No Mercy

by Roberta Kray

Maddie Layne's life hasn't been the same since her sister was murdered. The police never found Greta's body so all Maddie was left with was unanswered questions - and her orphaned nephew, Zac, to look after. She works hard to make sure Zac has everything he needs; she even tends graves for some extra cash. Maddie isn't looking for any trouble.Lucy Rivers died decades ago under suspicious circumstances and the people responsible believe the entire affair is over. And then the mysterious Cato hires Maddie to tend to Lucy's neglected grave. Maddie starts asking innocent questions, but when she learns that the deaths of her sister and Lucy are linked she knows she must dig deeper.Lena Gissing, matriarch of one of the East End's most vicious families, has a vested interest in making sure the truth stays buried. She's not about to let a nobody like Maddie Layne get in the way . . .

Genres: Crime

385 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 6, 2014

Reviews

[Leonie Hinch · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book I've read by Roberta Kray. I used to be a huge fan of Martina Cole's writing back in her early days but went off her in recent times when her writing became repetitive. A few friends had recommended Kray but I was put off for several reasons. Firstly that after being let down by Cole I wasn't sure I would ever enjoy a gangland thriller again and secondly I felt rather wrongly that this author was cashing out on her name and that her writing would therefore be dismal. I was wrong and I hold my hands up to it. I was loaned a couple of her books and with a day off work I decided to give this one a try, to my surprise I really enjoyed it. It was fast paced but not too much, the story was interesting it was easy to form a connection with the characters and find the ones to like and dislike and there was an air of mystery that this genre doesn't usually have. I enjoyed that it was written from the POV of someone not exactly involved with the gang world as well. Writers such as Cole usually write from the thick of things whereas the character this story is mostly about; Maddie Layne isn't really involved in that world at all and it was good to read from her perspective. I'll definitely be giving her other books a try soon and hope I'll enjoy them as much!

[Lainy · Rating 4 out of 5]

review to follow xxx

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Roberta Kray not only writes using fascinating narrative, but also includes some interesting repartee in humorous verbal fencing by two folk on a date – useful for anyone lacking talent in this particular topic ;)

I can concur with the comment by Jessie Kane on the front cover "A cracking good story"

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent read. I will definitely hunt down more books by Roberta Kray!
No loose ends, excellent plot and believable characters.

[Michael Hastings · Rating 3 out of 5]

First the author, Roberta Kray - "No one knows crime like Kray". It couldn't be? Yes it is, a member of the infamous family, well almost. Roberta is one of those weirdos that "fall in love" with an incarcerated murderer, Reggie, obviously? I must admit I nearly didn't bother... but the reading pile is sparse and i still can't face another Cussler shit trip.
But actually it's pretty good. Yes it's quite cliched, well totally cliched but it is a decent story authentic characters and twists I didn't see coming at all. The lines between good and bad are blurred, good people who do dodgy things but that's life. The end wrapped things up nicely, so often crime novels fall apart at this stage.
I wouldn't go out of my way to read another book by Kray but I wouldn't pass it by.

[Sharon Massey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm going to be honest here. I got this book at our local Dollar Tree. I had no idea if I would like this book or not but I was pleasantly surprised. I had a few issues with the book being based in England and stumbled over a few slight differences (what, exactly is a flat again.. oh yeah, an apartment). I appreciate how hard the author worked to keep me on my toes. Without describing spoilers, let's just say there is a nice twist and you realize you've been thinking the wrong thing all along. Im always glad to get bargain books just for something to read, but I will definitely be looking for more by this author and purchasing at retail.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maddie Layne's life hasn't been the same since her sister Greta was murdered leaving her to bring up her son Zac. She has part time jobs including cleaning graves. The story unfolds of a local woman Lena Gissing and her relationship with Jay Cato who pays for the cleaning of Lucy Rivers grave as a front to wind Lena up. Lena's gay son Adam is a local drug dealer hiding drugs, guns etc in a mausoleum near Lucy's grave. Maddie gets warned off the grave work and finds out that Lena & Jay were once lovers. The son thinks she has found out about the drugs and tries to kill her but luckily she is discovered just in time.

[Jennifer Gottschalk · Rating 3 out of 5]

On the front it says 'A cracking good read', but I would not go quite so far. This one is in the 'average' category for me. For much of the time I was in the dark on certain key points and this detracted from the reading experience. Once the mystery was revealed near the end it was fairly anti-climactic.

The story itself was OK, the main character was vaguely likeable and the pace was good. For me, this one simply did not hit the spot. The plot was both convoluted and forgettable.

This one is certainly not a 'must read' item.

[lozzy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is so good I’m actually gobsmacked. I picked this up on the boat to pass time not expecting anything special but wow am I impressed. It kept me so engaged and I didn’t want to put it down. It was extremely well written and there were scenes where I was crying from fear due to what Maddie was being put through. It is a great book if you enjoy trying to solve the mystery with the character and I loved coming up with theories about how it would end as I was reading (all of them were wrong lol). The ending was a plot twist and a half but it was definitely worth it. As it got to the end it got slightly confusing and i had to go back and reread a few paragraphs a few times to understand where I was at but beside from that it was a great read.

[Tony · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

Surprisingly enjoyed - not the type of book I would usually buy but was given by a work colleague - predictable but enjoyable read

[Fionna Cairney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely brilliant first Roberta Kraig book I’ve read can’t wait to read more

[A E MACHIN · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book

Really enjoyed that this time we got to now Solomon more .Really enjoyed that it wasn't till the epilogue it all came to a conclusion .on to next book.

[Julia Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great read

Fantastic book and fantastic read. Couldn't put the book down it was such addictive reading with it's twists and turns in the storylines.

[Paul Shepherd · Rating 4 out of 5]

1st time with this author, very gripping with a great complex back stories in the end, will deffo read another from this author

[Dan Hooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wish there was more about the come upence of the mother but full of twists and turns

[Nicola · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another brilliant Roberta Kray book 📖

[Ellie · Rating 3 out of 5]

my yearly attempt at a murder mystery book and i still hate them

[Kelly Booth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another good book. Loved the story

[Book Addict Shaun · Rating 4 out of 5]

Given that this genre of books is my favourite, and that Roberta Kray was married to one of the legends that spawned its creation, it might come as a surprise to know that this is only my second read of a Roberta Kray book. I don't know why, but I just never got round to reading her books until I picked up Bad Girl last year, which I really enjoyed. No Mercy was a fantastic read, and one that has left me itching to read Roberta's earlier books. No Mercy had a real mystery feel throughout, which I found to be really exciting and kept me gripped to the book.

We meet Lucy Rivers in the prologue, stood up by the boy she was running away with she returns home to be prostituted out by her parents to a man named Brendan Vasser as payment for their debts. Back in the present day and we meet Maddie Layne, a grave tender looking after the grave of Lucy Rivers, and employed by a mysterious man named Jay Cato. Delia, the receptionist at the graveyard contacts her friend Lena Gissing, matriarch of a villainous East End family, after questioning Maddie about Cato. Lena is unnerved and then furious to find Maddie looking into her business. Maddie has discovered a connection between the deaths of Lucy and Greta, Maddie's sister who was murdered in a similar way to Lucy. Lena warns her off and in no uncertain terms tells her what will happen if she doesn't move on with her life. Maddie however has a fierce determination to find out what happened to her sister, and what the real story is surrounding Cato, Lucy and Lena.

The tension in these books always comes from the dangers that the characters face. Lena is after Maddie, but in the background we have Lena's son, who has plans to take over Kellston by weakening the Streets family. A lot of the characters are connected in some way, which adds to the mystery as we don't always know how and why they are connected. There are many unsavoury characters plotting in the background, we know all of the characters lives could be in danger at some point we just don't know where it's going to come from making this an unpredictable and at times exciting read. The characters are realistic and believable, the females taking the starring role for the most part as is the norm with this genre. I had no trouble rooting for Maddie, she was an extremely likeable character from the off, a normal girl who soon finds herself caught up in a very dangerous world with no escape. Lena was more scary and threatening than any man, and is not someone you would want to mess with. Likewise with the other villains, their plotting and cunning never comes across as pantomime, making for a realistic read. The story itself is also very believable.

The setting adds a different dynamic to the story as it is mostly set in the fictional Kellston, an area described as being in between Bethnal Green and Shoreditch. Lena for example lives in a penthouse in the Heights, a gated complex designed to keep out undesirables, and one which gives her a commanding view of London, which comes in handy when spying on enemies. The book feels authentic all the way through, really transporting you into this world and giving you a front row seat. There's something about the seedy and dangerous world of London's underworld that is very addictive to read about, which is why this genre is so popular.

All the different threads to the story soon start to merge together, the plans of the characters also coming to fruition, taking us to what I hoped would be a dramatic and thrilling finale. In the beginning the book moved a little bit slow for me, there was a lot of character building and scene setting which was of course needed but I did find myself wishing things would move a little bit quicker than they were. Towards the end of the book as we discover the real truth about the murders of Lucy and Greta I was actually left a little bit stunned. The book becomes very fast paced and action packed and I loved it. I certainly didn't guess most of what was coming, so credit to Roberta for writing a story that completely threw me off course with where I thought it was going to go. I was totally satisfied with how things worked out for most of the characters and I'd actually love some of them to appear in one of Roberta's future books.

I have absolutely no hesitation in recommending this book to fans of Martina Cole and Kimberley Chambers. It can definitely compete with the former's more recent work, but lacks the depth and sheer brilliance of Kimberley Chambers, but still a very solid read that took me no time at all to read. This genre of books is very exciting currently with the plethora of great authors we now have writing books, and Roberta is definitely one of them.

Thanks to the publisher for the review copy.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first Roberta Kray book I've read and it won't be the last.
I was hooked right from the start all the way to the end. I really enjoyed the twists as they kept me on my toes the whole way through and all the characters where very interesting.
Would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good crime novel that keeps you guessing.
Overall a very enjoyable read.

[V.E. Lynne · Rating 4 out of 5]

"No Mercy" is the second Roberta Kray book that I've read and I have to say that I am so glad to have discovered her work. She writes with verve, authenticity, and an eye for a good plotline that keeps the story rattling along nicely. Love the fact she can do that without every second word being of the 'obscene' variety as well. Best find of my year.

[Gillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great read

[Pol · Rating 5 out of 5]

great book

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another gripping storyline.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the book, I wanted Maddie to get together with Rick ( David ) , hopefully they will get together in the future

[~ Cariad ~ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another winner from Roberta Kray!

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up from the holiday cabin I was staying in. It was a good book to read on the beach, plenty of twists and sub plots to keep you guessing but an easy read.

[Anne Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book, I was hooked from the beginning. I had to ration myself so I didn't greedily read it in 2 days.

[PagePilgrim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I LOVED this book! From the moment I read the prologue I thought "this is going to be good" - it not only sounded interesting, I enjoyed the style of writing.
It has been sitting on my shelf for 4 months and I was not that interested in reading it when I read the write up. But I took it for lack of anything else and I thoroughly enjoyed it!
I had no clue what the mystery was right til the end. The characters were so authentic and interesting, each with their own little secrets that you don't see until the end.
I enjoyed all the mystery and drama and will definitely read another by this author.