Burned and Broken by Mark Hardie
Published- 26th January 2017
Publisher- Sphere
Pages- 368 pages (paperback)
An enigmatic policeman - currently the subject of an internal investigation - is found burned to death in his car on the Southend sea front. A vulnerable young woman, fresh out of the care system, is trying to discover the truth behind the sudden death of her best friend. As DS Frank Pearson and DC Catherine Russell from the Essex Police Major Investigation Team are brought in to solve the mystery that surrounds their colleague's death, they're under intense pressure to crack the case without damaging the force's reputation. When a dramatic turn of events casts a whole new light on both cases, the way forward is far from clear. Were the victims connected in some way? And just how much should Pearson and Russell reveal to their bosses as they begin to unearth some dark secrets that the force would rather keep buried? Mark Hardie's stylish and gripping debut introduces a brilliant new detective duo to the world of crime fiction, weaving together two suspenseful stories that end in a breath-taking finale.
The body of a policeman is found in a burned out car, but who killed him and why? Why did a young girl end up dead at the bottom of an overpass? This book will leave you asking yourself questions as you go through reading it.
This was a great thriller novel as you didn't know who had killed a policeman or why they did it. I loved how it started when the body of Carragher had been found, then went back in time by four days to tell you what happened leading up to Carragher's death. You also found out that a young girl was also dead, but you don't know how she was killed or how she ended up dead. You just know she was found at the bottom of an overpass. There was wide range of characters featured within this novel each with their own different traits and quirks.
Pearson and Russell were great main characters as they just wanted to find out the truth as to why Carragher wasn't showing up for work in the days before he died and find his murderer. Pearson was brave aswell as he would risk his own life to save those of others. Russell was a woman who always spoke her mind no matter who was in the firing line. She would protect her friends when it was most required. Carragher was a bit of a shady character as you were always finding out dodgy stuff about him in the days leading up to his death and finding out more about the man he was. Donna and Malcolm were kind of like mystery characters as you just wanted to find out more about them and their backstories as the novel went along.
The plot moved smoothly and the novel was easy to read. There wasn't a lot of hard language throughout the novel, as that would have made it difficult to read. It took me a while to read though as the text was so small within the novel and it was just under 400 pages long. I wanted to take my time so I understood everything that was happening and I didn't forget a major plot point. It was also interesting to read about Police Standards and why they were asking questions about Carragher and it told you a bit about their job role aswell.
The action was sporadic throughout this novel and that was really good as you never knew what action packed thing was going to happen next. The opening of the novel was action with the body being found, then action throughout the middle and at the end when you found out who the murderer was and why they did it. I find novels with all the action centered in one place (e.g. middle or end) hard to read as you just find the other parts of the novel really slow.
Overall, I gave this novel 4 out of 5 stars. I can't wait to read the next novel in the series by Mark Hardie. If you love crime thrillers then you will definitely love this novel. It is action packed and contains lots of elements of mystery. You are always trying to guess who the killer is then getting annoyed when you couldn't guess or got the wrong killer. A definite must read if you are a crime or thriller fan.
This was a great thriller novel as you didn't know who had killed a policeman or why they did it. I loved how it started when the body of Carragher had been found, then went back in time by four days to tell you what happened leading up to Carragher's death. You also found out that a young girl was also dead, but you don't know how she was killed or how she ended up dead. You just know she was found at the bottom of an overpass. There was wide range of characters featured within this novel each with their own different traits and quirks.
Pearson and Russell were great main characters as they just wanted to find out the truth as to why Carragher wasn't showing up for work in the days before he died and find his murderer. Pearson was brave aswell as he would risk his own life to save those of others. Russell was a woman who always spoke her mind no matter who was in the firing line. She would protect her friends when it was most required. Carragher was a bit of a shady character as you were always finding out dodgy stuff about him in the days leading up to his death and finding out more about the man he was. Donna and Malcolm were kind of like mystery characters as you just wanted to find out more about them and their backstories as the novel went along.
The plot moved smoothly and the novel was easy to read. There wasn't a lot of hard language throughout the novel, as that would have made it difficult to read. It took me a while to read though as the text was so small within the novel and it was just under 400 pages long. I wanted to take my time so I understood everything that was happening and I didn't forget a major plot point. It was also interesting to read about Police Standards and why they were asking questions about Carragher and it told you a bit about their job role aswell.
The action was sporadic throughout this novel and that was really good as you never knew what action packed thing was going to happen next. The opening of the novel was action with the body being found, then action throughout the middle and at the end when you found out who the murderer was and why they did it. I find novels with all the action centered in one place (e.g. middle or end) hard to read as you just find the other parts of the novel really slow.
Overall, I gave this novel 4 out of 5 stars. I can't wait to read the next novel in the series by Mark Hardie. If you love crime thrillers then you will definitely love this novel. It is action packed and contains lots of elements of mystery. You are always trying to guess who the killer is then getting annoyed when you couldn't guess or got the wrong killer. A definite must read if you are a crime or thriller fan.
Rating 4/5
