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DI Charlotte Savage #5
Two Evils
When a young boy goes missing and another is found dead, the race is on to track down the perpetrator. But DI Charlotte Savage has barely begun to unravel the tangle of clues when her boss drops her from the investigation and moves her to a cold case.
Meanwhile, a mysterious figure calling himself the Pastor is threatening to enact his own form of justice. He wants to play executioner while letting the public choose the criminals.
Amid the chaos of a media panic and with a populace baying for blood, Savage must work out how her cold case relates to the murdered child and try to find the missing boy before the killer strikes again.
Can she enlist the help of the Pastor?
And if so is she willing to pay the price he demands?
387 pages, Paperback
First published March 10, 2016
43 people are currently reading
333 people want to read
About the author
Mark Sennen
17 books115 followersMark Sennen was born in Surrey, but spent his formative years in rural Shropshire where he learnt to drive tractors and worm sheep. He has been a reluctant farmer, an average drummer, a failed Ph.D. student and a pretty good programmer. He lives, with his wife and two children beside a muddy creek in deepest South Devon where there hasn't been a murder in years. He is the author of the best selling DI Charlotte Savage series: Touch, Bad Blood, Cut Dead, Tell Tale, Two Evils, The Boneyard, and Puppet; the Holm and da Silva series: The Sanction, and Rogue Target; plus the standalone thrillers: Three and The Sum Of All Sins.
The DI Charlotte Savage series is published by HarperCollins.
The Holm and da Silva series is published by Canelo.
The DI Charlotte Savage series is published by HarperCollins.
The Holm and da Silva series is published by Canelo.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
September 17, 2017
Mark Sennen's books rarely disappoint and in Two Evils he has taken his DI Savage series to a deeper more thrilling level. Always characterised by dark and sinister criminals and acts of brutal crime book #5 takes evil to a darker shade still.
The opening Chapter is not just chilling and dark it is a deep abyss devoid of light. It sets the mystery up perfectly and strikes you that the motivation is not just revenge but the retribution of the gods.
The novel is a crime thriller set in Devon where this series is based and this location makes for a unique and interesting dimension to the police investigations and the wider team required to assist in searches and rescues. This is brought home in this book when two young boys disappear; the topography adds to risk and difficulty of mounting a search.
Meanwhile a second line of investigation opens up when a salesman goes missing and Charlotte is blindsided when she is taken off leading the hunt for the missing boys and re-assigned to a cold case review of a care home where some years ago two other lads vanished one night and abuse is thought to have taken place.
That the author manages these complicate plot threads without losing the reader is due to his skill and story management. As you read deeper into the book you long for Jason Hobbs safety along with the police teams searching for him. You hope they will find him in time; you also worry for DI Savage and her continuing journey of saving others where she couldn't protect her own daughter and you dispair where you think the police are dragging their feet and not joining the dots.
The sea, the tides and the deserted countryside all add to the mystery and tension in the novel. We are taken on this wonderful journey meeting the darker aspects of humankind, the horrific and broken thought processes that can bring evil and death to the most innocent of children. The abuse and violence isn't overly graphic or gratuitous but it food for thought and doesn't always stem from people you'd expect it. Religious zeal can bring harsh judgement but political management can also create criminal responses.
The book finally asks the question. How do we respond to a situation that demands we act but we are encouraged or obliged to do nothing? Where is the guilt? Which is the lesser of the two evils for us personally? Does the same guilt lie with the perpetrator as the observer who doesn't tell?
I love a book that tells a meaningful story and leaves me thinking long after the final page is read. I am sure those who haven't picked up a Mark Sennen book will also feel the same satisfaction.
The opening Chapter is not just chilling and dark it is a deep abyss devoid of light. It sets the mystery up perfectly and strikes you that the motivation is not just revenge but the retribution of the gods.
The novel is a crime thriller set in Devon where this series is based and this location makes for a unique and interesting dimension to the police investigations and the wider team required to assist in searches and rescues. This is brought home in this book when two young boys disappear; the topography adds to risk and difficulty of mounting a search.
