I enjoyed this story but the pacing is a little slow. As the first in a series there are a lot of character introductions. The case is full of suspense. I didn't guess the answers before the reveal. I will definitely give the next book a try.

Wow! I had no clue what kind of a ride I was about to go on... Really enjoyable read, even though the subject is absolutely appalling. i wonder if I have every read about two sets of triplets before, I don't think so. I absolutely love Detective Lexi and her team. She has a past that haunts her, and she's about to face it big time.

Lexi is one of the two who survived being kidnapped seventeen years ago. The third one was never found, presumed dead. Now it has happened again, but this time two are found dead, and the third one is missing. Is the kidnapper back? Will Lexi find out the truth that happened to her?

I am very impressed by the writing and the plot line. This book really found a place in my heart. It kept me hooked from the first sentence. There is something magically catching in the way Alison Belsham writes, and I am looking forward to reading more books written by her. I am already excited :)

Having loved previous books written by Alison Belsham I couldn’t wait to get my hands on her new series. The Girls on Chalk Hill introduces us to Detective Lexi Bennett who has recently returned to her hometown to head up a new unit. Before she has even officially started she finds two girls on a hillside with their throats cut. As the investigation progresses Lexi is forced to confront her own past in the hope that this time the killer will be caught.
Lexi is a feisty character but that is partly down to her past that is revealed over the course of the book. She tries to use her skills as a profiler to solve the case, but it is clear that at times her personal life colours her investigations. That is not to say that she may not be on the right track, but it does lead to her boss questioning her actions at times. It is clear that she is being taunted by the killer and this is adding to the pressure she is under.
I have loved getting to know Lexi Bennett although I do think we have still only scratched the surface with her and there is more to come. She manages to use all her experiences to their best advantage and is also determined to bring out the best in her new team, taking time to mentor and encourage even the most inexperienced members to ensure that they give their best and that the case gets solved. You can really feel her frustration as she tries to remember the past in the hope that it will help but in order for her to heal she also needs to forgive herself and repair her relationship with her sister.
With chapters told in the voice of the killer adding to the tension throughout the book, the reader knows what their ultimate end game is before Lexi does but what we don’t know until she does is who the killer is. The pacing is fast, and I found that this had me turning page after page waiting for the next clue or snippet of Lexi’s past. This is definitely a series I am going to be following as much to see what case Lexi gets caught up in next as I am to see how her relationships with her team develop as I would like to get to know more about them too and see how their personalities affect investigations. If you have not experienced any of Alison Belsham’s previous books then you have missed a treat but this series will get you hooked.

Lexi Bennett has returned from working as a profiler with the FBI and is due to start work as the new DI back home in Canterbury, also a keen runner she sets off for a run before starting her first day but, as she reaches the top of Chalk Hill, she finds two teenage girls in matching dresses and tiaras with their throats cut. When the girls are identified she discovers they are triplets and their other sister Paige is missing. Lexi is immediately taken back to when she and her two sisters, also triplets, were abducted as teenagers and only two of them escaped. Could this be the same person or is it a copycat killing, and can Lexi find Paige before she meets the same fate as Rose?

In The Girls on Chalk Hill, the first in a new series, much of the story is centred around Lexi, as the case she finds herself thrown headlong into bears a large resemblance to her own abduction seventeen years earlier. It's a fast paced read, with some very interesting characters, not least of all the perpetrator who has a very twisted mind and I enjoyed reading snippets from his perspective too. I liked how the dynamics of the team were quickly established and, even though Lexi appears to be a no nonsense detective, she also has a softer side which, along with the backgrounds of the rest of the team, I hope to see more of in the next instalment of this series. All in all an action packed, intense read and I'm looking forward to the next one!

I'd like to thank Bookouture and Netgalley for the auto approval, I will post my review on Goodreads now and Amazon on publication day.

Sometimes there’s a case that hits a little too close to home - for Detective Lexi Bennett, that’s her most recent case. I found myself really looking forward to this read! It kept me on my toes and I love a race against the clock book. Will definitely be reading mor from Alison Belsham in the future! Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC!

Thank you Bookoutre and Netgalley for this ARC.
Alison has done it again.
I loved her other series around tattoos, and this new series with Lexi is brilliant.
I was hooked from beginning to end and keeping my fingers crossed she would get the guy - no spoilers from me.
For me this was brilliantly written, with a great storyline and I loved the characters.
Can’t wait for the next one.
This was a wow wow and wow again - I loved it - 5 ⭐️

The Girls on Chalk Hill is a great start to a new series. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the Detective Lexi Bennett series.
Lexi’s first day at her new job starts out with a bang! She hasn’t even had time to meet her new team before she has to hit the ground running.
This police procedural is creepy and intense.
Alison Belsham writes a solid thriller suspense.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Bookouture and author, Alison Belsham, for the ARC of The Girls on Chalk Hill in exchange for a honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately, this was a DNF for me. I’ve seen a lot of great reviews for this one, so I think many people will enjoy it, it just wasn’t for me.

Here we have a brand-new thriller series featuring DI Lexi Bennett from Kent. It is fast paced, well thought out with what promises to be a great team! Well done and kept my heart pounding!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC!

I really enjoyed this first book in a new series. We meet Lexi Bennet on her first day at her new job leading an investigative team, before she even starts her first shift she finds the bodies of two girls who had been murdered. They find out these girls are actually two in a set of triplets, this hits especially close to home for Lexi as she is also a triplet, and her and her sisters had been abducted as teenagers and only two of them returned home.

This is a crazy case full of twists and turns around every corner! Once Lexi finally connects the dots between her abduction and the current case things really amp up. We are left with one unanswered question at least to me, what actually happened to Rose? Lexi's sister was never found, everyone assumes she's dead, but I definitely have my own theories and can't wait to see if I'm right!!

Grade: A


Sometimes books are excellent because they are the best at what they are--they aren't anything that subverts tropes or turns readers on their heads. They take a genre and excel at it. This is one of those books.

This is the first in a new procedural crime series, and it succeeds on both counts. As the first in a series, we meet Lexi Bennett, a detective who has returned to her hometown in southern England after spending several years in the United States to study profiling with the FBI (is this a thing people do? I don't know, and I don't care. I bought it). While the mystery is fully fleshed out, Belsham skillfully drops hints in the narrative to inform us that Lexi has a history and hooks us into wanting to know more about her in future books. We also meet a few secondary characters that might play a bigger role down the line.

As for being a procedural, this is also a win. Belsham takes the time to go into the procedures the police follow when trying to solve this crime. As for the crime, don't be fooled by the mention of "girls" in the title. This is not another saga of an alcoholic, unreliable female narrator. This is a crime involving girls--two dead and one missing; and one missing and two recovered. The crime is intricate and absorbing, especially as we not only follow Lexi and her team as they scramble to solve the crime before another death occurs, but we also hear from the culprit, which is fascinating and unsettling. The reveal floored me, and I applaud Belsham for completely surprising me.

Only one factor kept this book from hitting an A+. I could not understand why Lexi, with her history as outlined in the summary of this book, would ever be in charge of this investigation! I'm not sure if this is a US/UK difference (there is no police department in the US that would allow her to lead this investigation, but I don't know about the UK) or if it is something that requires us to suspend our disbelief to make the story work. There were also a few threads that were never fully explained, and I felt as though they had been "cut for time." Neither of these was a huge distraction for me, but I noticed them enough to factor them into my grade for the book.

A good book series makes me want to read the next entry. An excellent book series makes me want to buy the next entry RIGHT NOW! My greatest disappointment is that the sequel is still forthcoming. But I'll be watching for it, and I can't wait to follow Lexi Bennett to solve her next crime.

New female detective , crazy serial killer, first in a series yep I’m there.

DI Lexi Bennett has taken a job in her hometown. New on the job and she literally runs upon two dead bodies.

Are you afraid, princess? You should be. I meant what I said about fetching your sister. I meant what I said about seeing which of you will survive longer. Let the games begin.

A new series I enjoyed very much. Waiting to see what happens next.

Thanks to bookouture and netgalley for this arc. Another new author for me love it.
When D.I Lexi Bennett returns from working with the profilers, she is immediately drawn into a gruesome murder investigation with her new team. Whilst lexi is out running she finds twin girls side by side in white gowns with their throats slit. Not the best start in which to meet her new team. When lucy and eden carter are identified they are made aware that they are actually triplets and paige is missing. Lexi holds a secret that her team know nothing about. What is it????
Proper page turner, intense, fast paced, i was on the edge of my seat, i thought i had solved the case, i was wrong!!!! Highley recommend, on to book 2, i cant wait.

