Thanks Paul.
Welcome to Christchurch, best in the world at producing serial killers, authors and other deviants. Not that it's a competition ...
I can't wait to see 'where to' for Theo and Bridget, and Rebecca, and other people that I suspect I should be watching more closely.
I read this at the Heineken open. What fun!

I have not read the prior three novels in this series. Although I do own another book by this author. I just have not had the chance to pick it up and read it. Well after reading this book, I am going back and picking it up. I could not stop reading this book. I totally got the reason for the killings. Luckily and I hope that I never had to ask for my "Five Minutes". There was no secret about who was responsible for the killings. Which I liked. All I could think was would that person be caught and if so what would happen? The dymanics of Tate and Schroder's relationship was complex but it added to the story. Not only because I could not get enough of this book do I want to go back and read the prior novels but I also want to read more about the incident that happened years ago to tear Tate and Schroder apart. Also, if don't be afraid to check this book out as the killings are not talked about in gruesome details. I would say that author brings out the more human aspect of the reason for the killings and does not mainly focus on the killings.

FIVE MINUTES ALONE is the "best of the best"! A true gripping, riveting, intense, suspenseful fast-paced crime thriller. Brilliantly written, an award-winning author, and predicted "crime thriller of the year!"

Set in Christchurch, New Zealand, someone is helping rape victims get revenge on their attackers. An intense, edge-of-your-seat, holding your breath, cat-and-mouse chase between old friends- detectives Theodore Tate and Carl Schroder. These two, labeled “The Coma Cops” by the media, are finally getting their lives back into shape (think again). Tate has returned to the police force and is grateful to be back at home with his wife, Bridget. For Schroder; life, not so much.

Meet a few of the main characters:

Detective Theodore (Theo) Tate has lived through a nightmare; however, what he is about to experience will be even worse. His daughter Emily has been killed, his wife, Bridget has lost part of her memory; and often thinks she is living in a world - three years prior to the accident. Theo cannot leave her alone, as she still sets a place at the breakfast table for their daughter. Formerly known as the Coma cop, serving time in jail due to a drunk driving accident, he is now back on the force with his partner Rebecca Kent, which has also been disfigured with tortures of her own.

Kelly Summers’ life changed five years ago and will never be the same. Her world intersected with Dwight Smith, a rapist cutting her face, and disfiguring her, inside and out; she still sees him creeping around every corner of her life, day and night. She fears every day and needs to stay numb with pills to keep the evil at a distance. Her worst nightmare comes true – Dwight is now out of prison.

Peter Crowley, was unable to protect his family. Years ago, his wife was brutally raped repeatedly by two brutal brothers, in front of their young daughter Monica. Unable to live with the past, it drove her to suicide. Even though years later, Peter has remarried, while Monica is now a troubled teen. At the time Peter begged for five minutes alone with the killers, willing to even pay for it. He was never granted the request. Now years later, the rapist's are out of prison. Does he still want his five minutes, if given the choice?

Former ex-cop Carl Schroeder has seen it all and a man of many names. Over the last few years, the city has had many criminals and he has been involved with them all. The Christchurch Carver, the Burial Killer, the Gran Reaper, even Melissa X. Every one of them a psychopath, a killer. There is the Old Him before he was fired, lost his job, his family, his life, and before he attained the scar, and a bullet lodged in his brain; a time bomb waiting to explode or dislodged which will kill him). The New Him (numb, he talks to Warren, a spider on his wall, he cannot taste anything, has no emotion, or social skills; he just eats to live, and to be honest, he does not care if he lives). Will getting even, provide him with motivation to move on and will he be a hero?

What if . . . every relative or close friend of a murder victim could be granted five minutes alone with the killer? Would it offer them closure, revenge? If granted, soon after the murder, or say, five, ten, or twenty years later? Would the outcome be any different? Would the anger still be fresh, or would time lessen the obsession? What would happen in those five minutes, if left alone with this murderer?

To further complicate, the new death penalty; will this change the level of violence in the country? The Old Him had been about men like Dwight Smith, and the Christchurch Carver and getting up every morning fighting a never ending fight, dedicating himself to the cause, against violence. What about the New Him?

However, when these criminals get put behind bars, they get out, in a few years, and then are free to kill again. Why should these criminals get a second chance? After all, he never got a second chance.

When rapists and killers begin to show up dead, there seems to be a connection. Could it be a cop or an inside job? It appears someone is one step ahead of the cops. Schroeder and Tate were a team in the past, after all, they have been through the good times and the bad together.

Could Schroeder be behind this madness? Is he playing God, has he completely lost it? He has to stop his friend, as he is out of control, as now the Five Minute Man is involving the past victims. However, one big problem; Schroeder has something on Tate – will he use this information to keep Tate from busting him? Blackmail . . . karma bites!

My first read by Paul Cleave, (was blown away), and could not purchase the previous books in the Christchurch Noir Crime Series, fast enough! Joe Victim, Cemetery Lake, The Cleaner, The Laughterhouse, Blood Men, Collecting Cooper and The Killing Hour, as dying to learn the background of these intriguing characters!

Not only is this suspense complex, it is thought-provoking, with impressive plotting and character development; just when you think it is winding down, bang, another twist is around the corner!

Five Minutes Alone, offers heart-pounding intense and fast-paced suspense, leaving you page-turning desperately, into the wee hours of the morning, dying to learn the fate of these troubled and flawed characters, as you sympathize with them all.

You have to read FIVE MINUTES ALONE. You will not be able to stop with just one. I read this as a standalone; however, if you are like me, you will want to read them all. Crime thriller fans will devour!

Atria definitely knows how to crank out the winners: Forty Acres (7/14) and now Five Minutes Alone (10/14), two of my favorite thrillers for 2014!

A special thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for an ARC and the introduction to this impressive author, in exchange for an honest review.

JDCMustReadBooks

TOP 30 BEST BOOKS OF 2014

Be sure and read his upcoming TRUST NO ONE 5 Stars+ Coming 8/4/2015. You are going to love it!

Looking forward to reading [b:A Killer Harvest|32920264|A Killer Harvest|Paul Cleave|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1479238810s/32920264.jpg|53537936] Coming August 2017. So excited to land an early reading copy.

Being a Kiwi author and a New Zealand setting, I found the Americanisms a tad irritating. Miles, Farenheit, fluid ounces, etc, are bad enough - but we don't have rabies in this country, so why would you worry about it as a result of a dog bite? It felt like it was pandering to a market. Beside that, the story was enjoyable. I felt like a lot had happened in the previous three books that is mentioned in passing, so will be going to the beginning of the series.

Five Minutes Alone is the fourth book in Paul Cleave's crime thriller series set in New Zealand, featuring private detective turned police officer, Theodore Tate.

I didn't realise when I chose to read Five Minutes Alone that it was fourth in the series, I was simply intrigued by the synopsis. Six months previously, Detectives Theodore Tate and Carl Schroder were badly injured in a confrontation with a serial killer. Now, while Theodore has all but recovered and is back on the force, Carl, fired for his role in the case, is left with a bullet in his brain and a death sentence hanging over his head.
When a newly paroled rapist is found, in pieces, along the railway tracks, Theodore is happy to dismiss the case as 'suicide by train' but a post mortem proves the man was already dead. Just a day later the bodies of two more rapists are discovered at an abandoned asylum along with the husband of their victim and it becomes obvious there is a vigilante hunting these criminals and giving their victims the chance for 'five minutes alone' to extract their revenge.
Personally Tate would be happy to let the anonymous killer continue, he knows better than most how consuming the need for retribution can be, but as a police officer he has no choice but to investigate the crimes, even if they lead him to his old partner's door step.

Tate is caught between his professional and complicated personal life in Five Minutes Alone. As he investigates the vigilante, he has to re examine the decision he made when his daughter was killed by a drink driver. Meanwhile his wife, severely injured in the same incident, is struggling with her recovery and inadvertently places Tate in a difficult situation.

As the identity of the killer is known fairly quickly the suspense in the novel stems largely from his confrontations with his victims and his attempts to evade the law. Due to Carl's brain injury he makes a lot of mistakes in the commission of his crimes which leads to some black humoured slapstick and violent scenes.

The central question of the novel, is Carl a good guy or a bad guy? Cleave explores the grey areas between justice, law and vengeance in a manner that is exaggerated, but with a pointed edge. It is difficult to begrudge victims their desire for their 'five minutes alone' when, as Carl points out, the perpetrators go on to live their lives after destroying so many others. Yet it isn't that simple and all of Carl's 'good deeds' have unintended consequences. Playing out in the background of the story is the vote for reinstating the death penalty in New Zealand.

From what I can tell, this book also ties in with Cleave's The Cleaner series, I think I probably would have found Five Minutes Alone more compelling had I been familiar with the characters. The pace felt a little uneven but it was a fairly quick read and I enjoyed the mix of action, suspense and drama.

3.5 stars
Another grizzly, yet satisfying, addition to Paul Cleave's Christchurch novels.

Lies moulded with truth aren't lies, right?
Yep, that's the book for me at the end.

This book is the last installment of the Theodore Tate series, and seriously I had forgotten how great this guy was. It has been long since I had read a crime novel (well oh my, who am I kidding; a novel). Plus, I had been missing in action in my life too (ha ha). And when I ended this book, I just sat on my bed thinking, this is it? Like really? What?! I NEED MORE!!! I NEED A CLOSURE!
LIKE COME ON!!
But, but, but I loved the location where it ended basically, from where it all started. (Nice touch there author)

Basically, in this book, Theodore is back in action, eluding coma, coming back to his wife and in police, trying his best to settle back in his life. Whereas, for his friend, ex-partner, Schroder, things aren't looking too good, he has a bullet in his head somewhere, stuck, saving him a few days of life. This bullet snaps something in him, causing him to become emotionless, and now this leads to a dead rapist, then two, then... Well, dead innocent people. Theodore tries to connect the dots, Schroder tries to find some balance in his life leading them both to stand, face to face against each other.
But the real question is who is this so called five minute man, who is giving five minutes alone to the loved one's of the victimized?

I must say, I was really excited for this book, it was different than the rest of his books, less mysterious, a bit slow at times but all the more it felt like I was watching a crime season, a really good one. It had precise amount of darkness, humour, and detective work. Plus, the book in the beginning was like keeping me on the edge, the middle was moderate, but for the ending I expected totally different outcome, and well come on there was the great plot twist. If that twist hadn't had happened I would've been crying right now. Otherwise, it was a book filled with coffee, detectives, forensics, investigation, plus lots of sleep deprivation.

Besides, I really enjoyed the humour of the main character (MC), seemed like he had gotten it after his wake from coma. Plus, the inner monologue of the both characters was a treat to read. Theodore, being the MC really was done with his job, the city, and the people, he just wanted to go to home to his wife so bad. (That was sad

I've like this whole series taking place
with serial crime in Christchurch,
New Zealand and this seventh one is
no exception. The only partially
nitpick would be to new readers who
may not start with the first book
and read them in order because there
is a lot of material from prior books
that is used for the subsequent ones.
That being said, the author does a
good job of keeping the reader
up-to-date so you can still follow the
storylines, just that there is sort of
'spoilers' for the reader who may go back
and read earlier ones.
This one has good plotting and reads in
sort of a doleful way but the narration
and dialogue kept things interesting.
The ending was not totally satisfying
but again that is a bit of a nit because
it was an enjoyable read overall.

I wish that I had known how intertwined the Theodore Tate and The Cleaner series would be. It is basically one series, but focusing on different characters. But I really like these. I hope this isn't the last.