Murderland

The Manchester Murders #1

by Pamela Murray

When DI Joe Burton and DS Sally Fielding are called to investigate a suspicious death in a care home, it is just the start of their problems.

As further bodies are discovered, with playing cards placed beside their bodies, the Manchester police realise they have their work cut out.

With the press closing in on the case, a criminal profiler is called in to help work out what the killer’s motive is.

With the clock ticking and more victims uncovered, Fielding and Burton must race to track down a twisted killer before it’s too late.

But could the killer be closer to home than anyone ever imagined?

Genres: Mystery, Ebooks, Audiobook, Thriller, Mystery Thriller, Crime, Fiction

ebook

First published June 10, 2019

About the author

Pamela Murray is a crime writer from the North East of England and is best known for the novels Murderland, Bloodline, and Duplicity, collectively known as The Manchester Murders. She had intended to follow a career in either art or journalism after school but chose to work in a library instead because of her love of books. Murderland, her debut novel, was only submitted to one publisher before being immediately accepted. She has now written a further eight books and is currently working on another. Pamela's writing style is gripping and suspenseful, making her a favourite among crime fiction enthusiasts.

Find her on social media @pamelamurraywriting

Reviews

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5

It's hard to believe, but Murderland is Pamela Murray's first crime fiction novel. If this hadn't been mentioned in the acknowledgments I never would have guessed!

What it's about: DI Joe Burton and DS Sally Fielding have been partners for years when they are called to investigate the grisly deaths of people with playing cards left at the scene. As bodies keep coming and the case gets even more confusing, Fielding and Burton will have to race against time before the next target gets killed.

Murderland is one of the most unique crime novels I have ever read and I really enjoyed it! I usually like it better when each chapter is spoken from a specific point of view, but Murray chose to have both Burton's and Fielding's viewpoints throughout the book, and many times in the same paragraph. That would normally drive me insane, but the voices were so clear in this book and there were enough identifying markers that it didn't bother me at all. Every once and awhile there would be a tiny bit of another POV, but that didn't bother me either! I clearly really like this author's writing style and I don't think it is going to confuse anyone.

I also really liked both Burton and Fielding and was intrigued by the bit of their personal lives that get mentioned in this book. Fielding has 2 cats, so I was completely sold on her just for that reason, but they are also both so smart and gruff and I loved it. The crimes in Murderland did get a little gory, but there isn't a whole lot of detail, so most people won't get grossed out by it. After reading some pretty intense (super gory) books, this felt like a bit of a respite from all that.

Murderland is the first book to a series with the next being Bloodline, and I am really excited to see what is next for this series. Murderland ended on the tiniest bit of a cliffhanger personal-wise, and I can't wait to see how it comes together. This style reminded me a bit of Criminal Minds, which I love, so that made me even happier.

Final Thought: Murderland had an ending that while I did have some suspicions on, I didn't expect the full killer reveal that happened. I love a book that can surprise me, and that is what this book did. It was also incredibly short, and for being just under 200 pages it didn't even take me 3 hours to read. If you are looking for a super unique crime novel that you can read in one sitting (that isn't overly gory), then I highly recommend checking out Murderland!

[Linda Strong · Rating 4 out of 5]

DI Joe Burton and DS Sally Fielding are investigating some strange deaths. Three elderly people have been murdered ... and in each case, a playing card has been left beside the body. There doesn't seem to be anything else that connects the victims.

When the investigations go nowhere, Burton isn't happy, but his superior has called for the services of a criminal profiler.

When two more victims have been identified in another location, it starts to look as though DS Fielding is somehow involved.

With the clock ticking and more victims uncovered, Fielding and Burton must race to track down a twisted killer before it’s too late.

It's a well written crime thriller with characters that are quite interesting. Burton and Fielding have been partnered for 7 years ... I love how they interact with each other and their team ... with loyalty and trust and even humor. There are a few twists and turns and the ending is a real nail biter.

Many thanks to Bloodhound Books for another excellent crime fiction. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

[Alan Cotterell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to Bloodhound Books and Pamela Murray for the ARC of this book in return for an honest review

The prologue was excellent and I was really looking forward to reading the rest. But I felt that there were far too many extraneous words, instead of just saying what somebody did, went into explaining the whole process of what they did. This was a shame, as the plot was a good one with some good characters, possibility for follow on books.

I had very strong suspicions as to who the killer was from very early on, but still wondered if it was a red herring.

I score this as 3.5-3.75 rounded up to 4.

