Twisted Lies
3.5 Stars

The body of a man who suffered horrific torture prior to death is found on an industrial estate. When the family of the deceased disappears less than 24 hours following his murder, D.I. Kim Stone and her team struggle to follow the clues. Then another victim is discovered, and a troubling secret is exposed. Can Kim stop a vicious yet determined killer before they strike again?

Marsons has an engaging writing style (short chapters with twisty endings); Kim and her team are brilliant, and the action is non-stop. Nevertheless, in this particular installment, the glaring plot holes and non-sensical explanations for the crimes undermine an otherwise exciting read.

The murders themselves are quite gruesome, reminiscent of Lisa Jackson's Shiver, and Marsons does not spare the gritty details. While the underlying premise of someone killing people in the witness protection program is gripping, the eventual explanation does not make sense as the culprit's motivation is inconsistent with their background and personality.

The secondary storyline is also problematic as it relies on too many leaps in logic and acceptance of unrealistic ideas.

All in all, this is not one of Marsons' better plots, but her characterization is excellent as always, and her development of Tracy Frost's character is a highlight. It looks like Alex Thorne is up to her old tricks in the next book and I look forward to seeing how Kim handles it. ( )

Twisted Lies by Angela Marsons is the 14th DI Kim Stone Crime Thriller. Twisted Lies can be read as a standalone, but I highly recommend reading this series in order. It allows you to get to the know the characters and see how they have developed since Silent Scream. Twisted Lies, like the other novels in the series, is well-written with complex characters. The author captured the setting of Halesowen, West Midlands, England. Kim is happy with her unit and dislikes change. Unfortunately, her boss is pressuring her to talk with Stacey. Stacey has come a long way and it is time for her consider taking the test to become a sergeant. Stacey has mixed feelings about the news (as does Kim). The author has come up with a unique crime this time. Each crime scene is more gruesome than the one before (fair warning). There are twists and turns that will keep readers guessing. Just when you think you have it all figured out, the author surprises you with a new detail. I loved it. In addition to the main crime, a previous case is going to trial again. After getting a mistrial, the accused has hired a PR firm to make him look like a saint. Kim doubts they will get a conviction. Tracy Frost, a reporter and Kim’s foe, is on a ride along with her and Bryant. Kim takes Tracy to visit the victim’s family. It inspires Tracy to write a series of articles that allows people to see things from a different perspective. Tracy has hit a nerve which endangers her life. I enjoyed the interactions between Kim and Tracy. They added humor to the story along with Kim’s discussions with Barney. It also allows reader to see how much Kim has changed since the beginning of the series. We also get to see another side of Tracy Frost. Twisted Lies is a fascinating police procedural that will have you riveted until the very last page. The ending will have you itching to get your hands on the next DI Kim Stone novel. I do want readers to know that there is foul language (too much of it) as well as detailed macabre crime scenes. Twisted Lies is a fascinating and twisty tale with an energetic reporter, a canny canine, horrifying homicides, surprising secrets, a crafty killer, and a determined detective. ( )

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

SPOILERS

I have been reading these from the beginning, so I don't know how well this would stand on its own for a reader who starts the series here. My favourite part is usually the relationship between Kim and Bryant, and that was as good here as ever.

There were two strands to the story: a series of victims horrifically and creatively tortured to death, and the upcoming retrial of a man who had been violent to, and then killed, his wife. The latter was being covered by Kim's frenemy the reporter Tracy Frost, and I thought this was the stronger thread for most of the book. It went a bit haywire towards the end though - would a PR company really carry out an assault and a home invasion for a client? Then there was the very end of that strand, which was over the top, I think (also nauseating to imagine).

The whole of the other strand was over the top really. I know we were given an explanation for why the murderer used such lengthy and unusual forms of torture, but it didn't really make sense to me. The anger seemed to be directed at the wrong persons, and If the aim was to extract information, it should have been pretty quickly clear that the victims had no information to give up. Why did the murderer choose now to go on the rampage? Was his place of employment a coincidence?

My other issue was with the repeated lengthy infodumps. I think in an early one (at the first autopsy) a character even said something like "Let me explain" and then proceeded to do so, at length. There was one paragraph about procedures at the witness protection service that was so dull and technical as to be unreadable.

However, I read to the end, and will continue on with this series. ( )