Fifteen-year-old Ryan and his best friend, Spencer were on Gallowstree Lane but had no idea trouble was stalking them.

Especially when the author added the extra bit of relationship intrigue between two of the opposing Police factions! When Lizzie is seconded to work on the confidential and specialist policing of Operation Perseus it reunites her with the father of her child and married ex-lover, flashy DI Kieran Shaw and hands her the knowledge to scupper his ambitions and potentially solve a brutal murder. This book honestly had me feeling so many emotions along with the characters, I felt lizzies anger and pain, Kieran’s confusion every time something new came up. Admittedly I've never been big on "drugs and gangs" kind of storylines, so this may appeal more to you if you find that kind of thing exciting.

Lizzie is struggling to give Conor the care that he deserves and do her job, but most single parents feel the same way. To begin, a disclaimer that I didn't realise this was part of a series before I started reading it, so I was slightly thrown off by some of the backstory that didn't make sense, but ultimately it can really be read as a stand-alone story. Gallowstree Lane" is the third in the Collins and Griffiths series written by Kate London and although I haven't read any in the series before, I feel this could still work as a standalone if wished. DI Kieran Shaw is adamant that the undercover operation must not be disrupted whilst DI Sarah Collins is anxious to catch the killer of a fifteen year old boy. Other characters, such as DI Kieran Shaw who is heading up Operation Perseus, seem to tread a finer line and I suspect offer a more realistic view of the attitudes of many fighting the perpetrators of inner city knife crime.

To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. What I loved about the previous book was that it was solid and realistic but still exciting and with engaging characters. Gallowstree Lane is a gritty and highly authentic police procedural set in London and the third novel in Kate London’s series featuring DI Sarah Collins and DC Lizzie Griffiths of the Met Police.

Already caught up in Perseus and with the Bluds, Ryan’s got his own demons and his own ideas about what’s important. Ryan Harris, witnesses his friend’s murder and is left reeling by his death and panics when he’s arrested for a fight he got into, a few days before. The murder threatens to derail Operation Perseus, a covert police investigation into the Eardsley Bluds, an organised criminal network. With wonderful characterisations, Kate London gives us an uncomfortable and harrowing glimpse into London gangs and the boys that get caught up in that world and a police force that has to deal with this. It’s much more intelligent and well written than many of the huge slew of crime novels around now, and I can recommend it very warmly.

Fortunately the story swaps between the police and the members of the Eardsley Bluds that are being investigated for 3 crimes that all somehow link. You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice. Gangs are nothing new, traditionally associated with violence, yet oft times, providing a family for the disenfranchised.He's spent two years putting this operation in place and whilst murder might seem to trump gun running, the guns might result in hundreds of deaths if they reach the streets. This is a gritty police procedural that is brilliant in depicting certain parts of London and its communities, and the conflicting goals in contemporary policing.

With thanks to Readers First who provided me with a free copy of this novel in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.An investigation into one of London’s tit-for-tat killings can’t be allowed to derail Perseus and let the master criminals go free. We then take a look at the difficult nature of policing the streets when there are conflicting priorities and politics. Ryan introduces his friend Spence to his new world and together they set out on a path that would be short lived.