Finders, Keepers by Sabine Durrant #bookreview

I can’t believe how long its been since I read Lie With Me by Sabine Durrant. I need to catch up on her previous book still, but I had to read her latest book, Finders, Keepers and I’m really glad I did.

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Verity Baxter has lived – quietly, carefully – in Trinity Fields all her life. Then Ailsa and Tom Tilson move in next door and everything changes. Can Verity trust what she hears through the walls?

And what about the Tilsons: should they pity their eccentric neighbour and her messy house? Or should they fear her?

Either way, like the ivy that creeps through their shared garden fence, their lives are entwined now. And the knots can only get tighter . . .

MY THOUGHTS

I’m a huge fan of Sabine Durrant’s writing. The last book I read by her was Lie With Me, which was a few years ago, and after reading her latest, Finders, Keepers, I definitely need to catch up. Her plotting in her latest novel is excellent, and I loved how she twisted everything on its head. I was blown away by the ending of this book.

What Sabine Durrant excels at as well, in this book and in the last book I read by her, is her characters. They feel like real people, and I love the way how she gets inside their heads and how she explores their personalities. Verity is the main character in Finders, Keepers. As I was reading, I spent a lot of that time feeling sorry for Verity. I felt that she was quite a vulnerable character, although it did seem to me at some times in the novel, that she didn’t mind spending time on her own. She does have her dog, who is Verity’s world, to look after as well.

Things begin to change for Verity, however, when a young family move in next door. Although things get off to a bit of a shaky start between them, Verity soon forms a friendship with, Alisa. Verity also starts helping out Alisa’s son with his English. From the start, I didn’t like Alisa very much. I felt as though she was using Verity. As Verity was someone who lived on her own, with very little company, I could see that Alisa must have seen that she was very easy to take advantage of.

I didn’t like Alisa’s husband, Tom, right from the outset. Although he doesn’t appear as a main character throughout the book, you can certainly sense his presence. It’s how he speaks to Verity as well that made me dislike him right from the start.

Don’t go into this novel, expecting a fast-paced read. It is much more of a slow-burner, but that is the beauty of the storytelling here as we step into the characters’ lives. It’s what makes the ending all the more shocking as well. You’ll think you know who the characters are and then Sabine Durrant twists everything on its head. It is very well crafted.

I absolutely loved this book, and I think Sabine Durrant has definitely now become one of my auto-buy writers. Finders, Keepers, is absorbing from the first page right through to the chilling finale. Its characters will definitely get under your skin. I highly recommended it!

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton

Publication date: 9th July 2020

Print length: 320 pages

Finders, Keepers is available to buy:

Amazon UK Kobo Waterstones

UK 🇬🇧 versus US 🇺🇸 book covers – discussion post

I know you should never judge a book by its cover but its often the first thing I am drawn to in a bookshop unless I have a specific book which I want to buy. Whenever a book, published first here in the UK, is subsequently published in America, I’m always interested to see their version of the cover. I may be biased, but I nearly always prefer the UK version, but I do like some of the ideas our cousins across the pond have come up with. Let me know what you think of the US cover and UK cover of these books in the comments. Do you sometimes have a preference?

UK cover

US cover

On this occasion I do prefer the US cover for The Guest List by Lucy Foley. I think it gives the book a much darker feel than the UK cover does. It also makes it feel very atmospheric. I love the view of the island with the rain pouring down as well. It makes you think that this definitely isn’t a good place to be. I think it also gives the book a very foreboding feeling, you know that bad things are going to happen here.

UK cover

US cover

I think the US cover for The Silent Patient does give it more of a haunting feeling than the UK cover does. I like the ghostly image of the woman in the background which drew me in. I think though, the UK cover creates more mystery. In this case I like the UK cover best.

UK cover

US cover

There isn’t much of a difference in both versions of the cover for The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman so I think they are both on par with each other. It always interests me when the US publishers choose the same cover or a very similar cover to the UK version. The US version here is a bit more striking thank the UK version, in my opinion.

US cover

UK cover

I love the use of the trees in the background of the US cover of Tall Oaks by Chris Whitaker. I do think the UK version does make it feel more darker though.

UK cover

US cover

Both versions of The Whisper Man are very haunting. I’m not over keen on the white background on the US version, however, so I think I definitely prefer the UK version. When you see the UK version on a shelf it almost has a 3D appearance which I really like as well. At least, that’s what I think when I look at it.

Let me know your thoughts on the book covers above in the comments below. Or if there’s a particular version of a cover which you really like.

WWW Wednesday 28/10/2020

Welcome to this week’s WWW Wednesday. WWW Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words.

Just answer the three questions below and leave a link to your post in the comments for others to look at. No blog? No problem! Just leave a comment with your responses. Please, take some time to visit the other participants and see what others are reading. So, let’s get to it!

The three Ws are:
What are you currently reading?
What have you finished reading?
What will you read next?

What am I currently reading?

YOU THINK YOU’RE FREE, BUT THEY’LL NEVER LET YOU LEAVE . . .

Twenty years ago, Jon Kavanagh worked for a crime syndicate.
Then one night he made a mistake.
He left a witness at a crime scene. Alive.

Now, he is haunted by the memories of that young girl. Her face a constant reminder of the life he chose to leave behind. Time has passed and now he wants answers: What ever happened to her?

Anna Hill is an aspiring singer, but the bars and clubs she works in are far from exciting. When she is given the opportunity to work in Portugal, she takes it. This is her chance to finally kick-start her career.

But the job offer comes at a price; one that will endanger the lives of those she knows, and those she doesn’t. Becoming involved with the Syndicate is risky, and Anna will need her instincts to work out who to trust – and who not to . . .

They are driving home from the search party when they see her. The trees are coarse and tall in the winter light, standing like men.

Lauren and her father Niall live alone in the Highlands, in a small village surrounded by pine forest. When a woman stumbles out onto the road one Halloween night, Niall drives her back to their house in his pickup. In the morning, she’s gone.

In a community where daughters rebel, men quietly rage, and drinking is a means of forgetting, mysteries like these are not out of the ordinary. The trapper found hanging with the dead animals for two weeks. Locked doors and stone circles. The disappearance of Lauren’s mother a decade ago.

Lauren looks for answers in her tarot cards, hoping she might one day be able to read her father’s turbulent mind. Neighbours know more than they let on, but when local teenager Ann-Marie goes missing it’s no longer clear who she can trust.

In the shadow of the Highland forest, Francine Toon captures the wildness of rural childhood and the intensity of small-town claustrophobia. In a place that can feel like the edge of the word, she unites the chill of the modern gothic with the pulse of a thriller. It is the perfect novel for our haunted times.

What have I finished reading?

In a busy shopping centre, a little girl clutches a teddy bear, clinging to it in the absence of her mother, Katrina. Hours later, Katrina’s body is discovered in an abandoned building. For Detective Kim Stone, it looks like a quick, functional kill. But Kim’s instincts tell her there’s more to this senseless murder than meets the eye. What was the motive for killing a young mother out shopping with her child?

Days later, a second victim is found in a local park, her neck broken just like Katrina’s and her six-year-old son missing.

With her colleague, Detective Stacey Wood, working on another unsolved crime and a member of the team grieving the loss of a close relative, Kim is struggling to make inroads on what is fast becoming a complex case. And when a handwritten letter from the killer lands on Kim’s desk addressed to her, and pleading for help, she knows time is running out to bring the little boy home alive.

With the support of a handwriting analyst and profiler, Kim and the team begin to get inside the mind of the killer and make a shocking discovery.

Some of the victims have scratch marks on their wrists.

But these are no random scratches. The killer is using them to communicate with someone. The question is… with whom?

And if Kim doesn’t find them soon, another innocent soul will die.

