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DC Izzy Wilde Crime Thriller #1
The Murder Trail
Can a rookie cop stop a serial killer before he takes another life? A year after moving out of uniform, DC Izzy Wilde wants to make an impression. But no matter how hard she tries to do things by the book, her instincts keep getting her into trouble. And when a call brings her to a remote farm, she’s the first responder to a kidnapped girl, a comatose stranger, and a monstrous death. Seconded to the Murder Team with her partner, DS Jack Ward, Izzy battles her own impulsive demons. But when the dead woman’s torrid secret makes her husband the prime suspect, Izzy fears the killer may still be at large choosing his next victim. When the abducted girl’s identity is revealed, Izzy and Jack must unmask the real killer before his attention switches to them. The Murder Trail is a contemporary police thriller perfect for fans of JD Kirk, LJ Ross and Rachel McLean.
480 pages, Paperback
First published December 7, 2023
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
October 22, 2023
I read this through my online bookclub, Pigeonhole. We were warned that this was an early copy upfront so language errors have not affected my review nor rating.
Unfortunately so many gaps in police and social service procecures turned what could have been a reasonable detective thriller into a farce for me.
At the helm is Izzy a constable dealing with the psychological scars of losing her own twin sister years before. Her supervisor is Jack, who appears to let her take the reins even when contravening standard procedures. The cherry on top was her being praised for acting like an imbecile!
Written as a beginning for a series, I was too put off by the numerous mistakes to consider reading a sequel. 2 stars
Unfortunately so many gaps in police and social service procecures turned what could have been a reasonable detective thriller into a farce for me.
At the helm is Izzy a constable dealing with the psychological scars of losing her own twin sister years before. Her supervisor is Jack, who appears to let her take the reins even when contravening standard procedures. The cherry on top was her being praised for acting like an imbecile!
Written as a beginning for a series, I was too put off by the numerous mistakes to consider reading a sequel. 2 stars
October 22, 2023
I read this through an online book club, Pigeonhole. We were warned it was a proof copy so I was expecting issues with spelling and grammar. However, there were so many more errors than that.
The book has a great premise and could easily be elevated in rating if the author puts the work into their research. The characters were mostly unlikable, but particularly the main character, Izzy. A lot of police procedurals rely on a main character that goes off piste and against orders to get results but they tend to have the loveable rogue persona. Izzy didn't, nor did she actually get the desired results, yet still seemed to be praised by her superiors. There was too much focus on how people looked, with no real substance to the characters, and plot holes aplenty throughout. There was no real conclusion to the ending, leaving it open for the next book in the series to continue the story, however I have no desire to read on at present.
Thank you to #Pigeonhole for the opportunity to read this, and to my fellow pigeons for keeping it entertaining whilst reading with all their comments.
The book has a great premise and could easily be elevated in rating if the author puts the work into their research. The characters were mostly unlikable, but particularly the main character, Izzy. A lot of police procedurals rely on a main character that goes off piste and against orders to get results but they tend to have the loveable rogue persona. Izzy didn't, nor did she actually get the desired results, yet still seemed to be praised by her superiors. There was too much focus on how people looked, with no real substance to the characters, and plot holes aplenty throughout. There was no real conclusion to the ending, leaving it open for the next book in the series to continue the story, however I have no desire to read on at present.
Thank you to #Pigeonhole for the opportunity to read this, and to my fellow pigeons for keeping it entertaining whilst reading with all their comments.
October 23, 2023
The first in the DC Izzy Wilde Crime Thrillers. A farmer’s wife is murdered in her own home and her baby taken. Can Izzy catch the killer, who seems to be on a mission, before he strikes again?
This was a very early proof copy which I read via the Pigeonhole app. So, bearing that in mind, my thoughts are that there is a good story at the heart of it. However, it needs rejigging and going over with a fine-tooth comb. At the moment it starts off well, then begins to meander towards the middle, loses the plot somewhat and then ends on a cliffhanger. It also has quite a few grey areas, is quite repetitive and seems padded out. Hopefully the finished book will have resolved these matters and make for a better reading experience. I wish the author luck with this new series.
This was a very early proof copy which I read via the Pigeonhole app. So, bearing that in mind, my thoughts are that there is a good story at the heart of it. However, it needs rejigging and going over with a fine-tooth comb. At the moment it starts off well, then begins to meander towards the middle, loses the plot somewhat and then ends on a cliffhanger. It also has quite a few grey areas, is quite repetitive and seems padded out. Hopefully the finished book will have resolved these matters and make for a better reading experience. I wish the author luck with this new series.
October 22, 2023
It’s a good story – it has the bare bones of an excellent one. I just wish it paid more attention to modern policing and how young officers behave. It feels a bit stuck in another decade.
But enough of the negatives. DC Izzy Wilde has recently come out of uniform and is now a detective in Preston. She is partnered with DS Jack Ward. But she is the first to respond to a horrific murder at Caxton Farm. Rosie Wilson lies dead in a pool of blood, cradled in the arms of her husband Mike. Eight month old Grace is nowhere to be found, but another child is unconscious on the sofa.
Rosie had some dark secrets, so did Mike kill his wife in a fit of temper? Izzy doesn’t think so. She thinks this is the work of a cold-blooded killer. And who is the child on the sofa? DNA can tell us most things these days, so it doesn’t take long to discover her identity. And that makes everything so much more complicated.
Izzy wasn’t popular with my fellow Pigeons. She struggles with procedure and often goes out on her own, causing havoc in some cases. She doesn’t have any patience, but she’s no Harry Callaghan (look it up). In fact she often messes up the whole case by failing to involve her colleagues. However, we like Jack and civilian IT wizz Priya.
Izzy also has her secrets, which have formed her detachment and often blunt, unsympathetic attitude. She’s not a team player. She probably needs to get a cat (so long as the author doesn’t kill it off – us Pigeons hate that). In the follow up book in the series, I hope she starts to thaw, and we see a nicer side to her.
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole, the author and my fellow Pigeons for making this such an enjoyable read.
But enough of the negatives. DC Izzy Wilde has recently come out of uniform and is now a detective in Preston. She is partnered with DS Jack Ward. But she is the first to respond to a horrific murder at Caxton Farm. Rosie Wilson lies dead in a pool of blood, cradled in the arms of her husband Mike. Eight month old Grace is nowhere to be found, but another child is unconscious on the sofa.
Rosie had some dark secrets, so did Mike kill his wife in a fit of temper? Izzy doesn’t think so. She thinks this is the work of a cold-blooded killer. And who is the child on the sofa? DNA can tell us most things these days, so it doesn’t take long to discover her identity. And that makes everything so much more complicated.
Izzy wasn’t popular with my fellow Pigeons. She struggles with procedure and often goes out on her own, causing havoc in some cases. She doesn’t have any patience, but she’s no Harry Callaghan (look it up). In fact she often messes up the whole case by failing to involve her colleagues. However, we like Jack and civilian IT wizz Priya.
Izzy also has her secrets, which have formed her detachment and often blunt, unsympathetic attitude. She’s not a team player. She probably needs to get a cat (so long as the author doesn’t kill it off – us Pigeons hate that). In the follow up book in the series, I hope she starts to thaw, and we see a nicer side to her.
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole, the author and my fellow Pigeons for making this such an enjoyable read.
October 22, 2023
I gave this two stars because it had the bones of a good story, but the execution was very poor.
Continuity and timeline issues abound.
A very poor Police Procedural about police who don't follow procedures. Social Services were also very poorly researched.
Unlikeable characters - Izzie is a loose cannon, and Jack, supposedly her superior, is a wimp.
I was lost for words at times, by the stupidity of the characters, leading to suicides and kidnaps. Total lack of interest in finding Grace or supporting Abi. And they all got a pat on the back and were head hunted by the Met!
