To Message A Murderer

DI Ellis #3

by Oliver Davies

In a chilling turn of events, DI Sean Ellis confronts his most perplexing case yet. A series of murders has shaken the core of his logical men found dead under mysterious circumstances, with no apparent link binding them. They hail from different backgrounds, vary in age, race, and social standing, and lead lives as diverse as can be. The only sinister thread tying these cases together is the eerie similarity in their causes of death and the haunting manner in which their bodies are displayed.

With the body count escalating and time slipping through his fingers, Ellis must decode the cryptic pattern and connect the dots among these disparate lives to unveil the killer's motive.

Can he catch the murderer before another victim falls prey to this gruesome pattern?

345 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 31, 2023

About the author

Oliver Davies was born in Sussex and raised in London, but never felt at home until he settled in the soggy but beautiful Yorkshire dales. Brought up on crime novels borrowed second-hand from his dad, he's always wished his life involved less laundry and more car chases, though writing is probably safer. Between tussling with his several dogs and rambling the moors, Oliver finds time for writing moody police detectives, playing the guitar, and occasionally even communicates with the outside world.

Reviews

[Penny O'Hara · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story was good but the constant use of American English is awful. Mom, gray, vic, caught me on the loop (I had to look that up), gonna, wanna and so on. Yer, used as yes, doesn’t exist as a word.

The overuse of words such as huff, huffed, smirk and smug really grates. The characters seem to be in a permanent huff, smirking their way through the story in a state of smugness.

The author needs to decide whether the book is set in York, England or New York, USA and tailor the written word accordingly.

[JANE · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent

Another good story from this author. The only complaint I have is the use of Aye being used in the story so much. I personally found it really annoying.

I assume you think it is a well used word by Yorkshire people. It is really only used in small Yorkshire villages by elderly people.

York is quite a posh area of Yorkshire so I do not think the word Aye is used by York inhabitants that much or even at all

[Abigail Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This book had me hooked from start to finish and I found it impossible to put down. I love a serial killer novel and this has to be one of the best ones I’ve ever read. DI Sean Ellis is such a complex, interesting character which was further demonstrated in this book. I hope we will be seeing more of his adventures in the future!

[Christine Emery · Rating 5 out of 5]

unusual approach to murder mystery

This is the 3rd book I have read by this author and the storytelling is very good. Good pace without too many new characters and has been a different scenario each time. The intro of each story has been very novel and has prompted me to read the following book. Well done Oliver, keep it going.

[Bea Nicholson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Weak

I have now read the first three books in the series…the concept is good enough but the main characters and the story line aren’t very believable. There are plenty of good crime writers out there, this one probably not