Death Message (Tom Thorne Series #7) Book

7/10

A solid entry for the series without ever excelling like some of the previous novels in this series have. It's been a while since I've read one of these which might also have influenced the overall score as there were a fair few characters I'd forgotten about and the impact on Thorne and his life they played. Saying that, some of the main re-occurring themes were still clear in my memory which was key as somebody from the earlier books crops up also with key things from the middle of the series having an impact at the end. Basically, don't read this one out of sequence!

The hunt is on as Thorne is being messaged videos of people being murdered/their murdered bodies as an ex-convict looks to wreak revenge on those who caused him to be sent down for a crime they didn't commit. Things are quite interesting as the lines of communication between Thorne and the bad guy are kept under wraps as Thorne believes there to be some "dirty cops" in on the act and he wants to fly solo. One word for that; idiotic.

However, it wouldn't be much of a story if things were done by the book. That is what makes Thorne a unique interesting character. He's got a bit of a rogue loner with a drinking problem vibe going on which puts him in a small bracket of every other police novel going but the writing and twists do enough to keep things interesting in the series and the location of London makes things a little different too. This one doesn't excel in showing it's worth a place at the table with all the other detective fiction but the series as a whole is a good one and I would recommend the series for anyone wanting a look at some English Detective fiction.

If you like this try: "The Concrete Blonde" by Michael Connolly