The Body on the Island

DCI Craig Gillard, Book 6

By: Nick Louth

Narrated by: Marston York

Length: 9 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

He was never truly gone, only biding his time....

Late on midsummer's night there is a splash in the river Thames. A body is found on an island, asphyxiated and laced with strange markings. For DCI Craig Gillard it's a baffling case. The victim's identity is elusive, clues are scarce and every witness has something to hide.

Meanwhile one of Britain's deadliest serial killers is finally up for parole after a deal to reveal the location of two missing bodies. The felon has his own plans to get even with witnesses, accusers and the officer who caught him 30 years before. And who was that? A young trainee by the name of Gillard.

An explosive crime thriller from master storyteller Nick Louth, perfect for fans of Mark Billingham, Cara Hunter and Robert Bryndza.

©2020 Nick Louth (P)2020 W. F. Howes Ltd

Seriously weird

Just wait for it! This one really sent me over the bend! But not for the DCI who didn’t actually come to the ultimate conclusion that he normally does; nobody would have!

Very unexpected but very good

I will say Nick Louth books take a minute to get into but if you keep listening you’ll be pleasantly surprised and find it hard to stop!

Continues to be a great series!

A very enjoyable book with some plot twists that were very creative, so much so that they were completely unanticipated. Kudos to Nick Louth for keeping these characters fresh.

Ridiculous solution

I have enjoyed all of Louth's books so far. He is a good story teller and creates interesting mysteries populated with mostly likeable regular characters. That was the case with the first four books. The fifth book became a bit silly in the totally unrealistic actions of the villain. This one breaks his success streak more completely. It starts with an intriguing murder but gets muddled with two separate story lines and less memorable characters. Two suspects are portrayed so similarly that I am still not sure if they were two separate characters.

Then there is the solution to the mystery. I normally avoid talking about any element of a solution in a review so as not to spoil the books, so I will only speak about one element of it. It is not a good sign that it moved me to exclaim out loud..."You have got to be kidding." It is the most ridiculous end to a murder mystery that I have ever read. It is also a concern that this book repeats some problematic elements of the last book. A pile up of overly coincidental connections among the characters and a seeming revenge plot out of Gillard' past. Marston York does his usual excellent work in reading the story. Hopefully the next book improves after two let downs

The twisted plot

This is one incredible story. Thank goodness it has a somewhat happy ending. Again super narrated.

Really Good But Ending Weird

Ethical concerns here. Even after thirty years, how can Neville Rollason be released on parole, he who murdered all those boys? Vigilantes vow he will not last long. Meanwhile Rollason has his own secret agenda - carefully plotted all this time is devastating revenge on all who helped put him away....

Caught up in the middle are DCI Craig Gillard and his team. Actually at the moment this is not their prime concern, mystery surrounding a corpse dumped at night in the Thames. How came the body to be so crushed?

The powerful start grabs attention. Police procedural is convincingly portrayed - the slow but sure sifting of information received, all the while homing in on the possible truth.

Overall reaction depends on how much the listener can believe in motivations eventually attributed and events described in the closing chapters. After so much ringing true, there seemed a lurch into the surreal, sequences that did not really seem to belong. I found the ending of the book unbelievable but it is fiction and I was entertained .

Thought provoking, though, is the central issue. Are some crimes so heinous that perpetrators should never be released?

These keep getting better!

After my disappointment with the second in this series, I have found them to be increasing in complexity, excitement, and execution (pun intended). Going to start the next one right away.

The Body on the Island

Was a great book with great characters and great action with a great story and a great ending looking forward to the next book thanks 💪🤠🍷

what a way to die...

Without any spoilers, I have to say that this one was bizarre. The method of death might be the most disgusting and weird I’ve ever heard. It’s not going to give you nightmares, but it will likely make you disappointed and shocked at the conclusion.
I do like this series very much. And if there are more books in the series, I’ll be listening to those as well.,

Great series

This series is my go to when new books come out to listen to while I work.