The Twisted Web by Rebecca Bradley
Detective Hannah Robbins Crime Series #4
277 pages
Genre: Crime/police procedural
My thanks to Emma from damp pebbles for the invitation to read and review the latest instalment in the Hannah Robbins series as part of the blog tour. All opinions here are my own and are unbiased.
Book Description:
A social media shaming. A killer with a message. A deadly
combination.
When the body of a man is left in the city centre set up as a realistic police crime scene, DI Hannah Robbins is forced to enter a world that can break a person, a case and a reputation.
Social media platforms light up and Hannah is pitted against the raging online monster and a killer who has already lost everything.
Can she catch the killer and put him behind bars or will she become part of his sadistic game?
When the body of a man is left in the city centre set up as a realistic police crime scene, DI Hannah Robbins is forced to enter a world that can break a person, a case and a reputation.
Social media platforms light up and Hannah is pitted against the raging online monster and a killer who has already lost everything.
Can she catch the killer and put him behind bars or will she become part of his sadistic game?
My Review:
This novel is the first of this author's work I have read, and having done so I will be revisiting earlier books in the series to sure up my knowledge of what has gone before in Detective Robbins' career. Fortunately there is sufficient information in this book to get a feel for prior events but I feel I want to know more for my own personal satisfaction.
The prologue of the book introduces us to disillusioned IT teacher Drew, and the events which led to the situation he finds himself in later in the novel. This truly is a novel of its time, with the whole story based in the 21st century social media society we live in, ruled by having to have an insta-perfect life and the ability for everyone to have their say on whatever subject they choose, whether it be a well-informed opinion or an inappropriate comment. The effects of these comments on the person/group which are their subject is rarely considered by their authors and I felt this book has certainly made me far more considerate in how I voice my own thoughts. Drew has beyond doubt had his whole life torn apart by the misinterpretation of events which happened on his way home from work one otherwise very ordinary day.
The main body of the book (pardon the pun) then opens with the discovery of a crime scene created not by the local constabulary but by the very blatant perpetrator of the crime themselves. A body on the steps of the local council building complete with evidence markers and crime scene tape has been placed for anyone to find. Early morning walkers have photographed the scene and uploaded the pictures to social media with no thought of who the man could be or the effect those pictures would have on his family and friends. The local DCI is seething that the scene has gone unnoticed by the authorities before the public have access to it; did nobody see this happen - what about the CCTV operators in the area? It should not be possible. The team are against the clock to try and limit the damage from and audience to this social media frenzy especially as they have no clues as to whether this is just the start of a sick campaign which may have more victims. Then when a local young woman with a huge Instagram following is found dead in another staged setting, the pressure really does step up and the officers realise they are facing a bigger challenge than they thought but it is good, old-fashioned detective work that finally gives them the answers they have been searching for.
Amongst the chapters involving the police activity and associated investigations we are given insights into the mind of the killer and their reasoning behind what they are doing. While it makes for some uncomfortable reading, one can kind of understand some of the logic especially knowing the background of what has tipped them over the edge. How the killer selected his victims from information freely available on the internet was actually rather scary and made me think about how much information I personally share online. With no single social media platform being singled out for individual criticism I thought this book has a very serious message imparted from its pages and I do hope that the message gets across and helps reduce the amount of online abuse that is casually thrown out there without a care.
Food for thought in a work of fiction which brings home the darker side of the web.
This novel is the first of this author's work I have read, and having done so I will be revisiting earlier books in the series to sure up my knowledge of what has gone before in Detective Robbins' career. Fortunately there is sufficient information in this book to get a feel for prior events but I feel I want to know more for my own personal satisfaction.
The prologue of the book introduces us to disillusioned IT teacher Drew, and the events which led to the situation he finds himself in later in the novel. This truly is a novel of its time, with the whole story based in the 21st century social media society we live in, ruled by having to have an insta-perfect life and the ability for everyone to have their say on whatever subject they choose, whether it be a well-informed opinion or an inappropriate comment. The effects of these comments on the person/group which are their subject is rarely considered by their authors and I felt this book has certainly made me far more considerate in how I voice my own thoughts. Drew has beyond doubt had his whole life torn apart by the misinterpretation of events which happened on his way home from work one otherwise very ordinary day.
The main body of the book (pardon the pun) then opens with the discovery of a crime scene created not by the local constabulary but by the very blatant perpetrator of the crime themselves. A body on the steps of the local council building complete with evidence markers and crime scene tape has been placed for anyone to find. Early morning walkers have photographed the scene and uploaded the pictures to social media with no thought of who the man could be or the effect those pictures would have on his family and friends. The local DCI is seething that the scene has gone unnoticed by the authorities before the public have access to it; did nobody see this happen - what about the CCTV operators in the area? It should not be possible. The team are against the clock to try and limit the damage from and audience to this social media frenzy especially as they have no clues as to whether this is just the start of a sick campaign which may have more victims. Then when a local young woman with a huge Instagram following is found dead in another staged setting, the pressure really does step up and the officers realise they are facing a bigger challenge than they thought but it is good, old-fashioned detective work that finally gives them the answers they have been searching for.
Amongst the chapters involving the police activity and associated investigations we are given insights into the mind of the killer and their reasoning behind what they are doing. While it makes for some uncomfortable reading, one can kind of understand some of the logic especially knowing the background of what has tipped them over the edge. How the killer selected his victims from information freely available on the internet was actually rather scary and made me think about how much information I personally share online. With no single social media platform being singled out for individual criticism I thought this book has a very serious message imparted from its pages and I do hope that the message gets across and helps reduce the amount of online abuse that is casually thrown out there without a care.
Food for thought in a work of fiction which brings home the darker side of the web.
Buy your copy here:
About the Author:
Rebecca is the author of four novels in the DI Hannah
Robbins series, Shallow Waters,
Made to be Broken, Fighting Monsters and The Twisted Web as
well as a standalone thriller, Dead Blind.
She lives with her family in the UK with their two
Cockapoos Alfie and Lola, who keep Rebecca company while she writes. Rebecca
needs to drink copious amounts of tea to function throughout the day and if she
could, she would survive on a diet of tea and cake while committing murder on a
regular basis.
After 16 years service, Rebecca was medically retired
from the police where she finished as a detective constable on a specialist
unit.
Rebecca now runs a consulting service where she supports
crime writers in making sure their fiction is authentic so they can get on with
telling a great story. You can find details of that HERE.
Social Media:
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/RebeccaJBradley
Website: https://www.rebeccabradleycrime.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebeccajbradley/
Amazon
Author Page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rebecca-Bradley/e/B00R9RVT98/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1
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