Mel Sherratt

When DI Grace Allendale returns to Stoke to lead the major crimes team she is returning to her hometown. Recently widowed, Grace is in need of a change of scenery but Stoke has a lot of negative memories for her. Grace's mother managed to escape her violent husband but Grace's half brothers and sister were not so lucky and now, as adults, they form one of the more notorious families around. When Grace's first case causes her to link to her estranged family she has to decide where her show more loyalties lie.
Sherratt is developing into a great writer of undemanding but satisfying police procedurals. What I really like is the fact that she has set her novels in the Stoke area and there are links between the characters. The plot are pleasingly complex but not so that the reader can't follow them. Here a new character is introduced, DI Grace Allendale, and Sherratt gives just enough information to allow the reader to warm to the character without overdoing it. Sherratt is fast becoming a guilty pleasure! show less

This is my first Mel Sherratt book and I'm wondering why that is. I've missed out on so much! I absolutely loved Hush Hush.

Grace Allendale has just moved back to her childhood home of Stoke on Trent to take up her first post as a Detective Sergeant. She's experienced loss so moving back seems like the right thing to do but it's complicated by the fact that local well known crime family, the Steeles, also happen to be her family. Unfortunately, Grace's first case is a series of murders that show more seem somehow to be linked to the Steeles. Tricky!!

I loved Grace. I thought she was incredibly brave and strong, and also principled. She leads a team of officers who she has to try and win over and gain their trust. This is doubly hard considering who her family are and I thought Grace dealt with it very well.

For me, Hush Hush stands out in the police procedural/thriller genre. It's so well written, absolutely gripping and with a main character that appeals to the reader. I thought it was brilliant and I can't wait to read the second in the series, Tick Tock, out in April 2019.

I must admit that I did guess who the killer was but that didn't matter at all. I enjoyed Grace's investigations, her dealings with her family and the glimpses into her private life which I guess will be explored further in the next book. Hush Hush is so well plotted, with elements of the story being drip-fed to us to lead us down the path towards the conclusion. One of the strands was a surprise and made me rethink certain things that I had read which I thought was a clever ruse by the author.

I thought this was a gritty, pretty unputdownable read. The chapters are short which made it particularly fast-paced and meant I would always just fit another one in, and another one, and.....you get the picture. I highly recommend it. show less

Tick Tock – Stoke Finally Got Interesting

Mel Sherratt is one of the best female crime writers around at the moment. Tick Tock is her thirteenth, yes thirteenth crime novel. This is the second of her DS Grace Allendale series, and it is a completely gripping read and a wonderful voice, she has even made Stoke look interesting. From her books it is clear to see a vivid imagination at work, I shudder to think what goes on in there, but I am sure we will read more about it at later dates show more through this series.

A schoolgirl is murdered while on a cross country run during the PE lesson, her friends and the teacher had only lost sight of her for a couple of minutes, and that is all it took. A couple of days later a young mother disappears on her way home from work, only to be found dead in a park. It looks like the work of the same killer.

DS Grace Allendale and her team are on the case, where there are seemingly no clues as to whom their suspect or suspects should be. Grace, at the same time is still dating Simon, a journalist, whose daughter, Teagan, does not like her. Even more complicated when it is one of Teagan’s friend has been murdered and another seriously injured.

Grace is the first to see a link back to an old case she had been involved with, when she was a Police Officer in Manchester. When she heads back, she tries to find out about who and what he was like before he committed his crimes. She knows he is hiding something, and it is for her to find out.

Grace knows that this investigation is going to be a race against time before someone else is killed and the police need to get on top of the case. Can she find the killer or killers before another dead person is killed?

Mel Sherratt really knows how to get under the skin of the reader, so you do not get a dreary police procedural novel. You get a gritty and gripping thriller that is a roller coaster ride through murder and Stoke. As someone from Manchester, I tended to think of Stoke as about as exciting as watching the bacon slicer at the butchers. Mel has managed (just about) to change my mind.

A fantastic read, breath taking, with more twist and turns than a game of twister. show less

When a young child falls from a balcony and at a similar time a teenager is beaten by a baseball bat nearby, D S Grace Allendale feels something is wrong. The mother of the young child seems to be hiding something and Allendale is convinced that a local thug is involved but whether this involves her estranged gangster family is unclear. However, for the people of the housing association block, life is not about to return to normal.
Whilst Sherratt is known for writing strong police show more procedurals the actual police part of this is somewhat secondary to the lives of the local residents in Stoke. There is a genuine love and understanding for the area that shines through Sherratt's books and a willingness to explore the underbelly of the local society which sets them apart from the multiplicity of similar novels. show less