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M. Sean Coleman

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A Hollow Sky: A stylish thriller that will keep you guessing (The Alex Ripley Mysteries) Kindle Edition

by M. Sean Coleman (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.2 98 ratings

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A detective investigates a reputed miracle worker on behalf of a grieving husband, in this novel of faith and fear by the author of The Cuckoo Wood . . .

After one meeting with a faith healer, Jane Hewitt rose from her wheelchair and walked, seemingly cured of terminal cancer, believing that her lifetime of devoted faith had been rewarded.

She was wrong. She died just days later. Her husband, Ian, blames her hastened death on the faith healer she visited and turns to Dr. Alex Ripley, the so-called Miracle Detective, for help.

Fascinated by the case, Ripley finds herself on Holy Island, off the coast of North Wales, caught up in an investigation that will prove more sinister and dangerous than even she could have imagined—because Ian is not the first person to complain about the faith healer. But he is the only one still alive. For now . . .

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0BPLKT4GZ
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bloodhound Books (December 16, 2022)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 16, 2022
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 640 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 301 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #1,425,019 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #5,027 in Gothic Fiction
- #8,942 in Private Investigator Mysteries (Kindle Store)
- #11,672 in Psychological Thrillers (Kindle Store)

Customer Reviews:
4.2 98 ratings

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M. Sean Coleman

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Born in the UK and raised in South Africa, M. Sean Coleman developed a love for reading and writing novels in his early teens, thanks to two incredibly passionate English teachers who infected him with their love of words and stories. Over the intervening years, he has written film and television drama, cross-platform series, an interactive children's storybook and even a graphic novel series.

He finally found his niche as a (thriller) writer when he was asked to write a novel as part of the cross-platform project, Netwars. His first book, The Code, was published six months later, with the sequel, Down Time, hot on its heels. There was no going back. Since then, The Cuckoo Wood, A Hollow Sky and On Stony Ground have all been published.

He is obsessed with crime, mystery and thriller stories, especially those with a fresh or surprising angle.

Sean lives with his girlfriend and family (including the Red Dogs) on the edge of the Peak District, where they often head out on epic walks.

He is also the founder and Publishing Director of Red Dog Press.

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4.2 out of 5

98 global ratings

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Christie72

Another Brilliant Mystery!

Reviewed in the United States on November 29, 2018

M. Sean Coleman has given us another brilliant mystery!!!! This series is one of the best mystery series I have read this year!!!

This is the second book in the Alex Ripley series, and it is just as good as the first! I was riveted from the very first pages. I couldn’t wait to delve into this mystery...what an intriguing and tangled web little jewel this one is. Alex finds herself pulled into another mystery that will test her boundaries. Alex met Ian on one of her appearances in which she was trying to expose fake faith healers. Ian took his wife to a young girl who was in a coma in hopes of healing her from terminal cancer. His hopes are high when his wife, Jane, walked again. He was able to hold her again. Only hours later she was dead, and he vowed to expose those who took his Jane away. When an attempt is made on Megan’s life by way of her life support, Ian is of course the first suspect. Alex comes to his rescue when summoned. However, this is just the beginning of this convoluted case….many others who have accused Megan and her family of being fakes have disappeared.

As usual, Coleman kept me guessing with all the twists he threw my way.
What just blew me away was how he created a character, Megan, in which no other character knows what is going on in her mind; she is in a coma. Yet, he gives us, his readers, a look into her thoughts. My heart really went out to her! His other characters were well thought out and developed as well. There are some I really detested, and some I didn’t. You will understand that when you read it. He also gave me more insight into Alex’s life. I’m interested in what her future holds.

Coleman has a way of pulling the reader right into the book with the way in which he writes. He engages almost every one of my senses. Mysteries don’t usually do that for me, but he writes an incredible atmospheric thriller. If you haven’t discovered this series, you really need discover this talented writer.

2 people found this helpful

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Steph Warren

Another great mystical mystery from M. Sean Coleman

Reviewed in the United States on November 26, 2018

*I received a free copy of this book with thanks to the author, Red Dog Press and Rachel Gilbey at Rachel’s Random Resources blog tours. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.*

Another great mystical mystery from M. Sean Coleman, the second in his Alex Ripley series. You don’t have to have read the first, as the main points are recapped dripfeed-style throughout the plot here, but in my opinion you would be missing out!

The ‘miracle debunking’ is yet again an excellent hook (faith healing this time, angels previously), providing a fresh take on a genre suffused with psychologists, MD’s, CSI’s and PI’s. I particularly like the way Coleman keeps a dual perspective running on this element of his plots, with Ripley unaware that even as she is working to debunk the mystical/religious aspects of the case, the reader is getting inside information to suggest that there may be more things in heaven and earth…!

There is some slight feeling of déjà vu in some places for readers who are fresh from Book 1, as some of the characters seem to follow similar tropes despite the different names and setting: friendly landlord, scowling young man and so forth. There is no repetition in the plot though and once the story gets fully underway the new characters take on a distinguishing life of their own.

There is plenty of action, investigation, and some unexpected twists here that kept me guessing until the reveal, and Ripley’s personal story expands as the fate of her MIA husband comes into question, leaving the reader on the edge of their seat at the final pages and eager for the next instalment.

Definitely a great series for mystery fans looking for something a little off the beaten track and into the mysterious woods!

He had been preparing for this moment for months, ever since the doctors had sat them down together and told them there was nothing more they could do. And now it was time. He wanted to curl into her. Go with her. Hold her close and give her every bit of life that still coursed through his own body. He had promised himself that he would be strong. He’d sworn to her he’d be fine. But, right now, he was neither.
A fierce, burning anger consumed him. Not because he was losing her. Nor because of cancer’s indiscriminate destruction. But because they had stripped her of the one thing she held so dear: her faith. She had believed she was healed, they both had. And those frauds had let her believe it.
As he gripped Jane’s hand, resting his head on her chest, listening to the faintest breath struggling in and out of her wracked body, he vowed he would make them pay for their deceit if it was the last thing he did.
– M. Sean Coleman, A Hollow Sky

Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog

One person found this helpful

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Kindle Customer C📲📱🔖📚📖

the Miracle Detective

Reviewed in the United States on December 17, 2022

This story comes out December 16, 2022. The paperback is available. This story of a Dr, Alex Ripley, the miracle detective was called for help by Ian Hewitt, his wife Ian did not believe in faith healer and Jane did she seek Megan Shields. You will have to read more the story to learn more about who is Megan Shield. Jane Hewitt. You will Anne she is, Megan Shield mother. Ian Hewitt, and Alex Ripley. You will see other characters, Detective Harding, Simon Butcher, Gareth Willimas, Caroline Clifton. This is a story of intrigue, compelling, and exciting to wonder what going on inside this engrossing storyline of the plot twist of life and death. I hope you enjoy reading this book.

One person found this helpful

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Dee K.

Excellent

Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2023

Very intriguing, I loved Ripley....well planned character. The story is interesting and keeps you reading.

2 people found this helpful

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Bobbi Jo Wagner

great story

Reviewed in the United States on December 16, 2022

I enjoyed reading this suspenseful story. This is a new author for me which I enjoyed. i look forward to seeing what is next for them. This is a well written story that has twists and turns like no other. It brings suspense to a new level. I enjoyed how the characters are not only connectable but pulled me into their world from the start. This is a fast paced story that is hard to put down. It has great growth throughout the story and the characters just added to the entertaining part of it. I really enjoyed reading this book. I highly recommend this book.

2 people found this helpful

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Faye Ridpath

Miracles?

Reviewed in the United States on December 14, 2022

I received this book for free from Bloodhounds Books.

This book kept me gripped the whole time.

It was tense.

I haven't read the first book in the series, but I don't feel it's necessary to enjoy this book.

One person found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

sharon

Brilliant

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 10, 2020

Verified Purchase

Oh my lord! What an exquisite yet chilling opening to a book! It beckoned me in and before I knew it its icy fingers had wrapped themselves around me!

A Hollow Sky is one of those books which is heart-breaking but hopeful at the same time, it gives food for thought as you stop and question your own beliefs and position as you place yourself in the characters shoes. Was Megan’s mum exploiting her daughter or were there other factors at play? All the way through I constantly changed my mind, who could I trust and where did my empathy lie?

Dr Alex Ripley is an intriguing character, on one hand she focuses on proving that healing and miracles are myths and the work of conmen and charlatans but there is also the sense that underneath she questions her own beliefs and feelings. She’s intelligent and on the surface seems to be no nonsense and is of the firm belief that these miracles are nothing of the sort – but is she really? In A Hollow Wood, we see her own personal demons and problems impact on her values and attitudes, is she holding out for her own personal miracle? We learn more about Ripley’s personal life, the lasting impact of the case in the Cuckoo Wood and also more about her husband who is missing. The author just keeps ratcheting up the tension when it comes to Ripley and her own life and the ending left me dying for the next book! Just as well I have it ordered then!

There is something quite ethereal about Sean Coleman’s writing, it almost casts a spell on you as you read. Atmospheric and ethereal with a brooding sense of place created using some quite amazing visuals and brilliant characterisation which creates that claustrophobic small town atmosphere with such authenticity.

The claustrophobic atmosphere is amplified by the chapters told from Megan’s perspective, from inside her head as she struggles with her predicament and in one scene which I may never forgive the author for, I’m saying nothing other than it had me hyperventilating as it preyed on my fears of water and enclosed spaces.

The unexpected twists and turns just keep coming as we soon discover some characters in this small Welsh town, who will have your spidey senses tingling! Question is, will you be right in who you trust or not!

A Hollow Sky is the 2nd in the Alex Ripley series, I read the first one (The Cuckoo Wood) a few years back so my memories were a little hazy but this didn’t spoil my enjoyment and I think you could read as a stand-alone but why would you want to!

Biily

Do you believe in miracles?

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 19, 2022

Verified Purchase

A young girl in a coma who appears to have miraculous powers is at the centre of this thriller. Is a quiet Welsh community abusing her for their own ends of do miracles actually happen a d the sick are cured? Do not think you are in for a fast roller coaster read, this novel makes you question faith, the power of persuasion and seduction while building a slow burning plot amongst people's hopes and times of grief. The author has masterfully put us in the midst of a community outsiders are questioned, busy bodies make you think are they involved with what lurks under the surface and are people in the darkest of days gullible for every last chance of hope. You should ask yourself would you believe in the power of prayer and miracles of it would save a loved one? The novel makes you question religious persuasion in our society and looks at the power of greed all under a cleverly and well devised plot. I look forward to reading more in the series.

One person found this helpful

Mrs Patricia Bass

A very good read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 24, 2022

Verified Purchase

Lik

One person found this helpful

E.L Smith

Great Read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 10, 2019