Dead Beat & Kick Back

Kate Brannigan #1-2

by Val McDermid

Diamond Dagger Award-Winning Two mysteries introducing a Thai boxing, rock-and-roll female private detective from Manchester, England...

As a favor to her rock journalist boyfriend, Kate Branningan agrees to track down missing song-writer Moira Pollock, a search that takes her into some of the seediest parts of Leeds and Bradford. But little does she realize that finding Moira is only a prelude to murder. Juggling her other cases, including a search to uncover the source of counterfeit luxury goods, Brannigan finds herself for the first time on the trail of a killer.

In Kick Back, Kate Brannigan investigates the bizarre case of the missing conservatories. Before long she's up to her neck in crooked land deals, mortgage scams, financial chicanery, and murder. But when a favor for a friend puts Kate's own life in danger, bizarre is not the first word she thinks of...

Genres: Mystery, Ebooks, Mystery Thriller

566 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Val McDermid is a No. 1 bestseller whose novels have been translated into more than thirty languages, and have sold over eleven million copies.

She has won many awards internationally, including the CWA Gold Dagger for best crime novel of the year and the LA Times Book of the Year Award. She was inducted into the ITV3 Crime Thriller Awards Hall of Fame in 2009 and was the recipient of the CWA Cartier Diamond Dagger for 2010. In 2011 she received the Lambda Literary Foundation Pioneer Award.

She writes full time and divides her time between Cheshire and Edinburgh.

Reviews

[Nancy]

Dead Beat introduces Kate Brannigan, a Thai boxing, rock-and-roll female private detective from Manchester.
As a favor to her rock journalist boyfriend, Kate agrees to track down a missing song-writer Moira Pollock, a search that takes her into some of the seediest parts of Leeds and Bradford. But little does she realise that finding Moira is only a prelude to murder. Juggling her other cases, including a search to uncover the source of counterfeit luxury goods, Brannigan finds herself for the first time on the trail of a killer.
In Kick Back, Kate Brannigan investigates the bizarre case of the missing conservatories. Before long she’s up to her neck in crooked land deals, mortgage scams, financial chicanery and murder. But when a favor for a friend puts Kate’s own life in danger, bizarre is not the first word she thinks of…

Good.

[Nancy Bremner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kate Brannigan is definitely a girl’s hero. Regardless of the topic in the books there is always something that I can read out loud to my husband so that highly speaks for Val’s writing style.

Dead Beat was a very good introduction to Kate and Richard. Definitely a good who done it and if you can’t figure out whodunnit at the same time as Kate you aren’t paying attention.

I am almost done Kick Back and the details and convoluted subplots always make for a stimulating read. If anything this story gives a reminder to be a wary consumer, Val’s topics for a story, really blow me away since they are so out of the ordinary.

Great reads per Val McDermid.

[Mickey Hoffman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed Dead Beat more than Kick Back because the plot of the latter concerns property fraud, the details of which gave me a headache. The MC in these novels is a fun character, a strong female with a sense of humor. She is a great opposite to female leads that get their "strength" from being oppositional (Scottolini's books come to mind) or at odds with society. That all being said, I like McDermid's other series more.

[Margaret L. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even though it's a bit dated now, this is still my favorite of all of the series by this author. I wish she had continued it. I was delighted to discover the books are all available in ebook format now though, as I got rid of the paperbacks many years ago.

[Maureen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read Dead Beat several years ago so only read Kick Back now. meh....Fortunately McDermid has polished up her work a lot since then. Don't let these two book put you off her as an author. fyi There is a strong LGBT component here if that matters to you.

[Jane B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic, couldn’t put it down. Eventually went to bed at 1.30am and the carried on reading when I got up at 7am till I finished ! - pah housework who cares.

Fantastic characters, great story and well written.
Only my second Val book but Iam hooked.

[Trish Lawlor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disappointing. I love Val Mc Dermid books but these two were shallow in character development, over described between action scenes and in general, kind of boring. I don’t believe I will be reading any more in the Kate Brannigan series.

[marc · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is far from her best.
Two shortish books each of which has two plot lines that run concurrently. That is usually the case with this author.
This is an earlier book of hers and the similes are stretched to the max.
I will read more books by McDermid hoping that this might be a one off.

[Hannah Whitney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good

This is not my favorite Val McDermid, but very good anyway. I quite liked Brannigan, she’s feisty. Plot does get a little convoluted at times.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fast paced and really enjoyable. I liked the fact that you were reading from a first a first person perspective and narrative as it gave the story more feeling.

[Lise · Rating 3 out of 5]

See individual books for review.

[Lila · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a 2 book set and I only read the first. It was pretty good but not as good as Val McDermid's Karen Pirie series

[Monica · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book is a good introduction to the Kate Brannigan back list. The real estate scam in Dead Beat was pretty convoluted.