An original, intelligent and twisty thriller set in rural Wiltshire.

A dead body in a crop circle sends a coded message. Can DI Silas Hart uncover the chilling truth before it’s too late?

It isn’t unusual for crop circles to appear overnight on Hackpen Hill. In this part of Wiltshire, where golden wheat fields stretch for miles, the locals have got used to discovering strange mathematical patterns stamped into the earth.

But this time, it’s different. Not only because this particular design of dramatic spiralling hexagons has never been seen before. But because of the dead body positioned precisely in the centre of the circle. DI Silas Hart, of Swindon Police, is at a loss.

Only Jim, a scientist at secretive government laboratory Porton Down, knows the chilling truth about the man on Hackpen Hill. And he wants Bella, a trainee journalist on her first ever story, to tell the world. But Silas has other ideas – and a boss intent on a cover up.

As Bella and Jim race against time, dark forces conspire against them, leading them to confront the reality of their own past and a world in which nothing is as it seems.

PLEASE NOTE: My apologies for this review being posted a day late, but the graphics were not supplied in time.

Twists & Turns Galore!

Here’s a novel which will give your brain a work-out!

DI Silas Hart mood plummets when his latest case involves crop circles; they are the bane of his life when a body turns up in the middle of one. Using everything at his disposal, it’s still a puzzling investigation. Jim, a scientist an Porton Down, the secret government facility, knows the truth and reaches out to Bella, trainee journalist, to help him reveal it. But Jim has to go into hiding and Bella is scared. Silas just wants to get to the truth and solve the murder, but his superiors seem keen on stopping his quest.

What a read! By the time I was three quarters way through this book, I was beginning to wonder if I was losing my mind! Twisting this way and turning the other, this is an enigmatic read which will have you questioning everything. I was completely sucked in and not just surprised but shocked as it all unravelled to reveal the truth. Absolutely riveting! Very cleverly written and skilfully plotted. 4.5* from me.

My thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley; this is – as always – my honest, original and unbiased review.

Tags: crime thriller

• Format: ebook, paperback, hardcover
• Size: 333 pages
• Publisher: Head of Zeus
• Publication Date: 02 September 2021
• Book Links:
• https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58861679
• https://play.google.com/store/books/details/J_S_Monroe_The_Man_on_Hackpen_Hill?id=cJwIEAAAQBAJ
• https://www.kobo.com/gb/en/ebook/the-man-on-hackpen-hill
• https://www.whsmith.co.uk/products/the-man-on-hackpen-hill/js-monroe/paperback/9781838939595.html
• https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-man-on-hackpen-hill/j-s-monroe/9781838939595
• https://www.amazon.co.uk/Man-Hackpen-Hill-J-S-Monroe-ebook/dp/B08NCWHN16

Author Details

J. S. Monroe read English at Cambridge, worked as a foreign correspondent in Delhi, and was Weekend editor of the Daily Telegraph in London before becoming a full-time writer. His psychological thriller Find Me became a bestseller in 2017 and, under the name Jon Stock, he is also the author of five spy thrillers. He lives in Wiltshire, with his wife and children.

• Twitter: @JSThrillers
• Facebook: @JSMonroeFindMe