Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

DCI Michael Yorke Thriller #1-3

DCI Yorke Boxset 1: Novels 1-3

Rate this book

Join DCI Michael Yorke and his team as they tackle some of the most heinous serial killers the UK has ever seen. This terrific boxset brings together Wes Markin's first three bestselling novels in the terrifying and shocking DCI Yorke series.

Book 1: One Last Prayer for the Rays.

School should be the safest place in the world. Not this winter.

Detective Michael Yorke faces his most harrowing case yet.

When 12-year-old Paul disappears from school, Yorke’s only clue is a pool of animal blood. Fearing the worst, he turns toward the most obvious suspect, recently released local murderer, Thomas Ray.

But as the snow in Salisbury worsens, Ray’s mutilated body is discovered, and Yorke is left with no choice but to journey into the sinister heart of a demented family that has plagued the community for generations. Can he save the boy? Or will the evil he discovers change him forever?

Book 2: The Repenting Serpent

A vicious serial killer slithers from the darkness, determined to resurrect the ways of a long-dead civilisation.

When the ex-wife of one of DCI Michael Yorke’s closest allies is left mutilated and murdered, Yorke and his team embark on their greatest test yet. A  deeply personal case that will push them to their very limits. 

And as Yorke’s team are pulled further into the dark, the killer circles, preparing to strike again. 

Book 3: The Silence of Severance

Your wedding day should be the most unforgettable day of your life. And this is one wedding that will never be forgotten.

When a police officer’s wedding day ends in brutality and chaos, DCI Michael Yorke is pulled away from his own wedding and into the bloodiest chain of events Wiltshire has ever seen.

As a heatwave tightens its grip on Salisbury, Yorke and his team face a race against time to find the most sinister and intelligent adversary they have ever faced. Christian Severance. But as the team chase Severance into the shadows of a dark past, Yorke’s own history starts to drag itself into the present. 

Can they stop Christian Severance before he achieves the unthinkable? And will Yorke survive the revelations that claw at him from the darkness?

Praise for One Last Prayer for the Rays:

"An explosive and visceral debut with the most terrifying of killers. Wes Markin is a new name to watch out for in crime fiction, and I can't wait to see more of Detective Yorke."  – Bestselling Crime Author Stephen Booth

‘A pool of blood, an abduction, swirling blizzards, a haunting mystery, yes, Wes Markin’s One Last Prayer for the Rays has all the makings of an absorbing thriller. I recommend that you give it a go.’ – Bestselling Author Alan Gibbons 

‘Wes Markin has created a really high energy novel that I just want to rave about everywhere.

Kindle Edition

Published November 1, 2022

1770 people are currently reading
378 people want to read

About the author

Wes Markin

35 books228 followers
Be sure to follow Wes on BookBub for the latest on sales: bit.ly/3tFWIHL

Wes Markin lives in Harrogate and is the bestselling author of the DCI Yorke crime novels set in Salisbury. He is also the author of the Jake Pettman series set in New England.



Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
929 (54%)
4 stars
485 (28%)
3 stars
190 (11%)
2 stars
61 (3%)
1 star
53 (3%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 57 reviews
Profile Image for Elaine .
649 reviews7 followers
January 22, 2021
I agree with several reviewers that the books are pretty graphic and gory but I dare you to quit reading. The plots are gripping and twisted and I did not guess what the final outcome would be. The first book, Pray for the Rays, has a complex and clever plot with the evil that lies within the Ray family. DCI Yorke gets caught in the middle when the murders start and he has to sort out all the potential motives and suspects, since many people dislike the Ray family. I liked the other police characters, although most are not fleshed out too completely. All in all these are good police stories that are compelling, well written and at time gruesome.
1,388 reviews21 followers
March 20, 2022
4⭐️
Gore score 5/5

On the surface a traditional style police procedural set in Wiltshire. It becomes anything but your regular police procedural as it soon descends into the depths of depravity and death. These books are not for the faint hearted. If you hang out on the dark side of the gore score you will love them.
I do enjoy the dark gritty goriness of the author. However I don’t like the animal abuse scenes in book #1

As the author has an over riding arc for the trilogy it’s good that they are packaged as a box set as there isn’t a totally clean ending until the last book.

They are fast paced. There is plenty going on. The characters have decent depth, they all have issues. There wasn’t any that I totally engaged with Lacey was the most interesting. I would like to see more emotional content. Book 1 is my favourite.

