Reviews
-
Skeletons in the Closet by Bill Kitson
8th August 2023. When several skeletons are found in a remote, derelict cottage, it poses another complex murder investigation for Mike Nash and the team. The investigation has barely started when a local solicitor, linked to the property, is murdered. When his business partner and lover is also found dead, the team struggle to keep up, making little headway. Like all the previous novels, this involves another complex and gruelling investigation. The banter and humour among the team, along with Nash’s irreverent take on proceedings, help to keep the story moving along as a series of burglaries take up more of the team’s time. But it isn’t long before Nash…
-
Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie
4th August 2023. This is another deftly plotted and ingenious murder mystery, featuring Hercule Poirot. He’s taking a break with a cruise down the Nile when Linnet Ridgeway, a rich and beautiful woman is murdered – shot in the head. The obvious suspect, who has expressed her desire to kill Linnet for taking her lover, has a solid alibi. The story begins by revealing many of the characters that will feature in the drama. The build-up is gentle but intriguing as Linnet is shown as a person everyone loves and admires. But once she’s killed, a number of suspects and subplots are uncovered by the Belgian detective. Never anything less…
-
A Knot of Sparrows by Cheryl Rees-Price
3rd August 2023. In the latest intriguing story in the series, DI Winter Meadows investigates the death of a promiscuous young woman, who had antagonised plenty of people in the village. A strange word or code was left on the body to add to the mystery. As the investigation progresses, more murders follow, all linked by the codes left on the bodies or nearby. It appears someone in the area is on a mission. But it’s not clear what. Most of the suspects have alibis, especially when Winters himself is attacked. He believes it’s a warning rather than a death threat and steps up the inquiry until he finally gets…
-
Blood Lines by Angela Marsons
30th July 2023. In another tense and riveting murder enquiry, DI Kim Stone is once again facing her nemesis, Dr Alex Thorne in another epic battle of wills. It starts with the murder of a top level manager in Social Services. A single stab wound was all it took. A second murder of a drug addict, again involving a single stab wound, leaves Stone and her team with no links between the victims and few leads. Enter chilling sociopath Alex Thorne, plotting and scheming from her prison cell, determined to engage and defeat Stone. Playing dark, dirty and dangerous, Thorne manages to manipulate both wardens and fellow inmate to do…
-
Mystery at the Church by Clare Chase
29th July 2023. There’s never a quiet moment for obituary writer, Eve Mallow, or the village of Saxford St Peter. This time, the tranquillity is swept aside by a film crew. Eve and many of the residents become extras in what turns out to be a drama within a drama when the director, Rufus Beaumont is murdered. With a long list of suspects, and plenty of motives among a disparate cast and crew, the scale of Eve’s investigation looks daunting. Once more, she uses her research to write an obituary as an opportunity to get closer to the people involved. But as she digs into the director’s past and relationships,…
-
I is for Innocent by Sue Grafton
27th July 2023. Revisiting these novels has given me more pleasure than I imagined. The stories and characters have lost none of their original magic, and feel as fresh and original as they did 30 years ago. This time, Kinsey is employed to complete an investigation carried out by another PI who unexpectedly died. The case concerns the murder of Isabella Barney, whose husband was acquitted of her murder. Unhappy with this verdict, her former husband is mounting his own lawsuit, seeking justice. While all the evidence is there to see, Kinsey’s investigation soon starts to find gaps in the evidence. It isn’t long before she finds herself doubting her…
-
The Ghost Fields by Elly Griffiths
16th July 2023. This series simply gets better with each book. It’s no mean feat when the bar was set so high from the start, but like the previous outings for Dr Ruth Galloway, she’s soon immersed in another original and different plot when a plane from the Second World War is uncovered at a building site. Inside the cockpit, there’s body with a bullet hole in the head. Only he’s not the pilot. It’s the start of another mystery that centres on the Blackstock family, who have lived on the same land for centuries. Three generations occupy their stately home, along with a host of family secrets and conflicts…
-
The Heron’s Cry by Ann Cleeves
9th July 2023. This is another beautifully crafted investigation that draws you in from the opening chapters with engaging characters and a shocking murder. Dr Yeo is stabbed in the neck with a glass shard that comes from one of the vases his daughter crafted. The impact ripples through the local community, affecting the families of those connected with the doctor, his daughter, and DI Matthew Venn. A second murder with another glass shard has detectives investigating on several fronts, straining local relationships further. It’s a complex story that moves at a sure and steady pace. The affect on the local community and families is at the core of the…
-
H is For Homicide by Sue Grafton
28th June 2023. Over 30 years ago, I started reading Sue Grafton’s brilliant Alphabet series. This time around the books are still as fresh and brilliant, driven by Kinsey Millhone’s determination and her irreverent humour and sometimes acerbic observations. In her eighth outing, she’s looking into an insurance scam that starts out with Bibianna Diaz, who appears to be a small fish in a large pond. Kinsey catches up with her one evening, only to end up involved in a shooting that lands them both in jail. Then the police approach Kinsey to go undercover and stick with Bibianna, who’s involved with the mastermind running the insurance scam, and more.…
-
The One Who Was Taken by Kerry Wilkinson
23rd June 2023. I loved the first novel in the series, and this one is as good, if not better. Millie’s a brilliant character, but then most of the main players are, especially Guy and Jack. This novel continues the story of Millie, whose troubled past has defined the way people treat her. Former best friend Nicola contacts Millie after a ten year silence. Fifteen years ago, she found Nicola tied to a tree and her long hair cut. Her missing trainers have been left on the washing line, presumably to intimate her. But who took them in the first place? And why return them now? Millie offers to help…
-
Play Dead by Angela Marsons
6th May 2023. This has to be on the most original, enjoyable and distinctive crime series I’ve had the pleasure to read. From the opening pages to the last, this is another original, hard-hitting, uncompromising, breath taking investigation by DI Kim Stone and her team. The pace and intensity never let up as Kim investigates another bizarre set of murders. The killer dumps the bodies at a forensic research facility, where they study dead bodies. The irony’s not lost on Kim Stone, who pursues the case with the vigour and unorthodox approach she’s displayed in the previous novels. It soon becomes clear that the answers lie in the past, meaning…
-
The Outcast Dead by Elly Griffiths
30th May 2023. This is another original and beautifully written story that is as much about the characters as the plot. The tension and emotional reactions of the parents, particularly the mothers, as children go missing is particularly well-written, but distressing to read. The twists and turns as the abductor is identified and tracked down are as tense as they are surprising. And then there are the relationships at the core of the story, adding to the conflict, tension and complexity. But there’s also humour and social commentary to lighten the darker aspects and help the reader through the emotional moments. It all adds up to page-turning story that’s intriguing,…
