MURDER BY FIRE a gripping crime mystery full of twists (DI Hillary Greene Book 10)

Not sure if I'm so familiar with the series or if the plot was too simple,but I knew immediately who the murderer was. I also knew why ,as soon as the character made an appearance. Continued to the end only because I wanted to know what was happening in the lives of Hilary and the members of the team. Much of the changes were disappointing. Will continue with the next book to see if new characters will be as interesting.

Faith Martin was been writing these books for a while. Each one gets better. She writes some of the best characters. She just keeps everything moving along. Once I start one of her books I can't put it down.

Enjoyed books 1-11. Fast paced storytelling with well thought out characters. Great books to read if you are an aspiring crime writer. Solid format that is predictable but still engaging to the end. Each of the books is progressively better written.

These books are addictive. I stayed up all night reading this one as soon as it became available. The crime and the police work weren’t all that intriguing (the identification of the murderer was fairly obvious and it’s a wonder it took DI Greene so long to figure it out) but it was more interesting to see what happened with Hillary’s team because so much was left unresolved at the end of the last novel. Did waste of space Ross really leave? Did Mel Mallow’s widow survive the investigation? What is the Yorkie Bar planning? What about Constable Barrington....will he make a decision? And what nefarious plan does Supt. Vane have in mind? All these questions were answered, more or less, but there were still some major developments left for the next episode, er volume, which I hope will come out soon!

Mrs Vivienne Chard went outside to hang up her laundry one morning and smelled a fire from next door. She calls neighbour, David Merchant, but he does not answer. She dials nine, nine, nine... When police respond, they find Merchant's body in the middle of a bonfire... DI Hillary Greene and her team are assigned to investigate the murder...Detective Constable Mark Chang has been assigned to work with DI Hillary Greene's team (DS Frank Ross was forced into retirement)...I read along and followed the investigation with Hillary and her team. I could not even come up with a suspect for the murder. There were the usual twists and turns and a few surprises in store before the big reveal. I never suspected the real killer and that is what makes a great mystery!AfterThought: The end of the book was interesting and I am curious to see how that part of the storyline plays out...

DI Greene has done it again and solved yet another fiery murder mystery. Yet it seems she has created a vacuum with only her in it (to hear her say it). There are more books coming, Hillary, you can't do that. Well, off to the next great read. See Ya, Hillary. Jackfire

As usual, Faith Martin has written a twisty story. You may know the killer before the end, but you never know the reason until the end in these books. I love them.

A thoroughly enjoyable novel, not that Faith Martin writes any other kind. I picked out the killer early but the details took me a while. As I have said before, I love the way the author takes her protagonists down rabbit trails like real cops before she reveals the true villain. I love the way she interweaves long plot threads in amongst the ones that will be exposed in the current book.Hillary has a new team member and a boss that doesn't have her best interests in mind. Add in a difficult case and she has her hands full.

In this tenth outing in the series, DI Hillary Greene has more than a puzzling murder to contend with. But that’s the joy of this series – there’s always plenty of conflict and challenge in the backstory. This time, it’s the members of her team posing the problems.When David Merchant’s badly burned body is discovered in his back garden, it’s evident he was murdered first. A Christian man with strong convictions, he upset a lot of the people he met with his views and beliefs. But why would anyone want to kill him?The lack of a clear motive leaves the team with a struggle on their hands. Meanwhile, Barrington has relationship problems that are taking his mind off the investigation. David Chang, a bright new recruit to the team is targeted by a local gang. Then there’s Janine, who’s just given birth, dealing with an internal investigation into her conduct.And if that’s not enough to distract Hillary, her superintendent, Brian Vane, still has a grudge to settle with her.Many of the issues are resolved, some at a personal cost to Hillary. But true to form, she finds the missing link that enables her to solve Merchant’s murder. All she has to do now is solve her own problems.I love the characters, the interplay between them and the way their conflicts and challenges are woven into the murder investigation. At times, the problems facing the characters seem to eclipse the murder investigation, but that’s the strength of these novels.Looking forward to Hillary’s eleventh adventure, especially after the surprise ending to this one.

This is book #10 in the brilliant Hillary Greene series. I first read this episode some 4 years ago and I still enjoyed revisiting it. Indeed, I couldn't put my Kindle down.Hillary is trying to save her career after recent controversy. A devout christian is found burnt to death in a bonfire in his own back garden. Hillary discovers greedy business partners. Are they the clue she needs? An interesting plot!If you have liked previous books in this series, you'll enjoy this one too 👌😁👌

I feel rather sorry for Faith Martin. Because her army of fans, me included, love the Hillary Greene series so much and cannot wait to read the next book, it must put relentless pressure on her all the time , so much so that I am becoming increasingly alarmed that she may consider ' doing away ' with Hillary altogether, and the ending of this story clearly indicates that maybe this could be the beginning of the end for DI Greene's career in the police force !Time will tell, but since we now know the series will continue from 11 to 17 maybe her detecting talent will progress in another direction which will no doubt prove to be as compulsive reading as the last ten books.Murder by Fire had me guessing right to the end with a startling twist in the tale which I never saw coming, and I eagerly await the publication of no. 11.No pressure though Faith.

This year I decided that I was only going to read light crime novels and Faith Martin's Hillary Greene police series fit the bill perfectly. Neatly written -- dialogue particularly good I think -- a likeable heroine and believable sub-characters with plots that are not particularly challenging but quite pleasing, I have only a couple of reservations. First is the author's seeming obsession with her characters' hair colours and styles. Second is her own obvious predilection for 'trouser suits' and faux silk blouses. in which she continually dresses her female characters. Really quite irritating and totally unnecessary. A good editor should have picked these up. Also, while each book in the series sort of stands on its own, one should ideally start with the first in the series and work ones way through them in order. So saying, they are an enjoyable read.

The Hillary Greene novels never disappoint. The characters outside the police station, whether criminals or law-abiding citizens are always convincing. One of the highlights for me is Faith Martin's acutely accurate observation of people and places that surround her.We've grown accustomed to the various mix of police personnel with whom she shares her quest to solve yet another murder mystery. Different players move in and out of focus, some are either killed off or they move on to pastures new. That's life.In this tale, many of the familiar elements were on show. A new arrival, DC Chang was introduced with a story thread that involved Chinese thugs. Just for once, this felt less convincing than in previous books in the series. As for the murderer, well I won't spoil the fun, but it wasn't the hardest matter to work out given the character of the victim.Every long-running series has a hiccup. Not quite 5* this time, but still a must-read for Hillary Greene fans.