Today I hand the blog back to Mandie who has a review of the brand new thriller from Helen Phifer, The Girl In The Grave. This is book one in the Beth Adams series, and our thanks go to Noelle Holten of Bookouture for including us in the tour. Here’s what the book is all about:
About the Book
At least they’d found her. Once the site was processed and the girl’s body removed, they’d be able to identify her so that her family could give her the burial she deserved. This innocent girl was far too young to be lying in a grave, crushed under the weight of someone else’s coffin…
When the body of a teenage girl is found hidden inside a stranger’s grave in a small-town cemetery in the Lake District, an urgent call is made to Forensic Pathologist Beth Adams. One look at the beautiful girl’s broken body is enough to bring Beth out of hiding for the first time since an attempt on her own life…
Beth doesn’t believe it’s a coincidence that the victim was found the same day a threatening gift was left on the doorstep of her secluded home. Her instincts are telling her that it’s a trap, that she should run for safety. But she knows she’s the only one with the expertise to help her trusted friend, Detective Josh Walker, crack the most shocking case of his career.
The tiny traces of material Beth finds beneath the victim’s fingernails is the break in the case the team need to chase down this twisted killer. But this critical lead comes at a dangerous price, exposing Beth’s whereabouts and dragging her back into the line of fire once again.
With Beth’s own life on the line, the investigation is already cracking under the pressure. Then another local girl goes missing… Can Beth stay alive long enough to catch the killer before he claims his next victim?
An absolutely gripping new crime thriller that will grab fans of Patricia Gibney, LJ Ross and Angela Marsons from the very first page and leave them gasping for breath by the last.
Available from: Amazon | Kobo | Google Play | Apple Books
Mandie’s Thoughts
This is the first book in the Beth Adams series. Beth is a forensic pathologist with a past that has left her very wary of strangers and almost OCD about her personal safety. She is close friends with DS Josh Walker and they find themselves investigating the murder of a young girl whose body has been found under the coffin of someone else. As another girl goes missing there is now a race to find her before she is killed.
The book certainly opens in a way that will grab the readers interest and the pace doesn’t really let up from that moment. Not only is there the investigation into the murder and the abduction but there is also someone stalking Beth. What you have to work out is are these two incidents related or is there something more for the team to be worried about.
Even though this was the first in the series I found it easy to connect with the main characters as the author has clearly taken time to ensure that they are not one dimensional and have a great rapport with each other. Josh certainly has a great working relationship with his team and although he doesn’t always want to play everything exactly by the book, they will always back him in his decisions regarding the case. Some of the humour in the book came from his disregard to procedure and his teams response to the inevitable telling off that he gets. Throughout the book you also learn about his history with Beth and what happened to make her the way she is. There is definitely something between them and as Beth slowly starts to trust and open up, she can admit this to herself. It will be interesting to see where that relationship goes going forward.
Although there were slight hints as to the reasons for the murders, I will admit I was not expecting the revelation as to who the perpetrator was and the links to Beth finally became clear with a little help from a totally unexpected source. The Girl in the Grave is a great start to this series and it will be interesting to see what Beth winds up in the middle of next.
About the Author
Helen Phifer lives in a small town called Barrow-in-Furness with her husband and five children.
Helen has always loved writing and reading. Her love of horror films and novels is legendary. Helen adores reading books which make the hair on the back of her neck stand on end. Unable to find enough scary stories to read she decided to write her own.
Author Links: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Website
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Jen Med's Book Reviews 
Great review. I am reading this now. 😍📚
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