Excellent book, I was hooked right away and the pacing was great. I don’t think there was a slow moment and I had to know what was going on. There were so sketchy characters who I thought were the killed but was completely wrong. There was only one unanswered question but loved Lexi and will ready more from this series. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this excellent book.

The first in a new series starring DI Lexi Bennett. Lexi is newly returned from a stint with the FBI at Quantico. She isn’t expecting a big case so soon, but on a run soon after being back, she comes across the bodies of two teenaged girls posed to look like princesses. Even worse, they were triplets, which means one of the girls is still missing. This is especially hard for Lexi because 17 years prior, she and her other two triplets were also abducted. Lexi can’t help but think that the same person is back again.

As a debut/start of series, this was ok. For the first half of the book, I found Lexi to be incredibly unlikeable. She was needlessly prickly to coworkers and just not relatable. She also was supposed to be recently returned but her boss talked to her like she had known her forever?? But then about halfway through, the characterization of Lexi definitely got better. Besides that, the mystery part was pretty good. I think a twist toward the end could’ve been interesting because as is, it was a pretty average whodunit. I definitely think this series has promise, especially since the second half got better here.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Newly returned from working as a profiler with the FBI, Lexi Bennett goes for a run before her first morning working back in her hometown. On the hillside are two young girls dressed in white dresses, tiaras, clutching red roses. Their throats have been viciously slashed. Lexi certainly has to hit the ground running. At the time Lexi thought the girls were twins, but it transpires they were triplets & the third girl is missing. In the race to find Paige, Lexie has to cope with the horrific events seventeen years ago when she & her two sisters were abducted. Is this connected & if it is, will she ever find out what happened to her sister Rose.

This is a new series of books that really arrived with a bang. This is a great police procedural with an interesting cast of characters & a new heroine to get behind. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book. I loved it & can't wait till the next one!

A brilliant detective story,

I really enjoyed this new series featuring Detective Lexi Bennett who draws from her own past to solve this murder mystery.

The pace is quick and intriguing and keeps you gripped.

I like that it uses her past experience of working with FBI and her able to use profiling techniques to help solve the crime.

I hope in future we also get to know her colleagues. I like the setting of the area and the descriptive accounts that really help with the setting.

I will look forward to reading her next case.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an advance copy for a honest review.

First, let me thank Bookature Audio and Netgally for allowing me an advanced copy of this excellent police procedural story.
All opinions given are voluntary and my own.
Aside from The 4MK series, I've never liked these kinds of books, but this one reaches out and grabs you from the first chapter, getting better and keeping you engaged till the last page.

The thing I love in these types of books is the point of view from the villain.
This makes it all the more intense and creepy, which keeps you reading, wanting to know what is going to happen!

I loved the book, and since it's the first in the series , it's a great start.
I can't wait for the next installment.

The first book in the DI Lexi Bennet series is a great starter. The story was compelling and grabbed my attention, steadily progressing and moving forward without losing its footing. There was always this fast-paced sense of ‘something is happening and we need to keep up’ without ever feeling like anything was getting lost along the way.

I was pleased to finally have a female character in a book that I didn’t despise. Lexi definitely had a few quirks and moments where I strongly disliked her (like how she immediately got angry with anyone who questioned her as if she were the be-all and end-all and how dare someone question her judgement or decision), but overall she was a strong lead that we learn a lot about. The rest of the team we get glimpses of, but don’t really hear much about, and hopefully that will change in future books.

One thing I really enjoyed was the chapters from the villains point of view. For me, that added to the overall narrative and the glimpse into their mind was much appreciated.
You do have to keep in mind that this book is purely fiction, so there are aspects that you might want to scream ‘that can’t happen’ at, like her being allowed to lead an investigation that directly involves herself and her family, but again, it’s fiction. Though if this is something you think would rankle, I would advise you to pass on this, as it is a pretty big part of the story.

In summary, a solid start to a new series.

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

Great start to a new series! So much suspense and Love Lexi ! Look forward to the next in the series!