Absolutely brilliant Erika Foster mystery, full of twists and taking the reader back to the worst time in Erika’s life. You won’t know who to trust and nor does Erika. Beautifully woven plot with great characters. Highly recommended.

A thorough enjoyable story as ever. This time the death is even more of a mystery than any other - they have no idea who the victim is because she is definitely not who they initially thought she was.

This story splits into two when investigating the mystery woman's death Erika gets a fright at seeing a ghost from her past Jerome Goodman. He was the guy accused of killing Erika's late husband but he escaped and disappeared off the face of the earth. She recognised his manerisms, however because he had never been charged with anything previously he had to be released without charge. The accusation got Erika some unexpected time off work. This did not deter her into digging around and awakening some bad memories. The investigation into "Marie's" death and that of Jerome Goodman run side by side until the story all falls into place. Totally gripping.

There are so many twists in this story you nearly get whiplash! I could not put it down. One of my favourite things about this series are the short chapters that keep you wanting to read that one more chapter. Fabulous.

Chasing Shadows, the ninth installment in the Detective Erika Foster series, proves once again that Robert Bryndza is at the top of his game. While it’s part of a long-running series, each book—including this one—stands firmly on its own, making it accessible to both longtime fans and new readers.

Bryndza continues to raise the bar with his trademark turbo-charged pacing, tight plotting, and assured prose. From the gripping opening pages, he plunges readers into a taut, high-stakes thriller that never lets up.

This time, Erika is forced to confront a tragedy from her past—a raid gone horribly wrong ten years earlier that claimed the lives of fellow officers, including her husband. Haunted by guilt and unanswered questions, her world is rocked when she comes face-to-face with a man who bears an uncanny resemblance to one of the killers, despite having a different identity.

As Erika digs deeper, determined to uncover the truth, the narrative twists into a harrowing, multi-layered ride. What begins as a seemingly separate subplot soon collides with the central mystery in ways that are as shocking as they are satisfying.

Clear your schedule before you start this one—because once you begin, you won’t want to stop. Chasing Shadows is an unputdownable thriller confirming Bryndza as a master storyteller.

Really enjoyed reading this and found it difficult to put down. Poor Erika, bounced from pillar to post by her superiors, not knowing who to trust all the while whilst playing cat and mouse with her husbands killers. It was so well constructed. Classic Mr Bryndza.

“Chasing Shadows” was a very enjoyable book. A seemingly routine, albeit somewhat unusual case, takes a major turn when, in the course of the investigation, Detective Foster comes face-to-face with Jerome Goodman, the man who killed her husband and four other police officers and injured her during a police raid that went wrong. The problem is that Jerome is now Kieron Bagshaw. Jerome taunts Detective Foster, recognizing her and knowing that his new identity is solid, especially as Jerome Goodman is officially dead.

Detective Foster and her colleagues will have a difficult time unraveling the mystery of Jerome’s new identity, as well as how/why the raid ten years ago went so horribly wrong and how Jerome escaped. Detective Foster has to return to Manchester to confront her past. Her efforts will also be stymied by corruption in the police force.

The plot is very intricate and clever, both with respect to how Jerome and his associates (Frank and Danielle) have managed to keep their criminal enterprise going, including changing identities, and how Detective Foster and her colleagues finally put a stop to them.

Absolutely loved this book. I have followed the Erika foster series and love this journey to find out what happened to her husband. I look forward to more Erika foster books. @Netgalley@ChasingShadows

Erika Foster is my favourite detective. In this book we get to find out more of Erika’’s back story and the potential for her to get some closure. Another great story from Robert Bryndza. Looking forward to the next one.
Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the arc.

As an avid reader of Robert Bryndza I was so more than happy to get this - I even did a happy dance!
This was unputdownable and Erika’s past in Manchester is fully revealed, which was good as it gave us readers answers to unanswered questions!
I had real trouble putting this book down.
This gave us more of an understanding of Erika, but Robert we need more please!
I would love to see this series as a tv series, but would play Erika?
I cannot recommend this series highly enough. 5🌟 from me.

