From the prologue to the very last page this is a perfect thriller. At the beginning you'd be forgiven for thinking there are 2 different storylines but it becomes apparent that the stories are linked in a chilling way. From past buried secrets to stalking to the power and negative side of social media.
I've read a few of Mark Edwards books and this is my favourite so far. Fast paced and tense this is everything I look for in my favourite genre

Calvin’s dream is to open a Bakery/Coffee shop, so with the help with his wife’s Vicky’s savings he does just that in a small town called Elderbridge in the Lake district. But business is not going as well as he hopes. So, he turns to social media and opens account and shows everyone the delicious things he bakes to drum up some business. But as soon as he does that, he is bombarded with messages especially from one woman. Vicky warns him not to devolve personal details about himself, or he will get himself a stalker. Which just so happens a woman walks into the café and reveals herself to be Mel that he has been messaging on the internet.
In the meantime, a body has been found on the beach and the Police are finding it hard to identify him. The man has been living off gird thirty years in a cottage in a remote part of town. Who is he and why was he murdered?
I can confess that I have not read many books from this author. But I found this to dark gripping thriller. Or have I read the previous book in this series, but it was okay as you can read this without no problem.
The story involving Calvin set in two timelines present day and 1995 where an incident happened that change Calvin’s life and played on his mind ever since and connects his time with his stalker and the body on the beach.
This is a twisty thriller that I mostly enjoyed except for me personally got overwhelmed with all the different characters near the ending of the story. 4 stars

Calvin finally owns the bakery he has dreamed about. He lives in a small village in the lake district with his wife Vicky, who runs the local animal shelter and has recent became a viral sensation overnight. All seems to be going well for the quiet and well liked couple. Nearby a reclusive man has been found murder on a local beach and sudden strange things start to occur in Calvin's life. Is his with Vicky right, does he have a stalker or is something much more sinister going on. As things continue to get worse Calvin begins to wonder is there anyone he can trust and more importantly has someone discovered has past mistakes placing him and Vicky in terrible danger?

I loved this story so many twists and turns and completely kept me guessing right up until the end. 100% recommend.

Early one morning, near the small town of Elderbridge, a walker discovers a body buried up to his neck on a lonely beach. He drowned, of course, but slowly, agonizingly slowly. Now DI Imogen Edwards and her team have to discover his identity and find who wanted him dead in such a cruel way.

On a main street in Elderbridge, baker Calvin Matheson is worried that his bakery is not doing well. His supportive wife Vicki financed Therapy for him but he needs more regular customers. When a video featuring his cakes at a local nursing home goes viral, Calvin realizes that an internet presence is the key to sales. Soon he is coping with long lines, great reviews and realizes he needs more help. Enter Mel. She seems to be the perfect employee. She also seems to have an unusual interest in Calvin.

In 1995, Calvin’s younger sister Freya falls for Milo, a charismatic singer in a club band with his brother Simeon and sister Piper. Although Calvin tries to warn Freya about Milo’s dangerous habits, she will not listen. This will be life changing for Calvin.

Slowly and deliberately, Mark Edwards weaves these three unrelated plot lines together. Not until the final pages do we realize exactly what happened and why. With an atmospheric location and well described characters, The Darkest Water is hard to put down. 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, Thomas & Mercer and Mark Edwards for this ARC.

Ok, where do I start with this book? I have to say this is one of those books that you need to suspend belief while reading. There are so many "Really?!?" Moments and coincidences that are questionable in real life. But, this is fiction so just go with it and enjoy.

Let's talk about Calvin our main male character in Darkest Water. I didn't like him. To me he came across as a drip, but that's my opinion and it didn't stop me reading about him. There were times that I thought he deserved what was coming to him for being so slow off the mark.

There's no let up in action, mystery and deaths in this story. It will have you suspecting everyone and there are curve balls in there to send you in a tizz.

Prepare to be bamboozled with all the characters and their connections. See if you can work out what is going on in this sleepy town. A place where apparently nothing happens. But, when it does then it'll happen to Calvin.

I love Mark Edwards' books. He's an auto buy author for me.

Thanks Netgalley for the ARC.

Calvin and his wife Vicky have moved to a quiet little village in the Lake District and Calvin finally has the job of his dreams running his own bakery. With not much business around wife Vicky gets some on line advertising going which then opens a whole can of worms.

Calvin appears to get a stalker, a man is found dead in horrific circumstances on the beach and Vicky goes missing. Are all the events connected and just what does Calvin have hidden in his past that someone would want revenge for.

Detective Imogen Evans is new to the Lake district after leaving the bright lights after catching an infamous serial killer. Has she jumped out of the frying pan into the fire and can she work with the twists along the way to save Vicky?

A really good read. Recommended 5 stars.

This is another winner by Mark Edwards. I really liked the social media aspect of it.. Filled with a lot of suspense, I had a hard time putting it down.

Many thanks for my gifted copy!

Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for this ARC . I really enjoyed this book and i sure didnt see that ending coming.. when Calvin opens his dream coffee shop, he fears he may have to sell as everyone is going to the coffee shop up the road . His assistant Tara sets him up on social medis showcasing his recipes and cakes. It works and the cafe becomes full everyday, when he starts to receive direct messages from someone wishing him well, are they stalking him??? Calvins wife Vicky goes missing, he needs to find her, where is she? Why has she vanished? Great read, i was drawn in with the characters

I enjoyed all the twists and turns in this book, it certainly kept me on my toes trying to guess where everyone slotted into the story! I do enjoy reading Mark’s books and this was no exception.

An excellent read from this author which kept me involved in the storyline all the way The storyline was quite dark with twists and turns throughout with a brilliant ending.

I have read all books from this author over the years and never been disappointed.

Thank you to Netgalley and Thomas and Mercer for this ARC which I can thoroughly recommend.

This book was everything I hoped it would it be.
I was hooked quickly and completely unwilling to put this down. I devoured this book in just one sitting. I have no regrets and can’t wait to read more by this author.

Chef Calvin finally runs his own bakery, with the help of his wife, Vicky’s savings.

With the business not doing too well, Vicky convinces him to give social media a go. Calvin’s troubles soon start up once his bakery goes viral.

With Vicky running the local animal rescue, she has to take on Louise, as it’s far too busy for her to run the place on her own.

Vicky soon starts to worry about Calvin, as he’s become a social media addict and has no idea of the problems that can come from even just messaging people back! And Vicky is convinced that Mel is trouble, so when Calvin offers her a job, Vicky is not impressed!

With talk turning to the murder of local recluse Leo James, the police presence in the village hots up. Who has killed Leo and why?

There is plenty going on in this story to keep you entertained from the first page to the last.

The characters were believable and I liked how the story would take us back in time to learn about Calvin’s earlier life.

A great whodunnit that had me guessing throughout. A tense thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat.

My thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Mark Edwards continues to turn out top quality thrillers. His latest work, The Darkest Water is another well crafted novel. I thought that the first half of the book had a deliberate pacing which gave us all of the pieces of the puzzle and left us to wonder how everything would come together..

The second half of the book ramped up the suspense and provided us with enough twists to satisfy this reader. By the end of the book, all of the pieces were assembled like a completed jigsaw puzzle.

Well done Mark! At the end of your books, I always look forward to what surprise you have in store for us the next time!

‘The Darkest Water’ is a gripping thriller that kept me hooked from the start. Detective Imogen Evans returns to investigate a mysterious murder on the beach, intricately tying together the lives of baker Calvin and a chilling stalker.

With a cascade of twists, the book expertly sustains suspense, leaving me guessing the murderer's identity until the final moments. A rollercoaster of surprises, this tale delivers a thrilling read that will leave you on the edge of your seat until the very end.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This author is amazing. Picking such a tranquil setting for this chilling tale worked so well. This book highlights just how far people will go to get noticed. Social media is at the heart of this- a frightening insight into how things can get so out of control.

This book is a page turner right from the start. With murders, kidnappings, stalking and a few pets and cakes thrown in too!

The author creates wonderful scenes and I can really visualise the rugged coastline, little village vibes and the grand old house in the countryside.

I loved the character development and would definitely like to explore the Imogen Evans book. Guess what’s next on my list!

Thank you for allowing me to review this advanced copy. I’m sure it will be a huge success when published next month.

The Darkest Water is a combination police procedural and psychological thriller, wonderfully heavy on the twists and turns. This is my first Mark Edwards book and definitely not the last after this experience.

Calvin has recently opened a cafe which is not taking off as well as he would have liked so is encouraged to take a leap into the world of social media and soon finds out it’s not all lighthearted fun. As the cafe gets busier, so do the events in his life.

Running parallel to Calvin’s business woes is the investigation into the murder of a man found nearly fully buried on the beach and left to die when the tide came in. Detective Imogen Evans has recently moved to the area whose reputation precedes her so she feels under pressure to solve the case.

The Darkest Water is definitely a page turner, keeping the reader gripped to the psychological thriller and the investigation into the murder on the beach.

Despite Detective Imogen Evans being a recurring character from previous books, this can most definitely be read as a standalone.

Another brilliant book from Mark. The plot was great, and the twist was not what I expected. Highly recommended.

I normally love anything by the author but for some reason I struggle in immersing myself into this book. It was well written but I just couldn't get intrigued with it.

The Darkest Water is a dark thriller with psychological aspects that will have the midnight light burning.

Calvin has realized his dream by opening his own cafe/bakery in the Lake District but business is slow and expenses are piling up.

His wife suggests that he promote the cafe on social media and to his surprise business is booming.

Social media also has a dark side which Calvin naive as he is , is about to find out the hard way.

Strange things are happening in this small town full of interesting characters.

Calvin has his secrets that haunt him and secrets have a way of coming to the surface.

Detective Imogen Evans has recently moved to the district hoping for a quieter life.

A body is discovered murdered brutally on the beach and Imogen is back at it full force as the mystery to who the victim is continues.

Mark Edwards does a remarkable job of intertwining the two story lines with twists and turns, red herrings and he has you doubting half the town.

The Darkest Water kept me turning the pages, guessing wrong and I hated the book to end .

Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for a pulse pounding read.