I’m delighted to welcome you today to my stop on the blog tour for A Gift For Dying, the new standalone thriller by the amazing M.J. Arlidge. Thank you to Tracy Fenton and Michael Joseph Books for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.
About the book:
Nothing surprises Adam Brandt anymore. As a forensic psychologist, he’s seen and heard everything.
That is, until he meets Kassie.
Because she claims to have a terrible gift – with one look into your eyes, she can see when and how you will die.
Adam doesn’t believe her, obviously.
But then a serial killer starts wreaking havoc across the city, and only Kassie seems to know where he’ll strike next.
Against all his intuition, Adam starts to believe her.
He just doesn’t realise how dangerous this trust might be . . .
About the author:
M. J. Arlidge has worked in television for the last twenty years, specializing in high-end drama production, including prime-time crime serials Silent Witness, Torn, The Little House and, most recently, the hit ITV show Innocent. In 2015 his audiobook exclusive Six Degrees of Assassination was a number-one bestseller. His debut thriller, Eeny Meeny, was the UK’s bestselling crime debut of 2014. It was followed by the bestselling Pop Goes the Weasel, The Doll’s House, Liar Liar, Little Boy Blue, Hide and Seek and Love Me Not. Down to the Woods is the eighth DI Helen Grace thriller. In 2019 he published a standalone thriller, A Gift for Dying.
My Review:
As a huge fan of M.J. Arlidge’s Helen Grace series I was thrilled to be offered the chance to read his new standalone novel A Gift For Dying. Very different to his previous work, and with the added bonus of a supernatural element, this was a fast paced and gruesome thriller that kept me enthralled throughout.
Kassie is a troubled teenager cursed with the gift of foresight. Her whole life has been plagued by the fact that when she looks into someone’s eyes she can see not only how, but when they are going to die. But now things have taken an even more sinister turn for Kassie as she finds herself on the trail of a twisted serial killer.
Adam Brandt is the forensic psychologist who is trying to help her, but with a pregnant wife at home who needs him, things start to get even more complicated as he is drawn further and further into Kassie’s story. Gabrielle, the detective trying to make sense of it all, is convinced that Kassie is somehow involved. How else could she have possibly known about the murders if she isn’t assisting the murderer in some way? And why is Adam so eager to help the troubled girl, even when it is having a detrimental effect on both his career and his personal life? And even more importantly, can Kassie really foresee the future?
What follows is a taut and tense thriller, with short, punchy chapters that kept me reading long into the night. It moves along at a steady pace, taking us on a chilling and gruesome rollercoaster of a ride that leads us through to its final, shocking conclusion.
But there is also a very real human element to this story alongside all the murder and mayhem, and I have to admit that the side plot of Adam and his wife, Faith, was a very difficult read for me at times. I don’t want to risk spoiling the story for anyone, so won’t say any more than that, but this was a dark, shocking and emotional read that will stay with me.
M.J. Arlidge has written a gripping, tense and superbly plotted thriller, which is every bit as good as his Helen Grace series. With characters you quickly come to care about and a sick, twisted killer to chill you to the bone, this is a book that I would highly recommend.
A Gift For Dying by M.J. Arlidge is available to buy now: Amazon UK
Check out what these other fabulous bloggers have to say:
Cal Turner Reviews 
I’m part way through this now and it’s I’m really enjoying it.
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It was a great read! xx
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