What do you think?
Rate this book
D.C.I. Harry Longbridge #1
Blood List A DCI Harry Longbridge Thriller
Think the Lake District is a lovely place to visit? Think again.
A Psychological & Chilling Thriller set in and around the fictional town of Kirkdale in Cumbria.
One by one the young women of Kirkdale are being found grotesquely murdered, with no clues as to why.
Lying between the great lake Kirkwater and the base of Kirkby Pike, although beautiful, Kirkdale isn’t exactly the most exciting place on the planet. But after young reporter Jenny Flood moves into the relaxed Cumbrian town, it sets a catalogue of events in motion that brings this comfortable community to its knees.
When middle aged G.P. Charlotte Peterson discovers Jenny has followed her from Bradenthorpe, six years after a fling with her philandering doctor husband Miles, it stirs deeply buried mental health issues from her youth. In the run up to the Kirkdale country show, the arrival of this third and most recent adversary triggers the already edgy and emotionally scarred Charlotte into finally stepping over the edge. Her longing to destroy Jenny has been on a slow and very resentful burn for years, now the reality of achieving that presents itself as a genuine possibility
Can journalist Andrew Gale protect new colleague Jenny, girlfriend Gina and her best friend Molly from the psychotic GP’s insane agenda? How will sarcastic ex Met. Officer Harry Longbridge deal with Andrew’s continued interference?
Then there’s the unexpected arrival of an American mystery woman. And just who is on the Blood List?
A Psychological & Chilling Thriller set in and around the fictional town of Kirkdale in Cumbria.
One by one the young women of Kirkdale are being found grotesquely murdered, with no clues as to why.
Lying between the great lake Kirkwater and the base of Kirkby Pike, although beautiful, Kirkdale isn’t exactly the most exciting place on the planet. But after young reporter Jenny Flood moves into the relaxed Cumbrian town, it sets a catalogue of events in motion that brings this comfortable community to its knees.
When middle aged G.P. Charlotte Peterson discovers Jenny has followed her from Bradenthorpe, six years after a fling with her philandering doctor husband Miles, it stirs deeply buried mental health issues from her youth. In the run up to the Kirkdale country show, the arrival of this third and most recent adversary triggers the already edgy and emotionally scarred Charlotte into finally stepping over the edge. Her longing to destroy Jenny has been on a slow and very resentful burn for years, now the reality of achieving that presents itself as a genuine possibility
Can journalist Andrew Gale protect new colleague Jenny, girlfriend Gina and her best friend Molly from the psychotic GP’s insane agenda? How will sarcastic ex Met. Officer Harry Longbridge deal with Andrew’s continued interference?
Then there’s the unexpected arrival of an American mystery woman. And just who is on the Blood List?
400 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2018
4 people are currently reading
24 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 20, 2019
Well, what a great debut novel from Ali Carter!
This is the first Crime Thriller I have read in a while and I wasn’t disappointed! I couldn’t put it down. Although this is a fairly long book it was fast paced and flowed brilliantly.
See my full review on my blog - http://darkreads.blog/2019/05/20/blog...
This is the first Crime Thriller I have read in a while and I wasn’t disappointed! I couldn’t put it down. Although this is a fairly long book it was fast paced and flowed brilliantly.
See my full review on my blog - http://darkreads.blog/2019/05/20/blog...
May 16, 2019
Blood List is the debut thriller by Ali Carter….and what a debut!
Charlotte Peterson is a GP, so is her errant husband, Miles….she is at the end of her tether with his constant philandering…the pressure is clearly affecting her mental health.
Andrew works at the local paper….and when checking on his colleague, he finds her body with a horrific wound…
There’s also Jenny, new to the area also working at the paper, she had an affair with Miles a few years earlier…..her brother, Jason is schizophrenic and reducing his meds and hearing voices….
Molly, has prescient visions and tells friends Andrew and Gina about them…can she see who the murderer is?
Other bodies turn up with the same wound….who is murdering these women?
There are many characters and secrets is this wonderfully original thriller with its range of characters from quirky to downright psychotic….incredibly tense and while you do know who the killer is quite early….it still keeps you on tenterhooks as to who will survive….the final chapters are gasp inducing….Brilliant
Thank you to Anne Cater and Random Things Tours for the opportunity to participate in this blog tour and for the promotional materials and a free copy of the book in exchange for my honest, unbiased review.
Charlotte Peterson is a GP, so is her errant husband, Miles….she is at the end of her tether with his constant philandering…the pressure is clearly affecting her mental health.
Andrew works at the local paper….and when checking on his colleague, he finds her body with a horrific wound…
There’s also Jenny, new to the area also working at the paper, she had an affair with Miles a few years earlier…..her brother, Jason is schizophrenic and reducing his meds and hearing voices….
Molly, has prescient visions and tells friends Andrew and Gina about them…can she see who the murderer is?
Other bodies turn up with the same wound….who is murdering these women?
There are many characters and secrets is this wonderfully original thriller with its range of characters from quirky to downright psychotic….incredibly tense and while you do know who the killer is quite early….it still keeps you on tenterhooks as to who will survive….the final chapters are gasp inducing….Brilliant
Thank you to Anne Cater and Random Things Tours for the opportunity to participate in this blog tour and for the promotional materials and a free copy of the book in exchange for my honest, unbiased review.
September 29, 2020
I thought this novel had a very clever concept but for me there was just too much going on.
I would have preferred a pared down story, fewer characters and less action.
I would have preferred a pared down story, fewer characters and less action.
May 27, 2019
I was so thrilled to be one of the first to read Blood List, the début thriller by Ali Carter. What a fabulous and exciting read it was!
One of the reasons it was so appealing was its setting. I loved the author’s descriptions of Kirkdale, a beautiful and picturesque, quiet village lying between lake Kirkwater and Kirkby Pike. I have visited Cumbria on several occasions so the setting was quite special for me.
Blood List had an enthralling plot and Ali Carter displayed some amazing writing skill with her perfect pacing of the story and my goodness, there was never a dull moment! I didn’t want to stop reading this novel. The characters that the author created were so masterfully drawn and I often felt that I was in the village of Kirkdale eating shepherd’s pie with them!
I didn’t really have a favourite character, but I grew rather fond of Andrew with his kind and caring nature, as the story progressed. I even found the sarcasm and abrupt manner of ex Met. Officer Harry Longbridge quite endearing as well, although I wasn’t keen on his passion for barley sugars.
Blood List was an intense, highly absorbing story full of angst, hatred, obsession and mental anxiety issues but it was also rich in friendship and the importance of looking out for one another. I really enjoyed reading every page of the wonderful début, from the very first pages right through to its fulfilling ending.
If thrillers are one of your favoured genres then I strongly recommend that you get yourself a copy of Blood List as I don’t think you’ll regret it.
I will be looking out for more by Ali Carter in the future.
I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my own request. This review is my own unbiased opinion.
One of the reasons it was so appealing was its setting. I loved the author’s descriptions of Kirkdale, a beautiful and picturesque, quiet village lying between lake Kirkwater and Kirkby Pike. I have visited Cumbria on several occasions so the setting was quite special for me.
Blood List had an enthralling plot and Ali Carter displayed some amazing writing skill with her perfect pacing of the story and my goodness, there was never a dull moment! I didn’t want to stop reading this novel. The characters that the author created were so masterfully drawn and I often felt that I was in the village of Kirkdale eating shepherd’s pie with them!
I didn’t really have a favourite character, but I grew rather fond of Andrew with his kind and caring nature, as the story progressed. I even found the sarcasm and abrupt manner of ex Met. Officer Harry Longbridge quite endearing as well, although I wasn’t keen on his passion for barley sugars.
Blood List was an intense, highly absorbing story full of angst, hatred, obsession and mental anxiety issues but it was also rich in friendship and the importance of looking out for one another. I really enjoyed reading every page of the wonderful début, from the very first pages right through to its fulfilling ending.
If thrillers are one of your favoured genres then I strongly recommend that you get yourself a copy of Blood List as I don’t think you’ll regret it.
I will be looking out for more by Ali Carter in the future.
I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my own request. This review is my own unbiased opinion.
October 3, 2023
Oh dear, where to start. Let me say I met the author at a fair in Norfolk, where she was plugging her books. Nice lady, although quite insistent for people to purchase all her books, not just one as a taster. I also understand this is her first book - so she was presumably on a learning curve. I also seem to see it differently from most of the reviewers so far. Because, it's not great. I did finish it, but only by leaping great chunks to get to the end - and that was mostly because having met her, I felt I owed it to her in some weird way to finish, rather than abandon a third of the way in.
Firstly, it's a bit 'creative writing 101' - no natural flair with the craft of writing thrillers. Plodding writing - both language and plot. Couldn't engage with any of the characters, many were either too twee for words, or had a paper-thin characterisation. The use of italics drove me to DISTRACTION. Almost every page was dripping with weird italicisation - of inner thoughts, of emphasis, or just because we hadn't had a few for a while? Some odd words - someone's coat swayed 'gothicly' about them?
Psycho GP - could have been interesting, but actually wasn't, and because I was skipping about at the end, I didn't really understand (or care about) the ins and outs of the sub-plot on families, but it was fairly ridiculous.
So huge apologies to the very nice lady author, but this one very definitely wasn't for me.
Firstly, it's a bit 'creative writing 101' - no natural flair with the craft of writing thrillers. Plodding writing - both language and plot. Couldn't engage with any of the characters, many were either too twee for words, or had a paper-thin characterisation. The use of italics drove me to DISTRACTION. Almost every page was dripping with weird italicisation - of inner thoughts, of emphasis, or just because we hadn't had a few for a while? Some odd words - someone's coat swayed 'gothicly' about them?
Psycho GP - could have been interesting, but actually wasn't, and because I was skipping about at the end, I didn't really understand (or care about) the ins and outs of the sub-plot on families, but it was fairly ridiculous.
So huge apologies to the very nice lady author, but this one very definitely wasn't for me.
July 11, 2020
The captivating characters, intriguing plot and sub-plots, and beautiful setting of this novel soon had me hooked and losing sleep as I had to know what happened next.
The setting reminded me of Midsomer Murders – but with a massive rush of adrenaline. Saying that, there was nothing cozy about this gripping tale of revenge by a serial killer intent on causing mayhem in the town, and wiping out anyone perceived as a threat.
Just when I thought I knew what was going to happen next, the author added another unexpected twist.
I was surprised when a character set off in a direction I hadn’t expected, yet the author skilfully entwined the sub-plots which was extremely satisfying and exciting. It was also a clever way of demonstrating how our past can influence our future and form characteristics that aren’t always obvious to others.
A fabulous read, highly recommended for lovers of crime and psychological thrillers.
The setting reminded me of Midsomer Murders – but with a massive rush of adrenaline. Saying that, there was nothing cozy about this gripping tale of revenge by a serial killer intent on causing mayhem in the town, and wiping out anyone perceived as a threat.
Just when I thought I knew what was going to happen next, the author added another unexpected twist.
I was surprised when a character set off in a direction I hadn’t expected, yet the author skilfully entwined the sub-plots which was extremely satisfying and exciting. It was also a clever way of demonstrating how our past can influence our future and form characteristics that aren’t always obvious to others.
A fabulous read, highly recommended for lovers of crime and psychological thrillers.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews