Worse Than Dead cover art

Worse Than Dead

Inspector Drake, Book 2

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About this listen

A car ferry leaves Dublin. The chief engineer lies dead. Can DI Drake catch the killer before the passengers disembark?

Dealing with the fallout from a difficult case, Welsh Inspector Ian Drake faces a deadly foe as well as counselling for his OCD. When a ferry arrives in port, he knows a killer is on board. Unable to trace the killer after the ship berths, he fears the worse.

Tension mounts when two more members of the crew are killed. When Drake’s cousin gets involved and he faces the implications of his father’s treatment for cancer, he struggles to face the challenges of tracking the killer. And links to a well-known criminal family make the inquiry even more demanding.

Can he catch the killer and avert more deaths?

Worse than Dead is the second book in the dynamic Inspector Drake crime series. If you like police procedurals, clever mysteries, and gripping thrillers, then you’ll love Stephen Puleston’s unnerving whodunit.

©2014 Stephen Puleston (P)2019 Stephen Puleston Crime Fiction Fiction International Mystery & Crime Mystery Traditional Detectives Crime Detective Exciting

Listeners also enjoyed...

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The story is too complicated for an audiobook. I had to keep backtracking when I picked it up again otherwise I couldn't follow it. I do have this as a kindle book as will give it a try to see if reading it is easier to follow.

Complicated

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Loved this story. Made all the more interesting as I'm usually driving round Anglesey or North Wales as I listen. Hats off to Richard Elfyn too for the reading. Excellent voice, and accurate portrayal of the distinctive North Wales accent. I heartily recommend this book.

Another cracker

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This was a good listen, enough to keep you engrossed all the way through to the end. Highly recommended.

A good thriller

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2nd Inspector Drake this one the audio version and a murder on a ferry crossing from Dublin so as Drake and his team wait at the docks for the ferry to dock Drake's thinking this is easy the killer is still on board. Not quite so easy to hold the ferry as the passengers and the goods lorries need to disembark and reload and return back to Dublin, so Drake has no alternative but to interview the ferry staff quickly and get names and addresses from the passengers. What and why would somebody kill an engineer but as Drake and the team look into his life it's not rosy and when interviewing the wife she gives them a data stick, but that seems to stump Drake even more as its some sort of code but what. Drake himself is a complex character suffers from OCD and must do a bit of sudoku puzzle before he starts his day, and also likes dark strong coffee. This case seems a little slow going for his liking and his cousin who has been inside not the best of persons to know when you're on the police force but gives him vital info, Good strong story seems to dither a bit at times but on the whole enjoyable.

Good Police Procedures

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DI Drake and his team are called in to investigate a dead body found on a ferry from Dublin to Holyhead. It seems like an open and shut case as the murderer is obviously still on the ship. But it’s not that simple and soon more bodies turn up.

I have already read the prequel and Book 1 of the series and I couldn’t wait to get stuck into this one and be transported back to North Wales. The plot is complex, with many characters and red herrings, but not so much that I couldn’t follow. Once again Drake’s OCD plays a big part in the book as he tries to get his rituals under control, whilst working long hours under pressure and trying to cope with family problems too. This is a well written police procedural with realistic characters and situations, and I look forward to reading more in the series.

Richard Elfyn's brilliant narration added to my enjoyment of the book.

North Wales Police Procedural

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This is the second Inspector Drake story. I thought this would be a locked room murder at the start as it takes place on a ferry but it soon becomes much more. A thoroughly enjoyable plot with a very satisfying denoument.
This book does stand alone but if you want to see how Drake's demons are catching up with him you need to read Brass in Pocket as well.
Great to see welsh places and names being pronounced correctly. Really looking forward to book 3.

This series goes from.strength to strength

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Another complex case for DI Drake when a crew member is murdered on the Holyhead ferry. All crew and passengers are potential suspects and witnesses but Drake is under pressure from above to solve the murder quickly without disrupting the ferry business - whilst also struggling with family problems and his OCD.

Lots of twists in the plot and interesting characters.

Richard Elfyn's narration is excellent.

Murder on the Holyhead ferry

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Inspector Drake has OCD behavioral issues which he strives to be able to control. His father has cancer, which is pushing Drake deeper into depression and his home life is suffering because of his extreme dedication to his job. Now to make matters worse there is a new Superintendent who seems to enjoy complicating Drake’s life.

When a man is killed on board a Cross Channel ferry, you would think finding the murderer would be easy, all the passengers and crew are still on board, so the killer must be too. But things are never as simple as you would expect and complications arise making this supposedly simple murder much more difficult to solve. Complications involving several more deaths, drug smuggling, and political corruption as well as money laundering, as Drake tries to solve this one with his hands seemingly tied behind his back.

Drake is a complicated, tragic figure, who you can't help but feel empathy towards which just goes to show the talent of this author. All the characters in this story are well drawn and interesting, even the minor ones. Stephen Puleston gives us information about the lives of the criminals as well as the police officers involved in the case.

The narration was very well done and added to my overall enjoyment of this book.

I was given this audiobook as a gift and am voluntarily writing my review



Compelling

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Love these books. Drake is a great character. Flawed but solid, I hate when they end, I need to know what’s next for him & in his world.
This story was a rollercoaster from start to end. With the main storyline & the side story. The characters changing & growing.
Narrator was great. Tempo & feeling spot on. More need more

Just gets better

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I really enjoyed listening to this book. It was very well narrated and added to the great storyline.
I liked the pace and characters in this book.
I am very much looking forward to the rest of this series.

A great book

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