If I Fall by Merilyn Davies #bookreview

On my blog today, I’m sharing my thoughts on the new novel by Merilyn Davies, If I Fall.

BLURB

A gritty, heart-stopping crime thriller that will have you utterly obsessed.

We were told to meet at a rooftop bar.

Four friends, bound by one terrible secret.

No one knew why we were there.

Then we saw a woman, watched as she fell from the edge and plunged to her death.

The police think it’s suicide, but I know better.

Someone is sending a message.

Now they’re coming for us.

MY THOUGHTS

I think I’ve definitely found a new favourite crime series. If I Fall is the second book in Merilyn Davies’s new series featuring Carla Brown, a civilian crime analyst. You don’t need to have read the first book in the series to enjoy the second one, but I am definitely going to be catching up.

There is a really intriguing set-up when someone sends out invitations for a reunion, but that person remains anonymous. The invitations are sent out to four people via Facebook. They are all intrigued as to who has sent out the invites and what it’s all about. But there is also a sinister note to the invitations. When the reunion occurs on a rooftop bar in Oxford, a woman falls to her death. But that isn’t the end of it.

From the beginning, I wanted to get to the bottom of what was going on here. The way in which the invitations were sent out to the group was so intriguing. You know you have to read on to find out what is going to happen to the group at this reunion and I wanted to know who had organised it. The police initially suspect that the girl who falls to her death committed suicide. However, Carla suspects that there is more at play here than what first meets the eye.

Merilyn Davies builds a very gripping and a cleverly constructed plot. As Carla begins to understand more about the group and who Alice was, a very dark picture begins to emerge. It is clear that the group who are at the reunion are keen to keep secrets to themselves.

I thought Carla’s character was really fresh, and I found the aspect of her job really intriguing. It’s not something I’ve seen before in crime fiction. I also really liked her partnership with DS Nell Jackson, who is a really interesting character. Merilyn Davies’s writing is so engaging, and I flew through her book. The dialogue keeps the pace flying forward. I was rooting for Carla to get to the bottom of what was going on.

My eyes were kept glued to the page as everything unravelled, and I thought it was done so well. Merilyn Davies is a writer who I know now I’ll be reading more of. If you haven’t yet discovered this series, and if you’re a fan of police procedurals, then you really need to. It’s a very original read. I can’t wait to read more from this series.

Publisher: Arrow

Publication date: 4th March 2021

Print length: 384 pages

If I Fall is available to buy:

Amazon UK Kobo Waterstones