The Girl in the Ice: Detective Erika Foster Crime Thriller, Book 1

First of all, the gorgeous cover is what captured my notice. Major applause and thumbs-up to the talent who designed it. Secondly, like other authors, who initially are only known for their work in one genre, I thought Robert Bryndza’s work was solely in the romance genre. Having enjoyed Miss Wrong and Mr. Right, I had a lot of anticipation with this one.The Girl in the Ice is the first installment of a multi-book series featuring a character so damaged by what life has handed her, I applauded her ability to get out of bed, much less think straight and solve a heinous murder. Erika Foster is introduced to us on her first day at the Lewisham police station. She was previously at Manchester but was on an extended leave after she was injured in the line of duty that also took the lives of five other officers, including Erika’s husband, Mark. Right away, Mr. Bryndza paints a very precise picture of the pain Erika has endured on the inside and the outside as well as the feeling that she is being drop-kicked into the deep end of the pool on her first day as lead investigator. I felt very overwhelmed for Erika and admired her tenacity and resolve, especially as she meets with resentment from a fellow officer.The victim is the daughter of a high-ranking member of the government and Erika’s superiors try at every opportunity to keep her and her team on a very tight leash. Erika’s first meeting with the family doesn’t go well either even though both Erika and the victim’s mother are of Slovak heritage. This actually surprised me as I thought it would give Erika and the family some common ground they could connect on, but the family is less than cooperative with the investigation and wield a lot of control with the authorities.As Erika’s investigation gets more complex, we learn that the killer is watching Erika’s movements very closely and brazenly puts themselves in very close proximity to Erika on multiple occasions. The author does an amazing job of throwing many suspects at the reader, including members of the victim’s family, ex-boyfriends, fiancé and I even began to suspect some of Erika’s associates and superiors. This made for quite a twisty novel for me, trying to figure out the identity of the killer, which took me to nearly the end of the story.My Final Verdict: Overall, this was a very good story filled with nail-biting suspense and characters that are drawn so well that the reader can easily connect with them. I highly recommend this book and the rest of the series to readers who enjoy multi-layers of suspense and intrigue, like to be shocked at the outcome and appreciate that a talented author can cross genre lines and do so quite well.

This was a good book. I did feel like there was a ton of build up and it felt a little slow through the first half. I found myself wanting to skip ahead some. But the last third of the book was more edge of your seat action and I felt almost like it was rushed. Overall I enjoyed the book and will read more books in this series.

I'm pushing, or being pushed, towards 72. I've been a voracious, compulsive reader for 65 years. I believe I've read at least something by the very best authors in this genre from A.C. Doyle, through arguably the best : Raymond Chandler, more recently : James Lee Burke.Not to mention a number of British/Scottish and Irish authors. E. George, the author of the Rebus series and one of my favorites, Buren, featuring hapless, Jack Taylor. For a number of years I've been inundating myself with classic noir.I'll admit that almost all American detective/murder mysteries are pretty much suck. Why? I know every 'cus word' and can visualize every conceivable method of killing - I've quite an imagination - and simply don't need to read of graphic and seven or more ridiculous improbable killings obviously written for the small minded to move a usually poorly written novel.However, I very much like mysteries by authors from and about those nations mentioned above. Far better crafted, far less wholesale murders, and great plots.Frankly, though I purchased this book quite some time ago, I admit I was a bit put off by the Prologue. Sounded too common, trite, overly used. But I'd bookmarked the first chapter - after seeing the number of satisfied readers. Not the fastest of readers, it took me part of three consecutive days to finish.Totally surprised at the culprit, not too much so with the other 'evil doers' especially considering our current intensely corrupt moronic 'fearless leader', ( just my opinion) and with an MA in American history, I'm not astonished at the nefarious activities of those with great wealth and/or political power, most often one and the same.More to the point, I'm greatly pleased with Girl in the Ice. An intricate plot, excellent back story, with a superb understanding of human nature. Too often too many plots are difficult for me to follow. I'm interested (or not) by the style of writing. Don't like it, in the trash. A few years ago I finally read Hemingway For Whom the Bell Tolls. I actually threw it against the wall wondering why that garbage remains an American classic! Nearly puked at how often 'I love you,' was mentioned. Myself, being an incurable romantic, were I to go on as those two idiots did, I would hope someone would shoot me!I've one serious objection. The all too frequently 'saved in the nick of time' usage. Certainly, if a series is forthcoming, the protagonist must survive. Yet, I would suggest a more creative, imaginative method to extricate the hero.For example, David too often would catch and nearly subdue or actually very nearly strangle Erika. But she saved by a colleague just dropping in at an improbable time of night. With Erika, a veteran, ranking officer having twenty five years on the job, one would think that she would have some expertise in hand to hand combat. Erika made only one good physical attack when she drove the base of her palm into the base of David's nose. However, such a strike will often drive the cartilage into the brain with an instant kill.I would guess that few would know this, so usually a writer can get away with it. But not the more than once nick of time rescue. Uh,uh! Not once did Erika kick the SOB in the groan, nor fingers to the eyes, nor clap both ears, bend back a finger. She may have been thin, but so was David and she would have been far more desperate! Yeah?Right, I'm critical. I bought the book, I've the right and you asked for it. Kudos to you!All this and yet I simply couldn't put it down. I feel your forte is plotting that while this was involved it wasn't hard to follow. Plus your ability to develop wonderful characters and real life dialogue. Caution : it only takes one error of these I've stated to squelch a discerning reader. For instance, the old American western's in which every six shot revolver never requires reloading. Then too, for myself - the frequency of which the following this occurs is ridiculous - '...her eyes sparkly emerald green, ever so slightly lifted at the outside corners gave her an exotic Euro-Asian appeal. Standing fifteen yards away, she was gorgeous!' Fifteen yards? 45 feet? He'd need a telescope to see the color of her eyes! Or, ...'I guess there were two or three cars parked across the street.' Come on! Either there were two or there were three. This shouldn't be a guess with so few vehicles at this distance. Or...'yeah, I saw her once or twice!' Another example of stupidly on this person's part.Both distance - vertical or horizontal is ALWAYS stated in round numbers but at absolutely impossible distances. Let's be realistic. Such examples, ludicrous beyond comprehensive, put me off. Realism, please! Too, Erika is very nearly strangled to the point of passing out - twice! She's bashed in the face several times but doesn't receive even a concussion. Hmm.Still and all, I've just purchased the sequel!

It's a police procedural that I would strongly suspect was written by a cliche bot if it wasn't so poorly researched and executed.This should be reclassified as a 'mystery', the main one being how Erika Foster could rise the ranks of the police force despite being completely incompetent, tactless, insubordinate and apparently lacking in any common sense. The supporting cast is so cartoonish that I wouldn't be surprised if they were written in crayon. Utter garbage. Only 99p but I felt robbed.

Pleasantly surprised with this having stumbled across it as a 99p Kindle deal and been persuaded by the number of positive reviews. I’m not sure it can accurately be described as a ‘police procedural’ as there isn’t really much in the way of investigative process, but it’s a decent enough thriller nonetheless. True, parts of the plot are a bit weak, perhaps even far fetched, but I enjoyed the easy writing style, which carried me along at a good old clip. The action scenes are especially well done. It’s not a page turner—I never felt I couldn’t put it down—but anything that holds my attention to the final page deserves a half-decent review.I have to disagree with reviewers who have criticized the character of DCI Erika Foster as irritating and unconvincing. I loved her! She has a great background story, which makes her very relatable, and I like the contrast between her emotional vulnerability and exterior toughness. Okay, so she’s a bit of a maverick and has made mistakes (once at great personal cost), but why pick on her? I can think of a dozen or more fictional male detectives who are hailed as heroes for their ‘maverickness’. So leave Erika alone! Women can be mavericks too. I look forward to reading about her next case.Thanks for reading my review. I hope you found it helpful. You can find more candid book reviews on my Amazon profile page.

When the body of a young woman is discovered frozen beneath the ice in a South London park, Detective Chief Inspector Erika Foster takes charge of the murder investigation. The victim, a socialite from a wealthy family, appears to have a privileged life; yet upon delving deeper into her background, all isn't as it seems.Published in 2016, this is the first in a series of (currently) seven books. I thought it was a gripping read and very well-paced. The main characters are developed to a good degree; with a strong female lead in Erika Foster. Determined to prove herself 'fit for duty' after her previous investigation lead to the death of her husband and four other officers during a bungled drug raid, she's still struggling with guilt and remorse.The suspenseful plot had many fantastic twist and turns before finally revealing the killer's identity. It was a really enjoyable read and I look forward to the rest of the series.

Found the writing sadly wanting and as others have said lots of adjectives pointlessly used. Characters clichéd and gave up very early as just didn't care. Once again fooled by positive score and something iffy about volume of reviews. Seriously don't bother, I'm not fussy and can read anything but this was drivel.

I've read just about every crime fiction book going & was beginning to read some over again in desperation. Then, I came upon my first book by Robert Bryndza & I've enjoyed this so much that I've bought another & will probably end up with even more. It certainly kept me turning the pages even though I initially couldn't warm to DCI Erika Foster. However, I soon changed my mind...she's some girl!! I love the fact the book is set in London which is always a favourite location of mine with crime fiction. I also liked that the book is quite wordy & descriptive & something to get your teeth into. As an avid but "quite selective" reader, it was great to discover a new author & DCI. Thanks Robert Bryndza, pleased to meet you & look forward to getting to grips with more of your books. London, serial killer, bodies mounting, red herrings....Book Heaven!!