I received a copy of Dark Water by Robert Bryndza through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Bookouture and to Robert Bryndza for the opportunity to review this awesome addition to the series . I have read every single book with DCI Erika Foster and have loved every single one. If you haven’t started this series I encourage you to start from the beginning and work your way over to this gem.

This story starts off where I didn’t expect it. I wanted to see Erika doing what she does best solving hard cases and taking names! What can I say I am all for a strong female lead and Erica is one of the best I have come across. Although she started with the Projects Team, where she put drug dealers away she quickly finds herself back with her old team when the remains of a little girl are found along with the drugs. I loved seeing Erika in her element. The way that Robert weaves this story with short punchy chapters makes this a hard book to put down, add to the equation that the remains of the body that they found was of the young girl Jessica Collins who died in 1990 making this not only a twenty-six-year-old case but absolutely a book you won’t want to put down.

While I have read every single book in the series to date I have to say I liked this one a little more than the previous two. You get a much better understanding of Erika as a person not just as Erika the copy. You get to see her form relationships/friendships with others and that is important to me as a reader. I love the strong take charge side to her personality but Robert Bryndza does a fabulous job in further developing Erika that make her extremely relatable and likable. Hands down a 5 Star EDGE of YOUR seat read a Must have for everyone who loves crime novels.
( )

Dark Water
3 Stars

When skeletal remains are found submerged in a quarry, Detective Inspector Erika Foster reopens a 26 years investigation into the disappearance of a young girl. As Erika and her team wade through the evidence, they stir up long buried secrets and fears that might just end in more death.

To begin with, my Kindle version was teeming with grammatical and plot continuity errors, and it was only after looking on Amazon that the updated version, in which most of these were addressed, was downloaded. While this in not the author's fault per se, it is troubling that he initially published a version so overloaded with mistakes.

In terms of the storyline, there are many repetitive tropes from the first book including a body submerged in water, a dysfunctional family and a killer breaking into Erika's flat. In addition, the revelation of the killer's identity as well as the motives for the crime both in the past and present are woefully predictable. Where has Bryndza's originality gone?

The characterization is also problematic as Erika exhibits very little personal growth. Not only is she still behaving like a maverick officer butting heads with her superiors unnecessarily, but she is now involved in an affair with a subordinate despite her obvious inability to move on from her husband's death. These are not positive directions for her character.

All in all, Dark Water is not as gripping or as well-written as the previous books, but the mystery is satisfying enough and Erika a sufficiently compelling heroine to continue on with the series. Hopefully, the next one will be better. ( )

Another great read from the Erika Foster series. This had a lot going on, but the ending was a surprise to me. The story was basically a snowball rolling down hill, getting bigger and bigger, but none of it was apparent until the end, when it was about to smash into a tree.

As usual, Erika swims against the tide to solve the case, almost drowning a few times along the way. But at least she didn't get fired or demoted.

There was even a little bit of surprising romance along the way - surprising to everyone, including the participants. But as expected, it didn't seem to last long. ( )

I love reading about cold cases and this case, about the finding of the skeleton of a child that went missing twenty-six years ago is both tragic and chilling to read. This book is the third book in the Erika Foster series, but you can read them without any problem stand-alone.

Erika is a brilliant police, but with some problems with both keeping her mouth shut and her temper in check. She is still quite pissed about not getting the promotion she thinks she deserved and changing units after that has not made her life happier. She, therefore, is quite thrilled to get the chance to try to crack this case, although not many want it to be honest. The detective in charge of the case back in the 90s, Amanda Baker, career was ruined thanks to this case. But, Erika is hell-bent on solving it, despite the lack of evidence.

Cases that involve children are always so tragic to read about and this is not an exception. It gets even worse when it is revealed that a pedophile was keeping the young girl under surveillance, although he apparently has an alibi. For Erica is this a tough case, trying to bring justice to little Jessica will be hard when so many years have gone by. I found this book to be just as good as the previous books in the series, and it was also nice for the first time to meet Erika's sister and her daughters. Although I did understand Erika's frustration with them. And, speaking of family, Erika is still mourning her dead husband, but she finally seems to be able to perhaps move on with a certain colleague...

Dark Water is a great book in a great series!

I want to thank the publisher for providing me with a free copy through NetGalley for an honest review! ( )

I love reading about cold cases and this case, about the finding of the skeleton of a child that went missing twenty-six years ago is both tragic and chilling to read. This book is the third book in the Erika Foster series, but you can read them without any problem stand-alone.

Erika is a brilliant police, but with some problem with both keeping her mouth shut and her temper in check. She is still quite pissed about not getting the promotion she thinks she deserved, and changing unit after that have not made her life happier. She, therefore, is quite thrilled to get the chance to try to crack this case, although not many want it to be honest. The detective in charge of the case back in the 90s, Amanda Baker, career was ruined thanks to this case. But, Erika is hell-bent on solving it, despite lack of evidence.

Cases that involve children are always so tragic to read about and this is not an exception. It gets even worse when it is revealed that a pedophile was keeping the young girl under surveillance, although he apparently has an alibi. For Erica is this a tough case, trying to bring justice to little Jessica will be hard when so many years have gone by. I found this book to be just as good as the previous books in the series, and it was also nice for the first time to meet Erika's sister and her daughters. Although I did understand Erika's frustration with them. And, speaking of family, Erika is still mourning her dead husband, but she finally seems to be able to perhaps move on with a certain colleague...

Dark Water is a great book in a great series!

I want to thank the publisher for providing me with a free copy through NetGalley for an honest review! ( )