Hard Girls [Paperback]

Martina Cole (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 15, 2010

HARD LIVES. HARD LESSONS. IT'S MURDER ON THE STREETS. When a prostitute's body is found lifeless, mutilated and brutally raped, DCI Annie Carr has never seen anything like it and never wants to again. Kate Burrows, retired DCI now consultant, has plenty of experience when it comes to murder - after all she caught the Grantley Ripper and broke the biggest paedophile ring in the South East. She is determined to help put the killer behind bars. But whoever it is won't be easily caught. And when another girl's body is found, even more horrifically disfigured than the last, it's clear the killer is just warming up...In a ruthless world where everyone's out for themselves, Annie and Kate must dig deep if they hope to catch a callous serial killer who knows no limits and makes no mistakes. For some, prostitution is seriously big business. But how many people will pay the ultimate price? Utterly compelling, HARD GIRLS is a gripping and disturbing thriller that will have you hooked until the very last page.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Cole is brilliant at portraying the good among the bad, and vice versa, so until the very end we never quite know who to trust. This is the very stuff that makes her so compelling' -- Daily Mirror

About the Author

Martina Cole was born and brought up in Essex. She is the bestselling author of sixteen novels set in London's gangland, and her most recent three paperbacks have gone straight to No. 1 in the Sunday Times on first publication.

Product Details

• Paperback: 608 pages
• Publisher: Headline Paperbacks (April 15, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0755328701
• ISBN-13: 978-0755328703
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,023,985 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Don't waste your time or money, June 8, 2010

By 

Cathi Maryon - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hard Girls (Paperback)

I was very disappointed in this book, having been totally enthralled in the TV adaptation of The Take, which was brilliantly cast, brilliantly scripted, brilliantly acted, brilliantly directed, and, I thought, based on a presumably brilliant novel.

Hard Girls was boring, predictable, badly written, tedious and I knew who the perpetrator was after their first scene in the book. The author has adopted a short-chapter format - most chapters are two pages or less - and coupled this with an effort to provide a cliffhanger for each chapter. This broke the rhythm of the story and brought an artificiality to the reading that I can only liken to the "fourth wall" in TV: I saw the construction of the story and this stopped me believing in it. In trying to create an atmosphere of hard, callous characters she gives her people words to say that sound mealymouthed and clumsy. I couldn't believe the solution would be so obvious, I also couldn't believe Martina Coles would continue to write so badly throughout. So I kept going and unfortunately it was, and she did.

I will try others of her work, The Take cannot be an accident, but I advise you not to bother with this.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great follow-up from the characters in Broken, July 24, 2010

By 

D. Williamson "Hooked on Kindle!" (Moncton, NB Canada) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Hard Girls (Kindle Edition)

It was exciting to read once again about DCI Kate Burrows and Patrick Kelly her gangster boyfriend. Could not put the book down until I read it all in one sitting, keep them coming Martina - Great Read!! Looking forward to the next Martina Cole novel "The Family".

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great mystery, June 3, 2010

By 

Paula Furnee (Orlando, Florida) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Hard Girls (Hardcover)

On a vacation trip, I noted that many Europeans were reading this book. I had to find out why. It was a very good mystery. Reminded me of TEA ROSE by Jennifer Donnelly.