Meanwhile a second line of investigation opens up when a salesman goes missing and Charlotte is blindsided when she is taken off leading the hunt for the missing boys and re-assigned to a cold case review of a care home where some years ago two other lads vanished one night and abuse is thought to have taken place.
That the author manages these complicate plot threads without losing the reader is due to his skill and story management. As you read deeper into the book you long for Jason Hobbs safety along with the police teams searching for him. You hope they will find him in time; you also worry for DI Savage and her continuing journey of saving others where she couldn't protect her own daughter and you dispair where you think the police are dragging their feet and not joining the dots.
The sea, the tides and the deserted countryside all add to the mystery and tension in the novel. We are taken on this wonderful journey meeting the darker aspects of humankind, the horrific and broken thought processes that can bring evil and death to the most innocent of children. The abuse and violence isn't overly graphic or gratuitous but it food for thought and doesn't always stem from people you'd expect it. Religious zeal can bring harsh judgement but political management can also create criminal responses.
The book finally asks the question. How do we respond to a situation that demands we act but we are encouraged or obliged to do nothing? Where is the guilt? Which is the lesser of the two evils for us personally? Does the same guilt lie with the perpetrator as the observer who doesn't tell?
I love a book that tells a meaningful story and leaves me thinking long after the final page is read. I am sure those who haven't picked up a Mark Sennen book will also feel the same satisfaction.
March 26, 2016
Two Evils – Charlotte Savage Returns to Form
Two Evils is Mark Sennen’s return of Di Charlotte Savage series bringing her once again in to a quite twisted thriller that keeps you on edge from beginning to end. Two Evils could possibly be the most twisted, showing the darkest depth that the human psyche can reach when it will not only affect those involved but will leave a mark on the reader.
DI Savage is hoping to keep a low profile with the Chief Constable on the war path especially as Savage’s reputation tends to make enemies with the higher ranks and earned a few nicknames with all the others. She would like something of a run of a mill case to keep her ticking over and out of her superior’s crosshairs, and all would be fine with the world.
When a young boy goes missing she is leading the case to find him, but when a body is found things take a turn for the worst, and she is taken off the case. She is asked to review an old case, a case that is colder than stone, an historic missing child case that may or may not have something to do with alleged child abuse at a now closed children’s home.
At the same time her team are also investigating another missing persons case, who just seems to have disappeared on Dartmouth without leaving a trail. Then when they find that a local vicar has also gone missing things take a turn for the psychological weird as neither seems to have anything in common with each other.
The Chief Constable wants results, all the cases have one thing in common, very little evidence, no connection and seem to be stalling rather fast. Savage is keenly aware that she needs to make headway somehow and at the same time try not to set a chain of events start that would bring her to the attention of senior officers for all the wrong reasons.
One thing Savage is sure of is that the longer the cases run the more likely that they are going to find dead rather than live victims. In a race against time and trying to find what links everything together places Savage and her team under pressure. One thing Savage is very sure of is that somewhere out in the Devon area is a very twisted, sick person leading the police a merry dance and causing psychological trauma as they go.
Mark Sennen has created a masterpiece with Two Evils as you are never really sure who is good, who is bad and who is really twisted. He has written this so that you can see the pain and pressure that is going through a police team as they search for someone who has committed a crime against a child. At times you feel that the police are like lobsters caught in a pot with no opportunity to escape their situation. Like all crime writers Sennen is brilliant at drawing the reader in to a deep, dark and very twisted plot with hope that there is light at the end of the dark tunnel.
Two Evils is a brilliantly dark and twisted thriller that will keep you on edge and is Charlotte Savage’s
Two Evils is Mark Sennen’s return of Di Charlotte Savage series bringing her once again in to a quite twisted thriller that keeps you on edge from beginning to end. Two Evils could possibly be the most twisted, showing the darkest depth that the human psyche can reach when it will not only affect those involved but will leave a mark on the reader.
DI Savage is hoping to keep a low profile with the Chief Constable on the war path especially as Savage’s reputation tends to make enemies with the higher ranks and earned a few nicknames with all the others. She would like something of a run of a mill case to keep her ticking over and out of her superior’s crosshairs, and all would be fine with the world.
