I am delighted to be joining the Blog Tour and sharing my review today for The Conspiracy by Jack Probyn. My huge thanks to Emma at damppebbles blog tours for my spot on the tour and for arranging my copy of this very fast-paced crime novel.

Here’s more about it…

Candice Strachan can’t breathe. 

A small jewellers is raided in Guildford High Street and leaves police chasing their tails. Reports suggest that it’s The Crimsons, an organised crime group the police have been hunting for years. 

The device wrapped around her neck is suffocating her, crushing her chest.

But for rookie detective, Jake Tanner, something doesn’t seem right. The heist doesn’t fit any of their previous patterns. And the last time Jake met them, he was staring down the barrel of their gun, bargaining for his life. 

The men who put it there have left her to die.

When the shop owner is kidnapped and a collar bomb is attached to her neck, Jake learns one of his own is involved – a police officer. 

Her life now rests in Jake Tanner’s hands. 

As Jake follows the group on a wild goose chase, he questions everything he knows about his team. Who can he trust? And is he prepared to find out?

The Conspiracy by Jack Probyn is a tense crime thriller full of hooks and twists that will leave you guessing to the end. If you like Luther and Line Of Duty, you’ll love this series that combines tension, gripping plots, and police corruption.

(Warning: This book is intended for mature audiences and contains disturbing and potentially offensive material.)

Purchase Links – Amazon UK – US

My Review…

The author certainly doesn’t hang around in The Conspiracy. This is #1 in the CID Case series and it definitely has a fast pace to it.

Jake Tanner has just started with the Guilford Police as a Temporary Detective Constable, he’s a rookie and appears to be very eager to impress. At least that is how some see him, he definitely gets a break in an armed robbery when he recognises the gang responsible. I have to say that initially, I thought Jake came over a little bit cocky and over-eager so I didn’t really warm to him that much. Luckily for me, this did change as I realised he is actually like a dog with a bone who cannot and will not let things drop. He knows that he is right for somethings and this does mean he goes out on a limb on more than one occasion.

A robbery, a kidnap, guns and a shot fired is not the usual modus operandi of this gang. This leaves Jake with a slight uphill battle as he tries to convince his superiors that he does know what he is on about. They need to take him at his word and not see him as just a rookie.

The story goes along at breakneck speed and this does really work well for the story as it is very much a race against time for a couple of reasons. There are quite a few characters but I didn’t think there were too many so that I struggled to keep up. They have been worked well into the plot of the story and do bring there own style and traits. I do admit there were a couple of favourites as well as the odd one I really wasn’t so keen on.

Overall this is a really good start to a new series, with a further 5 more books planned and due out. It is a police-procedural that is fast, well-plotted and has a very good addictive aspect to it. It does have a feeling of things falling in to place a little too conveniently at times. A one-sitting read for me that has left me eager to read more. There is a smallish cliff hanger that I am keen to see developed further and I am curious as to what the author has in store for Jake. It is one I would recommend.

About the Author…

Jack Probyn is the author of the DC Jake Tanner series. He hasn’t spent much time on the planet, but he knows what he wants: to entertain and enthral readers across the globe with his stories. Growing up as an only child and never owning a pet – something he reminds his parents of constantly – Jack spent a lot of time reading and writing. 

After just about completing an English degree, he decided to turn his passion from a hobby into a career. When he’s not writing, he’s usually enjoying sudoku or a true-crime drama on Netflix. He lives in Surrey with his partner – who also one daydreams of owning a pet. Preferably a dog.

Social Media links – Facebook – Twitter – Instagram

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