The Cutting audiobook

More of a 3.5 star read, but I'm bumping it up for 2 reasons. The first is that it has setup a good series with a lot of back story that was well done. The other is that it was very similar to L.J. Sellers' Detective Jackson series which hurt it, but it looks as if this was published a year before The Sex Club. Instead of Eugene, OR, this takes place in Portland, ME. The MC in both is the lead detective who is divorced with custody of a teenage daughter & a girl friend named Kira! That's a LOT in common & didn't help it at all, but I don't think I should ding the earlier book for it just because I read it second.It was a fairly twisty mystery, although some was obvious & it was just a matter of waiting for the characters to catch up. McCabe is a good, dedicated detective with enough going on in his personal & professional life to make him quite sympathetic. He drinks Glenfidditch at one point, though. That's a mark against him. Why anyone would touch a single malt scotch that has been abused by aging in a sherry cask is beyond me, especially since he drinks Dewar's for a blend rather than Johnny Walker or Pinch. (No, I don't drink any more, but I used to.)The supporting characters are good & most are pretty memorable. The bad guys certainly were. There were a couple of good ones, although there wasn't a lot of depth to them. They could have been handled a little better.Overall, pretty good & I'll listen to more. This series is more of a beach read than Connelly or McKinty. Not a bad thing since the overall tone is much happier, not as gritty.

The Cutting is book one of the McCabe & Savage Thriller. One hot night in Portland Detective Sergeant Michael McCabe was out to dinner with Kyra when his partner Detective Maggie Savage contact him about finding the body of a missing teenager. The readers of The Cutting will go on a rollercoaster ride with McCabe and Maggie trying to locate the killer before another person dies. I accidentally found this series by participating in reading challenges, and I fell in love with James Hayman books and especially his two main characters McCabe and Savage. I like that James Hayman made his leading characters male and female detective team. James Hayman certainly knows how to take his readers on a rollercoaster ride to find a killer. I like the way, James Hayman entwine personal stories of his characters. I enjoy James Hayman portrayal of his characters and the way he entwines them throughout The book. Reading the Cutting, I started to think about the problems that men have when relationships fail, and children are involved. Readers of The Cutting will learn about the different law enforcement procedures in Portland, Maine. Also, will learn about illegal organ transplants and what they do to gather vital organs.I recommend this book

What an ending!! Wow. These detectives that try to do things on their own have my heart in my throat. The bad guy was oh so bad. Great story! I’ll definitely be reading more in the series. Probably should call it 4.5 stars.

James Hayman’s “The Cutting”, published by Penguin in the United Kingdom, is the latest crime thriller to land on my desk in 2011. Given that this is Hayman’s debut novel I approached the book with an air of excitement, eager to discover a new leading detective and a new novelist – adding to the fact that McCabe is a detective from Portland - I wasn’t disappointed!After spending over twenty years as a senior creative director at one of New York’s largest advertising agencies, Hayman, who currently lives in Portland Maine, utilises his knowledge of the area in this wonderfully evocative thriller.It’s hard to comprehend that this is his first novel; such is the fluidity of his narrative and intelligent police procedural throughout. An incredibly fast paced thriller, not only did this story have heart (and yes a play on words!) it had a lot of soul. Page by page I felt as if I was discovering more about Hayman’s interests through the parting wisdom of his lead character Michael McCabe.Leaving the New York police department following an acrimonious divorce and the fatal shooting of his brother and a small time hoodlum, Detective Michael McCabe, an intelligent and enigmatic character, is keen to start anew with his daughter Casey. Leaving the violence of the big city the pair move to Portland, far away from an ex-wife who wants nothing to do with her daughter – the pair move on.Three years on and McCabe and his daughter are comfortable in their loving relationship – I really enjoyed this softness to the story and his fears of protecting Casey plays a small part in keeping the story ticking along nicely. 1971 and a young boy takes a rabbit to a secret cave, carefully opening a sharpened knife he proceeds to take great delight in killing the animal, the blade entering the animal’s neck as it shook violently. Experiencing an indescribable feeling throughout his body, the euphoria of the rabbit’s beating heart still fresh in his memory, the boy wants to taste death again. 2005, a September evening, a homeless man discovers the mutilated body of a beautiful blonde teenager (Katie Dubois) in a scrap-metal yard. McCabe and his partner Maggie are called to the scene and are struck by the brutality of the murder – the young girl, missing for a week, is missing a heart.Full review on my blog:- http://www.milorambles.com/2011/01/14...

I am giving a big applause to this one. I was really entertained. It was twisty, and had the right amount of speed and action, just like I want to have a really good thriller going. This was my first Hayman and it was his debut novel. That book was sitting on my tbr for a while, there is still waiting a other of him and I am sure I def want to read this either soon. Loved the characters special McCabe. For me a page tuner could but it down barely. 4.5 🌿 I recommend it!

A fabulous read I so enjoyed this novel my first by James Hayman. When young women are being abducted and their bodies dumped with their hearts cut out Decetive McCabe and partner Maggie Savage are on the job in a race against time to try and save Lucinda Cassidy who recently was also abducted. This novel was fast paced, action packed with plenty of twists and turns and all the characters were intriguing. very well written I'm going to love this series❤❤❤

Detective Sergeant Michael McCabe left New York City to start over in Portland, Maine. Seeking to raise his daughter away from the violence of the city, McCabe settles into his new job, while trying to reconcile himself to the past: an ex-wife who left him for an investment banker and the death of his brother, a hero cop gone bad. McCabe never expected to find such violence in Maine.The mutilated body of a blonde high school soccer star is found in a scrap-metal yard. She has been viciously assaulted and her heart cut from her chest with expert precision. On the same day, a young, blonde, athletic businesswoman is abducted as she jogs through the city's west end. McCabe believes both crimes are the work of the same person, and that these crimes sound eerily familiar.Can McCabe and his partner, Maggie Savage, put the pieces together that will allow them to rescue the missing woman and uncover a sadistic killer?The Cutting is spectacular! Its gripping storyline, the way McCabe's personal and professional lives intersect, the slight bit of sexual tension between McCabe and his partner, and this unique mystery, all come together to give the reader an action-packed ride.Hayman has written McCabe with that tough cop edge, but still gives him vulnerabilities to make him believable. In an unusual twist, McCabe is the single father to Casey, whose mother abandoned her when she walked out on McCabe for a rich investment banker. Suddenly Casey's mother reappears to foster a relationship with the girl, and McCabe isn't quite sure he likes that too much. Once you pick up The Cutting, you won't be able to put it down. You'll be racing against time along with McCabe and Savage to unravel this mystery. Let's hope Hayman has many more McCabe novels in him, because you'll want to keep reading them just as much as I do

Just Wonderful!Beautifully written, great characters, great crime/mystery. Written intelligently, for people with intelligence, which I always appreciate in genre fiction. I HIGHLY recommend this book, the first in a series, and will be well into the second book by the time anyone reads this review. Onward!

For myself, in the tradition of Michael Connolly, I discover a author who relates a tale of crime and murder, the equal of any.Looking forward to his next book. Each one stands alone.

As an avid reader of several genres, including mystery and suspense, I can honestly rank The Cutting up there with some of the best. While I was reading, such names as Michael Palmer, Linwood Barclay and Harlan Coben often came to mind. This is not to say that James Hayman does not express his own unique writing voice, because he certainly does that. The similarities came, for me, in the form of the intensity, medical suspense, short chapters that lead the reader to not being able to put the book down, but think "It's a short chapter, I can read just one more." Which of course is impossible with the way the author leaves the reader hanging at the end of each chapter.When the body of a missing young high school girl shows up,displaying indications of a brutal and devastating death, as well as a missing heart, homicide detective Mike McCabe knows that he is not facing an ordinary killer. Then when other bodies begin showing up, the same horrific signs of death, McCabe realizes that they have a serial killer on their hands, a serial killer who always leaves his victims behind without their heart. To add to the pressure of finding the killer, another young, healthy and beautiful woman has gone missing. If all other indications are correct, the missing woman has approximately one week to live and time is quickly seeping away. With no solid leads, McCabe knows he must quickly put the pieces together to discover who is performing these horrendous murders and why. Just when he thinks he has something figured out, a twist occurs, throwing everything out of balance and sending McCabe back to square one. To make matters worse, McCabe has a beautiful, young teenage daughter and fears that the killer may set his sights on her, which sends his pulse racing in terror. He must do everything in his power to find the killer and do so quickly before the body count increases any further.The Cutting, impressively, is James Hayman's debut novel and one that is sure to send readers craving for more. I do have to admit that I had figured out the killer approximately half way through the book. However, I was still entranced, wanting to know exactly how the entire process played out. Mr. Hayman does an excellent job breathing life into his characters and really allowing the reader to get to know them and care about them. I was amazed how he was able to draw me in from the beginning, by personalizing and really bringing to life Lucy, who is the girl that goes missing and is being searched for before she becomes yet another victim. Such simplistic actions as the fact that Lucy was looking forward to purchasing an Ipod for her nephew and then, before she knows it, her life is forever changed, really made me feel compassion for this character.In addition, The Cutting is a very smooth and well put together story. There was one spot that comes to mind that seems like it was left a bit open. When the body of the young high school girl is discovered, she is found as though she had been posed a certain way, as though a sign of the killer making a statement. However, there was really no follow through on this, but rather just dropped. I also kept waiting for a shocking twist at the end, but instead was met with a very clean and clear ending. Not that that is bad, by any means, just my own personal feelings.I cannot wait to see what James Hayman comes out with next. The Cutting is a superb debut novel that I honestly raced through in a mere two days - including one incredibly late night! This is a book, that once you start, you will find it very difficult to put down!!

A great little thriller, and the start of a very promising mystery series. The fact that it's published my Penguin (not the norm for a book of this type) really surprised me, but after reading it, I understand why. "The Cutting", is more than just your typical mystery/thriller, its literature! The characters were well drawn out, and fully realized. I look forward to the other books in the series. Highly recommended!

A VERY COMPLEX CRIME DRAMA AND REALLY EXCITING. I WAS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT ALL THAT WAS GOING, ON BY THE END I FOUND I HAD SOME RIGHT AND SOME WRONG. NOW FOR ME THAT MADE IT A VERY GOOD BOOK. I LIKED IT SO MUCH I HAVE THE NEXT TWO ON MY KINDLE CAROUSEL JUST WAITING FOR ME. I CAN READ AT MY LEISURE AND THEY CAN ALL BE READ AS STAND ALONES. YEAH!! ;D

While at work, I have been on a suspense audiobook binge. I recently discovered James Hayman. I like how his novels are multi-layered. While the reader suspects the identity of the killer in this one, it isn't so easy to figure out if they had an accomplice until the end.

The Cutting is the second James Hayman book I've read (I read Darkness First a little while ago) and I have to say that he's definitely up there as one of my favourite thriller authors.The main character in this novel, Detective Sergeant Michael McCabe, is a real world character who has very real problems and is in no way your superhero detective who can do no wrong. This is one of the qualities I enjoy the most about this book as well as the fact that he's got a very unique gift in the way of a photographic memory.Once I started The Cutting I struggled to put it down. Medical thrillers seem to scare me the most as there is always something very haunting when you think about how vulnerable we all are to those that are in such a trusting field as medicine. Once you learn the background to the reasons behind all of the kidnappings and murders in this book, it becomes quite chilling as I imagine it could easily be something that could possibly go on today and you'd never even know.McCabe's relationship with his partner, Maggie Savage, is an interesting one that seems to have a few more layers to it than we initially get to know. I really enjoy Hayman's writing style and even though his novels are psychological thriller based, they are very easy to read and enjoy without being too overly complicated or hard to connect with.I'm definitely looking forward to reading the second in the series, The Chill of Night, next.

4.0 out of 5 stars A satisfying thriller!, May 21, 2011I really enjoyed this fast-paced mystery thriller and immediately sought out the next book - The Chill of Night (Det. Michael Mccabe Mysteries) - in what I hope will be a long series featuring Detective Sergeant Michael McCabe and his partner, Maggie Savage.A young teen-aged girl is found dead and mutilated in a scrap-metal yard. Her heart has been cut out in a manner that could pass for surgical precision. Earlier that morning, a jogger -- another blonde and beautiful athlete -- was abducted by what McCabe fears is a serial killer targeting this type of victim. The suspense builds as he and Maggie race to try to find this kidnapped woman before she too succumbs to the mutilation. They discover a string of similar crimes stretching from Portland, Maine to Florida. Who is behind these murders and what are they doing with the hearts they steal?Another thing I really liked, besides the well-developed plot, were the two main characters. I want to get to know them and read more about them. Mike McCabe is a single father raising a 13 year old girl with an ex-wife who has returned for a visitation after several years of absence from their lives. Maggie is a bit mysterious and might have some secrets. The partners work well together and there seems to be a bit of chemistry as well.If you like a good thriller, ignore the fact that you may or may not find some of the book predictable, and open the cover!

Detective Sergeant Michael McCabe moves from New York City to Portland Maine toescape a dark past. The ex wife who left him and the tragic death of his brother a herocop gone bad. He wanted to raise his young daughter away from the violence of the bigcity. So he's unprepared for the horrific killer he discovers who may lead to Portland's elite. On a September evening the mutilated body of a pretty teenage girl, a high school soccer player dumped in a scrap metal yard. She had been viciously assaulted and her heart had been cut from her chest with surgical precision. Also on the same day a youngbusiness woman, also a blond and an athlete she was abducted as she jogged through the city streets. This seems to be a killer well versed in surgery. Just as the investigation.begins McCabe's ex wife emerges determined to reclaim the daughter that she abandoned.With the help of his partner Maggie Savage McCabe begins a race to rescue the missingwoman and unmask a sadistic killer. This is book one from the Mike McCabe series from 2009. It's a pretty decent story and I gave it a 4.