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Tony Hill & Carol Jordan #9.5
Footloose: Tony Hill and Carol Jordan vs. Roy Grace
An original short story from iconic thriller collection Match Up , edited by Lee Child, featuring a never-before-seen pairing between bestsellers Val McDermid and Peter James - along with their popular series characters Carol Jordan, Tony Hill and Roy Grace.
When the body of a woman is found without her feet, detective Carol Jordan and clinical psychologist Tony Hill team up with Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, whose team has made a grisly discovery of their a pair of human feet. Together, they make it their sole mission to catch a foot fetishist criminal.
For more exciting short story pairings, don't miss all eleven short stories in Match Up !
When the body of a woman is found without her feet, detective Carol Jordan and clinical psychologist Tony Hill team up with Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, whose team has made a grisly discovery of their a pair of human feet. Together, they make it their sole mission to catch a foot fetishist criminal.
For more exciting short story pairings, don't miss all eleven short stories in Match Up !
Kindle Edition
Published July 6, 2018
200 people are currently reading
590 people want to read
About the author
Val McDermid
316 books5,406 followersVal McDermid is a No. 1 bestseller whose novels have been translated into more than thirty languages, and have sold over eleven million copies.
She has won many awards internationally, including the CWA Gold Dagger for best crime novel of the year and the LA Times Book of the Year Award. She was inducted into the ITV3 Crime Thriller Awards Hall of Fame in 2009 and was the recipient of the CWA Cartier Diamond Dagger for 2010. In 2011 she received the Lambda Literary Foundation Pioneer Award.
She writes full time and divides her time between Cheshire and Edinburgh.
She has won many awards internationally, including the CWA Gold Dagger for best crime novel of the year and the LA Times Book of the Year Award. She was inducted into the ITV3 Crime Thriller Awards Hall of Fame in 2009 and was the recipient of the CWA Cartier Diamond Dagger for 2010. In 2011 she received the Lambda Literary Foundation Pioneer Award.
She writes full time and divides her time between Cheshire and Edinburgh.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
August 2, 2021
Feet!🦶🏽🦶🏽
I know some people have fetishes. And that’s what this book is about. Feet.
Dead women missing feet. Dead feet missing women.
You know, foot fetishes.
Very clever writing. Full of puns about feet.
I know some people have fetishes. And that’s what this book is about. Feet.
Dead women missing feet. Dead feet missing women.
You know, foot fetishes.
Very clever writing. Full of puns about feet.
December 13, 2021
A foot-fetishist thriller, and I missed Quentin Tarantino.
December 16, 2025
A co-authored story in the anthology Match Up about a foot fetishist who took it too far.
March 4, 2018
I've never read anything like this. Talk about an original. Someone deranged mind is killing girls with perfect feet and removing them. The story, exciting and the characters, interesting. I look forward to meeting Tony Hill and Roy Grace in other Val McDermid and Peter James novels.
August 29, 2018
So, I have already stated thrillers and such aren't really my thing. So the police stuff in this short one was a bit boring to me. But the foot puns and outcome of the story was pretty freaking good.
September 25, 2018
Brilliant short story
September 30, 2021
It was ok
September 14, 2025
Openly a novelty concept: a bunch of short stories pairing two popular writers collaborating to create a short story where their lead characters intersect.
A no-brainer for the legion of fans who already like both, but also a chance for one to maybe win over some of the readers of the other guy who’ll be lapping this up. Or for neutrals like myself who hope this is a nice smorgasbord to hopefully find someone worth pursuing (or, as in this case, who to avoid). Whichever, this star-studded anthology sold voluminously.
Maybe some people enjoy a plodding police procedural, devoid of wit, charm, entertaining characters or well narrated and interesting events – but not me. Even the procedural stuff turns out to be pointless as the perpetrator virtually hands himself to the old bill. Oh, and, you know, those kids with their computers, they can just find out anything instantly. Right.
Apart from the last word – which could have been delivered as effectively in half a page as an openly simple one joke story – nothing came close to drawing any response from me. I just couldn't see the point. The franchise leads offered nothing, might as well have been any of the bland extras – I couldn’t really tell which ones were supposed to be the leads.
A no-brainer for the legion of fans who already like both, but also a chance for one to maybe win over some of the readers of the other guy who’ll be lapping this up. Or for neutrals like myself who hope this is a nice smorgasbord to hopefully find someone worth pursuing (or, as in this case, who to avoid). Whichever, this star-studded anthology sold voluminously.
Maybe some people enjoy a plodding police procedural, devoid of wit, charm, entertaining characters or well narrated and interesting events – but not me. Even the procedural stuff turns out to be pointless as the perpetrator virtually hands himself to the old bill. Oh, and, you know, those kids with their computers, they can just find out anything instantly. Right.
Apart from the last word – which could have been delivered as effectively in half a page as an openly simple one joke story – nothing came close to drawing any response from me. I just couldn't see the point. The franchise leads offered nothing, might as well have been any of the bland extras – I couldn’t really tell which ones were supposed to be the leads.
November 4, 2023
So good until the abrupt end. This short story would have to be longer and some of the characters would have to be better developed.
SYNOPSIS: "An original short story from iconic thriller collection Match Up , edited by Lee Child, featuring a never-before-seen pairing between bestsellers Val McDermid and Peter James - along with their popular series characters Carol Jordan, Tony Hill and Roy Grace.
When the body of a woman is found without her feet, detective Carol Jordan and clinical psychologist Tony Hill team up with Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, whose team has made a grisly discovery of their a pair of human feet. Together, they make it their sole mission to catch a foot fetishist criminal."
SYNOPSIS: "An original short story from iconic thriller collection Match Up , edited by Lee Child, featuring a never-before-seen pairing between bestsellers Val McDermid and Peter James - along with their popular series characters Carol Jordan, Tony Hill and Roy Grace.
When the body of a woman is found without her feet, detective Carol Jordan and clinical psychologist Tony Hill team up with Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, whose team has made a grisly discovery of their a pair of human feet. Together, they make it their sole mission to catch a foot fetishist criminal."
May 19, 2019
Disappointing I had only downloaded a sample.
Two different writers I really enjoy, the story is flowing along seamlessly so far, Compare the technology with just a few years ago. It makes the almost instant feed back between the two forces easier to blend the stories. Now about to download the full book.
Two different writers I really enjoy, the story is flowing along seamlessly so far, Compare the technology with just a few years ago. It makes the almost instant feed back between the two forces easier to blend the stories. Now about to download the full book.
February 2, 2024
not really a fan of British mysteries
Story wasn’t bad, good to know they have weird people too. Never read anything from the 2 authors. So I didn’t understand the main characters or their back stories.
Story wasn’t bad, good to know they have weird people too. Never read anything from the 2 authors. So I didn’t understand the main characters or their back stories.
July 4, 2024
Something bizarre is a foot....
I couldn't resist the word play in my title for this review. 😀
Despite the rather grizzly subject of this short read J actually enjoyed reading this story. It was well written and story moved fluently along.
I couldn't resist the word play in my title for this review. 😀
Despite the rather grizzly subject of this short read J actually enjoyed reading this story. It was well written and story moved fluently along.
August 23, 2024
Good quick read
Have liked the Grave and Hill books for some time now so really enjoyed this book about the 2 of them shame they do not actually meet up as this would have been good still a clever plot line keeping both busy
Have liked the Grave and Hill books for some time now so really enjoyed this book about the 2 of them shame they do not actually meet up as this would have been good still a clever plot line keeping both busy
September 22, 2024
I loved all the Tony Hill and Carol Jordan series of books but this didnt quite match up. I like to get my teeth into a thriller and there just wasnt time with this short story. I was just settling into it and then it was over!
August 21, 2025
Great read
Great book. I was just getting into it and it came to an end. Just few points regarding the American spelling of some words. Behavior should be behaviour, catalogs should be catalogues. Writers or publ publisher to blame?
Great book. I was just getting into it and it came to an end. Just few points regarding the American spelling of some words. Behavior should be behaviour, catalogs should be catalogues. Writers or publ publisher to blame?
June 11, 2020
Fun and humorous little thriller!
June 29, 2020
OH LORD, THE FOOT JOKES.
September 26, 2020
Well this was strange and creepy! Strange and creepy is the only two words I would use to describe this one.
November 4, 2020
Not a favorite. Slow read. Too much information about feet for me.
October 10, 2021
It's not bad for a short story but it's full of grammar mistakes and it feels more like a fanfic than a genuine Val McD book...
September 9, 2022
I like this series for short and detectivesque. This one in particular I found it a little confusing. It seems at first the characters work at distance, then I did not know so the end (who caught the murderer). But the storyline is good.
August 20, 2023
These are good short stories.
December 3, 2024
Val McDermid and Peter James certainly had fun with this mystery. Loved the terrible puns. Kristi & Abby Tabby
December 5, 2024
Nope (and too much British lingo).
July 2, 2025
Each volume of The MatchUp Collection I’ve read has been entertaining. The series is a fun way to introduce unknown (to me) authors.
February 1, 2026
Short and laugh out loud funny!
I read it easily in a morning. Loved the concept and the puns were great. Would recommend as a bit of light reading
I read it easily in a morning. Loved the concept and the puns were great. Would recommend as a bit of light reading
December 16, 2021
Kindle
September 7, 2019
This story was great, but entirely too short! I can’t wait for How The Dead Speak.
Read
November 14, 2018This was a well written short story. It was a little gruesome at some points but all the puns helped to keep the story light and funny.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews