Today is my stop on the #BlogTour for this brilliant new addition to the DS Smith series by Stewart Giles. HARLEQUIN is book 5 in the series, a series that gets better book by book. This is an adrenaline pumping read that will keep you turning the pages.
Harlequin (DS Jason Smith #5) by Stewart Giles
Available from AMAZON UK US AU
From #1 best-selling author: Stewart Giles comes a new addition to the popular Detective Jason Smith series.
The circus comes to town and children start to disappear.
Detective Sergeant Jason Smith is persuaded to return to work after three weeks of a marijuana induced haze. Forced to endure the leadership of a new DI, the fulsome Bryony Brownhill, Smith is faced with the most difficult investigation of his colourful career.
When the children who vanished are found murdered in various parts of the city, all clues lead to the circus grounds, but Smith and his team are met with a sinister silence everywhere they turn.
Smith digs deeper and discovers the cause of this silence; the chain of events that led up to the vile murders that have shattered the hearts of the people of York.
This is an edge-of-your-seat thriller with an ending that you won’t expect.
If you like Police Procedurals, then this is a series you won’t want to miss.
THE SETTING
York is a historic walled city in North Yorkshire, England.
At the confluence of the River Ouse and Foss, York is the traditional county town of the historic county of Yorkshire. York Minster and a variety of cultural and sporting activities make it a popular tourist destination.
THE DETECTIVES
DS Jason Smith is an Australian who was sent to York to live with his Grandmother when his sister disappeared from a beach. He has suffered many losses in his short life and is now a dedicated detective. He is a bit of a loose cannon he has his own way of doing things and that doesn’t always mean following orders and procedures.
DS Thompson is of the same rank as Jason, but he doesn’t have the same support or success. He and Jason have a love/hate relationship which brings a bit of humour to the series. Thompson is old school and thinks his age should give him respect and privileges, but life doesn’t work that way for him.
DC Erica Witton is Jason’s preferred partner they work well together and share a bond. She isn’t always appreciated by Jason, but they care about each other and that brings a different dimension to the series.
What readers are saying about Harlequin:
‘Excellent and truly chilling murder mystery.’ – Maggie May
‘Another compelling detective thriller in the DS Jason Smith series.’ – Kindle Customer
‘A great writer and a great cast of characters inhabit these books. Well worth the time taken to read them.’ – Amazon Customer
‘What a fantastic book as the ending was not expected. This book is very hard to put down, really good storyline’ – Helen Green
‘What a great book had to keep reading it could not put it down I would look forward to read some more.’ – Peter Goulding
BOOKS BY STEWART GILES
DS JASON SMITH SERIES
Book 0.5 – Phobia
Book 1 – Smith
Book 2 – Boomerang
Book 3 – Ladybird
Book 4 – Occam’s Razor
Book 5 – Harlequin
Book 6 – Selene
Book 7 – Horsemen
Book 8 – Unworthy
DC HARRIET TAYLOR SERIES
Book 1 – The Beekeeper
Book 2 – The Perfect Murder
Book 3 – The Backpacker
My thoughts
This is book 5 in the DS Smith series and this review is for the reedited and updated digital version.
It is no secret that I am a big fan of Stewart Giles. His books tick a lot of boxes for me especially this Smith series. I suspect Smith could be an acquired taste and you have to read all the books in sequence to understand what he has been through and why he is taking so long to grow up. He is getting there.
As life has dealt him blow after blow he has picked himself back up with the aid of drink, cigarettes and now Marijuana. BUT he has also lost everybody who he cared about including his house. He is trying to put the house back together and his head when Whitton begs him to return to work as a 5 year old child has disappeared from his home.
We have a new DI in charge of the team and she isnt going to stand for Smith’s way of doing things in the same way Bob Chalmers did. But she has never come across anyone like Smith before either.
As more children go missing all clues point to the circus and the troupe have secrets of their own.
This is a very unique story. One that begs the question: Is evil genetic? The team encounter many problems along the course of the investigation and are left reeling when they join up the dots and realise who the killer is. But he hasn’t done yet. Can they catch him before it is too late?
This is a fast paced story that really gets the adrenaline flowing and the pages turning. Twists and turns with more shocks than a ghost train this is a riveting read that I couldn’t put down.
Definitely 5 stars from me
Stewart Giles – Author Bio
After reading English at 3 Universities and graduating from none of them, I set off travelling around the world with my wife, Ann, finally settling in South Africa, where we still live.
After Ann dropped a rather large speaker on my head I came up with the idea for a detective series. DS Jason Smith was born. Smith, the first in the series was finished a few months later.
3 years and 8 DS Smith books later, Joffe Books wondered if I would be interested in working with them. As a self-published author, I agreed. However, we decided on a new series – the DC Harriet Taylor Cornwall series. The Beekeeper hit the shelves and hit the number one spot in Australia. The second in the series, The Perfect Murder did just as well. The third in the series, The Backpacker I have self-published and is now available.
Links
Website: www.stewartgiles.com
Twitter: @stewartgiles
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stewart.giles.33
You can join the Stewart Giles reader club by completing this form https://mailchi.mp/a64f6de4c541/sgreadersclub
