What do you think?
Rate this book
A Dark Tides Thriller #1
Be My Girl
He prides himself on the perfect planning behind his chilling sex attacks, convinced he can stay free to strike again and again.
But no one works the evidence better than DCI Sam Parker and her team, determined to take down the monster using their streets as a hunting ground.
A new voice in the field of contemporary, police procedural fiction, former murder squad head Tony Hutchinson takes us on a tense, thrilling and authentic journey across the dark tides of crime.
But no one works the evidence better than DCI Sam Parker and her team, determined to take down the monster using their streets as a hunting ground.
A new voice in the field of contemporary, police procedural fiction, former murder squad head Tony Hutchinson takes us on a tense, thrilling and authentic journey across the dark tides of crime.
- GenresThriller
334 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 19, 2018
228 people are currently reading
157 people want to read
About the author
Tony Hutchinson
8 books14 followersBy the time Canoe Man John Darwin’s case file hit my desk I was looking at back on a career involving 40 murder investigations.
The only death in this case was the one Darwin faked before turning up in Panama – it kept headline writers across the world busy for months.
As Detective Superintendent in charge of Cleveland Police’s Murder Squad it made a change to head a case launched because the victim was alive.
The investigation even saw me invited to study with retired members of the FBI’s Behavioural Science Unit – my own slice of ‘Silence of the Lambs’
Now that I am retired from the force, I can hopefully bring my inside knowledge of police procedure to bear on my fiction.
I’ve been an avid reader since childhood and took up writing to fill in those long winter days when the fair weather walker in me refused to leave the house.
I start mentally developing a book in my head with the simple premise: if that crime occurred, how would I investigate it?
After that I just write: no planning, no characters, no plot. Go with the flow and see where it leads.
I love not knowing where the book is going and how it will end. If I’m still guessing what’s going to happen, hopefully the reader is too.
It is not unlike the way a murder investigation opens up as you start to examine the evidence, which might be why I feel at home doing it.
The only death in this case was the one Darwin faked before turning up in Panama – it kept headline writers across the world busy for months.
As Detective Superintendent in charge of Cleveland Police’s Murder Squad it made a change to head a case launched because the victim was alive.
The investigation even saw me invited to study with retired members of the FBI’s Behavioural Science Unit – my own slice of ‘Silence of the Lambs’
Now that I am retired from the force, I can hopefully bring my inside knowledge of police procedure to bear on my fiction.
I’ve been an avid reader since childhood and took up writing to fill in those long winter days when the fair weather walker in me refused to leave the house.
I start mentally developing a book in my head with the simple premise: if that crime occurred, how would I investigate it?
After that I just write: no planning, no characters, no plot. Go with the flow and see where it leads.
I love not knowing where the book is going and how it will end. If I’m still guessing what’s going to happen, hopefully the reader is too.
It is not unlike the way a murder investigation opens up as you start to examine the evidence, which might be why I feel at home doing it.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
January 2, 2019
A sexual predator is loose on the streets, breaking into the houses of girls living alone and attacking them in their own homes. He appears to be cool, calm and collected, taking souvenirs with him from the scene of the crime. DCI Sam Parker is tasked with the job of identifying the perpetrator and bringing him to justice before he can strike again.
I really enjoyed this book, having read it hot on the heels of watching a true crime TV show about the East Area Rapist in 70's California (later known as the Golden State Killer). So this book had a very real feel to it. The police procedures used were what I could imagine happens behind the scenes of a hunt for a dangerous high profile attacker. Sam Parker is a very likeable character and we get hints at her personal life throughout the book.
We are brought down a few rabbit holes in terms of the suspect and it kept me guessing throughout.
While a bit gruesome and graphic in it's descriptions in parts, it lends itself to the realistic and gritty feeling of the story and I flew through the book. I look forward to reading the second book in this trilogy.
I really enjoyed this book, having read it hot on the heels of watching a true crime TV show about the East Area Rapist in 70's California (later known as the Golden State Killer). So this book had a very real feel to it. The police procedures used were what I could imagine happens behind the scenes of a hunt for a dangerous high profile attacker. Sam Parker is a very likeable character and we get hints at her personal life throughout the book.
We are brought down a few rabbit holes in terms of the suspect and it kept me guessing throughout.
While a bit gruesome and graphic in it's descriptions in parts, it lends itself to the realistic and gritty feeling of the story and I flew through the book. I look forward to reading the second book in this trilogy.
May 7, 2019
Picked up at Newcastle Noir, after hearing Tony Hutchinson talk about his taking up writing after a life of solving crime, I anticipated this would have authority, experience and inside knowledge in spades. Which it certainly did. I was less optimistic, having read other novels with a similar provenance, that I would find it a compelling read, but Sam Parker and Ed Whelan in particular shone out as central characters, their conversations especially strong, with a supporting cast of colleagues and well-defined victims. The workings of a police investigation; a hunt for rapists and murders was vividly described and the pace and tension jacked up with each succeeding chapter.
(And I picked up several pointer for my own novels - thank you!)
(And I picked up several pointer for my own novels - thank you!)
March 11, 2019
This is a real roller coaster of a book, so strap yourself in and hang on for the ride, when a cold case drops onto DCI Sam Parkers desk she has no idea what a living hell it will become, for her and her team, as they hunt a sex attacker who prides himself on his perfect planning, the author Tony Hutchinson is a former head of a murder squad and it shows in his writing, it's a riveting book, and really deserves 10 stars.
September 15, 2019
ED & SAM HAVE THEIR WORK CUT OUT FOR THEM, CHASING A RAPIST WHO REALLY KNOWS EVERYTHING ABOUT CSI. I MADE A GOOD GUESS AT JUST WHO WAS THE RAPIST BECAUSE THERE WAS MORE THAN ONE POSSIBE SUBJECT. THIS TAKES PLACE IN ENGLAND, ABOUT 50% I REALIZED BEING AN AMERICAN MY REATIONS TO CERTAIN SITUATIONS WAS COMPLETELY DIFFERENT. I HAD TO LOL BECAUSE MY FIRST INSTINCT WAS GOO GET YOUR GUN GIRL, BUT THAT NEVER HAPPENED. A LITTLE WORDY BUT VERY ENJOYABLE, LOTS OF TWIST AND TURNS. ;D
February 9, 2019
Brilliant
Was recommended this book by a colleague who I must thank. I could not put this book down, I was hooked from the start and was even reading it at 3am in the morning. I would never make a detective my suspect kept changing with every chapter. Well written edge of the seat thriller, looking forward to the next book.
Was recommended this book by a colleague who I must thank. I could not put this book down, I was hooked from the start and was even reading it at 3am in the morning. I would never make a detective my suspect kept changing with every chapter. Well written edge of the seat thriller, looking forward to the next book.
February 24, 2019
Dark and twisted, but VERY well done!
Well written and compelling, this is a suspenseful story from the start to the ending. Every time I thought I had figured out what was happening, I was met with a new twist. Thought provoking and scary, to think how much you just don't know about people.
Well written and compelling, this is a suspenseful story from the start to the ending. Every time I thought I had figured out what was happening, I was met with a new twist. Thought provoking and scary, to think how much you just don't know about people.
November 14, 2020
Kept me hooked!
Great book, lots of reading in it. I have it 4 stars instead of five because very few books achieve a five, only literary classics! Loved the storyline, loved the characters. The author made it easy to invest in them. Cannot wait to read the beech one. Love crime, procedural books and this das definately my cup of tea!
Great book, lots of reading in it. I have it 4 stars instead of five because very few books achieve a five, only literary classics! Loved the storyline, loved the characters. The author made it easy to invest in them. Cannot wait to read the beech one. Love crime, procedural books and this das definately my cup of tea!
