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Detective Mark Turpin #2
Her Final Hour
When a championship jockey discovers the body of a young woman during a cold morning’s training ride, the local racing community is shocked to its core.
Everyone says she was the perfect friend, the perfect daughter and the perfect fiancée.
However as Detective Mark Turpin delves into the girl’s fateful last hours, he discovers a past full of lies and mystery.
Investigating the truth behind her savage death, Mark uncovers jealousy and ambition within the tiny community, accompanied by a disturbing reluctance to help the police.
When another death takes place only days later, Mark realises he is running out of time to stop a killer who will do anything to keep a dark secret hidden...
Her Final Hour is the second book in a new murder mystery series from USA Today bestselling author Rachel Amphlett.
Everyone says she was the perfect friend, the perfect daughter and the perfect fiancée.
However as Detective Mark Turpin delves into the girl’s fateful last hours, he discovers a past full of lies and mystery.
Investigating the truth behind her savage death, Mark uncovers jealousy and ambition within the tiny community, accompanied by a disturbing reluctance to help the police.
When another death takes place only days later, Mark realises he is running out of time to stop a killer who will do anything to keep a dark secret hidden...
Her Final Hour is the second book in a new murder mystery series from USA Today bestselling author Rachel Amphlett.
524 pages, Paperback
First published November 9, 2020
86 people are currently reading
217 people want to read
About the author
Rachel Amphlett
211 books682 followersBefore turning to writing, USA Today bestselling crime author Rachel Amphlett played guitar in bands, worked as a TV and film extra, dabbled in radio, and worked in publishing as an editorial assistant.
She now wields a pen instead of a plectrum and writes crime fiction with over 30 crime novels and short stories featuring spies, detectives, vigilantes, and assassins.
A keen traveller and accidental private investigator, Rachel has both Australian and British citizenship.
You can find out more about Rachel and her books at www.rachelamphlett.com.
Praise for Rachel Amphlett
“Fast paced with vivid characterisation and clever twists, [None the Wiser] is another winner” Adrian McKinty
“[None the Wiser] is a terrific start to a new series” Jo Spain, With Our Blessing and The Confession
“Quirky, creepy and twisted tales” James Oswald, Sunday Times bestselling author
“Thrilling start to a new series. Scared to Death is a stylish, smart and gripping crime thriller” Robert Bryndza
"Scared to Death… moves along at breakneck speed with twists and turns" Angela Marsons
She now wields a pen instead of a plectrum and writes crime fiction with over 30 crime novels and short stories featuring spies, detectives, vigilantes, and assassins.
A keen traveller and accidental private investigator, Rachel has both Australian and British citizenship.
You can find out more about Rachel and her books at www.rachelamphlett.com.
Praise for Rachel Amphlett
“Fast paced with vivid characterisation and clever twists, [None the Wiser] is another winner” Adrian McKinty
“[None the Wiser] is a terrific start to a new series” Jo Spain, With Our Blessing and The Confession
“Quirky, creepy and twisted tales” James Oswald, Sunday Times bestselling author
“Thrilling start to a new series. Scared to Death is a stylish, smart and gripping crime thriller” Robert Bryndza
"Scared to Death… moves along at breakneck speed with twists and turns" Angela Marsons
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
April 8, 2021
I always enjoy Rachel Amphlett's books, from any of her several series. I can count on each one to be nicely written with a good story. This one is no exception.
Her Final Hour is the second book in the Detective Mark Turpin series. When we met Mark in the first book he was a new arrival in the local police force and was finding his feet in the team and getting to know his partner, Jan West. In this book he is obviously becoming accepted as one of them and he and Jan are working together really well.
The crime they investigate is the murder of a young woman whose body is found on the training track of a local horse racing establishment. There are several possible suspects, lots of red herrings and a surprising (to me anyway) final culprit.
This was a quick, easy to read book and I look forward to reading more about Mark in the future.
Her Final Hour is the second book in the Detective Mark Turpin series. When we met Mark in the first book he was a new arrival in the local police force and was finding his feet in the team and getting to know his partner, Jan West. In this book he is obviously becoming accepted as one of them and he and Jan are working together really well.
The crime they investigate is the murder of a young woman whose body is found on the training track of a local horse racing establishment. There are several possible suspects, lots of red herrings and a surprising (to me anyway) final culprit.
This was a quick, easy to read book and I look forward to reading more about Mark in the future.
November 5, 2022
When Detective Mark Turpin and his partner Jan West were called to the gallops - the local training track for the racehorses - they discovered the body of a young woman who had died after a brutal attack. Jessica was only nineteen, a girl loved by all, and a hard worker. So why was she murdered? And was she attacked at the tracks? Or was she moved after her murder? Mark and Jan were frustrated by the lack of evidence, even after the interviews with everyone who was in the vicinity. With another body discovered days later, Mark knew this one was connected. But would they find the perpetrator? Or would it end up being an unsolved case?
Her Final Hour is the 2nd in the Detective Mark Turpin series by Aussie author Rachel Amphlett and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Fast paced with something always on the go, I really like Mark as a detective and his and Jan's partnership is working well. I'm looking forward to the next in the series, The Lost Boy. Highly recommended.
Her Final Hour is the 2nd in the Detective Mark Turpin series by Aussie author Rachel Amphlett and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Fast paced with something always on the go, I really like Mark as a detective and his and Jan's partnership is working well. I'm looking forward to the next in the series, The Lost Boy. Highly recommended.
February 13, 2021
I love a police procedural and Rachel Amphlett’s Mark Turpin series ticks all the boxes for me. It has great characters, likeable and those not so much, cases that keep you guessing right until the end and they are just so easy to get lost in. I am a massive fan of her Kay Hunter books, and Mark is growing on me more with each book.
This time Mark and his partner Jan West have a tough case to crack. The victim is a young student, Jessica. She has been murdered in her way home from a shift in one of her many jobs at the local pub. She is a hard worker and very well liked, so who would want her dead. The more the investigation goes in the more confused they become. They have their work cut out for them.
This time Mark and his partner Jan West have a tough case to crack. The victim is a young student, Jessica. She has been murdered in her way home from a shift in one of her many jobs at the local pub. She is a hard worker and very well liked, so who would want her dead. The more the investigation goes in the more confused they become. They have their work cut out for them.
November 13, 2020
If you like a kind of good old fashioned Detective thriller, one with a pretty rural setting, where secrets and lies dominate and the story will keep you one hundred percent engaged from start to finish, then you really do need to sit down and start the Mark Turpin series by Rachel Amphlett. Although it's still early days for her newest Detective, the more time I spend with him and his partner, Detective Constable Jan West, the more I like them. I mean, it's no secret that I'm a fan of the author's writing, and I've yet to start a book I haven't enjoyed, and this series is no exception. From the off we get the tension, the atmosphere, the mystery, and importantly, at least for this story, the murder.
This time around we find our Detective duo in the village of Harton Wick investigating. the murder of a local student, Jessica Marley. Her body is found on a track used for the training of horses from the local stables and with no clear motive for her murder, or any indication of how she came to be on the gallops in the first place, Turpin and West have a difficult job ahead of them.
One of the things that Rachel Amphlett really manages well is creating characters that you are able to become completely invested in. I really like Turpin and West as the lead characters in this. Turpin has a difficult past, a fractured family caused, largely, by his job and is starting over in Oxfordshire. west is very much a family woman, her husband and sons understanding of the demands of her job - perhaps more than she is herself. She is still one hundred percent dedicated, but that mothering side of her comes out on the odd occasion and it works well alongside Turpin's character. Beyond the police team we have a varied cast of characters, all multi-dimensional and believable, and all of whom fall under suspicion at some stage or another. You get. that sense of them keeping things bak, of not being completely honest or open with the police, and that building sense of intrigue and tension as a result.
No matter what the location Rachel Amphlett also really manages to put you at the heart of the action. Be it a working stables or a country pub, I really could picture it very clearly in my mind, And in this case the setting really plays into the storyline, that sense of the closed community who are united in trying to discover who hurt one of their own, but not above keeping secrets from the outsiders. It just remains to be seen if those secrets are why Jessica had to die.
The pacing of this was spot on for both the story and the setting, with both tension and excitement building as Turpin and West drew closer to the truth. This is another series I am really looking forward to reading more of and I'm glad that we have been drawn into this fictional world. It's not gratuitous in terms of violence or language - it doesn't need to be. I am fully engaged as a reader without needing the excessive shock factor. If you love the Kay Hunter series, you will love this one too. Definitely recommended.
This time around we find our Detective duo in the village of Harton Wick investigating. the murder of a local student, Jessica Marley. Her body is found on a track used for the training of horses from the local stables and with no clear motive for her murder, or any indication of how she came to be on the gallops in the first place, Turpin and West have a difficult job ahead of them.
One of the things that Rachel Amphlett really manages well is creating characters that you are able to become completely invested in. I really like Turpin and West as the lead characters in this. Turpin has a difficult past, a fractured family caused, largely, by his job and is starting over in Oxfordshire. west is very much a family woman, her husband and sons understanding of the demands of her job - perhaps more than she is herself. She is still one hundred percent dedicated, but that mothering side of her comes out on the odd occasion and it works well alongside Turpin's character. Beyond the police team we have a varied cast of characters, all multi-dimensional and believable, and all of whom fall under suspicion at some stage or another. You get. that sense of them keeping things bak, of not being completely honest or open with the police, and that building sense of intrigue and tension as a result.
No matter what the location Rachel Amphlett also really manages to put you at the heart of the action. Be it a working stables or a country pub, I really could picture it very clearly in my mind, And in this case the setting really plays into the storyline, that sense of the closed community who are united in trying to discover who hurt one of their own, but not above keeping secrets from the outsiders. It just remains to be seen if those secrets are why Jessica had to die.
The pacing of this was spot on for both the story and the setting, with both tension and excitement building as Turpin and West drew closer to the truth. This is another series I am really looking forward to reading more of and I'm glad that we have been drawn into this fictional world. It's not gratuitous in terms of violence or language - it doesn't need to be. I am fully engaged as a reader without needing the excessive shock factor. If you love the Kay Hunter series, you will love this one too. Definitely recommended.
January 6, 2021
Not a bad read, but not nearly as good as Ms Amphlett's Kay Hunter series. I found the story line was good, but very slow paced - I kept thinking "time to move along". The main characters are likeable, and the bad guys/girls are nasty like they should be. Not sure if I will continue with this series.
3.5 stars
From the blurb: When a championship jockey discovers the body of a young woman during a cold morning’s training ride, the local racing community is shocked to its core.
Everyone says she was the perfect friend, the perfect daughter and the perfect fiancée.
However as Detective Mark Turpin delves into the girl’s fateful last hours, he discovers a past full of lies and mystery.
Investigating the truth behind her savage death, Mark uncovers jealousy and ambition within the tiny community, accompanied by a disturbing reluctance to help the police.
When another death takes place only days later, Mark realises he is running out of time to stop a killer who will do anything to keep a dark secret hidden...
3.5 stars
From the blurb: When a championship jockey discovers the body of a young woman during a cold morning’s training ride, the local racing community is shocked to its core.
Everyone says she was the perfect friend, the perfect daughter and the perfect fiancée.
However as Detective Mark Turpin delves into the girl’s fateful last hours, he discovers a past full of lies and mystery.
Investigating the truth behind her savage death, Mark uncovers jealousy and ambition within the tiny community, accompanied by a disturbing reluctance to help the police.
When another death takes place only days later, Mark realises he is running out of time to stop a killer who will do anything to keep a dark secret hidden...
December 18, 2020
A bit slow.
November 2, 2020
Another worth-your-time crime fiction from the magic pen of Rachel Amphlett 😃🙌
The story lacked a bit of spice but still it was an engaging read.👍
The story lacked a bit of spice but still it was an engaging read.👍
December 3, 2020
Great read
I sure hope there will be more books in this series. The author keeps you in suspense till the very end!
I sure hope there will be more books in this series. The author keeps you in suspense till the very end!
October 16, 2021
Her Final Hour is book two in the Detective Mark Turpin series in Rachel Amphlett. Detective Sergeant Mark Turpin caught a case of a young woman found dead on the local racecourse. However, the case was not as simple as Detective Sergeant Mark Turpin first thought. More Detective Sergeant Mark Turpin investigates more he discovers lies, jealousy and ambition in the tiny community. The readers of Her Final Hour will continue to follow Detective Sergeant Mark Turpin to find out what happens.
Her Final Hour is another fantastic addition to the excellent Detective Mark Turpin series by Rachel Amphlett. I had no problem engaging with the story or the book's characters, and I had trouble putting this book down. I love Rachel Amphlett portrayal of the characters and how they intertwine throughout this book. Her Final Hour is well written and researched by Rachel Amphlett. I like Rachel Amphlett description of the settings of Her Final Hour that allowed me to imagine being part of the plot of this book.
The readers of Her Final Hour will learn about corruption in the racing industry. The readers of Her Final Hour will learn about living in a tight-knit.
I recommend this book.
Her Final Hour is another fantastic addition to the excellent Detective Mark Turpin series by Rachel Amphlett. I had no problem engaging with the story or the book's characters, and I had trouble putting this book down. I love Rachel Amphlett portrayal of the characters and how they intertwine throughout this book. Her Final Hour is well written and researched by Rachel Amphlett. I like Rachel Amphlett description of the settings of Her Final Hour that allowed me to imagine being part of the plot of this book.
The readers of Her Final Hour will learn about corruption in the racing industry. The readers of Her Final Hour will learn about living in a tight-knit.
I recommend this book.
November 13, 2025
19 year old jessica is found dead on a horse racing track by her boyfriend who's a jockey. she was killed because she worked at a bar that was doing illegal high stakes gambling and she told the owner of the bar (the owner didn't deal with the day to day operations and he left that up to a middle aged couple and they were the ones who started the poker so they could make extra money, so the owner had no idea). The owner tried to report the gambling but they said they didn't have enough staff to investigate so the owner took matters into his own hands and asked Jessica and this other guy, Nigel, who was a horse jockey, to go undercover and help him get evidence that he could bring to the police. One of the regular poker players, Annie, got tipped off that Jessica was a rat so when Jessica left work, Annie followed her and killed her. Annie also happened to be her boss at a petrol station. But then she couldn't lift her body into the car so she asked the bar managers if one of them could come help her and the wife came and helped and they dumped her body on the racetrack and made it look like an assault with her underwear down. Then a couple days later the husband killed Nigel by strangling him and made it look like he hanged himself. He said that he killed him because he knew he wouldn't keep his mouth shut. They all get caught and charged.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 12, 2023
Det Sgt Mark Turpin and his offsider, Det Con Jan West, along with the rest of the team, are called in when a young woman is found dead by her jockey boyfriend during the practice gallops in the very early morning. She appears to be hard working and well liked by all. But they are deep in the Vale of the White Horse, where all strangers to the village stand out, so she must have been killed by someone she knew. But who and why?
This is the second book in this series. I am a huge fan of Rachel Amphlett and I enjoyed the first book of the series, but this one just did not do it for me. I really struggled with the pace of the first half of the book although I was glued to the second half. While this is a true reflection of the case, I found it frustrating to read. On the other hand this book was longlisted for the 2021 Davitt Awards.
I will definitely being reading book 3 of this series and will look forward to it.
This is the second book in this series. I am a huge fan of Rachel Amphlett and I enjoyed the first book of the series, but this one just did not do it for me. I really struggled with the pace of the first half of the book although I was glued to the second half. While this is a true reflection of the case, I found it frustrating to read. On the other hand this book was longlisted for the 2021 Davitt Awards.
I will definitely being reading book 3 of this series and will look forward to it.
June 21, 2022
The team of Mark and Jan have a difficult time tracing the movement of Jessica, a young girl, well-liked by everyone, found dead in a field next to the area where horses are exercised. It is her boyfriend, Will, who found her just a couple days before he intended to propose to her. The investigation slowly plods on with little or no headway until a second body is found; Nigel, a horse trainer, appears at first glance to have committed suicide—in his back pocket is a note claiming he is at fault. After further investigation, a motive for both killings is found. This is a slow-moving police procedural that really didn’t grab my attention—it just sort of plodded along, even the reveal of the killers and the motive behind the killings was lacklustre.
January 27, 2024
This is the second in the Mark Turpin series and it is refreshing that the main character is a detective sergeant rather than a detective inspector. The DI keeps control of the investigation from the incident room rather than being out and about; this seems to me to be a rather more realistic scenario. But Turpin is an astute and dogged DS who tackles the difficulties of an investigation with determination and, at times, imagination. I have enjoyed both the first and second books in the series and look forward to reading the next.
June 15, 2022
What a great read. As usual Rachel has another great book in the vault. Mark and Jan are needed to solve 2 murders. This is a pager turner at its best. It has so many twists and turns that it even took me by surprise at the ending. Mark is getting over the divorce proceedings and has started to seeing his next boat neighbor. Because winter is coming he had to move into an apartment. Because I can't put it down I am definitely going to be starting the 3rd book in this series.
July 3, 2022
Another great read.
Another great read from Rachel Amphlett, she always delivers a story full of intrigue, mystery, and murder, not forgetting who did it. The characters are well place, good and bad - although sometimes hard to pick out the bad from the good. Her main characters, Mark Turpin, and Jan West are wonderful together as working partners.
A great read and HighlyRecommend.
Another great read from Rachel Amphlett, she always delivers a story full of intrigue, mystery, and murder, not forgetting who did it. The characters are well place, good and bad - although sometimes hard to pick out the bad from the good. Her main characters, Mark Turpin, and Jan West are wonderful together as working partners.
A great read and HighlyRecommend.
August 10, 2024
A dead girl is found on the racing track, with indications of potential sexually related murder, Will Brennan is the first jockey out for training that morning and he discovers the sickening sight of his girlfriend splayed out on the track. Jessica Marley is a consiencous student and works at various locations in town. When the racecoarse manager is found hanged, Detective Mark Turpin and his team have a complex investigation, are they connected, was it suicide or murder........
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August 21, 2025Det. Mark Turpin #2. I'm not sure why I couldn't get into this, but it must be two weeks since I put it down forever. I've been busily reading other types of books, so probably that's it.
DNF so no rating.
DNF so no rating.
October 29, 2020
Another great page turner.
February 4, 2021
Excellent story
The author has managed to keep the story interesting all through the story which contains many twists and turns. Looking forward to the next book in series.
The author has managed to keep the story interesting all through the story which contains many twists and turns. Looking forward to the next book in series.
August 30, 2021
It was just a bit meh.
October 29, 2021
OK will keep going with series
May 23, 2022
Boring
August 8, 2022
Love this new series
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 17, 2022
Better than the first but not enough for me to continue reading this author
February 3, 2024
2.5 stars
Read as audiobook
Read as audiobook
April 8, 2024
Uses F word and other profanity. 1.80 audio
March 26, 2025
I'm loving this author, great story, twists and characters.
June 27, 2025
Fast moving crime novel with a regular group of likeable characters.
September 30, 2025
Very good police procedural drama. Quick pace. Interesting characters. I finished it in a day!
October 1, 2025
Another easy read detective story. Second one where I’ve found the conclusion a bit contrived and a bit of a let down.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews