An Unseasoned Soul: Gideon Carr Book One

by Sarah Seaton

A body is found in a remote Nottinghamshire field. Not fresh. Not known. And impossible to place. Except the evidence says something worse—that it may be linked to a serial killer already behind bars. Detective Inspector Gideon Carr is pulled into a case that refuses to stay local. The trail drags him halfway across the world to Türkiye, where truth is layered beneath heat, history, and danger. There, he is partnered with Detective Kemal Kaya—his liaison, his guide, and a man who reads him too easily. The attraction between them is immediate, unspoken, and dangerous in a place where scrutiny can turn lethal and desire can become a weapon in itself. As the investigation deepens, so does the risk. More bodies surface. More questions refuse to settle. And Gideon finds himself changing in ways he didn’t expect—stripped back, tested, and forced to confront not only the killer, but himself. Back in Nottinghamshire, his second-in-command Colm O’Connor is left holding a fractured investigation together as pressure mounts and the truth begins to splinter in Gideon’s absence. From England to Türkiye, from buried secrets to exposed truths—nothing about this case is clean. And not everyone will survive long enough to see it solved. A dark, atmospheric thriller about obsession, justice, and the cost of crossing lines that should never be crossed.

409 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 2, 2026

Reviews

[Gail]

This isn't my usual type of book however it gripped me from start to finish and am pleased to see it's a series with more to come ..
Quite a dark book and definately for fans of the country turkey I almost felt like I was there at some points .
Well worth a read

[Kay Wilson]

Trigger warning
An Unseasoned Soul by Sarah Seaton
This gritty debut crime novel, set in Nottinghamshire and Calis in Turkey holds you in a tight grip of tension from the outset. You are drawn into the world of the main protagonist Gideon Carr, a Detective Chief Inspector, as he works to solve a murder with links to a possible serial killer, years earlier.
The new case, a missing person, assumed murdered, is complex and reveals a hidden world of seedy nightclubs and fleeting, gay relationships. Gideon’s evidence leads him to Turkey and a twisting web of lies and deceit.
Sarah Seaton’s knowledge of both areas shines bright throughout the story. The depiction of the characters in Calis, in particular, Turkish culture, food and life is like an astonishing assault on the senses. Despite the nature of the novel, it’s also a great advert for the country as a tourist destination.
There is a gruesome tale at the heart of this book but it is handled with sensitivity and empathy for the victims.
I recommend this book for readers who love atmospheric crime novels. It has a great twist at the end that I definitely didn’t see coming. It is very dark in places so probably not for people who have delicate dispositions. I had to read a couple of pages through my fingers!
TW for sexual assault, people trafficking and extreme violence.

[Cordelia Wilson]

Extremely good read!

A very gripping tale that had me wanting to find out more as I read along. The characters were very believable and the plots were full of twists and turns that kept me hooked. There were lots of concurrent themes that interconnected throughout the novel. It threw up a lot of surprises and I did not expect the ending.