March 6, 2021
Recommended
It was like reading a TV programme! Little snippets of leads which may or may not lead to concrete evidence. Circumstantial pointers that pointed to another possible suspect. The relationship between Sam and Ed is brilliant. I've already downloaded the next in the series.
It was like reading a TV programme! Little snippets of leads which may or may not lead to concrete evidence. Circumstantial pointers that pointed to another possible suspect. The relationship between Sam and Ed is brilliant. I've already downloaded the next in the series.
February 13, 2019
Be My Girl is an exciting ride from page one.
Sam Parker is a tough no nonsense cop first and a woman next. That's not to say that she isn't feminine just that she can kick butt, take names and still look great doing it.
Sam Parker is a tough no nonsense cop first and a woman next. That's not to say that she isn't feminine just that she can kick butt, take names and still look great doing it.
December 24, 2019
Wow. This is a roller coaster of a ride. I did not figure out the rapist. I kind of thought the murderer was one of the abrasive, obnoxious police; however I should have remembered the old saying " it is always ....".
August 28, 2020
Great thrIller
This book kept you guessing until the end. Lots of action. Makes you wonder if you really know what your neighbors are like. The ending was a real twist. Loved the main characters.
This book kept you guessing until the end. Lots of action. Makes you wonder if you really know what your neighbors are like. The ending was a real twist. Loved the main characters.
August 9, 2021
Really good enjoyed this book.
I really enjoyed this book and it dealt with a very sensitive subject well. I did think the ending was a little abrupt though - left me wanting more and some loose ends tying up. Would recommend.
I really enjoyed this book and it dealt with a very sensitive subject well. I did think the ending was a little abrupt though - left me wanting more and some loose ends tying up. Would recommend.
September 3, 2018
Brilliant debut!
Read this over the weekend, enjoyed every page, excellent writing Tony and looking forward to starting the next later today.
Read this over the weekend, enjoyed every page, excellent writing Tony and looking forward to starting the next later today.
September 18, 2018
Fantastic
February 20, 2019
very good
June 18, 2019
Very good
Loved this book. It was fast paced lots of interesting twists and turns . Characters well developed, interesting and believable.
Loved this book. It was fast paced lots of interesting twists and turns . Characters well developed, interesting and believable.
February 9, 2020
Looking forward to reading the next book in this series, enjoyed meetingSam and Ed.
March 31, 2020
Wow!!!!
Absolutely loved this book. So well written. Kept me gripped from the beginning. Will definitely look out for other books from this author.
Absolutely loved this book. So well written. Kept me gripped from the beginning. Will definitely look out for other books from this author.
May 18, 2020
Brilliant
What can I say other than this is a brilliant read, a page turner and so hard to put down. I am really looking forward to the next book in the series
What can I say other than this is a brilliant read, a page turner and so hard to put down. I am really looking forward to the next book in the series
February 6, 2021
Written by an ex murder squad head, and it shows. Intelligent, pacy thriller. I'll look out for more by this author.
October 21, 2021
Brilliant
I read this in one day, loved it. I've already bought the next one.Looking forward to learning more about the characters,can't wait 😃
I read this in one day, loved it. I've already bought the next one.Looking forward to learning more about the characters,can't wait 😃
April 13, 2020
Tony Hutchinson is brilliant and writes totally addictive novels
Highly recommended you read all 4 books in the A Dark Tides Thriller series.
You won't be able to put them down and will want to read all 4 books
My favourite author on Amazon
Highly recommended you read all 4 books in the A Dark Tides Thriller series.
You won't be able to put them down and will want to read all 4 books
My favourite author on Amazon
April 3, 2019
Decent read that surprised me.
The heroine, the plot, the writing were all good, but this book didn’t quite have that little bit extra needed for five stars.
The heroine, the plot, the writing were all good, but this book didn’t quite have that little bit extra needed for five stars.
August 12, 2023
Certainly was a dark thriller, had no idea who the killer was, kept changing my mind and had me guessing right to the end.
November 21, 2018
Great read, loved the 2 main characters. Can't wait to read the next book.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews