Cold Summer: A British Detective Crime Thriller Series

by James Ellson

‘A police procedural so action-packed it reads like a thriller – with a Nepalese twist.’ (Dr Andy Martin, Reacher Said Lee Child and the Making of Make Me)

‘It's always a joy to catch up with Rick Castle! Cold Summer is the best book so far in this gripping series. James Ellson's books just keep getting better!’ (Samantha Brownley, UK Crime Book Club)

The third book in the critically acclaimed DCI Castle series.
A race against time as DI Castle hunts for two wanted suspects before they kill each other.
Manchester, England, the European migration crisis rampant . . .
On the site of a disused supermarket, the hidden compartment of an articulated lorry is being unloaded. At the same time, a prisoner escapes from Strangeways.
Are the two things connected?
DI Rick Castle, recently demoted but inspirational, starts to investigate . . .
Nothing will be the same again.

402 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 1, 2023

About the author

James Ellson was a police officer in the UK for 15 years, starting in London and finishing as a Detective Inspector at Moss Side in Manchester. When he left the police he started writing, and has been writing ever since.

James’s debut novel The Trail was published in 2020, and the sequel Cold Dawn in August 2022.

He also writes short stories, and was runner up in the 2021 Bay Tales Christmas short story competition with Roisin's Christmas Party. His story The Translator was published in a 2022 anthology (To Serve, Protect, and Write) of former police officers, now writers.

James is a keen climber and mountaineer, and has visited Nepal many times. In 2004 he climbed 6,812 metre Ama Dablam, and in 2008 soloed the Matterhorn. He lives in the Peak District with his wife, and manages their smallholding, which includes bees and an orchard.

Reviews

[A.B. Patterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

The English summer may be cold, but the plot in this engrossing mystery is red hot. Richly drawn characters are driven by their emotions, their histories, and their hunger for what they seek in that dangerous swamp where justice, revenge, and ethics blur into one. Black and white be damned, there are only shades of grey here, with moral flaws everywhere, be it cop, criminal, or those innocents sucked into the dramas. As one would hope for from Ellson, with his long law enforcement background, the police realism is second to none. This is a crime novel that oozes humanity, atmosphere, and storytelling at its very best.

[Oliver Dowson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love police thrillers, but I couldn’t get into this one; I found the characters universally unpleasant and the slang grated on me. I was anticipating some of the action taking place in Nepal, but it seemst that all happened in Book 1. From reading other reviews, I expect that if I’d read the previous books in the series I would have enjoyed it more and given more stars. Not having read them, it took a long time to understand the relationship and history between the characters, both essential to following the plot.

[Jamie Bowen · Rating 4 out of 5]

DI Castle thought justice had been served, he was wrong. He’s about to find out what justice looks like, unless he can work out the connection between modern slavery and a prisoner escapee.

A thrilling conclusion to the DI Castle trilogy.

[Kim Murphy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The characters aren't endearing so I didn't mind too much of people got hurt etc, however I was invested in the story line and thought it had a nice conclusion

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid 4* read.

I haven't read the first two in the series but thoroughly enjoyed the plot.