Thank you NetGalley and Raven Street Publishing for the eARC.
What a treat to read the latest Erica Foster book, I had missed her!
This time we go back to the past when Erica's husband and his fellow police officers were shot and killed by a career criminal, the cause of her severe PTSD.
In the present time Erica is 100% sure she has met the killer again, but no-one believes her and she ends up on a forced leave.and focuses on finding the truth and catching him. She's relentless in her search and finds out some disastrous truths.
This such a great read, I tore through it, even though I didn't want it to end.
Can't wait for the next book!

I have thoroughly enjoyed catching up with Erika and her team. I agree with the author that the first book definitely needed a revisit and for this I am grateful. As usual this was a great plot and I couldn’t put it down. Although the first book’s plot is referred to this book does not rely on going over the same ground but is a fast paced mystery. I always enjoy the way these books are written and am thankful that the author will carry on this rather endearing character. I also enjoyed catching up with all her team and family.
The twists and ending to this book were very well crafted and kept me guessing.
Can’t wait for the next one!
Will recommend at the time of publishing on several platforms

Thank you for allowing me to read this one early

First and foremost, a huge THANK YOU to NetGalley, Raven Street Publishing and author, Robert Bryndza for providing me with a copy of this publication, which allows me to provide you with an unbiased review. Publication date is currently set for June 05, 2025.

When you receive an email from Rob Bryndza via Raven Street Publishing which advises the new Detective Erika Foster crime thriller is available for request 🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

Book #9 in the Detective Erika Foster series, and the author has taken us back to where it all began – back ten years – to the day Erika lost her husband, Detective Inspector Mark Foster, and four other members of her team when they were all shot and killed during a drug raid which went horribly wrong. Foster, who was leading the raid, was also severely injured but survived. The ensuing backlash from her superiors within the Met was swift and brutal. Forced to take the blame for the botched raid, Foster was booted out of the drug squad she headed. Her former colleagues no longer spoke to her. She'd lost friends as a result. Can't face the dependants of the colleagues who died. She's avoided attending therapy and trying (unsuccessfully) to keep a lid of her emotions.

Answering a dispatch call regarding a suspected Code 5 (dead body), Erika arrived on the scene. Her senses on high alert – there was something creepy about the room. There were no obvious signs of a struggle, there were no drugs or drug paraphernalia in the room, just the body, and she looked content – just like she was sleeping.

Things take a darker turn when forensics find a layer of cocaine powder on the ceiling in the dead woman's unit. The drug dogs lead the team to a set of parcel lockers just outside the building. And an investigation into those lockers leads Erika straight back into a collision course with the past.

Chasing Shadows is the book the series had to have. The story has Bryndza's writing style all over it - the writing is taut, the dialogue crisp and emotionally charged and the pacing is relentless. The flashbacks to what happened ten years ago tie in nicely with the present day investigation and the pain Foster is experiencing with this investigation is visceral.

I can't believe we're up to book #9 already; and reading the author's notes made me happy - he writes that he has no plans to end the series and has lots of ideas to keep Erika busy in the future. Author's Note = Happy Reader.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Raven Street Publishing for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

Such a great entry in this series! Erika has just started a new investigation into a murder, when one of the first people she interviews looks just like the guy who killed her husband. This starts off a chain reaction to the current investigation and the events that happened 10 years ago. Erika goes through a lot in this one, especially confronting her emotions about the past. I enjoyed seeing her handle this and not letting people bring her down. I also liked that we finally got answers to what happened to her husband and that entire situation. I’m still loving this series a lot and I’m happy to see that RB is going to continue writing more Erika stories.

Filled with frustrations, blind alleys, and absolutely diabolical plot twists, all at a breakneck pace.
Definitely unputdownable! I dropped in at book9 but it is done so well it can definitely stand alone.
I requested and received a free temporary uncorrected digital proof from Raven Street Publishing via NetGalley. Pub Date Jun 05, 2025
#ChasingShadows by @robertbryndza #DetectiveErikaFosterBk9 #NetGalley #RavenStreetPublishing
@ibpalovesindies #procedural #crimefiction #britishdetective #departmentpolitics #PTSD

Review of eBook

A seemingly-routine call sends Detective Erika Foster to a flat on Amersham Road where the body of a woman lies on a bed. As the investigation progresses, Erika and her colleagues find themselves with more questions than answers. There’s no DNA, no hair, no dust . . . the flat has been scrubbed; sanitized.

That is, except for the cocaine on the ceiling . . .

=========

Ninth in the author’s Detective Erika Foster Crime Thriller series, readers will find sufficient backstory here for the book to work as a standalone. All the expected characters, well-developed and believable, are in place.

Readers are pulled into the telling of the tale from the outset; unexpected plot twists keep the pages turning as fast as possible. Flashbacks to ten years earlier provide details that add to Erika’s backstory; readers of the series will find this especially revealing.

The only downside here is the tendency to use a particularly offensive expletive; for many readers it will be off-putting.

Readers who have enjoyed the previous stories in the series as well as readers who enjoy police procedurals will find much to appreciate here.

Recommended.

I received a free copy of this eBook from Raven Street Publishing and NetGalley
#ChasingShadows #NetGalley

⸻

I couldn’t wait to read this book—it was brilliant. Finally getting the full story of what happened on that fateful day when Erica lost her husband after the police raid was gripping.

She’s called to a house where a body has been found, and during the investigation, she comes face to face with the man who murdered her husband. He has a different name and background, and officially, he’s someone else. But Erica knows it’s him. When no one believes her, she launches her own investigation, determined to uncover the truth.

This was such a compelling, well-paced story. I can’t praise it enough.

Thank you to Netgalley and Raven Street Publishing for an ARC

The only disappointment with Bryndza is that we only get a book a year...I live in anticipation for the next. This was amazing as usual, kept me on edge. Thank you for such a great book...again 😁

Having read all of the previous books in this series, I am so happy Robert Bryndza has written this book, so we finally know all of the details of what happened to Erika's husband Mark and their colleagues. I like it when Erika goes rogue, supported by her current team. A chance encounter at the house of someone linked to her current case, leads to meeting a face from her past and the subsequent search for answers. The book switches between the present day and the time of the deaths in a police raid which was an interesting way of tying the plot together. There is a massive revelation in this book which is sure to have a huge impact on future books and I really look forward to the next one and seeing how that will play out. I was definitely not expecting it!

He’s done it again, another excellent Erica Foster book, this time going back to the trauma that brought her to London when her husband and colleagues died, and her life changed forever.
The discovery of a dead woman in a London flat leads down a strange path, where supposedly dead people still live, and bodies are not what they seem, ending in a house, with secrets, in Manchester. On the way there are familiar faces, unexpected betrayals, and loyal colleagues.
What I like about Erika and her team is that they all mature and develop across the books, and even admit to ageing and human failings.
Five stars.

Thanks to Netgalley and Raven Street Publishing for the opportunity to read this book.

I’ve been a fan of Robert Bryndza’s Detective Erika Foster series since the very beginning so I was excited to receive a review copy of “Chasing Shadows”which is the latest.
This is a bit different as it looks back at Erika’s earlier life and the incident which caused her husband’s death.
Whilst investigating a possible murder, Erika comes into contact with a man who looks remarkably like Jerome Goodman, the master criminal who shot her husband and colleagues 10 years earlier.
However, he claims he is Kieron Bagshaw and despite being absolutely certain she has the right man, Erika is forced to let him go.
As she begins to investigate and confront her demons she discovers a conspiracy of silence- no one wants this case to be solved.
This was a fast paced mystery which contained many surprises as well as filling in the missing part of Erika’s background.
With the help of her close knit team Erika is able to discover what happened all those years ago and finally overcome the guilt she has felt about the murder.
I like the way Erika does not give up, even when she is forced to take time out after her boss decides she has made a mistake arresting Bagshaw.
The flashbacks to the earlier time serve build up the tension in the plot and I was really hoping that Erika and her colleagues would manage to solve the earlier crime and catch the perpetrators.
The author ties in the cold case and the present day murder very cleverly and all is revealed by the last page. As is usual with these books I am already counting the days until the next one in the series.
Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for my advance copy.

As an avid reader of Robert Bryndza I was so happy to get this book before release!.
The full story of Erika Foster's past in Manchester is revealed in a nailbiting book, which I couldn't put down!.
I feel like Erika has come full circle, but I still want another installment of the series!.
I would love to see Erika Foster in a tv series too!!