Stolen Ones by Angela Marsons

Today I’m thrilled to wish Angela Marsons a happy publication day and to share my thoughts on Stolen Ones, the latest Kim Stone thriller. I am a fairly big fan of the series and so you know the books are going to be on pre-order from the moment they appear on Amazon. I am ever grateful to publisher Bookouture for the advance copy of the book and for the invite to join the tour. Here’s what the book is all about:

About the Book

25 years ago he took a girl. Today he takes another.One August afternoon, eight-year-old Grace Lennard skips into the garden of the childcare centre she attends and vanishes into thin air.

Hours before, Steven Harte walks into Halesowen police station and confesses to having information that will lead Detective Kim Stone to Melody Jones – the little girl who was taken from a playground exactly twenty-five years ago. But something about his confession is off and Kim dismisses his claims.

Arriving at the scene of Grace’s disappearance, Kim finds a chilling piece of evidence: the heart bracelet belonging to Melody. Now Kim must play Steven’s twisted game if she is to find Grace alive. But they’re going to play by Kim’s rules.

With only twenty-four hours to make every second of Steven’s interrogation count, and scan his behaviour for hidden clues, Kim and her team soon link Steven to the abduction of several vulnerable girls – two were kept for a year and then released, unharmed – but where are Melody and the others?

Then small bones are discovered in the grounds of a local park, and Kim fears the worst.

Kim may be close to convicting a killer, but there’s another who wants revenge against her – Dr Alex Thorne – the evil woman Kim did her best to keep behind bars. Alex is about to reveal a shocking secret to Kim that will hit her where it hurts the most. And if Kim lets Alex mess with her head, she might not be able to save Grace and find the other missing girls in time.

An edge-of-your-seat thriller that will leave your heart in your mouth. You will be totally hooked on the utterly addictive, number one, multi-million-copy bestselling Detective Kim Stone series.

My Thoughts

If you are looking for a series that is guaranteed to hook you from the very beginning of each book and keep you invested in the story right to the last page, then you could absolutely do no better than to get yourself hooked on the Kim Stone series. I did, intrigued as I was by the fact the author is local to me and I know much of the locale in which all of the series is set, and, since book one, I have never looked back. Stolen Ones is yet another cracker of a story, all of the hallmark moments of any Kim Stone story, all wrapped up in what is very much a ticking clock investigation. Or should that be a cold case? Or maybe, a very clever story which combines the best elements of both.

The story examines a 25 year old child abduction case, one which has led to a succession of false confessions and crank calls over the years, but whose latest anniversary brings Kim and the team a lead which they aren’t able to dismiss quite so quickly. Add into the mix another missing child, skeletal remains and the return of the one person who has always been able to get under Kim’s skin and readers are faced with a story that showcases what Angela Marsons does best. Creates a perfect blend of tension, mystery, police investigation and canny characters who will delight and quite probably infuriate you.

Whilst the new case of missing Grace Lennard plays heavily on the teams mind, it is the original missing persons case, that of Melody Jones, that commands most of their focus. For Kim, getting to the heart of that investigation is key to solving this latest abduction. It allows Angela Marsons to explore the psychology of interviews, of drawing out the truth from a witness who is seemingly both reluctant and yet intent on sharing information with her. There are surprising links, not only between the two investigations, but also between the characters, that are kept well hidden and revealed at just the right moment to keep tension high, whilst giving real insight into the motivations of the mysterious Steven Harte.

He may appear to be one step ahead of Kim and the team, but he doesn’t know them like we do. They are dogged, determined and bloody fun to spend time with. In spite of all the challenges the case throws at them, and there are many, you know that Angela Marsons has written them and. developed their traits so perfectly that there was no doubt in my mind they would triumph. Did that mean the story lost a touch of tension? Not for one moment, because the author plays a blinder and only offers readers just enough information to keep us on the edge of the seat. There are some real shocks and surprises in store, and the way the story dips into the psychology of both victim and perpetrator kept me fascinated. And smiling. A lot.

And for long standing fans of the series the return of Kim’s one true nemesis, Alex Thorne, is sure to get you smiling. She may only be on the edges of the action as far as Kim and the investigation are concerned – she is still incarcerated after all – but it doesn’t mean that she can’t cause trouble. She has the capacity to turn Kim’s life upside down, and revels in the idea of it. Her story thread is interspersed with the main investigation and it’s good to see that she hasn’t lost a single one of her sharp edges, or her ability to manipulate or control others. She’s on top form once more, perhaps one of the best characters that Angela Marsons has created outside of the main team.

With all the wit, banter, tension and conflict that we’ve come to expect from the series, Stolen Ones is another winner and one that will most definitely leave fans hungry for more.

About the Author

Angela Marsons is the Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author of the DI Kim Stone series and her books have sold more than 4 million in 5 years.

She lives in Worcestershire with her partner and their 2 cheeky Golden Retrievers.

She first discovered her love of writing at Junior School when actual lessons came second to watching other people and quietly making up her own stories about them. Her report card invariably read “Angela would do well if she minded her own business as well as she minds other people’s”.

After years of writing relationship based stories (The Forgotten Woman and Dear Mother) Angela turned to Crime, fictionally speaking of course, and developed a character that refused to go away.

She is signed to Bookouture.com for a total of 28 books in the Kim Stone series and her books have been translated into more than 27 languages.

Many of her books, including Blood Lines, Dead Souls, Broken Bones, Fatal Promise and Dead Memories reached the #1 spot on Amazon on pre-orders alone and the translation of Dead Souls, La Verita Sepolte, recently won the prestigious Primo Bancarella award.

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