Verity Baxter has lived – quietly, carefully – in Trinity Fields all her life. Then Ailsa and Tom Tilson move in next door and everything changes. Can Verity trust what she hears through the walls?

And what about the Tilsons: should they pity their eccentric neighbour and her messy house? Or should they fear her?

Either way, like the ivy that creeps through their shared garden fence, their lives are entwined now. And the knots can only get tighter . . .

What will I read next?

Set in the heart of West London’s Asian community, this is the latestinstalment in the unmissable ZAQ & JAGS series . . .

Trying – and failing – to keep his head down and to stay out of trouble, ex-con Zaq Khan agrees to help his best friend, Jags, recover a family heirloom, currently in the possession of a wealthy businessman. But when Zaq’s brother is viciously assaulted, Zaq is left wondering whether someone from his own past is out to get revenge.

Wanting answers and retribution, Zaq and Jags set out to track down those responsible. Meanwhile, their dealings with the businessman take a turn for the worse and Zaq and Jags find themselves suspected of murder.

It’ll take both brains and brawn to get themselves out of trouble and, no matter what happens, the results will likely be deadly. The only question is, whether it will prove deadly for them, or for someone else . . . ?

The pretty market town of Sterndale is a close-knit community where everyone thinks they know everyone else. But at a lavish summer wedding a local celebrity is discovered slumped in the gardens, the victim of a violent assault that leads to a murder investigation.

As the police search for answers, suspicion and paranoia build – and the lives of the locals are turned upside down. Secrets that lurk beneath the pristine façade of Sterndale come to light as detectives close in on the truth…

The Guest List by Lucy Foley #bookreview

On my blog today I’m sharing my thoughts on the brilliant new novel by Lucy Foley, The Guest List.

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On an island off the windswept Irish coast, guests gather for the wedding of the year – the marriage of Jules Keegan and Will Slater.
 
Old friends.
Past grudges.
 
Happy families.
Hidden jealousies.
 
Thirteen guests.
One body.
 
The wedding cake has barely been cut when one of the guests is found dead. And as a storm unleashes its fury on the island, everyone is trapped.

All have a secret. All have a motive.
One guest won’t leave this wedding alive . . .

MY THOUGHTS

I loved The Guest List by Lucy Foley. It’s dark, and there is suspense and tension on every page right from the opening chapter.

There are so many devious characters, and I didn’t know who I could trust as I was reading. The setting certainly sets the scene, and it makes it feel very atmospheric. I loved the idea of a wedding taking place on a barely inhabited island, cutting them off from the mainland. Also, Lucy Foley made the setting feel very creepy, particularly with the mention of the dead on the island outnumbering the living. Even some of the characters are perturbed about the area around them being a mass graveyard.

Lucy Foley has created some really unlikeable characters in her book, although I did find myself feeling sorry for Jules, the bride to be. A lot of the characters come from a very privileged background, but Jules’s fiancé, Will, has gone a step above after making it big on television. It seems he is admired by everyone who comes across him, men and women, but that also makes some people who know him jealous. He also seemed like a person who liked to be in control, but what happens when someone holds a secret over him?

I think right from the start I felt as though Jules was making a mistake in marrying Will. Just a day before the wedding, Jules starts receiving anonymous notes asking her not to marry him. But why would someone want to split them up? This creates tension very early on in the book. I wanted to know why the letters were being sent and would Jules take any notice of them. Would she confront Will about them before the wedding?

There seemed to be a lot of tension between Will and his friends. He has known them since his school days. It made me wonder what secret they held over him and how and if it was going to come out before the wedding. I thought it was very clever how Lucy Foley kept flicking back in time, to a few hours before the horrific event takes place. I never once felt lost or confused as I was reading it. I also enjoyed the different points of view from which the story was told.

Lucy Foley kept the pace flying forward, and it was only on very rare occasions did I put the book down at the end of a chapter. She is a writer who knows how to reel her readers into her characters’ lives. I couldn’t get enough of this book. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for what Lucy Foley writes next.

Publisher: Harper Collins

Publication date: 20th February 2020 (kindle & hardcover) 3rd September 2020 (paperback)

Print length: 384 pages

The Guest List is available to buy:

Amazon UK Kobo Waterstones

First Monday Crime November @1stMondayCrime

Although, sadly, we can’t meet up as per usual at City University for First Monday Crime, it doesn’t mean that its not going ahead. As many things have been this year, First Monday Crime is moving online. For November we have S W Kane, author of The Bone Jar, Vicki Bradley author of Before I Say I Do, David Young author of The Stasi Game and Chris McGeorge author of Inside Out. I’ve already read and reviewed two of these books and I’ll include the links to my reviews here, but let’s take a look at what the books are about. I’ll also include links which will take you directly to the event on Monday, 2nd November 2020.

Two murders. An abandoned asylum. Will a mysterious former patient help untangle the dark truth?

The body of an elderly woman has been found in the bowels of a derelict asylum on the banks of the Thames. As Detective Lew Kirby and his partner begin their investigation, another body is discovered in the river nearby. How are the two murders connected?

Before long, the secrets of Blackwater Asylum begin to reveal themselves. There are rumours about underground bunkers and secret rooms, unspeakable psychological experimentation, and a dark force that haunts the ruins, trying to pull back in all those who attempt to escape. Urban explorer Connie Darke, whose sister died in a freak accident at the asylum, is determined to help Lew expose its grisly past. Meanwhile Lew discovers a devastating family secret that threatens to turn his life upside down.

As his world crumbles around him, Lew must put the pieces of the puzzle together to keep the killer from striking again. Only an eccentric former patient really knows the truth—but will he reveal it to Lew before it’s too late?

You can read my review of The Bone Jar by clicking HERE

HER DREAM WEDDING
IS ABOUT TO BECOME A NIGHTMARE

It’s Julia’s wedding day. Her nerves are to be expected – every bride feels the same – but there’s another layer to her fear, one that she cannot explain to her soon-to-be husband, Mark. She’s never told him the details – and she is determined he never finds out.

As she begins down the aisle, spotting Mark in his tailored suit, she knows she is taking her first steps to happiness – her past is behind her, it can’t catch her now. Mark turns to face her . . .

But it isn’t Mark in the beautiful suit – it’s his best man.

Because Mark is missing.  

And Julia’s past is closer than she thinks . . .

You can read my review by clicking HERE

A man’s body is found buried in concrete at a building site in the new town district. When People’s Police homicide captain Karin Müller arrives at the scene, she discovers that all of the body’s identi?able features have been removed – including its ?ngertips.

The deeper Müller digs, the more the Stasi begin to hamper her investigations. She soon realises that this crime is just one part of a clandestine battle between two secret services – the Stasi of East Germany and Britain’s MI6 – to control the truth behind one of the deadliest events of World War II.

SHE WAS SENT DOWN…
Cara Lockhart has just commenced a life sentence in HMP North Fern – the newest maximum security women’s prison in the country. She was convicted of a crime she is adamant she didn’t commit.

SHE WAS SET UP…
One morning she wakes up to find her cellmate murdered – shot in the head with a gun that is missing. The door was locked all night, which makes Cara the only suspect.

BUT THAT WAS JUST THE BEGINNING.
Cara needs to clear her name, unravelling an impossible case, with an investigation governed by a prison timetable.
But as Cara starts to learn more about North Fern and the predicament she is in, she finds connections between the past and present that she never could have imagined.

Indeed it seems that her conviction and her current situation might be linked in very strange ways…

If you’d like to tune into the event, First Monday will be streaming live on Facebook on Monday, 2nd November from 19:30 p.m. UK time. You can access the live stream from their Facebook page by clicking here.

The Postscript Murders by Elly Griffiths #bookreview

On my blog today I’m sharing my thoughts on the new novel by Elly Griffiths, The Postscript Murders.

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PS: thanks for the murders.

The death of a ninety-year-old woman with a heart condition should absolutely not be suspicious. DS Harbinder Kaur certainly sees nothing to concern her in carer Natalka’s account of Peggy Smith’s death.

But when Natalka reveals that Peggy lied about her heart condition and that she had been sure someone was following her…

And that Peggy Smith had been a ‘murder consultant’ who plotted deaths for authors, and knew more about murder than anyone has any right to…

And when clearing out Peggy’s flat ends in Natalka being held at gunpoint by a masked figure…

Well then DS Harbinder Kaur thinks that maybe there is no such thing as an unsuspicious death after all.

MY THOUGHTS

The Postscript Murders is another engaging book by Elly Griffiths; it is also the second book to feature Detective Harbinder Kauer. This is definitely for you if you enjoy cosy crime and I can see why this has been compared to Agatha Christie.

What I really loved about this book is that it is set within the world of publishing. After the body of a ninety-year old-woman, Peggy is found; the police discover that she had several connections to well-known writers and publishers, especially crime writers. In a number of books she has received from authors and publishers, there are alarming, threatening notes; Peggy isn’t also the only person to have received them. I thought this gave the book a golden-age crime feel. I found myself smiling at a lot of parts, as the detectives found themselves immersed in the publishing world. There is also even a reference to bloggers who are attending a literary festival. I’ve been to a few literary festivals now, and I could picture these scenes very clearly in my mind.

What I think really makes this book are the characters. Elly Griffiths has created a diverse cast, and they make the book really intriguing. It’s what, to me, made this book feel really fresh and Elly does a brilliant job at bringing them to life and making them feel like real people. Peggy was a really fascinating character. I wanted to know why she was killed at the age she was now. It must’ve been something big in her past that had given someone a motive to do this. What’s certainly clear is that she has lived a very interesting life. She isn’t just your simple armchair detective, as I’m sure many readers will at first begin to believe.

I thought the plot was very cleverly thought out and as I was reading it seemed it could go in a few different directions, but I liked how Elly Griffiths pulled everything together. It seemed that someone was targeting a particular group of writers who Peggy was involved with, and I wanted to know who. What was it that they were covering up in their past that may be the key to the investigation? Elly Griffiths kept me turning the pages with exciting new information on; I was desperate to find out the truth.

The novel starts off feeling very cosy, but it gradually gets darker as more secrets about Peggy’s life are revealed. Elly Griffiths kept me wondering who the real Peggy was and what more secrets we were going to find out about her life. The Postscript Murders is hugely enjoyable, and it makes for a very fun read which will keep you guessing. I’m looking forward to seeing where Elly Griffiths will take this series and the characters next.

Publisher: Quercus

Publication date: 1st October 2020

Print length: 352 pages

The Postscript Murders is available to buy:

Amazon UK Kobo Waterstones

WWW Wednesday 21-10-2020

Welcome to this week’s WWW Wednesday. WWW Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words.

Just answer the three questions below and leave a link to your post in the comments for others to look at. No blog? No problem! Just leave a comment with your responses. Please, take some time to visit the other participants and see what others are reading. So, let’s get to it!

The three Ws are:
What are you currently reading?
What have you finished reading?
What will you read next?

What am I currently reading?

What have I finished reading?

What will I read next?

Dead Perfect by Noelle Holten #bookreview #blogtour @nholten40 @BOTBSPublicity @0neMoreChapter_

I’m delighted to be joining the blog tour for the third book in the DC Maggie Jamieson series by Noelle Holten, Dead Perfect. With thanks to Sarah Hardy from Books on the Bright Side Publicity for inviting me to take part.

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A murdered woman…

When the body of a young woman is found in a local park, DC Maggie Jamieson knows she’s dealing with no ordinary killer.  The murder victim has been disfigured; her outfit changed to resemble someone else.  Someone Maggie knows all too well…her close friend Dr Kate Moloney.

A determined detective…

Maggie is determined to keep her friend safe, but with Kate already struggling with a threatening stalker, Maggie now fears Kate’s life is in real danger.  Who else would want to harm Kate and why else would the killer be turning his victims into exact replicas – his living dolls? 

Can Maggie find the depraved killer?  Or will Kate become his next living doll?

MY THOUGHTS

The moment I started reading Noelle Holten’s new novel, Dead Perfect, my heart was in my mouth. What a way to open a book! After the cliff hanger, Noelle left her last book on, I was desperate to get round to reading the next book as soon as possible, and I think it’s her best book yet in this series.

This time around DC Maggie Jamieson is left fearing for the life of her close friend, Dr Kate Moloney, after the body of a woman is discovered. The woman who has been found bears a strong resemblance to Kate, which immediately sparks thoughts that it is her. But Maggie doesn’t quite feel the sense of relief she should feel when the body is identified as someone else. What becomes clear is that someone is targeting Kate, and they are killing women who look very similar to her. Is this to send Kate a message? It isn’t clear. But Maggie now knows her friend’s life is under imminent threat and she is determined to protect her.

My heart rate kept increasing as I raced through this book. You can see how desperate the killer is to get to Kate, but you are never quite sure what their motive is here. Kate herself has been stalked recently, which gives Maggie cause for concern, and she wants Kate to step up her security. However, Kate doesn’t seem to be particularly keen, especially as she doesn’t want to be attached to her phone all the time.

You can see Maggie’s feelings for Kate growing in this book, and her feelings for Kate is what makes Maggie even more concerned for her welfare and keen to protect her. I really liked this side of Maggie, and it makes her character feel much more real and human. After finishing the latest book, I’m wondering just how things for Maggie are going to develop next.

As Noelle has done in the first two books in the series, she uses her knowledge of the probation system, adding a ring of authenticity to her writing.

If you’re not yet reading this series, you’re missing out on some excellent books. Noelle Holten keeps the tension rising, and then she always ends with another cliff hanger that makes you desperate to read her next book. Brilliant stuff!

Publisher: One Chapter

Publication date: 16th October 2020 (kindle) 24th December 2020 (paperback)

Print length: 328 pages

Dead Perfect is available to buy:

Amazon UK Kobo Waterstones

FOLLOW THE BLOG TOUR

The Girls in the Snow by Stacy Green #bookreview #booksontour @stacygreen26 @bookouture

I’m delighted to be taking part in the blog tour for The Girls in the Snow by Stacy Green as part of the blog tour today on my blog.

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Madison walked through the fallen snow, looking left and right. It had been Kaylee’s idea to use the trail through the forest; she said no one would follow them. But Madison lost sight of Kaylee for a moment and when she found her again she wasn’t alone…

In the remote forests of Stillwater, Minnesota, you can scream for days and no one will hear you. So when the bodies of two fifteen-year-old girls are discovered frozen in the snow, Special Agent Nikki Hunt is sure the killer is local: someone knew where to hide the girls and thought they would never be found.

Though Nikki hasn’t been home in twenty years, she knows she must take over the case. The Sheriff’s department in Stillwater has already made a mistake by connecting the girls’ murders to those of a famous serial killer, refusing to consider the idea that the killer could be someone from town.

Then another girl’s body is found, a red silk ribbon tied in her hair, and Nikki realizes that the killer has a connection to her own dark past, and the reason she left Stillwater.

Nikki is not the only person in town who wants those secrets to stay hidden. Will she be able to face her demons before another child is taken?

MY THOUGHTS

The Girls in the Snow is the first book by Stacy Green which I’ve read, and you can label me a big fan. I hope this is the first book in a long-running series featuring FBI Agent Nikki Hunt; I can’t wait to read more.

The police are already looking for a sadistic serial killer, and when the bodies of two young girls are discovered, the police instantly draw a connection. But Detective Nikki Hunt isn’t sure that the perpetrator is the same. She believes that the killer is local and that it isn’t in the same style as the killer they have been previously hunting for. And this new case they are investigation is about to blow haunting memories of her past wide open.

I thought Nikki was a really intriguing character. The book opens with a chilling flashback scene from her past when her parents were murdered. For years her parent’s murders have been an open and shut case after the killer was identified and sentenced. But new evidence comes to light shining doubt on the prosecution. Is it possible that the wrong man was convicted? Who is the real killer who has let an innocent man go to prison in his stead?

You can see just how much the reopening of old wounds haunts Nikki. She can’t bear the thought of the wrong man being convicted. In a bid to push these thoughts to one side, she throws herself into the current investigation. But as they ramp up efforts to track down the killer, who has so far evaded them, she can’t help but be drawn back to her parent’s murders all the time.

The Girls in the Snow made for an absolutely gripping read. I flew through it, and Stacy Green kept the tension turning up a notch. It was the investigation and Nikki’s personal story that kept me hooked. I really felt for Nikki as she grappled with coming to terms with the fact that the wrong man may have been put in prison for her parent’s murder. You can see that she doesn’t want to believe it, and she is keen to put off looking again at her parent’s case. She doesn’t want to be drawn back into it, but she also knows that it will be inevitable.

I’ll certainly be downloading the next book in this series when it is released. This is definitely recommended for fans of crime and psychological thrillers. This is another crime series which I’m sure will become a favourite of mine.

Publisher: Bookouture

Publication date: 19th October 2020

Print length: 347 pages

The Girls in the Snow is available to buy:

Amazon UK

FOLLOW THE BLOG TOUR

The Search Party by Simon Lelic #bookreview

On my blog today I’m sharing my thoughts on the new novel by Simon Lelic, The Search Party.

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16-year-old Sadie Saunders is missing.

Five friends set out into the woods to find her.

But they’re not just friends…

THEY’RE SUSPECTS.

You see, this was never a search party.

It’s a witch hunt.

And not everyone will make it home alive…

MY THOUGHTS

The Search Party is another gripping read by Simon Lelic. It’s been a couple of years since I read a book by Simon and after reading the rave reviews for The Search Party, I had to give it a go.

I was intrigued by the setup. A young woman, Sadie, disappears, which sets in motion one of the biggest missing person cases in the UK. The people at the centre of the mystery are the small group of friends. They are the people who Sadie spent most of her time with. In the days following their disappearance, they set off into the woods to try and find anything that might help them find Sadie, or even Sadie herself. They do this to clear their names; they are suspects in the eyes of the police and the public. But one of them is hiding a dark secret.

I was kept on my toes as I learnt more about the teenagers at the heart of the mystery. As we get to know them, I could potentially see that one of them could be responsible for Sadie going missing. They all have something to say about her, and not all of it is good. I could never be sure though if they were all innocent or who could, in fact, be the guilty party.

The investigation into Sadie’s disappearance is a very complex one, and it becomes the biggest in the UK’s history. I liked the detective who was investigating the case, DI Fleet. He faces some big obstacles, especially from his superiors who want the case wrapped up quickly. DI Fleet wants to make sure that no stone has been left unturned, but his boss is keen to charge someone, even if it means that person is innocent. There is also a vulnerable side to DI Fleet. He is on his own after recently becoming separated from his partner. Simon Lelic explores an emotional side to him; Fleet is worried about being in a relationship with someone as he is worried about having children. He doesn’t want to disappoint them. He sees the dark side of human nature every day in his job, and he can’t stand the thought of something potentially happening to his children in the future.

The book is told from various perspectives, including each member of the group who Sadie was friends with. This is what makes the book really exciting as we get to hear all of their thoughts on the person who Sadie was and what they think happened to her. I thought the voices of the teenagers were original and they really stood out as I was reading the book.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Search Party, and I hope that DI Fleet is going to return in a future book. A clever, absolutely gripping read. Highly recommended!

Publisher: Penguin

Publication date: 14th August 2020

Print length: 333 pages

The Search Party is available to buy:

Amazon UK Kobo Waterstones