The narrator Aubrey Parsons I feel does an ok job with the array of voices, not so great with the female voices. He adds a good level of tension.
There’s a couple of errors, don’t know if typos or mispronunciation.

Book 1, One Last Prayer for the Rays 4.5⭐️
Book 2 The repenting Serpent 3.5⭐️
Book3 silence of Severance my least favourite 3.5⭐️
Profile Image for Alice Long.
45 reviews3 followers
January 1, 2022
Great Writer

Catches your attention at the very beginning and keeps it. Some things don’t turn out like a fairy tale so it is more real.
14 reviews
December 8, 2019
DCI Yorke I choose five stars since that was the highest praise listed,but if ten were available for this review it still would fall short of whst it deserves. I felt as if I was watching a pbs broadcast of a BBC drama. Anyone who enjoys police procedurals or is a fan of psychological thrillers won't be able to put this down.I highly recommend these books and look forward to finding out what is next for DCI Yorke..

I have given this boxset five stars since that was the highest praise listed,but if ten were available for this review it still would fall short of the praise it should receive.
I felt like I was watching a pbs broadcast of a BBC drama.
Anyone who enjoys police procedurals or psychological thrillers won't be able to put this down.
71 reviews1 follower
March 1, 2020
I am always a bit wary of reading a new writer and this was the same. The first few chapters got off to a slow start in as much as getting to know the characters and who is who however the story line more than made up for it. There is a slight underlying theme running through all 3 books but it is quite subtle. Some of the events are quite horrific and did have me putting my hand to my mouth in certain places. This resulted in you never knowing what was going to happen next and wanting to keep on reading.

For a first outing as an author this is top notch and I can't wait for the next trilogy.
Profile Image for Dave Bate.
148 reviews2 followers
May 31, 2020
I can't recommend this boxset enough, absolutely brilliant. What a clever and complicated mind Wes Markin has. All DCI Yorke's team are individuals and their characterisation unfolds in these stories, each could easily have a book written for each of them. The storlines are mindblowing, maybe a little unbelievable but are very cleverly written and keeps you hooked. Five stars pah, I could give ten stars and counting.
Profile Image for susan green.
69 reviews
February 19, 2020
Brilliant

Dci yorke is a copper driven by the need for justice, his reason s become clearer as you get through the trilogy.
A bit more background at the beginning would have been nice but the stories are well written and well thought out.
I really enjoyed the different characters and grew to love them as the books progressed.
This author is one to watch💖
8 reviews
May 26, 2020
All characters add to the suspense

Each book draws you into the next. Shows the closeness of the police figures. Emotions and gory scenes keep you hoping the police get there in time.
Profile Image for Caroline Heron.
23 reviews
June 16, 2020
I was sceptical at first as I always am when reading a new author but I was quickly sucked into the plot and invested in the characters. They're very well thought out and pieced together, there's just the right amount of suspense. I thoroughly enjoyed reading these books, now on to book 4!
68 reviews
July 3, 2020
Excellent series

A new author for me and one I am hooked on. The stories are edge of your seat police procedurals crime thriller and horror all rolled into one with most amazing characters. I love this series.
Profile Image for Nadine.
32 reviews1 follower
September 7, 2021
The lost art of editing

Spoiler alert

Reading these books, I lost focus correcting every single typo, fundamental grammar and syntax error and instance of unrepentant purple prose. I got to a point where I was not reading so much as waiting for the next mistake and this detracted from reading the books.

At times, distinctive paragraphs are copy and pasted in different places – for instance, a description of Joe Ray’s business in One Last Prayer for the Rays is used as exposition first and then dialogue later, but not from the perspective of the same character, and the text is identical.

Unfortunately, issues with showing vs telling also plague the books because the books just aren’t very good and the author has yet to hone his craft.

If I have read on page 2 of the Repenting Serpent that DCI Yorke’s girlfriend is Patricia the coroner, don’t repeat both facts again on page 5. Seriously. Stop it. If you want to write good books people will genuinely read and enjoy, edit your books! I could take a red pen or backspace to this trilogy, trim 100 pages from it and it would be a much tighter read. Do it! More words does not equal better quality. In this case, it drops quality significantly.

One Last Prayer for the Rays almost was not read past the first two chapters because of the decision to introduce a cast of thousands in the opening pages. I honestly did not remember most of those names till much later on, and it was a pretty clear rookie move.

Fewer adverbs, fewer adjectives, and stop explaining everything repeatedly. Enough with the only, very, already, just. Weasel words are not your friend. Explain once. Drop a clue here or there. Don’t engineer dialogue where characters say things just for the benefit of the readers that characters would never say because in real life people don’t talk about things they already know as if they amnesiacs and need reminding of 100% of the facts.

Moreover, ok: Seriously, be different. Extreme violence is getting boring. Crime novels are becoming almost like pornography in that it seems like some authors assume that consumers need more extreme content to satisfied so they turn up the volume on the gore. The problem with this is that at a certain point there’s nowhere else to go. Sometimes you need to find a way to write police procedural and crime generally without just assuming that the violent aspects are the way to turn up the volume.

I found myself mentally backspacing to delete all the instances where we’re given the exact same detail again and again and again and again and again. There’s a huge reliance on adverbs and descriptive language generally, and the antagonists are fairly cliched.

One Last Prayer for the Rays generally failed to live up to the hype. Lacey Ray in particular felt like an unsuccessful recreation of Chelsea Cain’s Gretchen Lowell, and in a time where our villains include Villanelle, this is problematic. She reads just poorly and at times I found her laughable. DCI Yorke has the approximate personality equivalent of wet cardboard and I struggled to care about the fates of anyone in book.

Where to start with Jake Pettmann and Sheila in One Last Prayer for the Rays. Well, we have a cop who is sleeping on the couch for no apparent reason. His wife is secretly pregnant. His wife secretly does love him and wants to tell him about her pregnancy, but in all her scenes with him she is unrealistically antagonistic and there are no logical or sensible reasons given for their dispute prior to the start of the series. Sheila is then portrayed as punishing him further because Lacey Ray, nutter butter extraordinaire, sent her a sex tape that, for the record author, sounds like it is technically child pornography containing said cop. Well, here’s the thing. None of this reads true. Especially not Pettmann’s utter subservience and total spinelessness in the face of accusation. He’s been accused of wrongdoing incorrectly, but the reader is meant to believe that an innocent person wouldn’t feel any righteous anger whatsoever but would instead just beg like a dog, even agreeing to throw down their career and all. This is appalling. If I were Jake, I’d be the one filing for divorce. Women are capable of abusive behaviour and in this case Sheila is being emotionally abusive towards Jake and we’re, what? Going oh lol marriage? No. Sheila is a dreadful person!

Unfortunately, the character profiles and arcs largely read like this throughout the box set and there’s not a huge degree of improvement. Maybe there are novels in there somewhere, but I struggle to find them because they’re so overwritten.
Profile Image for Viragored.
168 reviews
October 30, 2024
This arrived as a freebie via Bookbub, and I'm glad I didn't pay any money for it. Usually I read a book that I've started and I did finish 'One last prayer', the first story in this set. I won't be reading any more of them.

I began to feel disappointed with the storyline as the "Detective Chief Inspector" started running around like a new recruit and not a senior police detective. It wasn't long before he was jumping to conclusions that just happened to be right. The editing had failed to pick up some clunkers, such as when two characters are in a car with A in the driving seat, but it turns out B is driving.

But my main gripe is with the style and quality of the writing. There are too many wrong words, from the simplest mixups (to, too; there, their; and more) to the more ambitious (nuzzle, muzzle for instance). Commas are thrown in by the handful, some landing in suitable places but many not. I would not be surprised if the author spends time Googling for phrases to pad out sentences, leading to some bizarre combinations such as, 'the expression on her withered face burst open like a salted slug'.

And is there really such a thing as 'a cottage pie with a grating Birmingham accent'?
230 reviews3 followers
September 19, 2020
A very driven detective. He has his demons that drive him on. Then some light in his darkness. He meets a doctor who understands his need to keep on til the end.
Too good to be true?
Enjoyed these well written stories and the back story to the main characters. It let's u understand them without it intruding on the storyline, rather it adds to it.
No spoilers. You need to read to go on this journey. However, I will say there are thrills, spills and surprises all through this set. I have already bought the other books to complete the set, so far.
Profile Image for Trudy.
100 reviews4 followers
August 8, 2021
Too far over the top for me!

I do recognize that there is a big market for the dark and horrifying, and for that group it's a great series. The mechanics of the story is mostly functional, though the author has an annoying tendency to slip in the occasional wrong word that doesn't express what's happening or what a character may be doing.

I wouldn't recommend binge reading this series, even if you love this genre, as elements that are surprising in a single read soon become repetitive and a bit irritating.
133 reviews2 followers
August 26, 2021
Absolutely Brilliant

What a trilogy. A compelling page Turner.
Three differing physiological thrillers, quite prescriptive and gory but brilliantly written. Although quite detailed and researched in places, you never get word blind under it all.
I wasn't sure what to expect from this box set especially being a first time reader of Wes Markin; normally I wouldn't read the next follow up as there are other crime books to catch up on, but with these being a box set, it was worthy a go and wasn't disappointed.
So give it a go, just brilliant.
Profile Image for Nancy.
25 reviews
November 5, 2022
It won’t let you go into minus numbers for these ratings, but 1⭐️ is probably fair, because it is well written overall and fairly well plotted. If it hadn’t been Halloween season I would have quit sometime in the second of the three books. This is the “Gom Jabbar” of police mysteries… How much pain, physical suffering and mental anguish can you take? It made me consider the meaning of the word “perversion” and that’s not fun. I’m sure there could be people like this in the world, but…
Profile Image for Beth.
355 reviews31 followers
February 21, 2020
Wow!

This series grabbed me and wouldn’t let go! They’re grittier than I normally read, but I couldn’t stop. The plots were complex and engrossing. I like DCI Yorke and his team. My only wish is that bad things not happen to the characters. You have to look forward to seeing them again.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
881 reviews9 followers
September 29, 2020
All three books in the set are fantastic reads. I rated them 5*, 4* and 5 * respectively. Wes Markin is an exceptional writer. He knows how to draw you in and keep you there. Very creative storylines, interesting strong characters, intriguing plots, descriptive, twisty, nail biting..... yep, a darn good box set and very original. Well worth reading. Highly recommended.
28 reviews
September 30, 2020
Hard Hitting

A really gritty, hard hitting series with both loveable and gruesome characters. Shows the hard and sometimes unbearable life of our amazing police force. A mixture of evil and unfortunate criminals creating havoc for the overworked heroes. Not for the fainthearted but a truly memorable experience.
Profile Image for Suzanne.
131 reviews
October 15, 2020
Well worth the read

I was fortunate enough to read the three box set. Each book features DCI Michael York and his team solving some interesting and gruesome murders. The endings are not predictable. The stories are written with a deep understanding of the human condition and reflect the torment of both the side of good and the side of evil.
47 reviews
November 18, 2020
Twists and turns and very real characters

DCI Yorke and the other police officers are developed as realistic people with very human lives. That experience a whole range of human emotions. The stories are filled with lots of twists and turns and you cannot predict all of the outcomes.
Profile Image for Geraldine M.
254 reviews1 follower
January 13, 2021
Long

I looked forward to these books and yet they didn't just.fly by and keep my interest. I didn't care for Books 1 or.3. Book 3/was tedious and I.felt.like each page I.turned was a repeat and then all of.A sudden in the last.15minutes the book was.done. I expected better. Some.of the p!ot's were.good but.not.enough to.carry the story. Sorry. Maybe you'll like.it.better.
Profile Image for Donna.
378 reviews4 followers
May 11, 2021
Excellent start to a series

I read straight through this 3 book set, loved it! The characters were strongly written and likeable, there was just the right blend of the policing story and the characters personal stories, I even got a bit tears a couple of times! Can’t wait to read more.
34 reviews
February 3, 2020
Really enjoyed these books.

Diving right into the lives off the officers the author brings many connected and parallel crimes to be solved.It's way to become invested in all off the stories and the series it's well worth your time!
180 reviews
May 4, 2020
Well written crime series

Thoroughly enjoyed this box set. Fast paced and unpredictable. Liked the fact that there was a thread which interlinked them. Can't wait to read others by the author.
135 reviews1 follower
August 17, 2020
Lousy Plots

All three, same nonsense. Someone killing cops and their families. And always someone from the past. Can't this twit come up with anything new? And absolutely no.humor. Dry as dust.
310 reviews
August 24, 2020
DCI Yorke

Why do you need to work, as it ruins the moments of a good book every time I squished 1 more page in before going to bed or getting ready work

Keep writing like this and you author will
Never go skint
Profile Image for Aparna J.
430 reviews5 followers
September 30, 2020
Very interesting read.

The three books were too good. There are some loose ends that need to be connected in the last book of the series like What happened to Mayers. Otherwise a definite thriller and worth reading.
21 reviews
October 4, 2020
A very good read

The crimes in these stories are of a particularly gruesome nature. Still waiting and watching as Michael Yorke worked to get the criminals dead or alive was a pleasure.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 57 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.