I have had this book in my tbr pile since its paperback release on the 10th August 2017 and it is now the 26th July 2018 so I am really late getting to it but, “better late than never” as the saying goes and now i just want to kick my own arse for leaving it so long!! However, on the plus side, I don’t have to wait a year for the second book in the series – Kill the Angel, which was published on the 3rd May 2018. The wait would have been pretty shite due to the cliff-hanger of an ending!

I purchased the second book whilst half way through this one as it was so good, it is by far one of my top reads of 2018 so far.

The two main characters, Deputy Police Commissioner Colomba Caselli and Dante Torre were equally brilliant, not always likeable but very memorable and I can’t wait to find out where they are now after such a devastating case and by the sounds of it they are about to be thrown back into another grizzly case. The only slight issue I found was that I struggled with some of the other minor characters names, there are two names that were very similar but polar opposites of characters so a few times i was trying to work out why the good guy was with the bad guys!! But I should imagine that it’s just me and my inability to remember people’s names!

There are some fairly gruesome scenes in parts but not over the top gore fest but I honestly think that makes Kill the Father such a standout novel balancing out the police procedurals, back story and character building. But I do love a good gory serial killer thriller 🙂

I am going to keep this review fairly brief as I NEED to get stuck into book two asap!!

So to summarise – A brilliant fast paced crime thriller with plenty of twists and turns that simply don’t let up. And the old cliche genuinely applied to this book, I honestly couldn’t put it down! (I am writing this at 04:25am because i had to finish the book!)

I cant recommend it enough and i can see why it was a Richard and Judy 2017 Bookclub pick. If you are a fan of this genre you won’t want to miss this one, if it’s still in your tbr pile I’d suggest moving it right to the top of it!! ( )

Molto bello e ben scritto, un thriller coinvolgente e una trama sapiente, costruita con attenzione e intelligenza, ricca di intrecci e che mi ha appassionato moltissimo. Tanti personaggi, ben delineati, su cui spiccano Colomba e Dante, i due protagonisti, più o meno borderline che riescono a far breccia nel cuore nonostante tutte le loro fobie e angosce.
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I started off listening to the audiobook because I wanted to hear the Italian pronunciations, but I found the book so slow paced that I gave up a couple of times. I finally finished the book, and it does pick up in the last half. I think the author tried to focus on making the plot as complicated as possible, when it would have been a better book if they had just left the relationship between the two main characters, Colomba and Dante, develop more. The romance between the two is similar to the film "As Good as It Gets." Both of them have emotional issues, and Columba makes Dante want to be a better man. He is an intellectual who was a kidnapping victim as a child and kept isolation for years before he escaped.. Colombia is a police officer on administrative leave, who through finagling is asked to investigate Dante's kidnapper as the crime was solved but Dante believes the perpetrator is still alive and continuing to kidnap children. Dante refers to his protagonist as The Father, and this guy would make it as a character as the Game of Thrones for being conniving and cold hearted. It is a slow read, but definitely worth it and I am looking forward to reading the author's new release in the series, "Kill the King." ( )

Weighing in at over five hundred pages, Kill the Father could have used some judicious trimming, but the two main characters are so mesmerizing and the story so convoluted and compelling that the book's length was something I had to admit was a minor quibble. If you're looking for a mystery filled with the food and wine and ambiance of Italy, look elsewhere. Kill the Father is tough and gritty and all about character and story. The mystery keeps readers off-balance with its twists and turns that are all based on a real-life event. Just as you think you know what's going on, you hit a speed bump, get tossed into the air, and find yourself landing and heading off in another direction. (Prepare yourself for several "speed bumps".) I love stories that can keep me guessing, and this one certainly does.

What raises this book up to a whole different level is its characterizations. Caselli and Torre are two very flawed people, but they are also very strong, very intelligent, and very determined. With the horror of his childhood, Torre often takes center stage and rightly so. As the investigation progresses, Torre has to confront his past and wonder if what he remembers is really what happened or if he has false memories. It's been a long time since I've been so impressed with two characters as I am with Caselli and Torre.

One warning for potential readers: If you really can't stomach any harm coming to children, you might want to skip several paragraphs from time to time or decide not to read the book at all. I will say that the scenes are not graphic and that they really serve to illuminate Torre's character.

The third book in the series, Kill the King, will be released in May. I already have the second, Kill the Angel and am fighting the urge to dive right in. When you find the right combination of story and character, it's magic, and in the case of Caselli and Torre, Sandrone Dazieri is the magician. ( )

4.5 stars!

Kill the Father was an exciting thriller featuring two of the most memorable characters I've come across in years!

Deputy Captain Columba Caselli is recovering from a horrible bombing when her superior requests she look into a kidnapping case, even though she is still officially on leave. Dante Torre is a man still recovering from his boyhood kidnapping and subsequent 11 year incarceration by a man known only as "The Father." That's all I'm going to say about the plot.

These characters were so vividly drawn I can easily picture them right now-Dante with his endless coffee and cigarettes and Columba with her piercing green eyes and often sarcastic attitude. Together they are both damaged, but stronger because of it, and because of each other.

The pacing was mostly fast and there are lots of surprises, twists and turns, but I do feel that the book was just a tad too long. However, I never lost interest and in fact, I read the last 30% in one straight shot, because there was just no good place to stop-I had to see what happened. I was NOT disappointed!

Kill the Father was my first experience with author Sandrone Dazieri, but I hope it will not be my last. I just finished this book and I'm already missing Columba and Dante-so please, Mr. Dazieri, bring them back for another thriller!

Highly recommended for fans of thrillers and mysteries!

Kill the Father is now available here. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1501130730?ie=UTF8&tag=chashorcor-20&c...

*Thank you NetGalley and Scribner for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest feedback. This is it!* ( )