When a young boy goes missing she is leading the case to find him, but when a body is found things take a turn for the worst, and she is taken off the case. She is asked to review an old case, a case that is colder than stone, an historic missing child case that may or may not have something to do with alleged child abuse at a now closed children’s home.
At the same time her team are also investigating another missing persons case, who just seems to have disappeared on Dartmouth without leaving a trail. Then when they find that a local vicar has also gone missing things take a turn for the psychological weird as neither seems to have anything in common with each other.
The Chief Constable wants results, all the cases have one thing in common, very little evidence, no connection and seem to be stalling rather fast. Savage is keenly aware that she needs to make headway somehow and at the same time try not to set a chain of events start that would bring her to the attention of senior officers for all the wrong reasons.
One thing Savage is sure of is that the longer the cases run the more likely that they are going to find dead rather than live victims. In a race against time and trying to find what links everything together places Savage and her team under pressure. One thing Savage is very sure of is that somewhere out in the Devon area is a very twisted, sick person leading the police a merry dance and causing psychological trauma as they go.
Mark Sennen has created a masterpiece with Two Evils as you are never really sure who is good, who is bad and who is really twisted. He has written this so that you can see the pain and pressure that is going through a police team as they search for someone who has committed a crime against a child. At times you feel that the police are like lobsters caught in a pot with no opportunity to escape their situation. Like all crime writers Sennen is brilliant at drawing the reader in to a deep, dark and very twisted plot with hope that there is light at the end of the dark tunnel.
Two Evils is a brilliantly dark and twisted thriller that will keep you on edge and is Charlotte Savage’s
January 3, 2018
Disturbing but a really strong story. Very good.
October 28, 2017
Oh dear, what a sad and tragic tale. An 11 year old boy goes missing. Shortly thereafter a boy's body is found but is it the same boy? Meanwhile a travelling salesman is reported missing, and soon another missing person will be linked to the first disappearance.
But DI Charlotte Savage is taken off these cases by Superintendent Hardin and tasked with revisiting an old case from 30 years ago where two boys disappeared without trace from a boy's home. It seems the sly old fox (Hardin) has a cunning agenda going on here.
Of course in best thriller tradition these cases will turn out to be linked but I had the devil's own time trying to unscramble what was going on. In other words - it was all very UNpredictable. It WAS, however, very twisty and very well written and it doesn't end well for all concerned. If you haven't already delved into this series, it may be worth your while.
But DI Charlotte Savage is taken off these cases by Superintendent Hardin and tasked with revisiting an old case from 30 years ago where two boys disappeared without trace from a boy's home. It seems the sly old fox (Hardin) has a cunning agenda going on here.
Of course in best thriller tradition these cases will turn out to be linked but I had the devil's own time trying to unscramble what was going on. In other words - it was all very UNpredictable. It WAS, however, very twisty and very well written and it doesn't end well for all concerned. If you haven't already delved into this series, it may be worth your while.
March 26, 2016
This is the first of the series I have read, and shall be reading them from the beginning.
What a fantastic, gory read, great setting, slightly confusing as the tale is so twisty, but great to the end.
You can read it as a stand alone, but with all series you do benefit from reading from the first book.
Highly recommend.
Thanks to netgalley for the chance to review...another series to add to my list.
What a fantastic, gory read, great setting, slightly confusing as the tale is so twisty, but great to the end.
You can read it as a stand alone, but with all series you do benefit from reading from the first book.
Highly recommend.
Thanks to netgalley for the chance to review...another series to add to my list.
July 3, 2022
At one point in this book, a senior officer scoffs at modern criminal psychology and calls it pretty much "bullshit" - but in a British way.
I can't help think, that passage perfectly sums up what's going on with the bad guys in this book series, over all. Proper psychology just isn't included in the author's modus operandi.
Well... To be fair, I think the author actually glanced at the Wikipedia page for DID while writing this particular book, but the previous books? Nah. I'd be surprised if much research beyond police procedurals was made.
Every "nutcase" Savage & Co comes across is called exactly that - a "nutter". They all get bunched together under that (to be fair) versatile umbrella term and the police officers seem, to me at least, far from equipped to handle severely deranged criminals.
