4 Stars from me
Within ‘A Beautiful Breed of Evil’ there are several very strong female characters – DI Stella Cole and DI Roisin Griffin being the two most dominant throughout the book and they are certainly not ladies to be underestimated.
Well well well… Being well versed in the ways of the crime thriller I have to say I made a sweeping assumption that this book would follow the standard (and much loved) crime thriller format. Boy was I wrong!
I haven’t read any books by Andy Maslen before, maybe those who know his work wouldn’t have made such a rookie error!
Running alongside the ‘crime’ to be solved, the bigger story for me was around Stella herself, her lifestyle, her choices, her moral code and whatever happened prior to this story to make her the way she is.
All in all a good and engaging thriller which packs one heck of a punch! I was shocked several times while reading this – a cosy murder mystery it is not.
I loved the closing scenes, the detail surrounding the meal and descriptions of clothing were all so utterly atmospheric I could almost smell the smoked salmon!
Many thanks to @damppebbles and @andy_maslen for letting me be a part of the blog tour for #ABeautifulBreedofEvil #DIStellaCole @Andy_Maslen @damppebbles #damppebblesblogtours
Blurb: He’ll never speak of the evil they did… A former Swedish ambassador lies dead in his swanky Mayfair flat. With his tongue torn out and placed on a Bible. Competing theories swirl. A religious maniac? A psychopath? The truth is far darker than either. DCI Stella Cole’s search for the killer takes her to Sweden. There, she discovers a horrific chapter in the country’s history that throws the case into turmoil. And then more people start dying.
Teaming up with Swedish cops Oskar Norgrim and Johanna Carlsson, Stella pieces together Ambassador Brömly’s shocking past. And discovers the killer’s motive. Meanwhile, Stella’s personal life is about to take a significant turn as her boyfriend, Jamie, suggests a change in their relationship. But as Stella tries to process what it means, she makes a fateful decision. Why won’t the dead stay buried?
On the other side of the Atlantic, a kid practising BMX stunts over water finds a skeleton on a lake bed. When the victim is revealed to be a British cop, the FBI ask for assistance. Stella’s arch-enemy from her own department gets the case. She flies to Chicago and soon discovers the murderer’s identity.
The scene is set for a showdown in Sweden as DI Roisin Griffin pursues her vendetta against Stella all the way to the north of Sweden during the annual festival of Midsommar.
Read and Rated 
Thanks so much for being part of the blog tour xx