A couple of months ago I had the pleasure of reading and reviewing Daniel Cole’s debut crime thriller, Ragdoll. I thoroughly enjoyed it, particularly the inventive ways Cole came up with to kill off a number of the characters. It’s no secret that I like my crime thrillers edging on horror with lots of bodies and lots of blood, so Ragdoll held a lot of appeal for me. The second book in the Ragdoll series, Hangman immediately became a must-read. I just had to see what the author was going to do with his characters next… And the answer is, he completely ignored his lead protagonist and focussed solely on a supporting member of his cast. Not what you would expect, right? I’ve seen Hangman mentioned in places as Detective Fawkes #2. It really isn’t though. Fawkes hardly features in this novel and I absolutely flipping LOVED it! My one bugbear with Ragdoll was that I felt very little for either Fawkes or his sidekick, Emily Baxter. If anything, Baxter irritated me with her fawning over Fawkes and her (ugh) neediness. Having read Hangman from cover to cover I have completely changed my mind about her. I love the new ‘slightly more damaged than she was before’ Emily Baxter. Her sarcastic manner, her bossiness, her ‘don’t actually give a damn!’ attitude and her secretiveness. I really like this new Baxter and hope she doesn’t change back to her old, puppy dog ways in book three when Fawkes *may* return. Baxter isn’t the only character I loved in Hangman. I’ve already mentioned that Fawkes isn’t really present. However, Baxter is instructed to work alongside the FBI and CIA as her current investigation spans continents and has links to the famous Ragdoll case she ‘heroically’ solved. Curtis (the FBI agent) and in particular Rouche (the CIA operative) really brought something to the story. We get to see Baxter’s newfound barriers crumble a little as she warms to Rouche. I’m not sure there is any point in the story where she trusts him but I really enjoyed the relationship between the two. I have to say, I found the story a little far-fetched in some places but in all honesty, I didn’t actually give a hoot as I was utterly captivated by the characters and what was going to happen next. Daniel Cole had my full attention from start to finish and to me, that is more important than a little artistic licence. I also loved the humour Cole has written into the pages of Hangman. This is the first book in a long time that I found myself quietly chuckling along to. Would I recommend this book? Totally. I loved it. I preferred it to Ragdoll. I loved seeing things from Baxter’s perspective and I hope the *possible* return of Fawkes in book three doesn’t reduce her character to what it was in book one. I would be devastated. So utterly gripping I couldn’t put this book down. I described the need to keep turning the pages of Ragdoll as similar to catnip. Well, the author has done it again but this is super strength catnip! A perfect read for me. Five out of five stars. I chose to read and review an eARC of Hangman. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

What a fantastic read, If you read 'Ragdoll' and were a fan you will definitely not be disappointed with 'Hangman' an extremely dark yet hilarious read! All I'm say is The Spider..... If you were hoping to see Wolf you will have to wait a little longer as this one is all about Detective Emily Baxter and you will not want to put the book down until you have devoured the whole lot. A riveting, compulsive, addictive, highly entertaining and utterly absorbing read.

This is the second book in the Detective William Fawkes series and it brings us back to some familiar names and a host of new ones. Baxter is back and as charming as ever! Although it’s not imperative to have read the first book “Ragdoll” to enjoy this one I would strongly recommend that you do to fully appreciate the continuing storyline. There is enough detail in this one to get you through but you would be missing out on a really great start to this series. As well as the answer to a major question, Who is William Fawkes?! I absolutely loved Ragdoll so I had extremely high hopes for this one and it certainly didn’t disappoint, if anything I think Hangman is the more superior of the two. More standout characters, more action and a lot more dead bodies! Set between New York and London Baxter is called to different crime scenes in different countries with very distinct ties, on the chest of the seemingly unrelated victims is the word Bait carved into the skin and on the chests of the killers, the word Puppet has been cut into their flesh. As the body count grows and the brutality of each crime scene escalates it is almost impossible to figure out where the story is headed next. Can it all be the work of one perpetrator pulling all the strings or is it the works of a cult? Serial killer or terrorist? As for the who and they why, that finally drops into place but not until the closing chapters of the book and even though a lot of questions finally get answered it also leaves some pretty big unanswered ones! I just hope that Mr Cole writes extremely quick because waiting even a few weeks to find out what happens next is going to be to long a wait!

I was lucky enough to have been given Ragdoll to review and I absolutely loved it and so I was looking forward to reading Hangman and I wasn't disappointed .This story takes us from London to New York and back to London again .Baxter is working with the CIA and FBI .trying to stop the Hangman Killer who is involved with bizarre murders .This is a thriller with a little humour thrown in despite the grizzly happenings .It was very gripping and I found it hard to put down and the story raced to a very satisfying conclusion that left me breathless .Fabulous .

A body is discovered on the other side the Atlantic with startling similarities to the Ragdoll murders. DCI Emily Baxter is called upon to investigate with FBI Agent Elliot Curtis and Damien Rouche of the CIA. The body has been strung up and the word 'BAIT' carved into its chest. As the investigation intensifies, another body is found, also carved with 'BAIT'. The nearby corpse of the killer is carved with 'PUPPET'. Baxter, Curtis and Rouche must work out how the victims are selected and just who the puppeteer is; the person pulling the strings. This book was an incredible read. I really didn't think it would come anywhere close to its predecessor, Ragdoll, but how wrong was I! The characters were brought to life with such outstanding clarity that they literally leapt off every page. DCI Baxter was one tough lady who, despite trust issues and many faults, was sassy, loyal and dedicated to her job above and beyond the call of duty. I thought the entire book was imaginative, creative and original from beginning to end. It was gritty, brutal, gory, real and pumping with adrenaline. The imagery and ingenuity was fantastic - the excellent scene inside the church is one that will stay with me for a very long time. I'd love to say this book would make a fantastic movie but more often than not, movies disappoint. Let me put it bluntly - the book did not. If you get the opportunity to read Hangman, grab it with both hands! I enjoyed it so much I could burst with pleasure :)