Ragdoll by Daniel Cole

Ragdoll by Daniel Cole
My rating: 5 of 5 stars


A body is discovered with the dismembered parts of six victims stitched together, nicknamed by the press as the 'Ragdoll'. Assigned to the shocking case are Detective William 'Wolf' Fawkes, recently reinstated to the London Met, and his former partner Detective Emily Baxter.

The 'Ragdoll Killer' taunts the police by releasing a list of names to the media, and the dates on which he intends to murder them. With six people to save, can Fawkes and Baxter catch a killer when the world is watching their every move?


Its rare in my opinion that a books lives up to its hype but this one really does. Right from the start the author kicks you on to a high speed thriller ride and won't let you off until the end. Every chapter builds on the suspense and pushes you on this roller coaster of a ride experience. Gory killings/murders, breakneck fast speed and likeable flawed characters all make for a great piece of storytelling.

How can you better the opening discovery of six victims a body part from each sewn together to make one horrific complete body which the press nickname as 'The Ragdoll?' Surely this is the culmination of the story? I wanted to know who these victims were, why they were murdered and what the significance of stitching them together was. This alone makes you read on but there is so much more to this clever plot to come and it was great fun getting there with plenty of blind alleys and red herrings along the way and good dollop of humour that brings this all together. Daniel Cole didn't disappoint far from the discovery of the 'Ragdoll' being the culmination of the story it's really only the beginning.

I loved Wolf the deeply damaged and at times vulnerable Detective who is assigned to the case and his former equally damaged partner Detective Emily Baxter. All the team assigned to this case are realistically crafted characters that work well together. Lots of curve balls in this clever plot made it almost impossible for me to put this one down.

I have to say that I didn't and possibly couldn't have guessed the twists and the ending to come - great mastery of storytelling and 'showing' the reader as the true horror unfolds - brilliant. What a finish or was it? Can't wait to read the next one to find out ........oops.......can't say anymore you'll just have to read it!

If there was any fault with this book it was really only that there were times when things became a bit confusing as the point of view changes within some of the chapters and for this reason I have given the novel a 4.5 star rating. It has been rounded up for Goodreads and Amazon.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.