Today I am hosting a Guest review by Sarah Lizzibeth of DEMONS by the brilliant Stewart Giles.
Demons (Detective Jason Smith book 11)
Author – Stewart Giles
Publisher – STILL Books
Publication Date – 25th December 2019
Genre – Crime Fiction / Police Procedural
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From #1 best-selling author: Stewart Giles comes a new addition to the popular Detective Jason Smith series.
‘Forgive me father, for I have sinned.’
Someone is killing people in York. All of the victims share a secret that the murderer is somehow aware of and all of them receive an identical message after they are killed.
‘God has forgiven you your sins, but He could not rid you of your demons. So I have taken them for you.’
Detective Sergeant Jason Smith heads up the most draining investigation he’s ever come across. Coming face to face with demons of his own, will this be the case that finally sends Smith over the edge?
THE SETTING
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 DETECTIVE
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 that doesn’t always mean following orders and procedures. However, he does get results.
WHAT READERS ARE SAYING ABOUT DEMONS:
‘I love Stewarts books. You know you have hit gold when the pages magically turn and the real world falls away. Characters you easily take to and a plot to keep the grey matter active- just as I like it. One stunning, totally gripping read.’ – Misfits Farm
‘Just finished Demons. Loved it. Action packed and full of emotion and humour. Another winner!’ – Carol Stone
‘An absolutely gripping story, well written with very human characters I can’t wait for the next book to find out what Stewart Giles has planned for the poor man next’. – Jill
‘It’s a crime murder mystery winner all on its own. You really have to read it to find out. Great book once again.’ – Booklover Bev
‘It had me hooked from the outset right through to the end – it was an additive, fast paced, thrilling read’. – Donna Maguire
Guest Review by Sarah Lizzibeth
Just Phenomenal! Another top notch read on my Bookshelf – or should I say, ‘Kindle!’
This series goes from strength to strength. I know that I’ll always enjoy reading books by this author, but with any book there is always a chance that the next won’t live up to the standard of previous one’s. This is certainly not the case with these books – I can’t find any fault with them.
Smith is getting ready to take his wife and young daughter out for a nice day to the Seaside – just what he needs as much as his family does. He’s always overworked and hasn’t had an easy life and needs some normality.
A man is found dead and it’s obvious that he didn’t die from natural causes. Again, this is one of those books that once you start reading, you can’t put it down easily! The murders are mounting up. Why are the victims chosen? They don’t seem to have been chosen at random, as for reasons why, you’ll find out for yourself and I couldn’t wait to find out more. It was great to spend time with Smith and his team again as they’re so believable and there’s never a dull moment. I hope that Smith can sort himself out; he’s come a long way from where he was but he could end up with nothing if he doesn’t make further changes. Saying that, it’s a wonder the man is still walking and talking after what he’s been through! It amazes me where/how Mr Giles finds his ideas – the plot (as always) is brilliant and there are no loose ends. The conclusion ends perfectly and with another big shock that I didn’t expect! To say that I recommend this book, is an understatement! It’s absolutely A-MUST-READ!!! I hope that Mr Giles has a new book out soon and I can’t wait for more amazing storylines – they would make a cracking film or drama series and it would be wonderful to see his characters come to life even more!
Thank you for another enjoyable read.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3104344391?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
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.
In 2014 Ann dropped a rather large speaker on my head and 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 was published and soon hit the number one spot in Australia. The second in the series, The Perfect Murder did just as well.
I continued to self-publish the Smith series and Unworthy hit the shelves in 2018 with amazing results. I therefore made the decision to self-publish The Backpacker which is book 3 in the Detective Harriet Taylor series which was published in July 2018.
After The Backpacker I had an idea for a totally new start to a series – a collaboration between the Smith and Harriet thrillers and The Enigma was born. It brings together the broody, enigmatic Jason Smith and the more level-headed Harriet Taylor.
Miranda is something totally different. A stand-alone psychological thriller, it is a real departure from anything else I’ve written before.
Website: www.stewartgiles.com
Twitter: @stewartgiles
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stewart.giles.33
DS Jason Smith Series
Phobia: 5 early DS Smith cases Buy from Amazon
Phobia is a series of five DS Jason Smith cases he worked on before we met him in the first book ‘Smith’. We get insights into what moulded him to be the Detective Sergeant we first get a glimpse of in ‘Smith’. Smith quickly realizes that police work isn’t always cut and dried. Justice is not always black and white; there are many shades of grey in between.
Smith (DS Smith Book 1) Buy from Amazon
It is Christmas Day in York. A woman is found dead in her bed. A suicide note is found on her chest. It reads ‘I am so sorry Martin’. Hours later the police are called to a house a few miles away. A mother and her daughter have been brutally attacked; the mother is dead, and the daughter is barely alive. The father is found shaking uncontrollably in the corner of the room. He is covered in blood, but he is unharmed. His name is Martin Willow.
Boomerang (DS Smith Book 2) Buy from Amazon
A man is killing people in York. Initially the murders appear to be the random acts of a maniac. Detective Jason Smith is put in charge of the investigation. It soon becomes clear that the murders are all connected to him in one way or another. All the killings correspond to events in Smith’s life and the murderer leaves dates at the crime scene which tie up to important dates in Smith’s history.
Ladybird (DS Smith Book 3) Buy from Amazon
Detective Sergeant Jason Smith is days away from the end of his sick leave after a case that almost cost him his life when he gets a call from an old friend. His friend has been arrested for the murder of a student. He wants Smith to investigate the murder and prove his innocence. Smith is persuaded return to work. The student was killed with a bread knife. Ladybirds were scattered on his dead body
Occam’s Razor (DS Smith Book 4) Buy from Amazon
A football player is shot dead in front of a packed crowd of people. DS Jason Smith is put in charge of the investigation. The murder weapon is found in a house across the road from the football ground. It is a rare Russian army issue sniper rifle. As the investigation hits dead end after dead end, two government agents arrive and take over, pushing Smith and his colleagues to the side.
Harlequin (DS Smith Book 5) Buy from Amazon
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.
Selene (DS Smith Book 6) Buy from Amazon
When a man is found tucked up in bed with his throat sliced open two days after Christmas, DS Jason Smith and his team are baffled. It appears he has been drugged, killed and carefully wrapped up in a duvet. The only evidence Smith finds are some strands of hair belonging to a woman. One month later, another man is killed in exactly the same manner but there appears to be no link whatsoever to the two men apart from the fact that they were both single, lonely and middle aged.
Horsemen (DS Smith Book 7) Buy from Amazon
One draining murder investigation after another has left DS Jason on the brink of losing his sanity and he needs a break. A string of armed robberies at the McDonalds in the city of York are getting in the way. Smith’s DI makes him a deal; if he can get to the bottom of it, he can have two weeks off. Smith figures out who the brains behind the robberies is; the young wife of Jimmy Phoenix, the owner of all the McDonalds franchises in the city.
Unworthy (DS Jason Smith Book 8) Buy from Amazon
DS Jason Smith is dragged away from paternity leave when a woman is killed with her baby in the next room. When more women with children are brutally murdered, Smith discovers that they all have something in common – they all share a secret. Then he finds out that the mother of his own child is on this list of ‘Unworthy’ women.
Venom (DS Jason Smith Book 9) Buy from Amazon
Still recovering from an accident, DS Jason Smith receives a strange phone call: ‘I want to live.’ The number is unknown, and Jason puts it down to a hoax call. While doing a favour for his DCI the phone call suddenly begins to make sense and Jason is once again on the trail of a psychopath. Can Smith stop this maniac before more people die? Who is it and why does he have Smith’s number? As the team struggle to find some kind of a lead Jason realises that it may not be his own life in danger this time but he is in danger of losing someone else he cares about. This is a unique story that has a steadily increasing pace that continues to deliver all the way to the very last page.
Severed (DS Jason Smith Book 10) Buy from Amazon
A student, who hasn’t been seen for a while is found dead in her room. Her throat has been cut but it turns out that is not the cause of death! The post-mortem reveals that she had been drained of all her blood.
The killer has left behind no evidence and there are no clues. Is there a vampire loose in York? Then another body is found, and Smith and the team are struggling to find a link or a motive. Will this be the case that defeats the brilliant DS Smith?
How much more heartache can Jason Smith bear? Severed will take him to hell and back.
DC Harriet Taylor Series
The Beekeeper (DC Harriet Taylor Book 1). Buy from Amazon
Alice Green is a beekeeper in the small Cornish village of Polgarrow. She lives with her pet jackdaw in a beautiful cottage not far from the sea. One evening, Alice finds something strange under the hollyhock bush in her garden. The gruesome discovery will change everyone’s lives. And then Alice’s best friend Milly disappears…
The Perfect Murder (DC Harriet Taylor Book 2) Buy from Amazon
Two cats are found mutilated in the same town. Detective Harriet Taylor is reluctant to investigate, but then one of their owners is killed a bizarre way that same day. Harriet and the team step in. The dead woman has four words written on her neck — four very ambiguous words. Then another body turns up with the same words written on it. Harriet fears the worst — a serial killer is on the loose in the small Cornish town of Trotterdown.
The Backpacker (DC Harriet Taylor Book 3) Buy from Amazon
A girl’s body is found hidden in a remote spot of a Cornish Farm. The same farm that a young girl ran towards to escape her pursuer many years before.
Who would kill a young backpacker who hurt nobody? Is there a link between this and a mystery from many years ago?
Trotterdown – DC Harriet Taylor box set Buy from Amazon
Book 1 – The Beekeeper
Book 2 – The Perfect Murder
Book 3 – The Backpacker
DS Jason Smith & DC Harriet Taylor Series
The Enigma (DS Smith & DC Taylor Book 1) Buy from Amazon
In Trotterdown, Cornwall a boat, The Enigma washes in to the harbour. The skipper is dead, and Harriet Taylor is brought in to investigate. But 1 dead body is not the only crime the team has to deal with. Meanwhile, further up the coast in Whitby a boat washes up on the rocks just outside the harbour. Everyone on board is dead. Whitby Police are out of their depth, so DS Jason Smith is called in to help. It soon becomes clear the cases are connected and the teams from York and Trotterdown settle down to work with each other.
Dropzone (DS Smith & DC Taylor Book 2) Buy from Amazon
Brandon Stone is doing his first Accelerated Free Fall Skydive. He has done the training and his instructors are with him so nothing can go wrong…. Can it? A double malfunction and Brandon is staring death in the face. A very rare accident. Or is it? Jason is returning to work after 3 months recovering from injuries at the hands of Boronov. Light duties? Not if Jason can help it. DC Harriet Taylor is taking a well deserved holiday with Jon Finch that includes tandem skydiving. Out of all the planes in the country they were on the same one as Brandon. With a detective as a witness this should be an easy case to solve. Wrong! Jason and the team need all the help they can get to unravel the lies and find the clues before more bodies turn up.
The Miranda Trilogy
Miranda Buy from Amazon
Miranda is a unique read, the best book yet by Stewart Giles. Sentenced to life in a secure hospital for the murder of 12 people Miranda tells her story. In the meantime, the reader is transported back to the time of the murders as we follow DI Keene and her team along the many twists, turns and dead ends as they try to find the murderer of several unrelated victims.
This is an edge-of-your-seat, adrenaline pumping read that will have you turning the pages all the way to the totally unexpected ending. Buckle up this is a bumpy ride.
Mistress Buy from Amazon
Miranda is on the run from the Dunford Police and has managed to flee the UK. The story continues as we follow Miranda to the USA. With the body count increasing all the time will Miranda ever be caught? This is a gripping page-turner that keeps the adrenaline pumping as Miranda manages to keep just one step ahead of DS Swales. With numerous twists and turns all the way to the absolutely brilliant ending this is a must read for anyone who loves psychological thrillers.