It's kind of like every criminal investigation you've ever seen on TV - minus the one person with any kind of psychology degree.
The bad guys are indeed nutters, but the problem is that that's their entire personality. They're not written with any other sort of dimensions or drives other than being clearly insane.
Don't get me started on how over-used the DID diagnosis (previously known as multiple personality disorder, for clarity) is in thrillers. And how unlikely it actually is as a "reason" for anyone to actually kill people, just like any other mental illness.
I've been properly spoiled by listening to books that have taken me so far down into the black hole of criminal psychology that I've sometimes felt like I've been tagging along in an episode of Mindhunter, learning more and more gruesome stuff, that no matter how awful, still has some sort of weird, twisted logic that can be traced back to trauma and - yeah - psychology.
I'm no expert, but I've been soaking up every scrap of criminal psychology I've gotten my hands on for years, and these books... They just don't do it for me.
This 5th book in the series makes a weak attempt at actually using some psychology to explain the bad guy's reasons for why he is how he is. But it's a lukewarm attempt at best, if you ask me.
A bit half-arsed. Kind of like an afterthought. Once again I wonder if these books weren't written years ago and just recently got hastily updated for a more modern market.
It's a really weird kind of feeling to have.
Only one real instance of misogyny happened - which was an improvement, of sorts. That once instance was unnecessary though and I failed to see why it was even included. It felt like something that had been missed by the editor.
No male detective got excited tingles in his pants in this book, at least.
Maybe by book 6 I will start to think this series has shaped up to half decent? Who knows!
I'll find out soon. Then... I think I'll move on.
I can't help think, that passage perfectly sums up what's going on with the bad guys in this book series, over all. Proper psychology just isn't included in the author's modus operandi.
Well... To be fair, I think the author actually glanced at the Wikipedia page for DID while writing this particular book, but the previous books? Nah. I'd be surprised if much research beyond police procedurals was made.
Every "nutcase" Savage & Co comes across is called exactly that - a "nutter". They all get bunched together under that (to be fair) versatile umbrella term and the police officers seem, to me at least, far from equipped to handle severely deranged criminals.
It's kind of like every criminal investigation you've ever seen on TV - minus the one person with any kind of psychology degree.
The bad guys are indeed nutters, but the problem is that that's their entire personality. They're not written with any other sort of dimensions or drives other than being clearly insane.
Don't get me started on how over-used the DID diagnosis (previously known as multiple personality disorder, for clarity) is in thrillers. And how unlikely it actually is as a "reason" for anyone to actually kill people, just like any other mental illness.
I've been properly spoiled by listening to books that have taken me so far down into the black hole of criminal psychology that I've sometimes felt like I've been tagging along in an episode of Mindhunter, learning more and more gruesome stuff, that no matter how awful, still has some sort of weird, twisted logic that can be traced back to trauma and - yeah - psychology.
I'm no expert, but I've been soaking up every scrap of criminal psychology I've gotten my hands on for years, and these books... They just don't do it for me.
This 5th book in the series makes a weak attempt at actually using some psychology to explain the bad guy's reasons for why he is how he is. But it's a lukewarm attempt at best, if you ask me.
A bit half-arsed. Kind of like an afterthought. Once again I wonder if these books weren't written years ago and just recently got hastily updated for a more modern market.
It's a really weird kind of feeling to have.
Only one real instance of misogyny happened - which was an improvement, of sorts. That once instance was unnecessary though and I failed to see why it was even included. It felt like something that had been missed by the editor.
No male detective got excited tingles in his pants in this book, at least.
Maybe by book 6 I will start to think this series has shaped up to half decent? Who knows!
I'll find out soon. Then... I think I'll move on.
July 27, 2023
Gruesome. Certainly doesn't make light reading.
June 25, 2016
Set in Plymouth, Two Evils by Mark Sennen skilfully interweaves two parallel investigations with a crime from the past that has far reaching consequences. Sennen's descriptions evoke the variety of settings along the estuary; isolated tracts of land, secluded waterways and fishing boats docked in yards. This is a very topical story, handled sensitively.
DI Charlotte Savage's traumatic experience of losing her child leaves her raw and emotional. She is a dogged detective who veers towards the unconventional to close her cases. So, when a young boy disappears all her senses are heightened as her determination to find the child leads her to explore a, now closed, children's home. It soon becomes clear that there are parallels between her current investigation and accusations made when the home was still open.
Meanwhile her sergeant, DS Darcus Riley, has a mystery of his own to uncover, when he is called to the scene of a raft containing what is initially believed to be a dead body which has been set afloat. There is no dead body, but a mysterious finding on the raft makes its discovery all the more sinister.
Atmospheric, with the final twists paced beautifully to round the narrative off satisfactorily. A delightfully smooth read.
DI Charlotte Savage's traumatic experience of losing her child leaves her raw and emotional. She is a dogged detective who veers towards the unconventional to close her cases. So, when a young boy disappears all her senses are heightened as her determination to find the child leads her to explore a, now closed, children's home. It soon becomes clear that there are parallels between her current investigation and accusations made when the home was still open.
Meanwhile her sergeant, DS Darcus Riley, has a mystery of his own to uncover, when he is called to the scene of a raft containing what is initially believed to be a dead body which has been set afloat. There is no dead body, but a mysterious finding on the raft makes its discovery all the more sinister.
Atmospheric, with the final twists paced beautifully to round the narrative off satisfactorily. A delightfully smooth read.
March 25, 2016
Another fantastic novel featuring D.I. Charlotte Savage. It's gruesome, horrific, shocking and full of suspense. It centres around the disappearance of a young boy but it is certainly not a normal case and Charlotte is soon given the task of delving into disturbing events that took place 30 years earlier. Thank you for the ARC.
February 1, 2019
I bought this as a 3 for £5 deal so wasn't familiar with Mark Sennen.
I didn't find the characters interesting or at all relatable. I felt like it was a novelisation of a 3 part TV crime drama that I lost interest in after a couple if episodes.
I lost track of who was who and didn't really care. I stuck with it and as I expected the whole thing was wrapped up in the last 5 minutes so to speak.
The gruesome murder of the child and the discovery of the body appeared only written for shock value and I felt rather tasteless.
Can't say I'll be reaching for other books in this series anytime soon. Not for me I'm afraid.
I didn't find the characters interesting or at all relatable. I felt like it was a novelisation of a 3 part TV crime drama that I lost interest in after a couple if episodes.
I lost track of who was who and didn't really care. I stuck with it and as I expected the whole thing was wrapped up in the last 5 minutes so to speak.
The gruesome murder of the child and the discovery of the body appeared only written for shock value and I felt rather tasteless.
Can't say I'll be reaching for other books in this series anytime soon. Not for me I'm afraid.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 1, 2017
Too sadistic
I have read nearly all of this series and this book is by far the most violent. I really did not like the violence towards children and felt it went too far. The descriptions were quite disgusting and I will not be reading any more of Charlotte Savage. Mark, please realize that you can write a good book/murder thriller without feeling you have to go to the depths of depravity. I really felt uncomfortable reading this and have not finished reading it. Nor will I.
I have read nearly all of this series and this book is by far the most violent. I really did not like the violence towards children and felt it went too far. The descriptions were quite disgusting and I will not be reading any more of Charlotte Savage. Mark, please realize that you can write a good book/murder thriller without feeling you have to go to the depths of depravity. I really felt uncomfortable reading this and have not finished reading it. Nor will I.
July 22, 2018
This book was deliciously gruesome! A very intricate story line with multiple plots, both in the past & present, that had me guessing throughout. Even then the ending surprised me. I've discovered a new author!
July 26, 2018
First I have read in this series. And as the author has given away the murders of the previous 4 other books within the first third of the book, I’m not going to start at the beginning of the series. Shame
October 23, 2022
I rate ita 4.5 but since it left on a high note... I rated it up. A book that kept me engaged, a bit of a slow start but kept me interested to keep reading. It literally had twists and turns to the very end!
March 14, 2017
really enjoyable read, many twists and turns, that leave you wondering who and why
May 4, 2017
Another excellent read in this series. Good characterization and a good storyline. Highly recommended.
