Deceiver On The Levels- Blog Tour

 

Author: David Hodges

Publisher: Joffee Books 

Publishing Date: 24th September 2025 

Many thanks to the publishing team and ZooLoos BT for my digital copy and spot on the tour 

Blurb 

A missing schoolgirl. A body in the woods. A killer who’s only just begun.

Newly promoted to Detective Inspector, Kate is back on her old patch at Highbridge CID.

But there’s no time to settle in. Early Monday morning, Kate gets a call. Fourteen-year-old schoolgirl Tammy Robinson is missing. She hasn’t been seen since Friday afternoon when she told her mother she was going to her best friend’s to revise. She never made it.

Kate discovers that Tammy wasn’t going to her friend’s house at all. She was planning to meet a mysterious boyfriend she called Gerry. She’d met him in an online chatroom — who is he really?

The following day, a body is discovered in the woods. It’s not Tammy.

Kate is in a race against time to unmask the most dangerous killer she’s encountered yet. Before more young women die.

My Thoughts 

Although this book is part of a series, it was the first one I picked up. As with many series, you miss some backstory and nuances about the characters, but there’s enough context to get a clear sense of who they are and how they interact.

Kate, newly promoted to a senior role, is razor-sharp and highly attuned to the undercurrents around her. Her new team’s dynamic feels authentic, with just enough tension to suggest cracks beneath the surface.

At the heart of the story is Tammy, a 14-year-old whose rebellion and fractured family life set the stage for disaster. Seeking freedom, she connects online with someone she believes to be a friend — a decision that spirals into a chilling encounter. One haunting question emerges early on: why did it take her parents two days to report her missing?

The plot is a maze of red herrings, false leads, and dark twists. Just when you think you’ve cracked it, another reveal throws you off balance. There are moments of genuine shock and a constant sense of unease that keeps the tension high.

Gripping, unsettling, and full of surprises, this book delivers the hallmarks of a great crime thriller. Even as a newcomer to the series, I couldn’t put it down — and I’ll be reaching for the next one.