The plot simply became ludicrous and I only continued reading through my online book club, for the comedy value.
The cherry on top of this unrisen cake, was the lack of any answers in the final stave. No motive, and everything left hanging to make way for a follow up, which I WILL NOT be reading!
This needs to be totally re wrtten with better editing.
Continuity and timeline issues abound.
A very poor Police Procedural about police who don't follow procedures. Social Services were also very poorly researched.
Unlikeable characters - Izzie is a loose cannon, and Jack, supposedly her superior, is a wimp.
I was lost for words at times, by the stupidity of the characters, leading to suicides and kidnaps. Total lack of interest in finding Grace or supporting Abi. And they all got a pat on the back and were head hunted by the Met!
The plot simply became ludicrous and I only continued reading through my online book club, for the comedy value.
The cherry on top of this unrisen cake, was the lack of any answers in the final stave. No motive, and everything left hanging to make way for a follow up, which I WILL NOT be reading!
This needs to be totally re wrtten with better editing.
October 24, 2023
Thanks to #Pigeonhole for the ARC. Well, it turned out to be an incredibly ‘advanced’ copy as this hadn’t been proofed or edited very well which makes reviewing quite difficult as I suspect (and hope) it will change markedly after some chunky editing.
The bones of a good story are here. Whether Izzy will make a great series character is debatable given how she presents herself in this one. Lots of potential with her back story and ongoing daddy issues, but she’s frankly annoying and her ‘lone wolf’ and dictator style as a junior officer is grating.
This story could be good, there’s certainly some intrigue here but I felt more could have been done to support the series development than the rushed elements in the final pages here. A little too best and tied up for me. Along with the often incredulous actions (or lack of) taken throughout, this was not the best read. However, I’ll be fascinated to compare versions when published - but I might get someone else to do that for me!
The bones of a good story are here. Whether Izzy will make a great series character is debatable given how she presents herself in this one. Lots of potential with her back story and ongoing daddy issues, but she’s frankly annoying and her ‘lone wolf’ and dictator style as a junior officer is grating.
This story could be good, there’s certainly some intrigue here but I felt more could have been done to support the series development than the rushed elements in the final pages here. A little too best and tied up for me. Along with the often incredulous actions (or lack of) taken throughout, this was not the best read. However, I’ll be fascinated to compare versions when published - but I might get someone else to do that for me!
October 23, 2023
I can only give two stars as I read a sloppily written, unedited copy with The Pigeonhole digital book club. There were so many continuity errors that it was difficult to get an accurate sense of the writing style but with some good editing, I would perhaps give this a three star rating.
The plot premise was interesting, an unknown murderer targeting young married women and kidnapping a child to make an unthreatening entrance into the home. The main character Izzy, a lowly DC, has a difficult past. She is not a team player and as such is too headstrong and constantly putting her team and the crime victims in danger. She does however often get results, so seems to evade trouble with her boss, but overall I didn’t find her a sympathetic character and her DS Jack didn’t seem to stand up to her. I did like Priya the forensic ICT expert though and if the plot details were tightened up it could be a promising new series.
The plot premise was interesting, an unknown murderer targeting young married women and kidnapping a child to make an unthreatening entrance into the home. The main character Izzy, a lowly DC, has a difficult past. She is not a team player and as such is too headstrong and constantly putting her team and the crime victims in danger. She does however often get results, so seems to evade trouble with her boss, but overall I didn’t find her a sympathetic character and her DS Jack didn’t seem to stand up to her. I did like Priya the forensic ICT expert though and if the plot details were tightened up it could be a promising new series.
October 28, 2023
I read an advanced copy of this book through online book group The Pigeonhole. I was fully aware this was an advanced copy but there were several inconsistencies with the plot and mistakes which ended up confusing me. I hope with some good editing that the published book Will be vastly better and corrected. DC Izzy Wilde is first on scene at a murder in a remote farmhouse called in by the husband on discovering his wife’s body. Their 11 month old daughter is missing and a nine year old girl has been left in the house. So starts the hunt for the killer and unearths that this is a serial killer. The book had a good premise but there were a lot of coincidences to bring the plot together that made it seem unbelievable. Sorry not quite for me
October 23, 2023
I read this as a proof copy on the Pigeonhole. As such I don't feel I can give a fair review. There was too much editing to be done. The teaser for this book matches well to the start of the narrative. Unfortunately the trail wanders and doesn't reach a satisfying conclusion for me. The main character, Izzy Wilde, is a loose cannon. She disobeys orders with impunity, issues commands to her boss and ignores police procedures. Her rash actions lead to all kinds of misfortune, and yet her colleagues see her as some kind of hero. I found it irritating, and then ridiculous. This is the first in a series but the last book that I will read by this author.
October 29, 2023
DC Izzy Wilde isn't long out of uniform. She is called to a murder at a remote farmhouse, where the farmer's wife has been murdered and his eight month old baby is missing. An unknown young girl has been left at the scene, apparently drugged so that she does not witness the murder.
Izzy and her boss DS Jack Ward are part of the team tasked with tracking down the murderer and finding the missing baby.
Unfortunately, Izzy doesn't heed authority, and reading the book, you would think that she was Jack's boss rather than the other way around.
Her character becomes quite annoying and, unfortunately, spoils the story a bit.
#Pigeonhole
Izzy and her boss DS Jack Ward are part of the team tasked with tracking down the murderer and finding the missing baby.
Unfortunately, Izzy doesn't heed authority, and reading the book, you would think that she was Jack's boss rather than the other way around.
Her character becomes quite annoying and, unfortunately, spoils the story a bit.
#Pigeonhole
November 12, 2023
I read an early copy of this on Pigeonhole. Overall, it was an interesting story but definitely needed tightening up. I feel the characterisation needed work as I found it hard to justify the main character, Izzy’s actions at times. As a reader, we don’t have to like our main character but we do need to have some understanding of what leads their actions, this seemed to be lacking. However, the premise of the book was good and there was quite a strong storyline. I wanted to know the answers and was keen to read more each day. I would read more from this author and look forward to further development of these characters in future books in the series.
October 23, 2023
This started off well but then lost its way. The main character DC Izzy Wilde was a loose cannon who, through her stupidity, contributed to the death of one man and completely sabotaged the police operation to catch the killer. However instead of being sacked or sent for further training she was lauded for her actions which I thought was ridiculous. The ending too left a lot to be desired though I'm assuming there will be a sequel. I read a proof copy courtesy of the Pigeonhole and there were lots of errors which will need correcting before publication
October 28, 2023
I had the opportunity to read this through the online bookclub Pigeonhole.
Where to start?
The bare bones of this story are decent but unfortunately the writing is all over the place. Continuity errors, procedural errors and the ending is rushed.
A young, maverick Detective Constable basically rides rough-shod over an investigation into a murder/abduction and no one seems to rein her in at all.
Sadly having to rate it as 2 stars ...
Where to start?
The bare bones of this story are decent but unfortunately the writing is all over the place. Continuity errors, procedural errors and the ending is rushed.
A young, maverick Detective Constable basically rides rough-shod over an investigation into a murder/abduction and no one seems to rein her in at all.
Sadly having to rate it as 2 stars ...
October 22, 2023
This book is really badly written, the continuity is awful, there are too many procedural mistakes, and the main chair is completely unlikable. I'm not even sure why I read it to the end, but I was reading it stave by stave with The Pigeonhole and it was the only book I thought looked interesting at the time.
October 22, 2023
I enjoyed the idea of this book and kept reading until the end but I had to ignore Izzy’s stubbornness to conform to any kind of Police procedures and being allowed to get away with it. I would certainly read more but I hope Izzy starts to think of those around her and not just about herself.
Thanks to Pigeonhole and the author for the chance to read this.