March 18, 2018
I enjoyed this novel, however is it just me or does the story have an indirect reference to a certain very overweight deceased northern MP? The story is well told, and plausible.
May 15, 2018
Charlotte has to deal with current and past murders as well as corruption in high places in this engrossing mystery.
July 21, 2019
Disturbing but hard to put down. A great read as are all his books.
April 12, 2020
Worth reading
Took me a bit longer to get into this one but I still thoroughly enjoyed the read. I do like this author he knows how to write a story.
Took me a bit longer to get into this one but I still thoroughly enjoyed the read. I do like this author he knows how to write a story.
January 17, 2021
Cements my view this is a worthy author to read. Atmospheric in setting and character. Tragic in subject matter.
July 7, 2021
I read this book 3 years ago ! I looooved it ! The story is confusing sometimes ! Complicated , and mysterious but it worth reading it !
September 14, 2022
It was just two long (sorry, I couldn't help myself) and two much uninteresting stuff going on
February 25, 2023
Not the greatest! Won't be reading his books again.
August 16, 2023
Great crime read, pity Hitchcock isn't around to make a movie from it!
October 11, 2023
Although a little bit gruesome at points, I did enjoy this story. And weirdly set all here in Plymouth and South Devon so I can easily imagine the locations as they are places I've been often.
September 22, 2016
I'm a big fan of DI Charlotte Savage and I did enjoy this book. The book is very well written and I really like the main characters. I like the way Charlotte has progressed as a character. There are, however a couple of snags which meant 4 stars instead of 5. Please don't read any further as the following points may be SPOILERS.
Firstly- tide tables- I'm quite sure that the police would have worked out where the raft went into the water long before a weird fisherman tells them
Secondly- D.I.D-serial killers can often suffer with mental health problems but not every mentally ill person is a serial killer. I just feel that this is perpetuating a myth that a split personality equals serial killer. D.I.D is more than "split personality" and is a very complex mental health condition. I don't think the book trivialised it, my concern being, purely that D.I.D doesn't need more bad press
It is a very good read overall and I am looking forward to the next installment
Firstly- tide tables- I'm quite sure that the police would have worked out where the raft went into the water long before a weird fisherman tells them
Secondly- D.I.D-serial killers can often suffer with mental health problems but not every mentally ill person is a serial killer. I just feel that this is perpetuating a myth that a split personality equals serial killer. D.I.D is more than "split personality" and is a very complex mental health condition. I don't think the book trivialised it, my concern being, purely that D.I.D doesn't need more bad press
It is a very good read overall and I am looking forward to the next installment
April 4, 2016
Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this copy.
First book by this author and first book read in this series. Think it maybe helpful to read the other books in the series, as there were some things that had obviously happened in previous books and I may have understood them better (plus they sounded interesting!) but it's not necessary to have read the others. Quite a gruesome book, but a good story and good plot. Kept me interested throughout and didn't guess who the killer was until well into the book. Will definitely look out for previous books!
First book by this author and first book read in this series. Think it maybe helpful to read the other books in the series, as there were some things that had obviously happened in previous books and I may have understood them better (plus they sounded interesting!) but it's not necessary to have read the others. Quite a gruesome book, but a good story and good plot. Kept me interested throughout and didn't guess who the killer was until well into the book. Will definitely look out for previous books!
July 29, 2016
Fourth in the series of DI Charlotte Savage and an excellent, thrilling read. Starts off an intriguing mystery, but if you are familiar with Sennen's style of writing, it was quite easy to work out the main perpetrator and the reasons behind it. I have read all four books in the series so far but read them all out of order, whilst this does not hinder the story, it does help with the characters to have the full background stories.
March 31, 2016
Thanks to HarperCollins UK for allowing me to review this book in exchange for an honest review.
This was my first DI Savage book and I shall now be starting from the beginning!!
The only negative for me was I though there was some unnecessary/extreme violence in places that didn't seem to fit but maybe that's just me...?
This was my first DI Savage book and I shall now be starting from the beginning!!
The only negative for me was I though there was some unnecessary/extreme violence in places that didn't seem to fit but maybe that's just me...?
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews