From the beginning it’s clear that this is a gritty, fast paced novel which will involve fully drawn and vulnerable characters, graphic descriptions of torture and a focus on the psychological elements of police procedure involved in solving the crime.

The initial chapter is narrated by a murderer who explains their fascination with torture devices and describes murder as a ‘strange and exotic drama’. The detachment of the narrator is chilling as they claim that they were compelled to commit murder the first time, but soon afterwards began thinking about how they could do it better next time. The quotations at the beginning of each chapter reinforce this idea of murder as a type of art that can be worked on. The intelligence of the murderer is clear through their language and grammar; their cruelty is even clearer as they admire the minds of those who perfected torture devices.

Throughout the novel, the narrative shifts between this first person narrative and the third person narrative following the pursuit of this murderer. Intriguingly, the first person texts are clearly some kind of record of events, and although in this first narrative passage the murderer only really refers to this first murder, in the first real chapter we learn that three men are already dead. As the novel develops this time difference allows the reader to anticipate learning more about the terrible murders – each man was tortured and mutilated before being dumped, naked, in well-known gay cruising areas. This is not a novel for those with a sensitive stomach, but details are not gratuitous.

Tony Hill is the next character that we meet and he seems incredibly uncomfortable in his own skin, choosing which persona to try on in the morning. Gradually more characters are introduced from the police force, all of whom are involved in trying to solve the individual murders without admitting that there is a serial killer on the loose. Not everyone is happy with this situation and McDermid establishes a lot of tension between the law enforcement officials which is only escalated when Tony is taken as an official Psychological Profiler to help them catch this killer.

Characters’ motives and lives are skillfully drawn out, with just the right amount of information given to allow the reader to follow the twists and turns of the plot. A possible love interest is established early on, but Tony has some serious sexual hang-ups which create difficulties here, and the investigation quickly takes a very serious tone when the next victim turns out to be a little too familiar…

This is an effective psychological thriller which will keep you wondering until the end as the police have very few leads, just an increasingly detailed psychological profile, and the killer seems capable of extreme manipulation. The interest of this novel lies in the relationships between characters and developments in the plot, but is primarily in Tony’s interpretation of the evidence. It is genuinely gripping: I read the whole novel in two days.

There is also an implied criticism of police procedure in the story of the treatment of one suspect. The development of this situation gives the novel a greater level of depth and led to a truly disturbing event which reverberated in the novel and in my mind long after I’d finished reading.

This novel won the 1995 CWA Gold Dagger Award for Best Crime Novel of the Year and is the start of a series of novels following Tony Hill’s work as a clinical psychologist. The front cover of my edition includes a quotation from Minette Walters, another excellent psychological crime writer, which effectively sums up the novel: ‘compelling and shocking’. ( )

Interesting serial killer story. Tony Hill is a psychologist working for the home office and being brought into a serial killer mystery. Along with Detective Inspector Carol Jordan they race to find the killer.

It's gruesome but I did enjoy it. It kept me wondering throughout what was happening and what would happen next. There were parts that did drag on and also parts that could have done with tighter editing along with mixed up timeline situations that did confuse me a little but still not a bad read. ( )

This book was somewhat of a disappointment. I'm not keen on torture which was a major theme of the book and although the characters were well developed, they were predictable to the point that I'd figured out who the murderer was in the first 100 pages (and I'm usually totally clueless!). I'm surprised this book got an award - it must have been a slow year. ( )

I am completely hooked on Val McDermid's Tony Hill series. Due to the growing popularity of 'Wire in the Blood' on British TV, I thought I would read the first book of hers and see what I thought.
No book has been harder to put down!!! Every time a new novel by McDermid comes out now, I have to rush out and buy it, and I own all the Wire in the Blood DVDs. Fantastic!!! ( )

Protagonist: forensic psychologist Tony Hill and DI Carol Jordan
Setting: present-day "Bradfield" in northern England
Series: #1

First Line: "Tony Hill tucked his hands behind his head and stared up at the ceiling."

By the time the police admit that Bradfield, a fictional city in northern
England, has a serial killer, four men are already dead, each tortured in a different way and then abandoned outdoors in town. Baffled by a lack of physical evidence left by the meticulous sociopath, police bring in Tony Hill, a Home Office forensic psychologist who profiles criminals. Tony devours crime data with a fascination approaching admiration for the killer. DI Carol Jordan is Hill's liaison with the police force, and is a solid "normal" foil that keeps quirky Tony grounded. The books in this series are the basis for UK series "The Wire in the Blood". I enjoyed the printed page much more than watching Robson Green on the small screen. Although I twigged to the killer early on, this book was still a page-turner. From Kate Brannigan to Tony Hill to her meticulously crafted standalones, I relish McDermid's writing and love experiencing her continuing evolution. ( )