What do you think?
Rate this book
Detective Inspector Temple #1
Watch Her Die
Please note this book was originally published as Death Watch.
HE WATCHED HER DIE.
Who murdered Greta Ashton-Jones? This beautiful married woman is found naked, strangled and tied to her bed. Who’s been watching her and taking pictures of her? Who needed to kill her — and why?
Detective Inspector Temple investigates. It’s not the straightforward ‘domestic murder’ he’s been told. Written off by a boss who’s relegated him to the back office, he knows he has to find her killer and fast, but he soon has trouble of his own.
He’s on the wrong side of the law trying to protect himself and his family when a dangerous criminal with a vendetta is released from prison. As things go wrong, losing his job is the least of his problems.
Temple uncovers a tangled web of deceit, betrayal and blackmail which leads him to a depraved undercover world.
HE WATCHED HER DIE.
Who murdered Greta Ashton-Jones? This beautiful married woman is found naked, strangled and tied to her bed. Who’s been watching her and taking pictures of her? Who needed to kill her — and why?
Detective Inspector Temple investigates. It’s not the straightforward ‘domestic murder’ he’s been told. Written off by a boss who’s relegated him to the back office, he knows he has to find her killer and fast, but he soon has trouble of his own.
He’s on the wrong side of the law trying to protect himself and his family when a dangerous criminal with a vendetta is released from prison. As things go wrong, losing his job is the least of his problems.
Temple uncovers a tangled web of deceit, betrayal and blackmail which leads him to a depraved undercover world.
346 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 23, 2018
659 people are currently reading
224 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 - 24 of 24 reviews
July 12, 2019
Please note this book was originally published as “Death Watch.”
DI Temple is called upon to investigate the murder of a woman who was found strangled in her bed. As usual, law enforcement first looks at the husband. In this instance, the husband has been out of the country.
It becomes a lot more complicated when the medical examiner sends a report showing the woman was 2 months pregnant. Her husband's? It also comes to light that the victim was seeing more than one man while her husband was gone. Of course, the husband was having his own affairs when he was traveling.
Too add more smoke and mirrors to Temple's life, a criminal with vengeance on his mind, is released from prison and immediately targets Temple. First his house is set afire .... the arsonist finds an unregistered in Temple's house .. he also finds a paper with his estranged wife's name and address.
DI Temple joined the police when, as a small child, found his mother who had been murdered. The crime was never solved. This has made him a dedicated detective, a bull dog who doesn't let go until justice is served. The same thing that has made the man, also have interfered with his personal life .. but he will go to great lengths to protect his family.
Lies and deceit, betrayal, blackmail .. this book has a little bit of everything that makes a gripping crime fiction. The author has brought her experience of working within the law enforcement world of investigating major crimes and creating a credible story.
Many thanks to the author / Joffe Books / Books n All Book Promotions. I received a digital copy of this crime fiction at no charge, I am leaving this review voluntarily. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.
DI Temple is called upon to investigate the murder of a woman who was found strangled in her bed. As usual, law enforcement first looks at the husband. In this instance, the husband has been out of the country.
It becomes a lot more complicated when the medical examiner sends a report showing the woman was 2 months pregnant. Her husband's? It also comes to light that the victim was seeing more than one man while her husband was gone. Of course, the husband was having his own affairs when he was traveling.
Too add more smoke and mirrors to Temple's life, a criminal with vengeance on his mind, is released from prison and immediately targets Temple. First his house is set afire .... the arsonist finds an unregistered in Temple's house .. he also finds a paper with his estranged wife's name and address.
DI Temple joined the police when, as a small child, found his mother who had been murdered. The crime was never solved. This has made him a dedicated detective, a bull dog who doesn't let go until justice is served. The same thing that has made the man, also have interfered with his personal life .. but he will go to great lengths to protect his family.
Lies and deceit, betrayal, blackmail .. this book has a little bit of everything that makes a gripping crime fiction. The author has brought her experience of working within the law enforcement world of investigating major crimes and creating a credible story.
Many thanks to the author / Joffe Books / Books n All Book Promotions. I received a digital copy of this crime fiction at no charge, I am leaving this review voluntarily. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.
October 21, 2019
Watch Her Die is book one in the Detective Inspector Temple Mystery by Deborah Lucy. Greta Ashton-Jones body found naked, strangled and tied to her bed. Uninspected Inspector Temple caught the case, and he needs to find the killer quickly. However, the case was not a simple domestic that everyone thought and to make it more difficult for Inspector Temple when an old enemy of his release from jail who wants him dead. The readers of Watch Her Die will continue to follow Inspector Temple to find out what happens.
Watch Her Die is the first book I have read of Deborah Lucy, and I enjoyed this book. I like that Deborah Lucy portrays her characters with flaws. It allows me to engage more with the characters. Watch Her die is well written and researched by Deborah Lucy. I like the description of the setting of this book it enables me to picture myself living in Wiltshire County.
The readers of Watch Her Die will find out what happens to law enforcement officers who suffered a trauma as a child and how it affects their lives. Also, the readers of Watch Her Die will learn about Cyclothymia and how it affects the suffers.
I recommend this book.
Watch Her Die is the first book I have read of Deborah Lucy, and I enjoyed this book. I like that Deborah Lucy portrays her characters with flaws. It allows me to engage more with the characters. Watch Her die is well written and researched by Deborah Lucy. I like the description of the setting of this book it enables me to picture myself living in Wiltshire County.
The readers of Watch Her Die will find out what happens to law enforcement officers who suffered a trauma as a child and how it affects their lives. Also, the readers of Watch Her Die will learn about Cyclothymia and how it affects the suffers.
I recommend this book.
July 12, 2019
Great first in series
Deborah Lucy is a new author to Joffe Books publishers and also to me so I was interested to read the books which sounded very good.
Greta is married to Maxwell but neither are faithful and the story begins with Greta being tied to the bed as part of a sex game. She is later found dead by her cleaner.
Detective Temple is SIO of the case but his life is in crisis and his superior officer has an axe to grind with Temple which means Temple is not only under pressure to crack the case he also has to do it knowing that his every action is being scrutinised and criticised from above. This adds to the stress. He also has something others want, something he shouldn't have but he cant let them have it either and his family are threatened.
With all this going on and seemingly everyone out to get him can Temple hold it all together and solve the case?
I like Temple he is a flawed character but a realistic and interesting one. We learn about him gradually along the course of the book. He is leading a team but it isn't really a team because as well as being watched from above he also has people on his team who would love him to slip up.
This is a very intriguing book it moves along steadily and the reader is involved every step of the way along the twists, turns and dead ends of a very complex case. Even right up to the very end the story still has more to give as the conclusion is a real shock.
A very good read that I would recommend to readers who like Police Procedurals.
Deborah Lucy is a new author to Joffe Books publishers and also to me so I was interested to read the books which sounded very good.
Greta is married to Maxwell but neither are faithful and the story begins with Greta being tied to the bed as part of a sex game. She is later found dead by her cleaner.
Detective Temple is SIO of the case but his life is in crisis and his superior officer has an axe to grind with Temple which means Temple is not only under pressure to crack the case he also has to do it knowing that his every action is being scrutinised and criticised from above. This adds to the stress. He also has something others want, something he shouldn't have but he cant let them have it either and his family are threatened.
With all this going on and seemingly everyone out to get him can Temple hold it all together and solve the case?
I like Temple he is a flawed character but a realistic and interesting one. We learn about him gradually along the course of the book. He is leading a team but it isn't really a team because as well as being watched from above he also has people on his team who would love him to slip up.
This is a very intriguing book it moves along steadily and the reader is involved every step of the way along the twists, turns and dead ends of a very complex case. Even right up to the very end the story still has more to give as the conclusion is a real shock.
A very good read that I would recommend to readers who like Police Procedurals.
November 28, 2019
Good story but pretty standard type of police procedural with maybe some extra gore thrown in, I forget.
July 14, 2019
Please note this book was originally published as “Death Watch.”
