I’m happy to say I have Disturbed Waters by Paul McCracken on the blog today. I was given a ARC from Dark Edge Press in exchange for a honest review.
Belfast Detective, Joseph Carter, is four months into an investigation involving a serial killer who is leaving the remains of his victims scattered in bodies of water all over Northern Ireland, when the chief partners him up with Liam, a hot-headed rookie.
As the body count rises, the killer becomes more confident and reckless, and Carter and Liam must learn to get along if they have any hope of locating him.
Well, Paul McCracken certainly knows how to make an impression! Disturbed Waters is the first book I have read by this author and it certainly won’t be my last.
Set in Belfast, Northen Ireland, we meet Detective Joseph Carter. He has spent the last four months on the trail of a serial killer who takes great pleasure in causing as much brutality in the killings as he can. A serial killer known to Carter having already murdered multiple women. His boss decides he needs a new assistant in the shape of Liam,a young copper who needs to learn patience and to stop being over confident. These two have to learn to get along if they plan to thwart the killer, but will they manage it?
A book that isn’t overly long but makes up for it by being packed to the rafters with action, edge of your seat tension, and well written characters. It is a bit graphic with the serial killer murdering his victims in some well gruesome ways. Just be prepared if you are a little squeamish. I was hypnotised by this book. As dark as the killing got I was still engrossed, it just heightened the tension and increased the importance of catching this man. I was so wrapped up in this investigation that it took next to no time to get to the last page.
A really well-written and fast paced story with perfectly placed twists that makes it all the more intriguing. I will be adding Paul McCracken’s books to my tbr list. I wouldn’t mind finding out more about Detective Joseph Carter. If you enjoy your thrillers, dark and brutal I recommend this book.
Buy Link
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09NQH2KKN/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_RTJ7280XFQY0WTTP2QPA
Author Bio
Northern Irish novelist, Paul McCracken was born 16th January 1991 in the Ulster hospital, Dundonald, just outside of Belfast. He grew up in the Castlereagh area of east Belfast where he also went to school.
Ever since he could hold a pencil, he wanted to be an artist and no-one, not even the school career advisor could tell him otherwise. He left education with only three GCSE’s and an Art diploma. He tried to make it as a fine artist whilst also trying to find any work to support himself financially. However, the more he learned about the commercial art world, the more he wanted no part in it.
In spring 2011, he enrolled in a five day film making course through the Prince’s Trust charity. He always had a passion for storytelling. During the course, he impressed the owner of the studio at which the course was being held, through the raw creativity he displayed. The studio owner was the first to encourage Paul to write his own material, that material being screenplays. After leaving the course with new found confidence and ambition, Paul started to learn the craft of screenwriting and got to work writing his very first feature film.
After securing full time work later that year, he found a renewed inspiration to write again and wrote a full length film script in the space of a week. Paul kept on writing other projects as well as continually editing the first script, but he kept the fact he was writing close to himself as he didn’t want to face any negativity if he were to tell anyone. The script would go on to score highly in an international screenplay competition, based out of Los Angeles. It would then place in the quarter-finals of the same competition for the next two years in a row, accompanied by another screenplay that Paul wrote next.
Years later, after entering competitions, pitching, submitting and doing some occasional freelance scriptwriting, Paul wanted to find a way to get his work into the public eye. Writing a novel was a challenge that seemed daunting but also exciting. Having first thought of converting his best script into a novel, he decided to come up with a completely original story.
In 2018, he self published his debut novel, Layla’s Song.
In 2020 he secured two book deals with two different English publishers. The Conrad Press and PM Books (Imprint of Holland House Books). The first of these books was Where Crows Land, a detective thriller set in Belfast and published by The Conrad Press.
His other novel, The Last Rains Of Winter is due out early 2021 with PM Books.
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