The Lost – Simon Beckett


A MISSING CHILD

Ten years ago, the disappearance of firearms police officer Jonah Colley’s young son almost destroyed him.

A GRUESOME DISCOVERY

A plea for help from an old friend leads Jonah to Slaughter Quay, and the discovery of four bodies. Brutally attacked and left for dead, he is the only survivor.

A SEARCH FOR THE TRUTH

Under suspicion himself, he uncovers a network of secrets and lies about the people he thought he knew – forcing him to question what really happened all those years ago…

About the Author:

Simon Beckett is the No.1 International Bestselling author of the David Hunter series. His books have been translated into 29 languages, appeared in the Sunday Times Top 10 bestseller lists and sold over 10 million copies worldwide. A former freelance journalist who has written for The Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Independent on Sunday and The Observer, the inspiration for the first David Hunter novel came after a visit to the world-renowned Body Farm in Tennessee introduced him to the work of forensic anthropologists.

As well as co-winning the Ripper Award in 2018/19, the largest European crime prize, Simon has won the Raymond Chandler Society’s ‘Marlowe’ Award and been short-listed for the CWA Gold Dagger, CWA Dagger in the Library and Theakston’s Crime Novel of the Year.

In addition to the six David Hunter titles, the most recent of which is The Scent of Death, he has written five standalone novels, one of which, Where There’s Smoke, was adapted into a major ITV two-part drama.

Find out more on www.simonbeckett.com, or follow him on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

My Review:

And breathe….. that was me after finishing The Lost at 2.30 am having promised myself an early night and completely unable to put the book down until I had finished it.

The Lost is the first in a new series by Simon Beckett. I haven’t read any of Simon’s previous books, but the cover and the description really appealed to me and I was thrilled to be able to organise this “epic blogtour” full of amazing bloggers who also wanted to read and review the book.

If you have followed the tour already, you will see that every blogger loved the book, awarding it 4 or 5 stars and generally agreeing that The Lost is a brilliant, action packed, page turner so I started the book with high expectations late one evening.

I had intended to only read the opening chapter to guage my initial thoughts, however an hour later and on Chapter 20 I looked up and realised it was way past my bedtime. There aren’t many books that keep my attention but I was absolutely engrossed in The Lost from the opening chapter until the climatic ending and as I only read at night-time, I am exhausted, sleep depraved, but still buzzing from the storyline.

The story is narrated by Jonah Colley, a serving fire-arms police officer, who gets a call one night from a very old friend who needs his help. Despite his instincts, Jonah goes to meet Gavin in a dark, derelict warehouse aptly named “Slaughterhouse Quay” and discovers absolute carnage, barely escaping with his life, he finds himself at the centre of a police investigation.

This is a really fast-paced thriller with a fascinating and flawed protaganist. Jonah Colley has experienced so much tragedy in his past, that the reader can’t help but feel compassion and sympathy towards him.

The author takes us on a real rollercoaster of emotions, the plot is full of action and the twists and turns kept me glued to the pages.

If you are looking for a new series, then I can’t recommend THE LOST enough.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

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