I loved the inclusion she feels with the new team and the way they all get on - adding a level of banter to the proceedings, and light relief from the crimes. We also get to reconnect with Kaur's family and also, maybe, there might be a smidge of romance on the cards...
The case is both interesting and intriguing and kept me on my toes throughout. We start with what we know, but is that to be trusted. It's so very well plotted that I really didn't see the half of what was revealed coming. But, looking back, it was all there so hats off to the author for wool pulling!
Oh and the best thing was that it was set in 2019 which took covid out of the equation - which was my main bugbear from the last Ruth book...
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

When you see the name Elly Griffiths on the cover of a book you know you are in for a good read. Bleeding Heart Yard is no exception to this. I have enjoyed the stories with Harbinder and find her a quite engaging character despite her quirks and foibles. Great to put her into a new situation and see what she makes of it. Looking forward to the next book from this author already, if you haven't tried her books before you are in for a treat. Her writing always combines good sense of place or time and each series is distinct and different.

This is the first novel of Elly Griffiths that I have read. I have heard great reports of the Galloway series but have not got round to read them. After finishing this one. I will make the time.

This is the first book in a new series and can’t wait for the next one. Fantastic set of characters all with different and believable personalities. Love the way it brings all aspects of society together.

DI Harbinder Kaur has a tough job however is quite amenable and caring, especially to her staff. Living in a shared flat when investigating crime she hardly sees her flat mates. The other main character, Cassie Fitzherbert has grown up since the age of eighteen carrying a dark secret, which has been erased from her memory.

It was 1990, the last of the their exams and Cassie and her friends killed another pupil.

After thirty years, there is a big school reunion, which Cassie, after being persuaded by her husband attends. Her husband Peter Fitzherbert attended the same school as Cassie but was two years older. The rest of her peer group are also there.

One of their old gang, Garfield Rice, an eminent MP, was murdered during the evening. Cassie’s boss, Harbinder Kaur, is assigned to the case, which is very high profile. As Cassie has to be seen as a potential suspect Harbinder has to give her leave.

Fast moving. Brilliantly written. As you read you become part of the book as the case unfolds. Definitely got a few twists and a book not to be missed. Thank you Elly Griffiths and NetGalley for allowing me to read this in exchange for a truthful review.

An enjoyable book. This is the first book I have read in the Harbinder series. I really enjoyed the characters in Harbinder's police team and look forward to reading more books with them. The plot of Bleeding Heart Yard was a bit tenuous and felt that murderers do not kill for such flimsy reasons. Having said that I did enjoy the book and look forward to reading the next in the series.
This is an honest review of a complementary ARC.