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Carol Wyer
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A Life for a Life (Detective Kate Young Book 3) Kindle Edition

by Carol Wyer (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 6,315 ratings
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Nobody can get into the mind of an erratic killer—except an unpredictable detective.

When a young man is found lying on a station platform with a hole in his head, DI Kate Young is called in to investigate the grisly murder. But the killing is no one-off. As bodies start to pile up, she is faced with what might be an impossible task—to hunt down a ruthless killer on a seemingly random rampage.

Meanwhile, Kate has her own demons to battle as she struggles to come to terms with her husband’s death. And she is hell-bent on exposing corruption within the force and bringing Superintendent John Dickson to justice. But with the trail of deception running deeper—and closer to home—than she could ever have imagined, she no longer knows who she can trust.

With her grip on reality slipping, Kate realises that maybe she and the killer are not so different after all. But time is running out and Kate is low on options. Can she catch the killer before she loses everything?

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  1. Book 3 of 5
    Detective Kate Young
  2. Print length
    363 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publisher
    Thomas & Mercer
  6. Publication date
    15 March 2022
  7. File size
    2980 KB
  8. Page Flip
    Enabled
  9. Word Wise
    Enabled
  10. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  11. See all details
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Product description

About the Author

USA Today bestselling author and winner of The People’s Book Prize Award, Carol Wyer’s crime novels have sold over one million copies and been translated into nine languages. A move from humour to the ‘dark side’ in 2017, with the introduction of popular DI Robyn Carter in Little Girl Lost, proved that Carol had found her true niche.

In 2021, An Eye For An Eye, the first in the DI Kate Young series, was chosen as a Kindle First Reads and became the #1 bestselling book on Amazon UK and Amazon Australia.

Carol has had articles published in national magazines Woman’s Weekly, featured in Take A Break, Choice, Yours and Woman’s Own magazines, and the Huffington Post. She’s also been interviewed on numerous radio shows, and on Sky and BBC Breakfast television.

She currently lives on a windy hill in rural Staffordshire with her husband, Mr Grumpy…who is very, very grumpy.

To learn more, go to www.carolwyer.co.uk, subscribe to her YouTube channel, or follow her on Twitter: @carolewyer.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09BCPR894
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Thomas & Mercer (15 March 2022)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2980 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 363 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 6,315 ratings

About the author

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Carol Wyer

Carol Wyer

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Carol Wyer is a USA Today bestselling author and winner of the People’s Book Prize Award. Her crime novels have sold over one million copies and been translated into nine languages.

A move from humour to the 'dark side' in 2017, saw the introduction of popular DI Robyn Carter in Little Girl Lost and proved that Carol had found her true niche.

In 2021, An Eye For An Eye, the first in the DI Kate Young series, was chosen as a Kindle First Reads. It became the #1 bestselling book on Amazon UK, USA and Australia. The fifth book, A Soul for a Soul, is due out in January 2024.

Her standalone psychological thriller, Behind Closed Doors, was an Amazon Editor's Pick and selected as one of the Best Books of December 2022.

Carol has had articles published in national magazines 'Woman's Weekly', featured in 'Take A Break', 'Choice', 'Yours' and 'Woman's Own' magazines and written for the Huffington Post. She’s also been interviewed on numerous radio shows and on Sky and BBC Breakfast television.

She lives on a windy hill in rural Staffordshire with her husband, Mr. Grumpy . . . who is very, very grumpy.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
6,315 global ratings

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Top reviews from Australia

Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous Read
Reviewed in Australia on 18 October 2022
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Another great story in the series.
Can’t wait for the next one
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Cardinal
4.0 out of 5 stars Very slow start
Reviewed in Australia on 7 September 2023
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The ending raised this from 3 to 4 stars. Most of the early to middle parts of the book were very repetitive, almost like cut and paste. Maybe, to me, it was because this was the 3rd in the series and I had read it all before. I'm now starting on the 4th and final episode.
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Mandy White (mandylovestoread)
5.0 out of 5 stars She really knows how to write a great police procedural.
Reviewed in Australia on 31 March 2022
Have I told you how much I love Carol Wyer's crime fiction? So good!! This is book 3 in the Detective Kate Young series and it might just be the best one yet! You have to read this series, and the Robyn Carter and Natalie Ward books as well. She really knows how to write a great police procedural. They are all available on Kindle Unlimited so no excuses.

Kate is still grieving the death of her husband and running the major crimes department. This case is testing them all, there doesn't appear to be any links to the victims and no witnesses. All the while she is trying to finish the work that her husband was doing to take down corruption in the force. All in a days work really.

With an ending that really shocked me, I am already looking forward to book 4.
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johnverp
3.0 out of 5 stars Pretty good
Reviewed in Australia on 27 April 2023
Pretty good, although it does leave you needing/wanting to read the sequel to round things off. The murder mystery element is good in that the police investigations are thorough and keep things interesting; whether you can accept the rationale for the murders is another thing. We do overdose on people seeking or accepting advice from dead loved ones. I do like our protagonist, who remains a fighter and stays committed to exposing police corruption and explaining her husband's murder. On to #4 in the hope that it is the last in the series before the dragging out of matters becomes overly annoying.
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MLH
5.0 out of 5 stars Another addictive read
Reviewed in Australia on 16 March 2022
A Life for a Life is the third book in the DI Kate Young series and is another sensational read. Whilst it can be read as a standalone, I do suggest you read from the beginning as you would be missing out on two fabulous reads.

Duel cases make up the story in this instalment. One professional when a spate of murders occur where the team remain unaware as to the why and how these murders are connected and one personal for our lead in her own investigation into the murder of her husband and a corrupt police force. Gripping from start to finish and highly addictive, I couldn’t tear myself away and this was a one sitting read for me.

As is always the case with Wyer’s books, A Life for a Life has been masterfully plotted and executed. I really love Kate’s character more and more with each book and she has become one of my all time favourite DI’s. Wyer always does a fantastic job with her characters, good and bad, and really brings them all to life.

I love to ask authors if they could be the author of any books what would they be. For me if I was an author, this series (and her others) are mine. Wyer is a fantastic storyteller, these books tick all the boxes I look for in a crime thriller and each instalment just keeps getting better and better. A brilliant series, I look forward to hopefully many more books to come.
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Megan Chambers
4.0 out of 5 stars *4 Stars*
Reviewed in Australia on 8 November 2022
This one was a little slow for me. We know from the beginning who the culprit is, and pretty much can figure out why they're doing what they're doing. A couple of little nuances I didn't work out until things progressed, but for the most part we're seeing the police side versus the culprits side until they come together. The thing with this storyline in the book is that we see Kate's team working together and we learn more about them. I quite like Emma and Morgan, still unsure about Jamie.

The second storyline that runs through this has been going since the first book, and we're getting closer (I think) to the conclusion of that. The ending left us with a big cliffhanger for this part though, so I'm curious to see what happens in the next book.

Not my favourite in this series, but still a good read, and I will continue this series.
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Monica Mac
4.0 out of 5 stars A good, solid book.
Reviewed in Australia on 16 March 2022
When I realise that Carol Wyer is bringing out another book, it is a no-brainer that I read it. I am always excited to read another story by this author, regardless of the series, or the genre, for that matter!

Kate is trying to figure out why all these people are being killed on her patch, with a bolt stun gun, which is a bit of an unusual weapon. There also doesn't seem to be anything connecting the victims and the body count keeps on growing. She brings a profiler to help out her team but he adds another layer of confusion and he is more than a bit eccentric. At the same time, Kate is also coming to terms with the death of her husband and trying to bring down John Dickson who is up to his eyeballs in shady dealings but is clever about hiding his tracks.

Kate clearly has her hands full but she is a dedicated police officer and I was cheering her on and hoping not too many other people were going to lose their lives - although it wouldn't be much of a book if there wasn't a complex case to solve.

A good, solid police procedural. Looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

4.5 stars from me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture.
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Top reviews from other countries

MamaBear1
5.0 out of 5 stars Redemtion!
Reviewed in the United States on 31 January 2024
Verified Purchase
Back to a winding twisting narrative and shocking ending. No relation to the main character and murder suspect; compared to previous 2 books. Many loose ends tied up in this book. Glad I read the third novel and onto number 4!
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T. Wood
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 15 March 2022
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DI Kate Young is an officer permanently living on the edge. The last year has been traumatic and however hard she tries she knows its not going to get better any time soon. Her team, all three of them, are a familiar presence in her life but even with them she can't relax.

A new investigation begins when a young man is found dead on a small deserted railway station unfortunately with no witnesses or apparent reason for his demise. Someone must know something though, right?  A second killing happens far too quickly for anyone's liking doubling the team's problems and Kate juggles the current workload alongside her obsessive determination to find proof of corruption at the heart of her own police department.

With her mental health issues becoming more apparent once more Kate knows time is running out on all fronts. Does she have any chance of catching a seemingly random killer or will they and those defending the indefensible finally beat her down?

This is the third book in the series and once again Carol Wyer puts her main protagonist through the wringer! The murder investigation is Columbo-esque with the perpetrator and their reasons for killing clear to the reader from the start. The clues to understanding for the team are complex but expertly revealed and keep the pages turning long into night.

Kate and her team work. They are strong together as well as apart and I enjoyed seeing things from their pov alongside Kate's. Her sister is also here once again and showing a different side to Kate which I found lessened the tension for a short whenever she appeared. I hope there will be more from Kate and her team in the not too distant future, especially as once again the author left the reader with a cliffhanger to ponder in the meantime!

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers but the opinions expressed are my own. This is an excellent addition to a very good series but the previous two books do need to be read first.
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Dioly Castillo
4.0 out of 5 stars At last, justice was served!
Reviewed in the United States on 14 July 2023
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This was a difficult book to finish, and it took me almost a month. I didn't have faith that Kate could at last take on the bad guy from the series. Yes, she could find the bad guy at each book end, but taken on the bad guy that left her widow and kept taking everything from her, that was another story. Thus, the final chapters were a pleasant surprise. Now I'm invested in what is next to come!
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Cheryl
4.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 31 October 2023
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Loved every page, each one was gripping, equally as good as the previous two, can't wait for the next book
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read
Reviewed in the United States on 23 July 2023
Verified Purchase
Have enjoyed this book as much as the first two books. Detective Young is still on the hunt for evidence in her husband's death while looking for the killer with her team in this story. You will be surprised if the ending. Can't wait for book 4.
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