Published By: HarperNorth
Pages: 320
Released On: 04/06/2026
When Ethan Adler set up his new PI agency in central Manchester, he wasn’t expecting his first case to be so high profile – investigating the mysterious death of rock star Dylan Vy.
Ethan has been avoiding the spotlight ever since his beloved wife Maggie’s untimely passing. His grief has been complicated by rumours that Maggie was pregnant with another man’s child at the time of her fatal accident. And because said accident took place just hours after Ethan won the lottery, a cloud of suspicion has followed Ethan ever since.
With the help of his assistant Amelia, Ethan throws himself into uncovering the truth about Dylan Vy. In a fast-escalating investigation, they uncover a labyrinth of secrets, lies and deadly connections between bandmates, girlfriends and a volatile manager. And when Dylan’s unreleased music is leaked on the dark web, speculation swirls that the lyrics contain hidden clues that might lead to the killer. But who leaked these songs, and what is their secret motive? In the midst of a media frenzy and a storm of fan conspiracy theories, who can Ethan trust?
As Ethan digs deeper, he must also confront his own demons — the lingering questions about Maggie’s death and the growing realisation that those closest to him may have played a role…
*****
Thanks to NetGalley and HarperNorth for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.
This is the first of Chris’ books I have read. I thought I had read others, but then I realised I’d read a book by Chris MacDonald, who is apparently a completely different person!
Ethan was instantly likeable, as was Amelia. They worked really well off of each other, even though they were completely different. Ethan was a bit lost and grieving but he wanted to help others. And Amelia was just such great fun! And in fact I would say at times that Amelia was the star of the whole thing.
What I thought was interesting was that Chris hasn’t just gone for the tense heart-pounding thriller, although it is that. But he’s given so much time and attention to other themes: loss and grief, addiction, the pitfalls of fame.
I lost myself in it immediately, it was so good that I sped through it in a day.
This might sound weird considering it isn’t one, but go with me, it had a sense of a locked room mystery. Let me be clear, there is no locked room mystery in it. That’s not a spoiler. But I couldn’t get this feeling out of my head, this impossibility of it all.
Thrillers are my most read genre and whilst this still had all the tropes I wanted, and it wasn’t necessarily original, it still had enough differences in it to make it feel fresh and exciting.
To be honest, I didn’t really mind what the outcome was, who actually did it. I was far more interesting in the story to get there than actually who had done what, but it is still an enjoyable ending.
It was so slick. The writing was excellent, the pacing just right, the tension dialled up but never overwhelming, the characters all brilliantly created (even if not all are likeable), and a believable plot.
I can confidently say I’ll be checking out his other books.
Will this be the start of a series? I hope so as I really want to follow Ethan and Amelia into further cases.
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