TRICK OF THE NIGHT a gripping crime thriller with a huge twist (Detective Matt Ballard Mystery Book 5)

Thank you to Joffe Books for an ARC of this book.Another excellent book in the Matt Ballard series, one of the best so far.Liz’s nephew comes to stay after being rejected by the police for failing a fitness test, due to a childhood illness and he gets involved in their latest investigation.It’s a multi stranded story, starting with a college photography student taking pictures at night for his project when he sees something he shouldn’t. After investigating further with a friend and being warned off, they both die in an accident but the parents aren’t accepting that and come to Matt and Liz to investigate further.There’s other plot lines too - a young lad goes on holiday to his aunt’s and they both disappear, Minty, a criminal that Matt is familiar with but has a soft spot for also makes an appearance and the major criminals in the area feel threatened by something and are employing their own methods for finding out what’s going on, leading to more deaths and disappearances all while the local police are busy with another in depth case.Matt and Liz end up working closely with the police, something Matt enjoys as he misses the job but Liz is apprehensive about it since her accident and leaving the force.Although the story has various plot lines and characters, it never felt jumbled and I always knew where I was in the story. I guessed one part, but that doesn’t spoil it for me, I was happy to have got it right but other parts were a complete surprise and I was never sure if the various stories would link together.

Wow! Joy Ellis supreme story teller at her best! I really enjoyed this. The suspenseful and enthralling chapters kept me up late into the night. This one is slightly different in as much as its more of a mystery concerning the criminal underworld, rather than a police procedural regarding a murder investigation.The pace builds and develops into a riveting conclusion which came as a surprise to me.

Throughly enjoyed this book.So many twists and turns.It is one of those books once you start reading it you don’t want to put it down especially with the ending.Highly recommend this book definitely 5stars.

Another great read in the Matt Ballard series by Joy Ellis, although it can be read as a stand alone. This is book 5 but it's still as fresh as the first encounter with Ballard. A very interesting plot, complete with good characterisation and plenty suspense, means this will appeal to lovers of thrillers. There are two storylines in the thread, Ballard soon realises that they are connected, cleverly woven together by the author. Joy Ellis always delivers an excellent read. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

I'm not quite sure how she does it, but once again Joy Ellis has nailed it with Trick of the Night - the latest novel in the Matt Ballard series.As usual, the book provides readers with an intriguing story that twists and turns to its conclusion and whilst you might try and anticipate what is coming next, Joy is very much a master when it comes to leading you down one path and then flipping it on its head to go down another route. It's also well written so that every chapter serves a purpose and isn't there simply to act as filler content for what is to follow.I'm a huge fan of Joy's books and the way in which the various strands of this story are pulled together are as fantastic as ever. As much as I enjoy the Nikki Galena and the Jackman & Evans books, I really like the way in which this series continues to go down a different route with Matt and Liz working 'outside the law' in their investigative role and I look forward to seeing what comes next for the pair.I have no doubt the book would work as a standalone novel for people who may not have read a Joy Ellis book before, but for maximum enjoyment I would suggest checking out the earlier books in the series beforehand.