Overall this was quite a nice read, but not a 5 star read.

[8stitches 9lives · Rating 4 out of 5]

Murderland is the first book to feature intrepid investigators DI Joe Burton and DS Sally Fielding. Set in Manchester, the pair are called to a local nursing home where everyone believes something foul is at play and not just the natural order of life and death. With three people dead and each being left with a playing card beside their body, what exactly is the killer trying to convey? It is a message or a taunt? The police are at a loss to describe what exactly has been going on and the case becomes a lot more complex when two other bodies are found in Northumberland.

This is a well written and entertaining debut police procedural with plenty of tension and enough to keep you guessing as to the motive and the perpetrator. Burton and Fielding are a force to be reckoned with and have an intriguing dynamic. There is a great cast of characters who are given the right amount of development and the pace is spot on. I only hope this is the first instalment in a series as I can see this evolving into a very readable and nail-biting set of books. Either way, I will look out for more by Ms Murray in the future. Many thanks to Bloodhound Books for an ARC.

[Joanne Farley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel is the authors first crime novel and let me tell you if I had not read that I would never have guessed it. I listened the the audio narration of this book and I am glad that I did as the book is told from the perspective of both of the main characters and it changes frequently I don't think I would have been able to keep it straight had I been reading it.
This is a fantastic mystery and there are plenty of clues in the book leading you to the killer. There is plenty of tension in this novel and I found myself literally stopping what I was doing at times to listen to what was happening. I found the motivation of the killer to be somewhat underwhelming, but that is really my only complaint.
This is a great start to a new series.

[Muzmuz · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice solid crime/mystery novel... there are no fillers and the story has a good steady pace.... pieces of the mystery unfolds at the proper time with the ending pace quickening up with a nice plot twist.
I have mostly enjoyed the chemistry between Sally and Joe and am looking forward to more of their interactions.

P.s .... not sure if it's only me but I kinda figured out who the criminal is as soon as they popped ^^

[KDawn · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was in desperate need of an editor. Murray is far too wordy and explains things that don't require explanation. I was exasperated by the writing so much that I almost didn't finish it. An example: "something was covering her eyes. She couldn't tell what it was but she knew it was there to stop her from seeing where she was." Well...yeah. It's a blindfold. It was descriptions like this I had a hard time getting past. The plot itself was fine, if a bit predictable. I also found the characters far too altruistic in self-correcting their behavior. It wasn't very believable. Ah well. There are other series out there.

[Chris Nolan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent serial killer thriller from the fine stable of Bloodhound Books. Set in Manchester and with an interesting set of characters, Pamela Murray has written a fine, fascinating and intriguing novel. The trail starts with a death in a care home but this is quickly followed by a number of other corpses, all accompanied by a playing card! The writer is certainly one to watch.

[Cath Hughes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very short. Fast paced. Lots of murders.
Lots of back story about each of the Police Squad

[Kevin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was troubled by this book for a number of reasons.

Firstly, I didn’t think it was especially well written and it had no real flow to it.
Secondly, it was extremely far fetched…in fact it was not at all believable.
My biggest disappointment though was that aspects of the detective investigation were very poor. The main suspect must have wondered what on earth was going off as any links to him were purely circumstantial. Even so the Burton, Fielding pairing were desperate enough to keep ‘pulling him in’. This would almost certainly have led to a charge of police harassment and had they arrested him as intended….a case of wrongful arrest.
Incompetence must be levelled at the investigation team and the profiler for not recognising that the ME also had connections to the victims as well as Fielding.

I can’t recommend the book except as a manual for how not to carry out police work and will definitely not be reading any other books in the series.

[Polly Sinclair · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ebook version is incredibly badly proofread…the DCI keeps changing gender, mid sentence at one point! The whole book could do with a good editor…reads like an early draft, with too much detail and a bit clunky, strange prologue and odd scenes which don’t fit in the timeline. Not the author’s fault, lazy publishing really.

The killer was too obvious from the off really and overall it was just a bit like too much had been thrown at the plot and it had to be explained at the end for it to make sense, which definitely goes again the ‘show not yell’ way of writing which is far more enjoyable as a reader.

[Holly Reynolds · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fantastic debut novel from Pamela Murray.

We are introduced to a police-duo when they are investigating murders, where the murderer leaves a playing card as a calling card.

This book is exciting and kept me guessing right the way through, and it was refreshing not to be able to solve the crime early on is the book, as is sometimes the case with books in this genre.

I will definitely read more books by this author in the future.

[Kayla · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sorry but it's pretty boooring. I tried so hard to keep reading and it just not picking up greatly. Even in the climax (didn't feel like it tho) just not it. I don't like the ending, like just that?? Anything else?? No?

The concept actually very interesting, it could be better. Killer motivation also a meh for me, I don't get the 'heat' as usually whenever I read thriller.

[Carol · Rating 1 out of 5]

I originally gave this 2 stars but the more I thought about it, the more it became a true waste of time. Everything was flat: characters, plot, descriptions, and it was boring and unbelievable. It seemed like there was nothing there at all. Maybe the author improves in the next book, but there's too many books out there to try again.

[J Fearnley · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5-4*

I am delighted to be part of the opening day of the BlogTour for Murderland by Pamela Murray.

Set in Manchester and the North East this is a cracking read. Immediately from the tense prologue we are thrown into a murder. Chapter one brings another. They seem unrelated. It is with the death of a care home resident that we get into the story proper. This is no simple, tragic passing of an elderly man. It’s a somewhat bewildering murder – why was Nathaniel Jackson dressed somewhat oddly and is the playing card of significance?

Joe and Sally are DI and DS respectively but more importantly they are a team and have become friends. This is the authors first book but we quickly find it’s a relationship that has worked well in previous investigations making a strong but somewhat precarious bond. They are part of a wider team who also work well together. Still it is Joe and Sally who are the main characters and whose lives we start to learn about as the investigation progresses. I enjoyed getting to know them a little as the story progressed. Other characters are brought in, all who enhance the story in one way or another. This will surely be the first of several books and getting to know the main characters and the others who will be the mainstay of any future stories will surely make them even better.

Joe and Sally are both based with Greater Manchester Police (GMP). Joe joined the Manchester force from London. Sally is from the Northeast. Living in Greater Manchester I enjoyed the setting of the book, some of which was familiar. The book also travels with the investigation into the Northeast and I found this to be rather more lovingly recreated by the author, probably as this is her ‘patch’. Knowing this area a little from travelling and work over the years further enhanced my enjoyment. I do like to be able to picture the setting and when the storyline takes place in familiar areas it does make that easier.

Still it is the investigation into a murder that is the point of the story. So when another murder occurs and there are links Joe and Sally fear they have a serial killer at large. How many will die? Will the duo find the killer? How will it all end?

Pamela Murray has put together a wonderful cast of characters and placed them into a tense, twisty storyline. She has used pace and her characters to bring a well written book to all who enjoy reading crime fiction. The story is well crafted. It is well executed. It brings together the various threads to a terrific climax.

Follow along with the characters and the story in a book that you will surely enjoy as much as I did. I would certainly recommend Murderland and hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.

My thanks to Heather of Bloodhound Books for the invitation to join the Murderland Blog Tour and for an eCopy of the book.

[Alyson Read · Rating 5 out of 5]

DI Joe Burton and DS Sally Fielding have worked together for the Greater Manchester Police for a number of years and together with five detective constables, they run a tight and loyal team. The story starts with an attack on a woman locking up a warehouse in Tyne and Wear, then switches to a suspicious death at a care home, where Burton and Fielding attend. It certainly looks like a strange one, the corpse dressed in some kind of fancy dress clothing and with a playing card left at the scene. The post mortem shows it to be murder and a suspect is identified but proves hard to track down. When a second body is discovered in similar circumstances the team believe they are looking for the same killer but struggle to discover a motive. Even with a respected criminal profiler on the case they are helpless to prevent another attack and wonder if they will ever bring the killer to justice. The cards are now stacking up but still they have no idea what the killer is trying to tell them. Will they understand before more bodies are found? This is a great police procedural full of well described and very likeable characters. It had a clever plot, complex enough to keep the reader guessing and had me engrossed right up to the end. I hope there will be more to come from this author and this very enjoyable team of detectives.

[Lel Budge · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Her head lay a few feet away, face up, blank eyes staring into space. After giving it a fleeting glance, the attacker flicked something into the widening pool of blood that had now almost surrounded her body, then walked towards the illuminated exit sign at the far end of the warehouse and out into the cold evening air.”

DI Joe Burton and DS Sally Fielding are about to go home after a long shift, but they are then called to a local nursing home for a suspicious death….

While death in a are home is not unusual, in this instance a doctor and the police surgeon feel there may be something more sinister going on….An elderly man has been found dead, but dressed in some unusual clothes and a playing card has been purposely left by the body.

Soon two more bodies are found, also with a playing card beside the body….just what is connecting these three victims? Just how many more will die before they find out?

I enjoyed the relationship between Burton and Fielding, the in depth investigation and the descriptive writing which builds tension slowly until the gripping ending…..very entertaining.

Thank you to Bloodhound Books for the opportunity to participate in this blog tour and for the promotional materials and a free copy of the ebook in exchange for my honest, unbiased review

[Bunnyboo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a good book for me to get out of my reading slump! I enjoyed the mystery of it and the spark between Burton and Fielding. I knew Claire was someone sus so it may have been a bit obvious but I didn’t expect the boyfriend so that was a good surprise.

[Ruth Matheson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A debut novel from Pamela Murray which features what at first appears to be random murders around Manchester until the police there are made aware of similar ones in Northumbria. There are points in the book where there is a bit of repetition which holds the reader back, however overall it is a good read, although I did figure the guilty party out quite quickly - just wasn't sure why at that point! Probably a 3.5* rating but in this case have rounded up as there are some good parts to it.

Thanks to Bloodhound books for the ARC to review.

[Virginia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Weird character

[Claire Tomonaga · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded up

[Tex · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very easy reading detective thriller. Perhaps a little too cozy for me but a quick read with some nice red herring in the mix. Murder with playing cards as clues.

[Alex Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to Heather at Bloodhound for an Arc and invite to the Blog Blitz for Pamela Murray’s New Thriller, Murderland

From the opening prologue I was drawn into this story, it is very good and starts with a shock.

DI Joe Burton and DS Sally Fielding are called to an elderly care home, a strange murder appears to have been committed when an older guest is found dressed almost like a clown with a playing card left close to the body.

Murders begin piling up leaving the same calling card, it appears the team have a serial killer on their hands.

A clever and very well written Murder mystery, I guessed who the killer was early on but that took nothing away from a highly enjoyable read.

With characters that hold your interest without delving too much into their back story, this is a well plotted, thought out and nicely paced story.

A traditional police procedural, this book really just concentrates on the story at hand and is very decent start to a new police series.

Recommended

3.5🔥🔥🔥

[Leanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! What a find this was! Never read this author before, what a great book,edge of your seat stuff! Roll on bloodline 👍📚

[Nerys Roberts · Rating 3 out of 5]

DI Joe Burton and DS Sally Fielding are about to go off shift when they’re called to a local nursing home. It’s not unusual for death to occur in such an establishment but the home’s doctor and then police surgeon believe foul play is involved. An elderly gentleman is dead, he’s been dressed in unusual clothing and a playing card left near his body. Then two more bodies are discovered in the city, both with playing cards left beside them. The police struggle to find what connects the victims especially when two more victims are found in the North East of England.

An enjoyable read which kept me guessing as to who the perpetrator was right to the end.

Thanks to Bloodhound Books and Pamela Murray for the ARC of this book in return for an honest review,

[Ann Jin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Overall boring. Plots are interesting but hard to keep up due to lengthy and unnecessary explanation and description. First 10 chapters feel like you’re watching a crime show but the further you go the more you feel like it was forced to be a whole season when it’s supposed to be an episode. Not interested in picking up book 2.

[Sam savage · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sammibee

Great story. I had just finished a John Grisham book that had been particularly difficult to read so this little page turner was quite a relief. I think I got the twist at about 80 percent through but it didn’t spoil it for me as I enjoyed it very much. Would recommend to anyone looking for a crime book. Thank you Pamela Murray xxx

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A suspicious death at a care home results in DI Joe Burton and DS Sally Fielding being called in to investigate. When another death occurs with links to the first, they and the team need to find the possible motive and suspect. But these two deaths will not be the only ones.
An enjoyable crime story, a good start to a new series.

[VP · Rating 1 out of 5]

Easily the worst book I read this year.
Relatively short, but even at that, the author (who I imagine to be an old granny making an effort at a creative writing class) used 10 word when five would suffice.
The detectives are all inept. the story was dumb. And solving the case hinged on a chance glance at a working board by a non-essential character.
Dumb dumb dumb.

[Sunita · Rating 2 out of 5]

so so

I picked the killer halfway thru ☹️
The chemistry between characters weren’t the best.
Nothing pulled me into the story and had me guessing.
No twists and unexpected turns.
However the last page was a nice touch.