Amazon.com: The Curator: The new must-read thriller from the winner of the CWA Best Crime Novel of 2019 (Washington Poe Book 3) eBook : Craven, M. W.: Books

I received a free eARC of The Curator but that has in no way influenced my review.I've been waiting a whole year (and a bit) for The Curator to arrive on my kindle. And what's the first thing I do when it does? I simper a little because I finally have a copy - the wait is over! - and then I try to pretend it's not there. Crazy, right? I was so keen to read this book but at the same time, I was really, really nervous. What if I didn't enjoy it? What if I rushed in and didn't savour it (it's a flipping long wait 'til the next one, that's for sure!)? And that, I think, is the sign of an incredibly talented author who has built the beginnings of a series into something that, for the reader, is extra special. Reading The Curator, for me, was an event. Something to look forward to. Something to anticipate and savour every minute of. Something to remember. And I loved it. Craven can do no wrong in my eyes.DS Washington Poe, Tilly Bradshaw and a heavily pregnant DI Stephanie Flynn of the National Crime Agency are called back to Cumbria to investigate a perplexing case. Severed fingers. What appears to be three pairs from three individuals, left over the Christmas period in the most surprising of places. On further investigation it's confirmed that one finger in the pair was removed antemortem, the other finger was removed postmortem. But that's only a tiny piece of the puzzle. The female victims were drugged, the male victim wasn't. And a note was left with each set of fingers with the hashtag #BSC6. The team - even with Tilly's immense intelligence and analytical brain - are initially baffled. But then through a little supposition and a lot of analysis, a suspect emerges. But what the suspect tells them turns everything upside down. This isn't any run of the mill serial killer, this is the Curator...Another absolutely cracking novel from the crime fiction mastermind that is M.W. Craven. I loved this book and savoured every darn second I had with it. I could have easily read this book in a couple of sittings but I slowed down to ensure I enjoyed every twist and turn. Craven appears to be one of those crime writers who doesn't shy away from digging the depths of the internet to find strange and unusual ideas for his novels, which he then twists and shapes into crime fiction gold. The Curator is solid proof of that. An intriguing and intricate setup, followed by an edge of your seat hunt for the bad guy, culminating in a devilishly dark twist that you won't see coming.Even when I had my suspicions about who the killer was, there was another unexpected gut punch just waiting around the corner. Such a clever well-written book that hooks you in from the get-go and doesn't let go until the shocking finale.Tilly and Poe are wonderful creations who have been firm favourites of mine since the very first book. I've loved watching their friendship and working relationship grow over the last couple of years. The chemistry and the bond they have, makes for compelling reading. The humour and the wit the author includes in the story adds a few lighter moments to what is a brilliantly dark and twisty story. Expertly paced, skilfully written and all in a setting to die for (literally!).Would I recommend this book? Absolutely, categorically, YES! If you're a crime fiction fan and you haven't met Tilly and Poe yet, then that has to change. The Curator can easily be read as a standalone but if you've not read any of the books before, why not treat yourself to the entire series?! Be whisked away to deepest, darkest Cumbria and meet two totally unforgettable characters who you will grow to love and admire. I loved this book and I'm counting down the days until Dead Ground is published next year. Another stunning novel from an accomplished writer and I'm really excited to see what the future holds (let's hope it's a lot more Tilly and Poe!).I chose to read and review an eARC of The Curator. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

The third book in M.W. Craven’s Washington Poe series opens with brutal scenes of a woman tied down, barely conscious. She then has two of her fingers chopped off, one ante-mortem and one post-mortem. If this scene is too much for you then you might want to give the rest of the book a miss. If like me you love a good brutal thriller, keep reading.It’s Christmas in Cumbria and Washington Poe and the team are called into the police station, there is a murderer on the loose. Three sets of pairs of fingers have been found in different locations all with a note stating #BSC6. Their identities are discovered but with only one body found and different methods of amputation used on each pair of fingers, National Crime Agency’s Washington Poe and Analyst Tilly Bradshaw have their work cut out, especially as the facts don’t seem to follow the usual serial killer script.The pair are just starting to put small pieces together when Poe receives a phone call from a disgraced FBI agent Melody Lee who informs him he is dealing with someone like never before. The person they are looking for is The Curator. Poe needs to understand that no matter how many steps forward he takes The Curator will always be two steps ahead and he needs to tread carefully.The Curator is one of the best thrillers I have ever read and in my opinion the best yet in the Washington Poe series. It is gripping, suspenseful, and certainly plays with your mind. It makes you think and there is most certainly a psychological element running the whole way through.I love the way Poe and Tilly work together. Their banter is pure genius and realistic too. It is with this banter that you can find some light relief from this wicked case that takes Poe to new depths. Put it this way you should know you are up against something sinister when a senior pathologist is warning you to be careful and not be a hero.Once I started reading this book I didn’t want to put it down. The pace was spot on, the chapters short and snappy and the mind games just perfect. I also love the location, as it is easy to visualise having been to Cumbria many times.The book works as a standalone, so if you haven’t read the first two, no worries, though I will always suggest reading the first two first as it is best to begin a series at the start and The Puppet Show and Black Summer are both amazing books, so it would be foolish not to.Overall, this is a tremendous book with a flawless plot that had me analysing every page. It is scary to believe that people like The Curator exist in the real world too. I’m off to lock all the doors and windows!!Book Reviewed on Whispering Stories Book Blog*I received a free copy of this book, which I voluntarily reviewed

this author is very entertaining, tells a good story, well writtenthe story is an investigation which moves along and is very technical---throw in the weather and topography of Cumbria in northwest England---more like South Dakota and a bit of Idaho with the North Sea at the coast, all factors in the talethe bad guy is layered and as it turns out is a facadeas a I say Hitchcockian creepy