Then She Was Gone (DI Murphy and DS Rossi, #4) by Luca Veste

Then She Was Gone (DI Murphy and DS Rossi, #4) Reviews

• 
  ReadsSometimes

  Tim Johnson took his baby daughter out for a walk and she never made it home. Johnson claims he was assaulted and the girl was snatched. The police see a different crime, with Johnson their only suspect.
  
  A year later, Sam Bryne is on course to be elected as one of the youngest MPs in Westminster. He's tipped for the very top ... until he vanishes.
  Detectives Murphy and Rossi are tasked with discovering what has happened to the popular politician - and in doing so, they unearth a trail that stretches into the past and crimes that someone is hell-bent on avenging.
  
  Wow, Luca Veste. This story has me so intrigued and interested. It may have taken me 4 days to read it but, time prevails. This is some serious and intelligent work of crime fiction writing.
  
  I was initially focusing on the daughter missing and the circumstances that occurred. This threw me initially, but as the story progressed, I got the answer...and it's worth waiting for. Detective Murthy and Rossi's relationship has really gelled. They have been together for years, and the trust is second to none. With shock and horror, Rossi becomes not a suspect, but some involvement. Not directly, but there is a conflict of interest.
  
  It's all a bit of higher power. Family, money, status and a model of a perfect person, or society, maybe a group at University. Some horrors happen within this group and somebody is not happy, they want revenge, whatever the circumstances.
  
  This is the best work I've read from, Luca Veste. I think the characters have become so more gelled, and involved, which makes this novel one of the best. A more mature feel to the book. The family involvement and Rossi's relationship do come under scrutiny. It's not her fault, but some surprises. You do feel for her. She has done nothing wrong.
  
  As a Police procedural and a crime thriller, this is one you need to read. It ticks all the boxes of a real indulging page-turner.
  
  A full 5* from me. The best in my opinion that Luca Veste has written!
• 
  Liz Barnsley

  Yes yes and lots more yes. Review to follow. But just one more yes for good measure. ***excellent crime novel alert** Started didn't stop. Then had to. Because I finished it :)
• 
  Leo

  4.5 stars. This was one of few thrillers with so many twist and turns that left me dumbfounded and had to collect what. On earth I just read. I was/am having some issues focusing on books but this was the perfect book to somewhat get over the slump. I will absolutely reread it one day to truly get the full ride of the book.
• 
  Paul

  Then She Was Gone – Another Scouse Noir Masterpiece
  
  Luca Veste’s has written his fourth in the Murphy – Rossi series, Then She Was Gone, which is more evidence of why he is one the crime writers of the moment. Veste uses all his knowledge of Liverpool, Wirral and the rest of Merseyside alongside his academic insight on criminology and psychology.
  
  What he delivers is a twisted, psychological thriller, with gritty reality, a touch of scouse humour, which makes this a truly disturbing and intelligent read. Murphy and Rossi are characters that are developing and showing the true meaning of partnership in investigations especially when they are faced with a descent in to the darkest corners of the human psyche.
  
  Tim Johnson has had to move back in to Liverpool from the Wirral to aid the development of his daughter Molly and keep her away from his partner. While taking her a walk, he is attacked and Molly is missing, and the problem is nobody believes he ever had a daughter. He cannot work out who or why Molly is gone and when the Police think he is making things up as nobody thinks he ever had a child. But when the blood of a Polish woman is found all over his former home he is arrested for murder. He is in prison protesting his innocence, while he wants the world to find Molly his daughter, who nobody ever believes existed.
  
  Sam Byrne is on course to be elected as a Tory MP for Liverpool, the first one in a generation, in a by-election, he is on course to rise to the top. When he has not been seen for a few days the alarm is raised and for some reason Murphy and Rossi, from the Major Crimes Unit are called in to investigate, due to Byrne’s father being a former MP.
  
  With nothing to go on, they have to discover the life, public and private, of Sam Byrne and what they discover a trail that lead back to another life he had at University and someone who is hell bent on revenge. When more bodies turn up they are up against the time to find the truth, discover what is historically significant to the present.
  
  With more twists and turns than a rollercoaster we see the partnership of Murphy and Rossi tested to the limit, with the backdrop being the ever changing City of Liverpool. With Mama Rossi’s food often making an appearance reminding us that Liverpool has always welcomed immigrants and those with a need to fit in.
  