The first in a new series featuring DI Temple, a detective working in Swindon, Wiltshire. He has a more than troubled past, right from being rescued from the scene of his mother's murder when he was seven (a case never solved and one which he is determined to get justice for) through a less than faithful marriage and bearing the career-long hatred of Chief Superintendent Clive Harker who blames him for his daughter turning to a life of crime and prostitution. He only gets given a case by Harker due to a shortage of staff. The case he is assigned to is the discovery of the body of Greta Ashton-Jones, a beautiful wealthy married woman who is found tied to her bed and strangled. He is given a small team to assist him, including Kelly Farmer, a bright police staff investigator (basically a civilian statement taker) and DS Simon Sloper, a nasty piece of work who spies for Harker and in return relies on him to get him out of any trouble, particularly when it comes to his rumoured involvement in some pretty shady dealings with the local drug dealers and pimps. Sloper's also there to keep tabs on Temple for Harker and give him any ammunition to use against the DI. He is also keen to get back to his dealings in Swindon where things have kicked off in a big way, so puts pressure on Temple to close off the case as soon as possible. Whilst the husband, an airline pilot, appears to be out of the frame for the murder, it looks like there are several quite good suspects since they discover that Greta had several lovers and may have been blackmailed by someone with a camera. Temple is not as sure as Sloper that it is purely a domestic crime. Added to that he has to cope with threats against himself and his family from a recently released criminal, a man who swore to get even with Temple, and also his wife wants a divorce so things are pretty fraught for the detective as he battles further into a murky world to bring the killer to justice. The author clearly knows her stuff and writes a great story. A few parts felt a little slow in places and I didn't always feel that I got to know some of the characters well enough but the action certainly stepped up towards the end and a great conclusion. 3.5*
The first in a new series featuring DI Temple, a detective working in Swindon, Wiltshire. He has a more than troubled past, right from being rescued from the scene of his mother's murder when he was seven (a case never solved and one which he is determined to get justice for) through a less than faithful marriage and bearing the career-long hatred of Chief Superintendent Clive Harker who blames him for his daughter turning to a life of crime and prostitution. He only gets given a case by Harker due to a shortage of staff. The case he is assigned to is the discovery of the body of Greta Ashton-Jones, a beautiful wealthy married woman who is found tied to her bed and strangled. He is given a small team to assist him, including Kelly Farmer, a bright police staff investigator (basically a civilian statement taker) and DS Simon Sloper, a nasty piece of work who spies for Harker and in return relies on him to get him out of any trouble, particularly when it comes to his rumoured involvement in some pretty shady dealings with the local drug dealers and pimps. Sloper's also there to keep tabs on Temple for Harker and give him any ammunition to use against the DI. He is also keen to get back to his dealings in Swindon where things have kicked off in a big way, so puts pressure on Temple to close off the case as soon as possible. Whilst the husband, an airline pilot, appears to be out of the frame for the murder, it looks like there are several quite good suspects since they discover that Greta had several lovers and may have been blackmailed by someone with a camera. Temple is not as sure as Sloper that it is purely a domestic crime. Added to that he has to cope with threats against himself and his family from a recently released criminal, a man who swore to get even with Temple, and also his wife wants a divorce so things are pretty fraught for the detective as he battles further into a murky world to bring the killer to justice. The author clearly knows her stuff and writes a great story. A few parts felt a little slow in places and I didn't always feel that I got to know some of the characters well enough but the action certainly stepped up towards the end and a great conclusion. 3.5*
March 1, 2020
I actually read the 2nd book in this series first as I was sent a review copy. Although I enjoyed it, I did have some reservations as to how good it actually was. However, when I found this one was available for free on Amazon Prime I thought I would give it a go. Sadly I found it was a real struggle and at times I did wonder whether I would ever get to the end. I feel there are too many mistakes, words missing and far too much irrelevant information. There is also a lot of repetition with whole blocks of information being repeated not more than a few paragraphs after it was originally mentioned.
There are many places where we have changed the scene or location with no breaks in the chapter, which makes the reader feel rushed and at times I was conscious of being made to read extremely fast and felt like I had no time to take it in. At other times I began to get bogged down with so much detail that I either lost interest or started to forget where the story was supposed to be going.
At the end of the day, although the story was interesting and there were quite a few good twists in the plot taking the reader on quite a journey of discovery, I was reasonably disappointed with the ending and not really keen to read any more.
There are many places where we have changed the scene or location with no breaks in the chapter, which makes the reader feel rushed and at times I was conscious of being made to read extremely fast and felt like I had no time to take it in. At other times I began to get bogged down with so much detail that I either lost interest or started to forget where the story was supposed to be going.
At the end of the day, although the story was interesting and there were quite a few good twists in the plot taking the reader on quite a journey of discovery, I was reasonably disappointed with the ending and not really keen to read any more.
December 15, 2024
This is not a straightforward detective investigating a murder story. For one thing, Detective Temple has a lot going on in his own life that goes back to when he, as a child, discovered his own mother's body. Her murder was never solved, prompting Temple to join the police later and keep investigating her killing while at the same time solving other crimes to assist victims of such tragedies. Unfortunately, he isn't thought too much of by his boss which makes his job more difficult when investigating the murder of a beautiful woman found naked, tied to her bed. 4 and a half stars
June 7, 2020
The central story is good but there were that many (equally good?) side stories it became confusing. There were sufficiently good side stories to be the back drop for books before and after this one that the main plot was diluted.
November 29, 2024
Watch Her Die
What to say about a book like this. The story line of course is about murder. Who did it. Could be any number of people. The ending will surprise you. A very good crime thriller.
What to say about a book like this. The story line of course is about murder. Who did it. Could be any number of people. The ending will surprise you. A very good crime thriller.
March 31, 2020
Watch her die
I enjoyed the book and it is well worth reading. Wouldn’t call it a page turner and I didn’t guess the ending. Felt it was a little slow in places.
I enjoyed the book and it is well worth reading. Wouldn’t call it a page turner and I didn’t guess the ending. Felt it was a little slow in places.
May 27, 2024
3.5*
Wasn't the best written novel but addictive crime easy read
Wasn't the best written novel but addictive crime easy read
November 23, 2024
It was a good police thriller, but I felt that it was a bit woolly in places with the narrative.
December 11, 2024
Brilliant reading, kept me on my toes throughout the whole book. I can't wit to read the next one. Exciting reading right to the end.
January 18, 2020
Great read
Very complex case involving a lot of intertwined people, resulting in a good psychological thriller. A page turner, that keeps you guessing
Very complex case involving a lot of intertwined people, resulting in a good psychological thriller. A page turner, that keeps you guessing
June 24, 2022
I re-read this as I had a ARC of the third in the series and I wanted the story to be fresh.
I’d forgotten how much I’d enjoyed it.
Temple plays a Detective with an interesting relationship with senior officers and his family. To says he’s troubled could be understating it but he’s no less likeable for that.
In this story, he’s dealing with a naked woman found tied to her bed with various lovers who could be responsible. Added to that, an assistant who’s reporting his every move to senior officers, a death in custody and a wife filing for divorce!
Despite evidence to the contrary, he’s not convinced they’ve got the right person and carries on investigating.
I’d forgotten how much I’d enjoyed it.
Temple plays a Detective with an interesting relationship with senior officers and his family. To says he’s troubled could be understating it but he’s no less likeable for that.
In this story, he’s dealing with a naked woman found tied to her bed with various lovers who could be responsible. Added to that, an assistant who’s reporting his every move to senior officers, a death in custody and a wife filing for divorce!
Despite evidence to the contrary, he’s not convinced they’ve got the right person and carries on investigating.
July 26, 2019
A n interesting storyline.
Well worth reading ,very procedural investigation and good characters.Some not very nice people and the crimes horrendous.Us reader's meet a lot of different characters from both sides with insights of their lives.The case is brought to a conclusion,Leaving it on a cliffhanger.I have book two which I look forward to reading,maybe it will finish it off and continue to expand more of the characters.😎😎
Well worth reading ,very procedural investigation and good characters.Some not very nice people and the crimes horrendous.Us reader's meet a lot of different characters from both sides with insights of their lives.The case is brought to a conclusion,Leaving it on a cliffhanger.I have book two which I look forward to reading,maybe it will finish it off and continue to expand more of the characters.😎😎
October 21, 2019
Well written
D I Temple seems to be between a rock and a hard space in this book . So much is going on took me a bit to get it all sorted out. A murder in the 1980s . A pending divorce . A woman found murdered and tied up in her bed . A foul tempered inspector breathing down his neck . The woman's life was very complicated . Oh, yes a touch of arson from someone he had locked up.
D I Temple seems to be between a rock and a hard space in this book . So much is going on took me a bit to get it all sorted out. A murder in the 1980s . A pending divorce . A woman found murdered and tied up in her bed . A foul tempered inspector breathing down his neck . The woman's life was very complicated . Oh, yes a touch of arson from someone he had locked up.
September 6, 2019
Complex
Good book,well crafted and set up for a series with unfinished questions..... main character is flawed and complex, male characters manipulative and females underplayed. Let us see what happens next....
Good book,well crafted and set up for a series with unfinished questions..... main character is flawed and complex, male characters manipulative and females underplayed. Let us see what happens next....
October 23, 2019
Great read!
If you enjoy a good murder/police procedure read, you will certainly like this one. So many people in the frame but, like a dog with a bone, Temple eventually gets his man!
If you enjoy a good murder/police procedure read, you will certainly like this one. So many people in the frame but, like a dog with a bone, Temple eventually gets his man!
July 29, 2019
I just couldn't get into this novel. For me, lack of compelling characters, "telling, not showing" and inadequate descriptions. It could just be me. I gave it 20% on my Kindle.
July 29, 2019
Great read
Enjoyed reading this book, good story and easy to get to know the characters. Look forward to reading the next one.
Enjoyed reading this book, good story and easy to get to know the characters. Look forward to reading the next one.
August 27, 2019
Gc
This was a very good read. Well written. From the beginning right to the very last page. Could not put it down. Very good recommendation.
This was a very good read. Well written. From the beginning right to the very last page. Could not put it down. Very good recommendation.
September 25, 2019
I didn't like it
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews