The Cold Killer
(DI Barton #4)
by Ross Greenwood
It’s hard to live when you think you deserve to die…
When a tired old inmate is found dead in his cell, the prison is obligated to investigate and so DI Barton attends. The men he interviews have been convicted of some of the worst things a human being can do, but it appears likely that the death was due to natural causes.
When the house of the dead man is burgled and that crime is followed by a suspicious fire, Barton desperately needs to speak to his widow, but she’s nowhere to be found.
In the space of twenty-four hours, everyone he wants to talk to has vanished. Then he receives some post that makes him believe he could be the next to disappear.
Barton’s investigation goes full circle, through a series of brutal murders, back to the prison, and all signs are pointing to the fact that he’s made a terrible mistake.
There’s a violent killer on the loose, who wants everyone to learn that some people deserve to die.
DI Barton is back as Ross Greenwood continues with his bestselling series, perfect for fans of Mark Billingham and Ian Rankin.
My Rating:
Favorite Quotes:
‘How’s your wife?’ Mortis’s wife had just got over a cancer scare… ‘She’s great. Demands sex every day.’ ‘Nice. With anyone we know?’ asked Zander.
‘Yes, I killed that dirty old man. He was rude to me.’ ‘How did you kill him?’ ‘Prison beans give me deadly farts. I straddled him and gave him a full load.’ Barton heard a brief titter come from Strange before she nipped it in the bud. ‘Will you admit to that in a court of law?’ asked Barton. ‘I’m prepared to demonstrate how I did it.’ ‘We’ll be in touch.’ ‘I could show you now.’ ‘Out!’
‘I’ve got an itch in my head about her.’ ‘That’s probably just the hamster on the wheel in there needing some more cheese.’
My brain isn’t happy with how this fits together. It’s as though I have a finished jigsaw puzzle, but a few of the pieces are in the wrong place.
My Review:
My introduction to the ingenious scribblings of Ross Greenwood may seem backward as I picked up the fourth book rather than starting at the beginning with book number one. While I have every intention of reading every well-chosen word this clever wordsmith has and well ever pen, I didn’t need to start at the beginning as this compelling story was excellently crafted. The engaging storylines and descriptive narratives were gripping and perceptively fashioned with the strength of a kickboxer’s legs and more than capable to stand alone with occasional mentions of the previous cases that made up the earlier installments. I am rubbing my hands together in glee as I anticipate reading each and every one of them.
Ross Greenwood is the bestselling author of eight crime thrillers. Before becoming a full-time writer he was most recently a prison officer and so worked every day with murderers, rapists, and thieves for four years. He lives in Peterborough.
This sound like intense. My kind of story.
This is a new to me author.. and it has been a long while since I read books of this genre, so why not start with this one 🙂 love your review as always