  When She Was Gone is yet more proof why Luca Veste is one of the modern crop of crime writers who need to be watched. His Scouse Noir series based around Murphy and Rossi and the Major Crime Unit goes from strength to strength, with a dark edge and ever changing violence getting harsher and more twisted every time.
  
  The characters are well written, the prose is crisp and clear and the imagery fantastic, with an eye for detail. Veste writing and characters draw you in and keep you hooked all the way through to the end and you are never sure which way things are going to go. Veste is a word magician who is excellent at sleight of hand and always comes up with something different.
  
  This book proves why Luca Veste is the King of Scouse Noir, the Murphy and Rossi series will keep him there for quite a while.
  
• 
  Lee

  This is another great book from Luca Veste, an excellent crime novel. This story has it all revenge, deceit, many twists and turns and so much more. Sam Bryne is about to be elected as a Tory MP but then suddenly disappears. Detectives Murphy and Rossi are given the case to investigate but is Sam Byrne really who they think he is and what has he been hiding? Bodies are now piling up and the detective's are pushed to the limit to solve this case. I thought the relationship between Murphy and Rossi worked really well, they compliment each other and both want answers to this case. Great writing and totally engrossing story, a very enjoyable read.
• 
  Gram

  An absolutely stunning thriller! At its centre is a killer hell bent on revenge. This is the 4th in a series featuring Liverpool detectives, DI Murphy and DS Rossi, but I read it as a stand-alone and that worked fine for me. It opens with the abduction of Tim Johnson's baby daughter, or so we're led to believe. But that part of the story seems to end with the Johnson being jailed for murder.
  
  Next is the disappearance of a young man, Sam Bryne, who's been campaigning to become Member of Parliament for a constituency in Liverpool and that's where Murphy and Rossi come in. No sooner are they on the case than the body of the would-be MP is found, dismembered, in the boot of his car. It turns out he wasn't only the civic-minded politician determined to achieve power, but also a vicious sexual predator.
  What follows is the story of a University "club" of privileged young men whose legendary parties often ended with young women being raped.
  As Murphy & Rossi delve into the background of this club's sordid past, another body is found.
  
  Now and then there's a short chapter in which we share the chilling thoughts of a serial killer out for vengeance
  This books works just as well as a police procedural as it does a fast-paced thriller & the banter between the 2 detectives helps lighten what is a very dark tale. The action is gripping and I had to stop myself from finishing the story in one sitting, so I could get to bed before dawn! After finishing this, I'll have to put Luca Veste's other Murphy and Rossi books on my to be read list.
• 
  Book Addict Shaun

  Yet another of my favourite crime authors (you can never have too many!) and I have to say this is one of my favourite crime novels of the year so far. Luca Veste just goes from strength to strength and if you are yet to read his books yet then I very highly recommend them.
• 
  Richard Murphy

  I seriously think there is more chance of a tory MP in Liverpool than Luca Veste writing a book that does not grab me!
  
  This is the 4th edition in the Murphy and Rossi series (make sure you have read the others before reading this) and like the other 3 so far it is brilliant.
  
  What I like about Veste is how he details the little things so well. The little in jokes for those who live in and around Liverpool. His finger on the pulse in terms of current affairs and what is going on in the world. The relationship between Murphy and Rossi, the description of the other officers and the inter relationships between them all.
  
  This story is as good as all the others and comes together at the end quite brilliantly. I'll not spoil it, so difficult to explain but trust me, its good.
  
  So why is not a 5*. Firstly its better than 4. It is more like a 4.5. I suppose if I am being pedantic (and I am) then I found one aspect of the story a little bit annoying and its something that has happened in the other books so I hope in the next book there is no link between the case and family. I'll not say any more than that, again for risk of spoiling.
  
  All in all though another brilliant book from an author who has now become on my must read list. Only 4 books in, but clearly a talented writer and I can honestly say one of the best at descriptive, thrilling (at times gruesome) writing that has the big story throughout but its actually the little bits weaving it all together that make it what it is.
  
  Get writing that next one Luca!!!
• 
  Fictionophile

  Yes, I know… I’ve arrived late to the party. I’ve been hearing good reviews about Luca Veste‘s novels for some time on Goodreads and I’m only now reading one of them.
  
  It was worth the wait!
  
  Although “Then she was gone” is the 4th novel in the DI David Murphy and DS Laura Rossi series, I had no trouble reading it having missed out on the first three. The author alluded to events in previous novels which kept me abreast of the status quo as to the personal lives of the protagonists. One traumatic event in particular makes me want to go back and read the first three novels.
  
  Set in the northern English city of Liverpool, the story begins with a young father pushing his infant daughter through a park in her pram. He is attacked and the baby is gone. Despite his claims, the police say they have investigated and there never was a baby… They say he invented a story about a woman named Lauren and a daughter named Molly…
  
  Then, when we meet up with the police protagonists they are tasked with a missing person’s case. This is below their remit as they are homicide detectives. The reason they are put on the case is due to the fact that the missing person is running for parliament. As a few days pass, they realize that their being put on this case was a self-fulfilling prophecy.
  
  It turns out that Sam Byrne, the twenty-seven year old missing MP candidate, was sexist, psychopathic pond scum masquerading as a handsome, physically fit politician in a tailored suit. He founded a club in university called the Abercromby Boys Club. He was ambitious, greedy, power hungry, arrogant… and sadistic. The club’s motto? Isolate. Inebriate. Penetrate. That was what they did to the young women who were invited to the club’s legendary parties. When and if complaints occurred they relied on their influential families to get them off the hook. They were all handsome and clever – so expected the university to turn a blind eye.
  
  I really liked DI David Murphy’s character. Tall and gangly, he is a technophobe, resistant to change and social media. He is happily married to Sarah, who has just decided to return to university to study psychology. They have just moved house as their old house held some traumatic memories.
  
  Laura Rossi, his Detective sergeant and valued partner, was also an intriguing character. Of Italian descent, she comes from a family with five brothers. She is a good copper who has been very loyal to Murphy over the years of their working in tandem. On this case however, she seems secretive and remote…. Is she hiding something from Murphy?
  
  As the body count increases the police begin to believe that what they suspect might be true.
  
  If you’re wondering just how the Sam Byrne case and the case of the missing baby, Molly are connected… Well, I guess you’ll just have to read this novel and discover it for yourself.
  
  “When it’s one word against another, those without power always lose”.
  
  This is a well-rendered, character-rich, British police procedural. A novel of revenge, guilt, atonement, and of lives ruined. I would highly recommend this series to all who enjoy a good mystery/crime thriller. Though some events in the novel were predictable, there was a good twist near the end that readers will appreciate. When time permits I plan to revisit this series and start at the beginning. Wish me luck!
  
  Thanks to Simon & Schuster UK via NetGalley for allowing me the pleasure of reading this novel in digital format.
• 
  Claire

  Luca Veste has done it again. Another fantastic instalment from this brilliant crime writer follows our two favourite detectives Murphy and Rossi as they embark on finding a serial killer.
  
  This book had me hooked from page one. Crime is one of my favourite genres and I knew I wouldn't be disappointed with this.
  
  This book is fast paced and has many twists and turns before culminating in an fantastic finish. I loved every minute of this book and can highly recommend it to everyone. A definite 5 star read.
  
  Thank you NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the opportunity to review this book.
• 
  Terry

  
  Tim Johnson took his baby daughter out for a walk and the baby was snatched, he was assaulted The police think he did something & don't suspect anyone else.
  Sam Bryne vanishes a year after, a promising young MP.
  Detectives Murphy and Rossi are on the case of missing Sam and as they dig deeper things begin to cross & they are led deeper. I found this a heavy read, took a few days to get through but was worth it.
• 
  Sarah Maleficent

  A brilliant book by Luca Vested. Another wonderful crime novel with lots of twists and turns, with a dark edge, just how I like it! It wasn't immediately obvious where the story was heading and I was a bit confused as to how it would all fit and come together. But it does......and just Wow! loved it.
• 
  Kate

  Another excellent crime novel from Luca , my favourite so far. Very clever.
  
  
• 
  Sue Wallace

  Then she was gone by Luca Veste.
  Tim Johnson took his baby daughter out for a walk and she never made it home. Johnson claims he was assaulted and the girl was snatched. The police see a different crime, with Johnson their only suspect.  A year later, Sam Bryne is on course to be elected as one of the youngest MPs in Westminster. He's tipped for the very top ... until he vanishes. Detectives Murphy and Rossi are tasked with discovering what has happened to the popular politician - and in doing so, they unearth a trail that stretches into the past, and crimes that someone is hell-bent on avenging.
  This was a fantastic read with brilliant characters.  I really enjoyed it and even though it wasn't who I thought it was I still enjoyed it.  5*.
• 
  Sue Wallace

  Then she was gone by Luca Veste.
  Tim Johnson took his baby daughter out for a walk and she never made it home. Johnson claims he was assaulted and the girl was snatched. The police see a different crime, with Johnson their only suspect.  A year later, Sam Bryne is on course to be elected as one of the youngest MPs in Westminster. He's tipped for the very top ... until he vanishes. Detectives Murphy and Rossi are tasked with discovering what has happened to the popular politician - and in doing so, they unearth a trail that stretches into the past, and crimes that someone is hell-bent on avenging.
  This was a fantastic read with brilliant characters.  I really enjoyed it and even though it wasn't who I thought it was I still enjoyed it.  5*.
• 
  Laura Wonderchick

  Another complicated plot from LV! This whole series is quite excellent and I’m kind of sad I’ve run out of them to read! The partnership of Murphy and Rossi is a great match and the way they resolve these cases gives your brain a workout! I highly recommend the series!
• 
  Heather W

  I really enjoyed this book, the pace was good and the characters were relatable. I found it difficult to put this down, and would be interested in reading another book by this author
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  Linda Boa

  Really swithering between 4 & 5 stars for this book, so my mark may be subject to change (it's currently a 4.) I've literally just finished this book, another engrossing read from Luca Veste. Let me get my breath back (phew!) and I'll review it here and at
  https://crimeworm.wordpress.com/ Great stuff!
• 
  Andrew

  4th in the series and the author has really developed characters that I enjoy and plotting that has me on the edge of my seat.
  Luca veste takes themes current in the news and creates crime stories in his native Liverpool. Here a Bullingham style club in the university allows affluent male students to exploit their privilege. Several years later those abuses come home to roost.
  A gripping page turner.
• 
  Jackie Law

  Then She Was Gone, by Luca Veste, is a crime thriller set in Liverpool, England. It starts with a father walking his baby daughter through a park where he is attacked and the child taken. At first the police are sympathetic, as you would expect under the circumstances, but when their investigations uncover apparent inconsistencies in the man’s story suspicions turn towards him.
  
  A year later and two detectives from the Major Crimes Unit, Murphy and Rossi, are asked to look into the disappearance of a local man, Sam Bryne. They are to do what they can to keep their enquiries from the press due to Sam’s profile. He is a prospective MP, wealthy and privileged, and there are aspects of his life that his well connected family do not wish to share.
  
  Murphy and Rossi question Sam’s staff, visit his house and talk to his parents. They discover the uncomfortable truth of what is being left unsaid. When a body is found, and then another, the full extent of Sam’s proclivities are revealed.
  
  I found the writing a little simplistic at first but the structure and plot soon drew me in. There are chapters written from the point of view of the killer and the timeline goes back to explain why they seek revenge. The attitudes of many of the characters are depressing in their realism. There is casual racism, an inbred sense of exclusive entitlement, and an attitude towards women that is rarely acknowledged in such a blatant way.
  
  This is the fourth novel in the author’s Murphy and Rossi series although the first that I have read. There are references to their past adventures but the story works standalone.
  
  An engaging read with some satisfying twists. For fans of crime fiction, this one is for you.
  
  My copy of this book was provided gratis by the publisher, Simon & Schuster.
• 
  Bookread2day

  Disappointed that this is another author who has mentioned the same reviewers have are always mentioned once again. Disappointed that my hardback book arrived with a ripped cover. I didn't find this story a page turner that's why I only gave it three stars. The story is quite different I give the author the due there. Then She Was Gone is about Tim who received a dull thud at the back of his head. Tim see an image of his daughter. The pushchair facing the other way, all could see was a wheel. Spinning and spinning. As he lost her. No Molly. No daughter. No life. Very strange, Tim worked from home, he don't speak to his family and he has no friends, the neighbors don't know he exists, seems like isolation was that intentional ? He had been with Lauren for under a year, she never met Tim's family. Even stranger still, No one recalls a woman or child being in the house. Did they exist? What is the truth?
• 
  Simon

  I must be an odd bod, didn't get on with this story, yes I know I havnt read books 1-3 as this was in my local charity shop for £1, if I liked it then I would find the earlier books, but as you can see I didn't really like it, was ok. But why !!! good start and story line but dragged down by mediocre middle and end, just slogged on and on so lost its pace, very drawn out. I found I couldn't be bothered by the end if DS Rossi's brother was involved or not.
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  Lynsey Farmer

  Brilliant read
  
  I really enjoy Luca's books this one was no different. I find Luca 's books addictive they really get you involved in them that much you don't want to do anything else but read them. Brilliant story well thought out plotline had me guessing right to the end
• 
  Jenny Blackhurst

  Fantastic book, was gripped throughout - if it wasn't hardback I'd have finished much quicker! Will definitely read more from Luca. Thanks to the publishers for an ARC copy.
• 
  Caroline Venables

  This is the first book of Luca Veste’s that I have read, and I was not disappointed.  I found it completely engrossing and read it within two days.  The story flows well and it is really fast paced.  Although this is the fourth in the Murphy and Rossi series, it works very well as a stand alone novel.
  I enjoyed the characters of DI David Murphy and Ds Laura Rossi, like I said I haven’t read the other in the series but I took them straight away and enjoyed the banter between them.  The book starts with them investigating the disappearance of Sam Bryne.  The search for him turns into something far more sinister than a mere disappearance, as someone will go to any lengths to exact their revenge.
  Does this aspiring politician have skeletons in his past, that would explain his absence and the trail of devastation that would follow?  And how does the disappearance of Tim Johnson’s daughter tie into the story.
  I thoroughly recommend the book, it is a great thriller that is beautifully written.  Authors are always told to show not tell their story, Luca Veste has really done this.  It is very cleverly constructed with a brilliant ending that I really did not see coming.
  I loved the book and the writing and I’ll definitely be reading the rest of the series and the stand alone novel, The Bone Keeper.
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  V.E. Lynne

  Sam Byrne is an aspiring politician, the son of a former MP, so when he is found gruesomely murdered, Murphy and Rossi are handed a very difficult case. Especially once they establish that Byrne was a cruel man, with depraved sexual appetites, who founded a club for like minded souls at university (all 'posh boys' of course) that probably extended into murder as well as rape. The case is complicated still further when one of Rossi's brothers is implicated and she must cover for him until she can find out the truth. 'Then She Was Gone' was a good, pacey read, and the characters of Murphy and Rossi are well imagined and make a good pairing. My only criticism is the amount of partisan politics in the book, which get repeated often - one or two iterations would've been sufficient for me to get the picture. Three stars.
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  Donna ~ The Romance Cover

  Another fantastic read from Luca Veste and am now at the end of the Murphy and Rossi series. I am hoping that the author plans on revisiting this dynamic duo. I only have one left of this author and am always sad when a backlist comes to an end.
  
  This was a great book centering around a serial killer seeking revenge for something that happened in the past concerning a secret society that was created at Liverpool University, kind of like a rich man's club where it is all "you scratch mine and I'll scratch yours."
  
  You don't find out the reason why until near the end, although you do have a rough idea of why, but not concerning the who. It was a thrilling read and one that I didn't want to put down. Murphy and Rossi were fantastic as ever, and the more I read of these two, the more I want.
• 
  T

  Murphy and Rossi are back, and by special request, searching for a popular political figure who's gone missing just as his career is about to peak.
  
  In trying to find the missing politico, his home seems strangely stark and unoccupied. Where's he spending his time? Who are his friends? What about his college buddies? There are pictures of 8 guys, reportedly the founding fellas of a college club that were known for their natty attire, monied families and wild parties.
  
  What's going with these 8 guys, one in jail, where are the others?
  
  The jailed guy - reportedly someone stole his child while he was in the park but supposedly there was no such child? What?!
  
  
  
  
• 
  Kirsty

  I didn't manage to finish this novel. The very beginning was promising, but then the story switched to the present day. That's fine, as writing styles go, but I thought not carrying on some kind of action, and having what felt like a lot of backstory of the detective inspector's domestic life was a mistake. My interest level dropped and the story seemed to stall unnecessarily.