I’ve been meaning to read Val Penny’s Hunter’s series for absolutely ages so it gives me enormous pleasure to participate in the blog tour for Hunter’s Rules, the sixth book in the series, by sharing my review. My enormous thanks to Rachel of Rachel’s Random Resources, for inviting me to take part. Even better, there is currently a giveaway running, open internationally, for an e-copy of Hunter’s Rules and you’ll find details further down this blog post.

Val has previously featured on Linda’s Book Bag to celebrate the audio version of her thriller Hunter’s Chase here. I also reviewed her super book Let’s Get Published here.

Hunter’s Rules is available for purchase on Amazon UK and Amazon US.

Hunter’s Rules

When best-laid plans go awry…

Hunter and Meera’s romantic plans come to an abrupt end when they stumble into the scene of a crime.

A young woman was attacked in a hotel lift. She has traumatic injuries, but she clings to life. Hunter notes that her wounds are like those inflicted on two other women, who died from their ordeal.

Can Meera keep the injured woman alive long enough for her to identify the assailant? Is the same person responsible for all three crimes?

When Hunter is identified as a suspect, can he establish his innocence and lead his team to solve the crime and keep Edinburgh safe?

My Review of Hunter’s Rules

Hunter has a new case.

Having heard such good things about Val Penny’s crime writing I should have expected the dramatic start to Hunter’s Rules, but it took me by surprise at how quickly the story leaps into action, completely engaging the reader and compelling them to keep reading. I found it extremely exciting. Although Hunter’s Rules is the sixth book in the series and I haven’t read the others, I didn’t find myself at a disadvantage at all, although I was surprise that Hunter himself wasn’t as present as I had expected. Reading Hunter’s Rules has made me want to go back and read the series from the beginning to see how the characters have arrived at their current roles and relationships, because here is a cast of people I thoroughly enjoyed meeting.

Val Penny’s fast paced style is fabulous because the reader hardly has time to catch their breath. Val Penny is unafraid to use vernacular language that makes the characters feel very real and I found the touches of dark humour, that come through the character interplay, enhanced and alleviated the more gritty aspects of the story. I also loved the way the italicised sections from the perpetrator spoke directly to the reader because they added to the tension and creepiness and kept me guessing who it was. There’s also a feeling of positivity in Eileen that elevates Hunter’s Rules beyond a simple crime story. In Eileen we have a victim who refuses to be cowed by her experience and I found that very refreshing. Hunter’s Rules also presents the reader with the full range of society and I thought it very skilful that Val Penny made me like the rogues rather more than the social elite!

The plot simply races along and having struggled to settle to a book for a while I read Hunter’s Rules in one sitting which attests to the interest it provided. Because there’s such a dynamic plot, it’s quite hard to review Hunter’s Rules without giving too much away.

With themes of obsession and addiction, the reality of prison life, science and medicine, relationships and society, woven through the story, Hunter’s Rules is an exciting and entertaining read that I really enjoyed.

Giveaway

An E-copy of Hunter’s Rules

 

To celebrate Val Penny’s Hunter’s Rules blog tour there is a giveaway for an e-copy of the book. For your chance to enter, click here.

Please note this giveaway is independent of Linda’s Book Bag.

About Val Penny

Val Penny is the author of The Jane Renwick Thrillers. Her other crime novels, Hunter’s Chase, Hunter’s Revenge, Hunter’s Force, Hunter’s Blood and Hunter’s Secret form the bestselling series The Edinburgh Crime Mysteries. They are set in Edinburgh, Scotland, and are published by Darkstroke. Her first non-fiction book Let’s Get Published is also available now and she has most recently contributed her short story, Cats and Dogs to a charity anthology, Dark Scotland.

Val is an American author living in SW Scotland with her husband and their cat.

For more information about Val, visit her website or blog.  You’ll find Val on Goodreads, Twitter @valeriepenny, and Facebook.

There’s more with these other bloggers too: