The Grapples of Wrath

Grave Expectations #3

by Alice Bell

'Alice Bell writes with real verve' Janice Hallett
'Agatha Christie meets Ghosts' J M Hall

THIS MYSTERY HAS THEM IN A CHOKEHOLD...


Medium turned private investigator Claire Hendricks is excited to embark on her first official case.


Pro-wrestling manager Ken King, convinced that his late father, Eddie, is haunting the gym and show venue, hires Claire to help, unaware that her teenage best friend, Sophie, now a ghost, comes as part of the package.


But Eddie is adamant he did not die of natural causes, and tasks Claire and Sophie with bringing his killer to justice.


As the investigative duo question Eddie's family, friends and employees, it quickly becomes clear that in the world of pro wrestling reality and fakery have an interesting relationship, and getting to the truth of what really killed Eddie might be more complicated than they expected...

Praise for Alice
'Delightful' Stuart Turton
'Warm, smart and laugh-out-loud funny' Andrea Mara
'A fun and surprising character-driven whodunit' Heat

Genres: Crime, LGBT, Ghosts

311 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 1, 2026

About the author

Alice Bell grew up in South West England, in the sort of middle-of-nowhere where teenagers spend their weekends drinking Smirnoff Ice in a field that also has at least one horse in it.

She has previously worked in shops selling boat shoes and polo shirts to people who don’t own boats or play polo, but since 2016 she has worked full time as a video games journalist. In 2018 she became the deputy editor of Rock Paper Shotgun, a popular and respected PC gaming website, where you can find the many excellent reviews and serious articles about hot vampires that she has written. In 2019 she was named one of the 100 most influential women in the UK games industry.

After spending several years in London and Brighton, Alice now lives in Cork, Ireland, where she reads a lot of books, makes crochet animals, and plays video games where you can set things on fire and make elves kiss. She has probably read more detective fiction and watched more episodes of Midsomer Murders than you.

Reviews

[K.J. Charles]

Third in the series about unwilling medium Claire, in her 30s, perma-haunted by the ghost of a murdered schoolfriend who is an eternal stroppy teenager, and attempting to solve murders as you do. The intriguing thing about this twist on Randall and Hopkirk Deceased is that the books actually consider the practical implications. viz, Claire is deeply traumatised, barely able to maintain friendships let alone a relationship, and the object of serious police suspicion for her random weird appearances in murders. Also, many of the beloved tropes of TV amateur detectives turn out not to work at all well in practice.

It's a gleefully silly, fun series with a real, bitter, painful edge to it, and as such floats my boat immensely.

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three and a half stars.

Claire Hendricks sees ghosts, literally. Her best friend Sophie died as a teenager and is now permanently linked to Claire - where Claire goes Sophie goes. Claire used to make a small living as a medium, but after solving two murders (with Sophie's help) she has now turned private investigator. Seeing ghosts can make you a little socially awkward, particularly until you can learn to differentiate them from the living, and Sophie has anxiety. But her first murder introduced her to two new friends Basher and Alex.

Anyway, enough background, Claire's first paying job is at a local pro-wrestling gym. Alex has been hanging around (their latest craze) and it turns out that the manager, the wonderfully named Ken King, believes his dead father Eddie is haunting the gym and asks Claire to find out what is preventing him from moving on ... and move him along.

The thing is, Eddie is convinced that his brother Nate killed him, and wants Claire to investigate because the police ruled it death by natural causes.

This was silly, funny, informative (I learned a lot about pro-wrestling) and there were so many suspects and so much drama flying about that I had no clue as to the actual murderer until the last minute.

Another cracker in this quirky series.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

[Soozee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really had to struggle to get into this book. The main obstacle was the author insisting on hiding the gender of 'Alex' and using the pronoun 'their' all the time. Why being androgynous required being also being plural beat me, and I was not even slightly interested whether s/he was male or female, and it was totally irrelevant to the story. Indeed, the character him/herself was pretty much irrelevant and very one dimensional.

The plot circled around Claire and her friend the ghost Sophie (another annoying character, endlessly bored with everything). Claire fancies herself as some sort of detective, having solved a murder previously, presumably because she could speak to the dead victims. They become embroiled in a death at a wrestling rink, as the dead man insists he was murdered. 'Assisted' by Alex and the rather odd Basher, they begin to investigate.

Over all its quite a fun read, hampered by almost interchangeable characters as few stand out as strong, identifiable characters in their own right. There are a few chuckles and the premise of a person linked (almost physically) to a ghost is quite good. Thank you to NetGalley and Atlantic Books for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is book 3 in the Grave Expectations series, where Claire and her ghost companion Sophie are trying to solve the mystery of the dead wrestler in Brighton.

This is a completely batty series of cosy crime with over the top characters but with a dark thread of humour running throughout.

Sophie and Claire are trying to repair the damage to their relationship caused by the events of book 2, we get further glimpses into what life was like when Sophie was alive. There continues to be cameos from characters we've met in the previous books as we learn about the bizarre world of professional wrestling and the soap opera drama that takes place in this little gym in Brighton.

I enjoyed seeing all the characters again, although Claire's lack of logic and practical skills continues to drive me barmy. Basher really needs to sit her down and explain things rather than issuing threats to her like she's a teenager! Although she continues to act like one.

I'm looking forward to the next in the series, seeing Claire grow up a little and hopefully finding out a bit more about what happened to Sophie!

Book received free via NetGalley.

[Shaz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I won't lie, I saw an Alice Bell ARC for a new Sophie and Claire story and blindly applied for it without reading the blurb. Wrestling is like a religion in my household, so I was delighted with the setting.

I really enjoyed the setting, which was mainly behind the scenes of an indie wrestling organisation. I absolutely loved some bigger name wrestlers being name checked (woke my husband to tell him Orange Cassidy got a shout out), and it felt like a little love letter to wrestling fans.

Non-wrestling fans will still enjoy the very twisty murder plot, Sophie's biting teenage sarcasm, and Alex is just hilarious in this. Cannot recommend this book enough, really fun (and funny) to read!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Kristen Perrin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I adore Alice Bell’s biting wit, fabulous characters, and the creative set-up of her murder mysteries. The Grapples of Wrath is another cracking addition to the series, with the added flair of some unforgettable pro-wrestling characters and a wonderful Brighton backdrop. Come for the spooky humour, stay for the satisfying twists and turns. An absolute delight from start to finish.