RAGDOLL is the debut novel of author Daniel Cole. With a second series entry due out in 2018, this is great news for readers of UK police procedurals. We're emotionally invested pretty soon into the read as RAGDOLL’s strongest inclusion is its large cast of diverse characters. Some decisions made by the police seem a bit questionable as they are marched through very quickly in order to keep momentum, but it's not that much of a pull away from the enjoyment of this read. You expect a bit of plot fluidity in a first novel and without great characters, you are unlikely to bother with book two.
Dark humour is sprinkled throughout RAGDOLL which is a welcome addition to temporarily lighten the mood away from the death and destruction. The characters don't seem to want to perform to our expectations of them and this does work to the advantage of injecting some realism into a novel that has a lot of bodies to deal with plus a fair whack of back story to roll out. Wolf is a complex character who moves through the novel by the seat of his pants, making this more of a personal journey to redemption than at first it might seem. It's fast, it's often funny, there's TV worthy gore, there is realistic emotional drama. RAGDOLL's cast is a welcome addition to the world of crime fiction and eventually we hope, to the small screen also.
Ragdoll
William Fawkes, a controversial detective known as The Wolf, has just been reinstated to his post after he was suspended for assaulting a vindicated suspect. Still under psychological evaluation, Fawkes returns to the force eager for a big case. When his former partner and friend, Detective Emily Baxter, calls him to a crime scene, he's sure this is it: the body is made of the dismembered parts of six victims, sewn together like a puppet--a corpse that becomes known as "The Ragdoll."
Fawkes is tasked with identifying the six victims, but that gets dicey when his reporter ex-wife anonymously receives photographs from the crime scene, along with a list of six names, and the dates on which the Ragdoll Killer plans to murder them.
The final name on the list is Fawkes.
Baxter and her trainee partner, Alex Edmunds, hone in on figuring out what links the victims together before the killer strikes again. But for Fawkes, seeing his name on the list sparks a dark memory, and he fears that the catalyst for these killings has more to do with him--and his past--than anyone realizes.
With a breakneck pace, a twisty plot, and a wicked sense of humor, Ragdoll announces the arrival of the hottest new brand in crime fiction.
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