Twisted Crimes (DCI Sophie Allen #5) by Michael Hambling

Twisted Crimes (DCI Sophie Allen #5) Reviews

• 
  Thomas

  I thought that this British police procedural was well written and kept my interest throughout. It is book 5 in the DCI Sophie Allen series. I think that it worked ok as a stand alone, although there were references to incidents in previous books. There is very little violence and I would classify it as a cozy mystery.
  The book opens with an elderly couple going to a funeral for an out of town friend. They arrive early and enter into another funeral service, where they are made to feel unwelcome. A little more than a month later their bodies are found in a remote part of a nature reserve. DCI Allen and her team work to find out what happened as they realize that their deaths, although made to look like suicide, was actually murder.
  About halfway through the book, DCI Allen realizes that there is a mole in the police sabotaging her team. There are many twists and turns in this absorbing mystery, as her team puts together the pieces of a puzzle. I thought the ending resolved all the plot threads very well.
  Two quotes:
  Detectives--"Blackman and McCluskie-detectives from the Far Side. Don't you mean the Dark Side? No, I mean the Far Side. They're a joke."
  The Investigation--"We have so many loose ends it's like a tangled ball of wool at the moment."
  Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me this book.
  A solid 4 out 5 stars.
• 
  Linda Strong

  An elderly couple are found dead in their car in a very remote area. There is a hose from the exhaust into the interior of the car. Suicide? Murder/Suicide? Murder?
  
  Forensic evidence suggests murder. Who would want this sweet elderly couple dead?
  
  Their grown daughter had been on vacation with her husband and found her parents missing when she arrived home. Her brother evidently hadn't really missed them, but then, he has his own issues .. mainly drugs and partying.
  
  DCI Sophie Allen returns in this 5th of a series. It is up to her and her team to determine the what and why. They only have one starting point ... they attended the wrong funeral service shortly before they disappeared. Who .. or what ... did they see or hear that would pressure someone to kill them?
  
  During the course of their investigation, they run into a shady organization, but what worries Sophie more is that there is a mole within the police.
  
  Two new members of her team are introduced. Rose Simons and George Warrander ... they will change the team dynamics.
  
  This is a well-written welcome addition to the series. Fast-paced with lots of action will keep the reader rapidly turning pages to see what happens next. There are surprising twists and turns.
  
  I wish to thank the author / Joffe Books / Netgalley for the Uncorrected Proof of TWISTED CRIMES. The opinion expressed here is unbiased and entirely my own.
  
• 
  Ted Tayler

  "Top notch police procedural"
  
  Once again Sophie Allen and her team strike gold. The settings don't change much in this series but the personnel do. I like the way that characters from previous stories are recalled to assist in the latest murder case. It keeps things fresh and opens up loads of opportunities for development across a long-running series. More of the same, please.
• 
  Gill Chivas

  Another really good book in this series!
• 
  Sue Wallace

  Twisted Crimes by Michael Hambling is a mystery and thriller read.
  Sylvia and Ted Armitage, a retired couple, attend the wrong funeral service by mistake. A month later their daughter returns from holiday to find them missing. The police make little headway in tracing their whereabouts until their bodies are found in their car, abandoned in the middle of a copse in a tranquil nature reserve. They appear to have committed suicide, but some of the forensic evidence suggests otherwise. The police slowly make progress and find several links to a shady business organisation that owns a string of bars, clubs and cafes.
  I really enjoyed this book. The story had me from the start and i was not sure about the parents. Full of twists and plots. Highly recommended. 5*. I voluntarily reviewed an advanced copy of this book from netgalley.
• 
  Trina

  I received this arc from Netgalley.
  
  This was a quick, exciting read. Entertaining from start to finish. I recommend this book.
• 
  Robert Crouch

  It’s no secret that I love the Sophie Allen series. They’re built around her dynamic and charismatic character and her relationship with her team. Thankfully, there are no traumatised detectives and stereotyped, pen pushing senior officers to spoil these novels. This places them head and shoulders above many police procedurals in my opinion.
  
  In this latest novel, an elderly couple attend the wrong funeral and then disappear, only to be found weeks later, having committed suicide in a local nature reserve. Or is it murder? If so, what could possibly be the motive?
  
  Later, when another body is found nearby, the investigation gains some traction. But it comes at a price as a whiff of corruption taints the atmosphere.
  
  Live the previous novels in the series, Sophie Allen is a determined and dynamic detective, leading from the front, using all her skill and experience to pick her way through the dense tangle of clues, despite the pressures building around her.
  
  Twisted Crimes is a joy to read and superbly written, maintaining the high standards set in the first novel in the series. It neatly avoids the formulaic approach of so many crime novels to deliver characters you care about alongside some intriguing investigations.
  
  Highly recommended.
• 
  Ursa Minor

  This is a wonderful series. This, the fifth in the series, is the third I’ve read so far and I’ve found it riveting, rewarding and restorative - that is it has restored a rapidly flagging faith in contemporary detective fiction and police procedurals. I write this particularly in the face of some less than positive reviews which I find both surprising and disturbing. The protagonists’ (I include the team as a whole) relative sanity is, in my opinion a cause for celebration rather than whingeing - of course there is a place for unhappy, warped and dysfunctional detectives but I stand ( I say this with due humility) with Dante on purgatory, and the torment of condemned souls - take one look and move on.
  Michael Hambling can write; his prose is clear, cogent, witty, well structured; he handles the mire of human emotion and motivation with sensitivity and nuance, and believability - he is never heavy handed and yet you are drawn into the lives he sketches out with deft precision, his characters have depth and range - they are never shallow or mechanical; his plots are compelling, nuanced and solidly constructed. I hope to read all the books in the series, I only wish there were more.
  
• 
  Joyce

  4 and ½ Stars
  
  Two elderly people, Mr. and Mrs. Armitage, attend the wrong funeral by mistake. Receiving a rather rude reaction, they quickly leave.
  
  Meanwhile, their daughter, Dr. Sharon Giroux gets home from vacation and finds them missing. She gets very frustrated at the police reaction – or lack thereof. When their car in found in the woods, DCI Sophie Allen and her team get the case. At the bottom of the deaths seem to be their attendance at the wrong funeral. What could be going on? After Sophie and her team take the case, the daughter is much relieved.
  
  Sophie and her team interview the daughter, the good-for-nothing brother, Rod, along with other primary relationships in the group of family and friends.
  
  Another body is discovered just a mile from the Armitage site. Is it connected?
  
  The pieces all come together in the end in this very well written mystery. I like the characters, and they were well filled out.
  
  Thanking Netgalley and Joffe Books for forwarding to me a copy of this most mysterious book to read.
• 
  Paul Franco

  An elderly couple go to the wrong funeral and end up dead. DCI Sophie Allen—my current police crush—eventually shows up to find out why. Though the reason for the initial crime seems ridiculously slight, there’s no doubt such things do happen. That reason also makes it more difficult for the police to solve it, giving the whole team a chance to shine.
  Halfway through I realized that, other than the hike with her husband (which was really work-related), there hadn’t been anything about her family in this one. Considering the previous editions and especially the last few, it seemed glaring.
  I love this series. Despite the seriousness of the crimes, it doesn’t take itself too seriously. The very last scene wasn’t necessary, but I’m glad it’s there. Also glad the bad guys got what was coming to them, taken down by women, and not just Sophie this time.
• 
  Sandra Hooke

  Hmm! I am not sure about this book it seems to be the weakest of the series so far. To convoluted and inappropriate tying up of loose ends spoils an originally good plot idea.
  
  I am also growing a bit tired of the lead character who vacillates between hard headed copper and liberated wife to browbeaten mother in the flash of Jade’s eye!
  
  Furthermore I grow weary of her soft grey suit, tan leather jacket and boots with brown trousers who really cares what she wears unless it is truly relevant to the story?
  
  I really hope that the series improves as this book only just scraped a third star from me.
• 
  Jean

  The DCI Sophie Allen Series of police procedurals are quite good. I have been enjoying them. I don’t believe Sophie is as accessible as many of the other detectives in British procedurals are. If you read the entire series, you will learn more about her in some books than in others. It seems to be part of Sophie’s personality; she is almost always an all business person, dedicated to her role, her family, her team, and an occasion beer.
  
  The investigations are always interesting and I recommend them.
• 
  Tony Hisgett

  The main story in this book starts with a possible double murder, which surprisingly might have gangland connections. Overall it is an interesting story with several twists near the end, but there were a few things that I wasn’t as happy with.
  The majority of the book didn’t really involve Sophie, especially as a lot of it was following the various ‘gang’ members. Also I didn’t think the author tied up all the loose ends and I was definitely expecting another chapter before they started celebrating.
  
• 
  Susan

  Two people are found dead in the remote woods, apparently from suicide. But DCI Allen doesn't believe it and neither does their daughter. Pieces start to fall into place to help support her theory but so many of them just don't make sense and it takes a lot for the full picture to come together. The attention to detail and quirky little things keep this series enjoyable.
• 
  Gillian

  Review
  
  I loved it. I could not put it down. I am hoping that the next book featuring DCI Sophie Allan and her team will be published soon. Highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading very suspenseful mysteries
• 
  Donna

  Excellent read
  
  Excellent read as always. I love the fine balance between the crime stories and the characters personal lives. Well written and easy to read, I'd recommend starting this series from book 1.
  
• 
  Jilly

  Sylvia and Ted Armitage, a retired couple, attend the wrong funeral service by mistake. A month later their daughter returns from holiday to find them missing.The police make little headway in tracing their whereabouts until their bodies are found in their car, abandoned in the middle of a copse in a tranquil nature reserve. They appear to have committed suicide, but some of the forensic evidence suggests otherwise. The police slowly make progress and find several links to a shady organisation that owns a string of bars, clubs and cafes.
  
  When another body is found in the same area, DCI Sophie Allen must use all her investigative skills to unravel the connections between these very different victims. Some of the suspects are involved in shady deals and corruption, others are masking dark family secrets. Sophie is joined by two new police officers, Rose Simons and George Warrander, who will transform her team.
• 
  Pól

  Wonderful
  
  This was a wonderful read that was very enjoyable to get into. Having lived for quite a long time in the general locality in which the series is based added to th sense of place for me