“When a man is found beaten to death in a local Manchester park, Detective Constable Sam Parker is one of the investigating officers. Sam swiftly identifies the victim, but what at first looks like an open and shut case quickly starts to unravel when he realises that the victim’s fingerprints were found on a knife at another crime scene, a month earlier.

Meanwhile, Sam’s brother, Joe – a criminal defence lawyer in the city – comes face to face with a man whose very presence sends shockwaves through his life. Joe must confront the demons of his past as he struggles to come to terms with the darkness that this man represents.

Before long, Joe and Sam are in way over their heads, both sucked into a terrifying game of cat-and-mouse that threatens to change their lives for ever…”

Hello and welcome to damppebbles. Today I am delighted to be sharing my review of The Domino Killer by Neil White. The Domino Killer is the third book in the Joe & Sam Parker Series and was published on 1st December 2016 by Sphere Books. I chose to read and review a free eARC of The Domino Killer but that has in no way influenced my review.

I have read a number of books by this author but this is the first one in his Joe & Sam Parker series. I didn’t struggle at all coming into the series at book three as the main plotline revolves around events in the brother’s past so it worked really well as a recap. And yes, I probably should have mentioned before, Joe and Sam (I’m so sorry, I really want to call them Sam and Mark for no other reason than perhaps I watch too much children’s TV!) are brothers. Joe is a defence lawyer and Sam is a detective constable.

When a man is savagely attacked in a Manchester park, DC Sam Parker is part of the team investigating the victim’s death. The attack was frenzied and bloody and the police have a race against time to find the killer. But then the victim’s fingerprint is found in the most unexpected place and it throws the team a pretty big curveball. Joe meanwhile has been called to the police station as he has been requested by a new client on a burglary charge. What awaits him is the shock of his life. A face he never expected to see again, but the reason he became a defence lawyer in the first place. Before long the brothers are hunting down a psychopathic serial killer who will stop at nothing to see his plan come to fruition, no matter what (or who) the cost…

I enjoyed this gritty police/legal thriller set in Manchester. The plot was detailed and intricate, and because of the two lead characters and two perspectives, I felt as though I was getting two stories for the price of one. It’s a really interesting concept to have two brothers in opposing careers and it really added something to the book for me. I expect I will pick up the first two books in this series in the not too distant future.

The chapters focussing on the police investigation with Sam Parker were definitely my favourite parts of the book. I think I preferred Sam’s character to Joe’s who seemed a little self-centred at times. The supporting cast were also very strong and I particularly liked Sam’s police partner, Charlotte Turner, and Joe’s paralegal and an ex-detective herself, Gina.

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. I found The Domino Killer a slower paced read but it’s certainly compelling and I was keen to find out where the killer was heading with his master plan. There’s a wonderful twist towards the end of the story which I really enjoyed and didn’t see coming at all. I did get a little confused at times with the number of character names and how they related to other characters in the book, but that’s probably just me. A really interesting crime novel with two intriguing characters. Recommended.

I chose to read and review a free eARC of The Domino Killer. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

The Domino Killer by Neil White was published in the UK by Sphere Books on 1st December 2016 and is available in hardcover, paperback and digital formats (please note, the following links are affiliate links which means I receive a small percentage of the purchase price at no extra cost to you): | amazon.co.uk | Waterstones | Foyles | Book Depository | Goodreads |

Neil White was born and brought up around South Yorkshire. He left school at sixteen but studied for a law degree in his twenties, then started writing in 1994. He is now a lawyer by day, crime fiction writer by night. He lives with his wife and three children in Preston.