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DC Iona Khan #1
Scratch Deeper
Introducing feisty Detective Constable Iona Khan – the first in a thrilling new crime series. In sun-soaked Mauritius, a retired Law Lord is brutally murdered, while in rain-sodden Manchester, the Labour Party conference is beginning. Promoted to Greater Manchester Police’s Counter Terrorism Unit, Detective Constable Iona Khan’s first case appears to be a trivial use of false identity regarding a Sri Lankan student asking suspicious questions about Manchester’s tunnel system. But when she learns the identity of the conference’s guest speaker, Iona realizes it may not be so trivial after all, and she must enter the dark world beneath the city to prevent a possible catastrophe.
256 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 26, 2012
122 people are currently reading
156 people want to read
About the author
Chris Simms
65 books81 followersI was born and brought up in rural Sussex, three miles from the nearest shop. Childhood holidays – which lasted for weeks as my dad was a teacher – were spent in a secluded spot in the heart of Exmoor. Sitting round the campfire at night, the haunting cries of owls floating in from the blackness beyond the flames, he would read me the ghost stories of MR James. The short walk to the safety of my tent was always taken at a sprint.
Books that interested me growing up? Plenty of mysteries – especially the Alfred Hitchcock and The Three Investigators series. I also loved Roahl Dahl’s Tales of the Unexpected and read plenty of Pan Horror Stories, too.
Later, it was novels that gave insights into unusual minds: the twisted desires of Frederick in John Fowles’, The Collector; the tormented thoughts of Scobie in Graham Greene’s, Heart of the Matter; the violent urges of Francie in Patrick McCabe’s, Butcher Boy all had a major influence.
After school and university came a series of abysmal jobs punctuated by travelling. Quite a lot of travelling, actually. Then, just after my 30th birthday, the idea for my first novel came to me. I was broken down on the hard shoulder of a motorway in the early hours of the morning, waiting for a rescue vehicle to arrive. It’s about the driver of a van who roams the roads in the dead of night, looking for stranded motorists to murder…
Ideas for subsequent novels have occurred at all sorts of odd moments: glimpsing a derelict church from the window of a moving train; browsing a newspaper report about a walker who claimed he’d been attacked by a panther; half-reading a doctor’s surgery article on how some tinnitus sufferers don’t hear whistles or buzzes – they’re tormented by birdsong; listening to a radio program about a flotilla of yellow ducks that fell from a cargo ship and floated slowly across the Atlantic.
Books that interested me growing up? Plenty of mysteries – especially the Alfred Hitchcock and The Three Investigators series. I also loved Roahl Dahl’s Tales of the Unexpected and read plenty of Pan Horror Stories, too.
Later, it was novels that gave insights into unusual minds: the twisted desires of Frederick in John Fowles’, The Collector; the tormented thoughts of Scobie in Graham Greene’s, Heart of the Matter; the violent urges of Francie in Patrick McCabe’s, Butcher Boy all had a major influence.
After school and university came a series of abysmal jobs punctuated by travelling. Quite a lot of travelling, actually. Then, just after my 30th birthday, the idea for my first novel came to me. I was broken down on the hard shoulder of a motorway in the early hours of the morning, waiting for a rescue vehicle to arrive. It’s about the driver of a van who roams the roads in the dead of night, looking for stranded motorists to murder…
Ideas for subsequent novels have occurred at all sorts of odd moments: glimpsing a derelict church from the window of a moving train; browsing a newspaper report about a walker who claimed he’d been attacked by a panther; half-reading a doctor’s surgery article on how some tinnitus sufferers don’t hear whistles or buzzes – they’re tormented by birdsong; listening to a radio program about a flotilla of yellow ducks that fell from a cargo ship and floated slowly across the Atlantic.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
March 24, 2014
Decent mystery. I will read more by this author.
June 30, 2020
Fast paced and quite terrifying
Great to meet Iona, doing her best in a man's world with the added weight of being mixed race and having to put up with barely hidden bullying. At times she seems to be the only one who can see what is going on as she is dismissed as being a stupid woman, imagining things. A frantic face to the end and I tried to keep reading with my eyes closed, I was so engrossed.
Great to meet Iona, doing her best in a man's world with the added weight of being mixed race and having to put up with barely hidden bullying. At times she seems to be the only one who can see what is going on as she is dismissed as being a stupid woman, imagining things. A frantic face to the end and I tried to keep reading with my eyes closed, I was so engrossed.
May 17, 2013
Not bad
April 10, 2024
Top notch
Another Simms novel I read in a day. Couldn't put it down. Edge of your seat plot, the protagonist is engaging and intriguing and I really like the relationship development and 'will they, won't they' element between Iona and Jim. The level of detail around Manchester and the tunnels is really gripping and provides a real hook. Great stuff.
Another Simms novel I read in a day. Couldn't put it down. Edge of your seat plot, the protagonist is engaging and intriguing and I really like the relationship development and 'will they, won't they' element between Iona and Jim. The level of detail around Manchester and the tunnels is really gripping and provides a real hook. Great stuff.
June 3, 2019
Action-packed thrills!
Congrats to Det. Constable Khan!
Accurate details of how a woman can fit
into a man's world.
We really have no idea of what is out there,
under there, except through the eyes of
those whose eyes have seen it.
Congrats to Det. Constable Khan!
Accurate details of how a woman can fit
into a man's world.
We really have no idea of what is out there,
under there, except through the eyes of
those whose eyes have seen it.
April 17, 2020
What a thrilling read! I live in Manchester and every description was spot on. I learned all about the tunnels, so much research, amazing. I also met Harold Wilson but had no idea about any of this - just goes to show - how little we really know about what goes on. A fabulous read. Thank you.
June 6, 2021
Go Girl!!
Third book by this awesome author. A real treat for the lovers of a thrilling encounter with a person who truly believes in themselves and their ideas of what's going on in their job and lives. Thoroughly recommend this great book!
Third book by this awesome author. A real treat for the lovers of a thrilling encounter with a person who truly believes in themselves and their ideas of what's going on in their job and lives. Thoroughly recommend this great book!
January 26, 2020
Tension
I have aches where my muscles have reacted to the assorted situations, particularly the tunnel sequence.
The background to the story gives the reader much to ponder.
I have aches where my muscles have reacted to the assorted situations, particularly the tunnel sequence.
The background to the story gives the reader much to ponder.
April 20, 2020
An entertaining story of a new agent being ignored by her boss
The new detective is badly treated by her boss and she has to solve the case with only the help of her boy friend
The new detective is badly treated by her boss and she has to solve the case with only the help of her boy friend
April 23, 2020
A great story with interesting characters . Quite complex , but it all ties in well .
I have just downloaded “A Price to Pay “ , and looking forward to another 5 star read .
I have just downloaded “A Price to Pay “ , and looking forward to another 5 star read .
October 20, 2020
A Good Read
Enough detail to keep you interested - pace makes you want to keep reading. Character endearing so you want to know more.
Enough detail to keep you interested - pace makes you want to keep reading. Character endearing so you want to know more.
December 29, 2021
Bri?!iant
Fast .moving engaging al! The way through.brilliant and be!ievable plot. Can't wait for the next one😍 thank you so .much
Fast .moving engaging al! The way through.brilliant and be!ievable plot. Can't wait for the next one😍 thank you so .much
June 29, 2024
This was not very well written, and I won't read any more books in this series or by this author, at all.
September 22, 2024
Good read. Ms. Khan was sensible, intelligent, and thorough in her investigation. She carried through even though her superiors dismissed her suspicions.
Read
April 1, 2015I really like Iona and the beginning was great. Then the story screeched to a halt and she had dinner with her Mum and Dad. Yawn. Couldn't get into it after that. Sorry Iona, you could have been interesting like Cormoran Strike but got bogged down in the back story.
Read
April 24, 2013February 1
April 21, 2019
Flat, two dimensional characters with a cookie cutter plot. Gave it a fair chance, got half way, ho hum. Boring, and this is one of my favourite genres too. Oh well.
June 6, 2020
I loved this book and can’t wait to read more in the Iona Khan series.
June 7, 2020
Not very well written.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews