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MARSHLIGHT a totally gripping psychological thriller with a stunning twist (Detective Matt Ballard Mystery Book 4) by [Joy Ellis]

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Joy Ellis

MARSHLIGHT a totally gripping psychological thriller with a stunning twist (Detective Matt Ballard Mystery Book 4) Kindle Edition

by Joy Ellis (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

12,403 ratings

Book 4 of 5: Detective Matt Ballard Mystery

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A new psychological thriller from bestselling author and British Book Awards Crime & Thriller of the Year nominee Joy Ellis.

MATT AND LIZ MAY HAVE RETIRED FROM THE POLICE, BUT THAT DOESN’T MEAN A QUIET LIFE.

An old friend’s sister disappears without a trace. There’s no sign of foul play, but she’d been acting very peculiarly . . .

Meanwhile, Liz’s cousin Christie comes to stay. She takes an immediate — and uncharacteristic — dislike to the local bookshop owner, Gina. Why does everyone put up with her awful behaviour?

HUNTING WILL-O'-THE-WISPS ON THE MARSHES CAN BE A VERY DANGEROUS HOBBY.

Christie is convinced that Gina is manipulating everyone around her. Is she onto something dangerous or just pushing her new friends away?

No one believes her suspicions until another friend goes missing late at night on the misty Fen marshes.

Can Matt and Liz uncover the truth in time to save lives?

DISCOVER A TOTALLY ENTHRALLING PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER

What readers are saying about JOY ELLIS:

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “A terrific read that I guarantee the reader will not want to put down.” Hannelore

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Once you start you just can’t put it down the story line gets more intense and intriguing with every turn of the page.” Gordon

“The suspense starts on page 1 and continues through the twists and turns until the very surprising ending.” Linda Strong

“OMG, this book was fantastic. I absolutely loved it. I was gripped from the first page, but as the tension and suspense mounted throughout the book it just got better and better. And that ending, well, just WOW!” Dawn

“I absolutely loved it.” Viv

“Will keep you guessing until the end of the book.” Barbara

“What a book!!!” Sian

“I was so engrossed I sat up way too late to finish it in one sitting.” Elaine

THE SETTING
England's rural fenland is a strange place, with its never-ending fields, winding tracks, and long straight droves (the old livestock routes) that lead to nowhere. The lonely lanes are flanked either side by deep drainage ditches and are, for a good part of the year, filled with tall, whispering reeds. Closer to the Wash, high seabanks form a barrier between river and marsh, and the richly fertile soil of the drained land. But when the mists come down, as they so often do, perspective is destroyed and all sense of direction lost, and then the fens become a rather frightening place of mystery and danger. Somewhere that you do not want to be at night.

ALSO BY JOY ELLIS
THE BESTSELLING NIKKI GALENA SERIES
Book 1: CRIME ON THE FENS
Book 2: SHADOW OVER THE FENS
Book 3: HUNTED ON THE FENS
Book 4: KILLER ON THE FENS
Book 5: STALKER ON THE FENS
Book 6: CAPTIVE ON THE FENS
Book 7: BURIED ON THE FENS
Book 8: THIEVES ON THE FENS
Book 9: FIRE ON THE FENS
Book 10: DARKNESS ON THE FENS
Book 11: HIDDEN ON THE FENS
Book 12: SECRETS ON THE FENS
Book 13: FEAR ON THE FENS

JACKMAN & EVANS
Book 1: THE MURDERER’S SON
Book 2: THEIR LOST DAUGHTERS
Book 3: THE FOURTH FRIEND
Book 4: THE GUILTY ONES
Book 5: THE STOLEN BOYS
Book 6: THE PATIENT MAN
Book 7: THEY DISAPPEARED
Book 8: THE NIGHT THIEF

DETECTIVE MATT BALLARD
Book 1: BEWARE THE PAST
Book 2: FIVE BLOODY HEARTS
Book 3: THE DYING LIGHT
Book 4: MARSHLIGHT
Book 5: TRICK OF THE NIGHT

STANDALONES
GUIDE STAR

Book 4 of 5

Detective Matt Ballard Mystery
Print length

396 pages
Language

English
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On Kindle Scribe
Publication date

July 8, 2021
File size

1308 KB
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From the Publisher

DISCOVER A SERIES OF GRIPPING THRILLERS FROM MULTIPLE #1 BESTSELLING AUTHOR JOY ELLIS

Perfect for fans of Rachel Abbott, Robert Bryndza, Mel Sherratt, Angela Marsons, Colin Dexter, or Ruth Rendell.


	BEWARE THE PAST	FIVE BLOODY HEARTS	THE DYING LIGHT	MARSHLIGHT
Kindle Unlimited	✓	✓	✓	✓
eBook	✓	✓	✓	✓
Paperback	✓	✓	✓	✓
Audiobook	✓	✓	✓

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B095Z4YYZD
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Joffe Books Mystery, Crime Thriller, Suspense Fiction (July 8, 2021)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ July 8, 2021
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 1308 KB
Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 396 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #45,912 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #95 in Heist Thrillers
- #144 in Noir Crime
- #292 in Serial Killers

Customer Reviews:
12,403 ratings

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Joy Ellis

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I was born in Kent but spent most of my working life in London and Surrey. I was an apprentice florist to Constance Spry Ltd, a prestigious Mayfair shop that throughout the Sixties and Seventies teemed with both royalty and ‘real’ celebrities. What an eye-opener for a working-class kid from the Garden of England! I swore then, probably whilst I was scrubbing the floor or making the tea, that I would have a shop of my own one day. It took until the early Eighties, but I did it. Sadly the recession wiped us out, and I embarked on a series of weird and wonderful jobs; the last one being a bookshop manager. Surrounded by books all day, getting to order whatever you liked, and being paid for it! Oh bliss!

And now I live in a village in the Lincolnshire Fens with my partner, Jacqueline, and four Springer spaniels and one little rescue, Breton spaniel. I had been writing mysteries for years but never had the time to take it seriously. Now I write full-time, and as my partner is a highly decorated retired police officer; my choice of genre is a no-brainer! I have an on-tap police and judicial consultant, who makes exceedingly good tea!

I have set my crime thrillers here in the misty fens because I sincerely love the remoteness and airy beauty of the marshlands. This area is steeped in superstitions and lends itself so well to murder!

I am lucky enough to be one of the amazing Joffe Books team of authors and am really enjoying being able to spend time doing what I love... writing!

The series so far:-

DI Nikki Galena, the Fen Series

Book One: Crime on the Fens

Book Two: Shadow over the Fens

Book Three: Hunted on the Fens

Book Four: Killer on the Fens

Book Five: Stalker on the Fens

Book Six: Captive on the Fens

Book Seven: Buried on the Fens

Book Eight: Thieves on the Fens

Book Nine: Fire on the Fens

Book Ten: Darkness on the Fens

Book Eleven: Hidden on the Fens

Book Twelve: Secrets on the Fens

Book Thirteen: Fear on the Fens

Book Fourteen: Graves on the Fens

Detective Nikki Galena Books 1-3 Boxset

Detective Nikki Galena Books 4-6 Boxset

Detective Nikki Galena Books 7-9 Boxset

Detective Nikki Galena Books 1-5 Boxset

DI Jackman and DS Marie Evans series so far:-

Book One: The Murderer's Son

Book Two: Their Lost Daughters

Book Three: The Fourth Friend

Book Four: The Guilty Ones

Book Five: The Stolen Boys

Book Six: The Patient Man

Book Seven: They Disappeared

Book Eight: The Night Thief

Book Nine: Solace House

Guide Star. A stand alone novel about love, loss and overcoming adversity.

Beware the Past. Detective Matt Ballard Book 1 A stand alone thriller still set in the Fens, but with new characters and very different feel

Five Bloody Hearts. Detective Mat Ballard Book 2 After overwhelming requests, this is a sequel to Beware the Past, with DCI Matt Ballard.

The Dying Light. Detective Matt Ballard Book 3 Matt Ballard is now retired, but he and Liz still take on difficult cases, but as private detectives.

Marshlight. Matt Ballard Book 4. They might have retired, but things are far from quiet for Matt and Liz!

Trick of the Night. Matt Ballard Book 5.Matt and Liz find themselves needing to work with some of their old colleagues in the Force when they embark on a sinister case that is far more serious than first thought.

These are available in both Kindle and paperback and now practically all of my books are available as audio books.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5

12,403 global ratings

5 star		60%
4 star		26%
3 star		10%
2 star		3%
1 star		1%

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Top reviews from the United States

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Suzie Z

Not as good…

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 10, 2023

Verified Purchase

I love Joy’s books, find them riveting from beginning to end, this one, not so much!! It took to long to get into the crime…

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 2, 2022

Verified Purchase

Another intricate plot by a great writer. If you’ve ever had the misfortune to be in a horrid relationship with a sociopath you will appreciate the evil way one person can wreck so many lives. Terrifying. Riveting. Brilliant characters that I came to love — and worry about. A surprise twist at the end — and all my questions, worries, & fears were resolved. Well done. Another Ellis book that I could hardly put down.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 31, 2022

Verified Purchase

Very hard book to put down. I did look up a couple of the paintings that was mentioned. Especially the hoax o lantern. And a couple others. Plan on looking at more. Reading about the Fans and the will of the wisps, has been interesting. Looking forward to reading more in this series.

Helpful

R.R. Lexical

The Superb Sociopath Antagonist

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 9, 2021

Verified Purchase

Matt Ballard and his wife Liz Haynes are retired police officers and now run a private investigation agency in Fenlands, England. The disappearance of a friend's gaudy sister constitutes the mystery, which becomes entangled with a cousin visiting the Fens to do research for a famous novelist. Cousin Christie befriends locals who seem to be under the control of a rich businesswoman. The apparent plot diversions make the book a bit slow to start, but eventually things get moving and united. The author does a magnificent job of painting an antagonist sociopath, whose actions seem real and perverse. The antagonist works to control and manipulate people, even unto death. The actions of other characters are also convincing. The result is a tale that moves with good pace and has the reader rooting for just desserts. I rated this book 5 stars because of the author's creation of a a wonderful, memorable, evocative antagonist.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 17, 2022

Verified Purchase

What a great read this was. Great creatures down to the very nasty bad guy to the oh so smart so called victims. Can't wait for the next one.

Helpful

Amazon Customer

My joy was not over the top.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 6, 2021

Verified Purchase

Marsha, marsha, marsha (apologies to the Brady Bunch) . I've read Joy Ellis before and have enjoyed those very much. This story though got bogged down near the middle by events that were more high school behavior than crime story. I found myself thinking move on, move on. But it does wind up in a satisfactory way. Just not the usual tense dramas I'm used to.

2 people found this helpful

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Kindle Customer

One of her best!

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 5, 2021

Verified Purchase

I have read all of Joy Ellis books loved every one of them BUT this one is the best of the lot &t that is saying something. Each of the returning characters Matt & Liz were as charming as ever but Christie Liz's cousin was a real star. The plot itself was perfectly crafted & I couldn't read it fast enough! I highly recommend this book! Thank you Joy Ellis for several thoroughly enjoyable reading! I can hardly wait for the next one.

One person found this helpful

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Paula Corregan

Good psychological mystery!

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 25, 2021

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NetGalley

Member Review
Cover Image: MARSHLIGHT
MARSHLIGHT
by Joy Ellis
Pub Date: 08 Jul 2021
Review by

Paula C, Reviewer
Last updated on 20 Jul 2021
My Recommendation
What a fascinating read.! This book is described as a thriller, and I couldn't agree more. There are elements in it of psychological suspense that I don't usually find in the mysteries I read. I highly recommend this book to other mystery and thriller readers.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Ginger Book Geek

Gripping stuff

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on July 16, 2021

Verified Purchase

I have been a fan of Joy’s work for a while now. I haven’t quite caught up with everything that she has written but I am getting there. I especially love the series featuring Detective Chief Inspector Matt Ballard or former DCI Matt Ballard as he is now. ‘Marshlight’ is the fourth book in the series and it is another corker of a read and then some. I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘Marshlight’ but more about that in a bit.
As with all of Joy’s books, the fact that Joy’s name was on the cover was enough to grab my attention and draw me in. As soon as I was able, I grabbed a copy and hibernated until I had read the very last word on the very last page. To say that reading Joy’s books become extremely addictive is a huge understatement. I couldn’t turn those pages fast enough as I became ever more desperate to find out who the perpetrator was and whether or not Matt would make it to the end of the book in one piece. I became so wrapped up in the story that I lost all track of time and just how quickly I was getting through the story. All too quickly I reached the end of ‘Marshlight’ and I had to bid farewell to Matt. I found ‘Marshlight’ to be a gripping read, which certainly kept me guessing and kept me on the edge of my seat throughout.
‘Marshlight’ is superbly written although in my opinion, all of Joy’s books are superbly written. She has a way of creating lead characters who are impossible to dislike and making them sound so realistic. For me the story hit the ground running and maintained a fairly fast pace throughout. I love the way in which Joy Ellis makes ‘The Fens’ come alive. I feel as though I have a real feel for the area despite never having visited. Joy makes the reader feel as though they are part of the story themselves and at the heart of the action. That’s how I felt at any rate. Reading ‘Marshlight’ felt like being on a scary and unpredictable rollercoaster ride with several twists and turns along the way.
In short, I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘Marshlight’ and I would definitely recommend this book to other readers. I will certainly be reading more of Joy’s work in the future. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.

3 people found this helpful

Kindle Customer

Deception.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on February 9, 2023

Verified Purchase

Christie was in the Fens, researching the area for her renown blind boss. An author who used her experiences, thoughts, feelings and ability to experience and then translate to give him the knowledge about his chosen topic of each book.
They had the system perfected, as was obvious from his sales.
Christie was happy to stay with her cousin, Liz and her partner,Matt. Both former CID, they now have a private investigation business to ease their retirement.
Christie makes new friends easily and falls in love with the area, she is also pretty smitten with her new friend, Tom, manager of the local bookshop.
She gets on well with her research and the only troubling factor is local businesswoman, Gina Spearman, who seems to take great delight in verbally abusing staff and friends alike, then apologising profusely, blaming her outbursts on her traumatic childhood.
The more she encounters Gina, the more disturbed Christie is by her.
Her vindictive nature and destruction of items which others have expressed an interest in, has Christie worried. The three people she sets her sights on, continually make excuses for her and accept everything she throws at them.
So what is the backstory of the manipulative female?
It just so happens that Liz and Matt, Christie 's cousin & partner, are doing some research for their former unit, regarding a cold case, where a young woman disappeared four years previously.
You have to read to the end to find a link, but you won't be bored getting there. Marshland myths abound, night walks in some spooky fens and some more down to earth events and the undercurrents make this book eminently readable.

Amazon Customer

Disappointing

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on July 25, 2021

Verified Purchase

During lockdown I have read Joy Ellis' books almost back to back and being a yellow belly have thoroughly enjoyed all 3 series, so I was pleased to see a new one in Marshlight. However I missed the "psychological thriller" bit! This was so unlike her other books; a very slow build up with, what I can only describe as, a lot of padding and trivia. Like some of the other reviewers, I got to about 30% of the way through feeling it was going nowhere and, I'm sorry to say, I gave up on it. Something I rarely do with a book. I skipped to the last chapter to find out who did what to whom. When I read the last chapter and the trite little "Happy endings" I did not feel I had missed out on much. Sorry to be so negative about an author I have so enjoyed in the past, but this really was not for me.

2 people found this helpful

Ms D

Brilliant

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on July 13, 2021

Verified Purchase

A slow starter, this one, but the pace soon picks up until Ms Ellis has the reader completely hooked. There's a sense of evil and foreboding running through the entire book that makes the reader almost afraid to find out what's going to happen next…but, at the same time, desperate to know what it'll be.
My life went on standby for the two days it took me to read Marshlight and now I eagerly await the next book from this amazing author.

3 people found this helpful

Kindle Customer

Unputdownable

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on December 1, 2022

Verified Purchase

Began reading this book yesterday and finished it today. What a journey. The characters and what happens on the Fens are so realistic. It made me feel as if I was there with them.
Gina, a manipulative and evil woman has got her claws into Tom, Jane, and Delphi. In their eyes, Gina could do no wrong. Then along comes Christie, Liz's cousin, who sees right through her. How can Christie convince her newfound friends to be wary?
I didn't want to put this book down. I felt like screaming at Tom to listen to what Christie was telling him. That's how realistic this story is.
Can't wait to get started on the next book about Matt, Liz, and friends.
Well done to the Author.
5 ***** from this happy reader.

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DISCOVER A SERIES OF GRIPPING THRILLERS FROM MULTIPLE #1 BESTSELLING AUTHOR JOY ELLIS

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