Thanks to Pigeonhole and the author for the chance to read this.
October 22, 2023
Read this with my online bookclub, Pigeonhole.
DC Izzy Wilde is a police officer who seems to have her own agenda. She does not respect her colleagues, puts them in danger, and gets away with it.
The inconsistencies, the errors, the lack of research, I hope it gets a thorough edit before publication day.
I will not be reading any follow-ups.
DC Izzy Wilde is a police officer who seems to have her own agenda. She does not respect her colleagues, puts them in danger, and gets away with it.
The inconsistencies, the errors, the lack of research, I hope it gets a thorough edit before publication day.
I will not be reading any follow-ups.
October 23, 2023
The Murder Trail by D G Penny is a story of a rookie cop, DC Izzy Wilde who is only three months out of uniform and hopes to solve a serial killers murder spree. It is a very involved story of the murder spree and the families affected and needs some careful editing before publication. It is a promising start to what could be a series.
Recommended
Recommended
October 24, 2023
Very weak - unlikeable and completely unbelievable characters, poorly plotted and put together (although the initial premise was quite interesting) - so many plot holes and inconsistencies - and worst of all, for me… it didn’t end properly - the story was left with just so many questions that nothing was resolved - unforgivable in crime fiction imo.
Read through Pigeonhole.
Read through Pigeonhole.
October 28, 2023
I read this book through Pigeonhole and it is clearly a very advanced copy. With a bit of tidying up it could make a good start to a series which is clearly the plan based on the ending. Once released, I would be tempted to read it again to see the final edited version, when I could give a more appropriate review. Thanks to the author and Pigeonhole for the opportunity.
October 22, 2023
Rogue detective vs serial killer is one of my favourite genres. This book has the makings of an excellent thriller but it needs a good editor to tighten up the plot and get rid of some discrepancies. Not the worst book I’ve ever read, but some way off being a favourite.
Read with The Pigeonhole.
Read with The Pigeonhole.
October 26, 2023
I enjoyed it but badly written, it was a proof though. It didn't really end rather just stopped so disappointed. A sequel is always great but not if it's just to finish the first book
Confusing at times die to errors and sequence of events didn't always seem to fit
Confusing at times die to errors and sequence of events didn't always seem to fit
October 22, 2023
The dialogue did it for me. Completely unnatural, stilted, repetitive and implausible. I cannot comment any further other than to say this is not a series I will be following.
October 23, 2023
A strange read with way too much unfinished business at the end
October 23, 2023
I read this as an uncorrected proof via Pigeonhole. This needs a lot of editing and tidying up to sort out the repetition, the plot errors, grammatical mistakes and issues with pace.
October 24, 2023
I read this proof copy through Pigeonhole. Despite the errors and inconsistencies overall I liked the story. Police officers Izzy and Jack along with their team have been assigned to find a killer.
October 24, 2023
** 2.5 stars **
January 10, 2026
Good read
I enjoyed the book. I felt that the initial investigation was a bit long, and that's why I didn't give it 5 stars.
I enjoyed the book. I felt that the initial investigation was a bit long, and that's why I didn't give it 5 stars.
Read
October 22, 2023I can’t give this a rating. It was an early copy read through Pigeonhole. There was zero evidence of editing and the book was a mess.
October 22, 2023
I read The Murder Trail on Pigeonhole (my online book club). DC Izzy Wilde is the main character and for me she is totally unbelievable her actions were more like a comedy act than a responsible Detective. She is not a team player which is absolutely essential in a murder investigation. I was disappointed by the number of errors in the book more than usual in a pre publication book. Thank you Pigeonhole and DG Penny for the opportunity to read.
January 30, 2024
Rookie DC Izzy Wilde would rather follow her instincts than her orders. Trusting those hunches lead Izzy and her partner DS Jack Ward down dangerous paths. I am a longtime fan of Penny’s Thomas Berrington historical mysteries; I look forward to reading more about his modern-day crime-fighting duo.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews