It’s a good idea, when consulting GR reviews of a book before you select it to read, to remember that stellar reviews are often written by people who are predisposed to like the book. Maybe they are fond of the genre or the author. For instance, I’m a big fan of Louise Penny’s Gamache series, so any review of mine is going to reflect the affection I have developed for those characters, and the fact that I’ve read every book in the series means that I enjoy her writing style.

So I’m going to guess that the 4 average rating for this book reflects the fact that the people who chose to read it probably went in with a positive bias. It’s not at all bad, but I don’t think there is anything in the plotting, character, setting or writing style that would cause it to rise above a 3.

Unfortunately, the narrator is arguably the worst I’ve ever encountered. Imagine a thriller being read by someone who normally does teen romance. Every other sentence includes a sort of chuckle, or as I began thinking of it, the verbal equivalent of a smiley face emoticon. That’s the voice she uses for the main character and general narration. All the other characters are some version of gruff. More so for men, a bit less for the tough female cop. Well, there is also the nurse whose British accent is limited to a couple of words here and there.

One final comment. Oddly enough, this book starts out in Vancouver, BC, a city also featured in a non-fiction book I read and enjoyed immensely, immediately before this. The sense of place was completely absent from this book. It could have happened anywhere. ( )

Great story! Suspenseful criminal mystery that's full of action and a growing romantic subplot. Hard not to crush on Andy or Kate. ( )

I wouldn't normally spend £9.56 on an ebook, especially by an author I had not read before. However, I saw one of my friends had given a different book by the same author a good review. I think it was a later one in this series. So I thought I would read the preview on Kobo of the first book (this one) and see if it sounded interesting. It did, I was intrigued, so after a few minutes of arguing with myself over the price, I thought YOLO and bought it. I then spent five hours reading it.
I found it fast paced and generally well written. I did spot a couple of hiccups like repeated words. I had a grumble about bed sores being caused by sheets not being changed rather than pressure due to immobility, but that's probably because I do admin and develop online training for a care company. It's not something everyone would notice.
I enjoyed the author's style and expression, particularly engaging all senses. There was the obligatory 'save the cat' moment towards the beginning to get the reader and Kate to like the rather stern Andy a little better. I felt the relationship between Andy and Kate developed nicely and was well written with just the right amount of angst not to overdo it. There was just a bit of cliche towards the end with the 'are you sure?' and sensations exploding, but to be honest, these days it is nigh on impossible to avoid it, perhaps it is even required.
Overall, I thought this was a well written, well structured three act plot that crossed all the Ts and dotted all the Is. I would recommend this to others and will most likely continue with the series, although perhaps out of next week's budget, lol. ( )

Good medical mystery about Dr. Kate Morrison and why she is able to touch patients who have been transformed into human bombs. Can Sgt. Andrea Wyles keep her safe? A good story, a good mystery. I liked the team approach and how important every one was to solving the mystery and aiding the victims. ( )