4+
Maeve Kerrigan #11

It’s early morning and the tail end of the summer holidays and Helena Marshall wakes to a dispiriting number of jobs, not least in their old house in Richmond. Her husband, Bruce, 13 years older than her, is still asleep, so she gets up quietly. She has an unsettling sense of doom, so checks her two boys, 14 year old Ivo, now as silent teen and 12 year old Magnus, lazy but cheerful, but she doesn’t go to the top of the house to check on nine year-old ‘wilful’ Rosalie. This later, she can’t explain, except perhaps it’s to do with the nature of the child. However, never, not for one minute does she consider that anything could be wrong or that there’s anything remotely to worry about, as she dismisses those early morning thoughts. That happens 16 years ago, the night Rosalie vanishes and is never seen again. In the present day, Helena and Bruce are found dead, side-by-side, an apparent murder suicide, but Maeve and her boss DI Josh Derwent aren’t so sure.

Maeve is back, three cheers, especially after that last belter of an outing in “The Close”! I’m pleased to say this is another good ‘un. So, what’s so good about this series? In a nutshell, it’s the fantastic characters that Jane Casey has created. Maeve is great, she can be very funny and the teasing between her and the team is a welcome relief from a tough plot. The dynamics between Maeve and Josh are fascinating, it’s a very complex and complicated situation and the police team members Georgia and Liv do their best here to help the ongoing ‘dance’ between them. It’s a diverse, able team but the jury is out on DSU Una Burt with her thinning lips and she’ll stick the boot in whenever she can. Maybe she needs to.

As for the clever plot, this one starts in one place with the storytelling taking us in directions that are so unexpected. It becomes darker and darker with characters presenting one face to the world when the reality is something very different. There are some insightful points of views that are revealing though you ponder if they actually muddy the waters. Some links and connections begin to be made via dogged investigations and there are some terrific plot twists and plenty of tension. The ending is dramatic and also poignant. As for the ultimate ending well, I can’t say much for risk of a spoiler, but let’s settle for, here’s hoping number twelve is well underway. Tenterhooks or what.

Overall, this is another cracking and gripping read, which is full of suspense, constant surprises and excellent characters.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to HarperCollins, HarperFiction for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review55 s25 comments Bec (becbingesbooks) - sorry, behind with lots of catching up to do 194 93

** Happy publication day **

A thriller with romantic suspense... a must read for Maeve Kerrigan fans! Maybe wait until closer to the release of book 12 because it's going to be a long and hard wait with that ending
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