The Mermaid's Scream

DCI Gerry Heffernan and DI Wesley Peterson have been called out to a caravan site where a couple have taken their own lives.  It all seems straight forward; a double suicide.  Peterson isn’t sure it was suicide, and when he examines the foil from a champagne bottle, which the couple had consumed his feelings are confirmed.

A few days later Peterson has to handle the case of a farmer accidentally killed by his own shotgun.  It’s the same farmer who owned the caravan site.  Coincidence or otherwise?

It’s at this time that Peterson’s son Michael and his friend find a body in the woods.  The friend convinces Michael to not call the police, but Michael’s mother, Pam has suspicions and brings in Peterson to confront the lad.  Can evidence found with this body lead them to a killer?

Author Kate Ellis has written a very twisted plot that causes confusion for the reader, so that the reader doesn’t know who is responsible for what killing until the final pages.  A good quick read.

Cold Blood

DCI Erika Foster and DI Moss have been called to the south bank of the Thames where a suitcase has been found in the sand.  Inside is the dismembered body of a man.

Back at the police station, Foster requests DS John McGorry to join her investigative team.  He shows up with a file about a woman who had been found in the Thames inside a suitcase, also dismembered; found just a little over a week earlier.

Pathologist Isaac Strong informs Foster that he found fifty condoms full of cocaine in the stomach of the male.  Both victims had been brutally beaten before being dismembered.  Although forensics is unable to find anything out about the two victims through criminal DNA, they do find their identities through a genealogical matching site.

After speaking to the ex-wife of the man and the parents of the young woman, Foster and Moss learn that the two victims were known to each other.  It is at this point that Superintendent Hudson tells Erika to send the drugs to forensics to see if they match up with a drug investigation, which has just busted a drug making site.

While delivering the drugs to forensics, Foster is attacked.  Fortunately she is able to overcome her attackers, but is badly injured.  The case is passed on to another team.

Immediately upon her return from Slovakia, where she had been visiting her family while recovering, Foster is picked up and taken to the site where another dismembered body has been found.  This time the killers have left a note, which effectively laughs in the faces of the police.  She asks to take over the cases.

The team gets a break when CCTV pictures help to identify one of the killers.  The mother of the young woman involved identifies her and provides the identity of the man she is involved with.

How many more deaths are there going to be before this pair can be brought in?  Author Robert Bryndza has written another thriller, which will have the reader sitting on the edge of their seat, anxiously turning pages to know what is going to happen next.  This was an incredible read, and hard to put down.

Terra Incognita

Ruso has requested a transfer to the outer reaches of Britain, so he is travelling with a contingent of soldiers to Hadrian’s Wall.  His housekeeper, Tilla, travels with him and warns him of a god with antlers in the area.

Just before arriving at Coria, an ox cart has a major accident.  Going ahead to Coria in order to prepare for the victims of the accident, Ruso finds himself seconded to the fortress as the new medic and assigned  to investigate a murder, which had occurred that morning.  On top of that the current medic of the fortress is confined because he claims to be the murderer.

Tilla finds that much has changed since she had been abducted from her family home three years ago.  It also doesn’t take long for Ruso to discover that he can’t trust anyone in the infirmary other than his personal clerk, Albanus.

If Ruso can’t trust anyone, including Tilla, how will he be able to solve the murder?  Time is running out too, because the governor is on his way to visit the outpost.

Author Ruth Downie has another twisted plot for our hero to solve, in this historical thriller.  Within the plot are a few surprises for the reader, which lead to some confusion.  All-in-all, a good, quick read.

At Death's Window

DI Peter Shaw has a volunteer job with the RNLI, and when he receives a call out he doesn’t hesitate.  Saving a family caught by the incoming tide is something he’s been trained to do.  When they rescue the family, they tell him of a body they had seen where they were rescued from.

At the same time, DS George Valentine is meeting with a reporter, planning to get a story about recent burglaries released, which the Chief Constable doesn’t want in the press.

Tom Hadden the local forensic scientist assumes that the man had been dead at least 24 hours.  Valentine points out that since it was weighted down, it was left as a warning to others.

While working their investigation of the dead man, Shaw and Valentine are called to a couple of burglaries that fit in with those that Valentine had passed on to the reporter.  One referenced the date of the death of their victim.  Shaw is now convinced that the two cases are linked.

A few days later another body is found, in this case in a fish monger’s.  It is a man who has been shot at close range in the heart.  This time they have an identity because this man delivered fish to the monger.

Are they in for more killings?  Shaw and Valentine have an intriguing set of cases on their plate and author Jim Kelly has the reader wondering how they will gather evidence to solve them.  A good, quick read.

Tombland

Two years after the death of Henry VIII, his eleven year old son, Edward was King in name only.  Edward Seymour, his uncle, now the Duke of Somerset, was the Lord Protector.  As a virtual king, he immediately waged war on the Scots in hopes of wedding their infant Queen Mary to Edward, thus uniting the two nations.  His war was a bust.

In June of 1549, Matthew Shardlake is called to Hatfield Palace where the Lady Elizabeth resides.  He is asked by Thomas Parry to investigate a murder, which might involve a distant cousin of Elizabeth.  He will have his assistant, Nicholas Overton with him on this task, plus Toby Lockswood, the assistant of another lawyer because Lockswood knows Norwich.

When they get to Norwich, they run into Shardlake’s former assistant Jack Barak, who now works for the Assizes.  Shardlake hopes to gain some information from Barak, even though he has been warned to stay away from him by Barak’s wife Tamasin.  They are to stay in an inn near the area known as Tombland, where the richest of the city live.

Having visited the accused the three are sure that he is lying about what he had been doing on the night of the murder.  As they gather more evidence, it seems to point towards the sons of the dead woman, but why would they kill their own mother?  Yet, the number of potential suspects grows.

Unfortunately, the client is found guilty and ordered to be hanged the following day.  Fortunately, Shardlake has an order requesting a pardon from the Lady Elizabeth.  Later, he is surprised when he receives a summons from the Lady Mary, Elizabeth’s older half-sister.  What could that mean?

Having accomplished their mission, Shardlake, Overton and Barak are preparing to leave for London when they are caught up in an uprising, which could cost them their lives.  It doesn’t take long for them to find out that the leader of the rebels is a Robert Kett.  They also learn that this rebellion is country-wide.  Common people want the Protector to stop the rich from enclosing lands for their sheep.

Kett asks Shardlake to be his advisor.  Unfortunately, Overton is held prisoner by the rebels because he does not share their values.  The rebels move to Mousehold Heath outside Norwich.  They prepare a list of demands for the Protector.

With their move to Mousehold, the group think that their investigation is likely at an end, but evidence does come up.  To make matters worse, Lockswood has turned against Overton for some reason.

Unfortunately, the Lord Protector refuses the demands of the rebels, and orders them to disperse.  Dismayed those on Mousehold Heath prepare to take Norwich. In response the Protector sends an army, which Kerr’s untrained men defeat.  However, before long, a stronger army is sent to put down the rebels.  Will Shardlake and his friends survive this time?

Author C. J. Sansom’s historical thriller is well researched and written.  It tells of a time scarcely mentioned in history books, when there were rebellions in England in hopes of making a fairer system.  Unfortunately it was all for nought, as the rich would continue to hold power over their serfs and the other poor.  This was an incredibly enjoyable read, which I highly recommend.

Death's Door

DI Peter Shaw has been called out to a suspicious death of a woman by his DS, George Valentine.  Initially it appeared to be a suicide. However, the head of forensics, Tom Hadden, has discovered a kiss on the outside of the woman’s window.  What is the significance of that?

Shaw and Valentine are also working a cold case at the same time.  Valentine discovers that one of the names on the list that they have is the victim of the supposed suicide.  She had been contacted a week earlier about the reopening of the case.

The pathologist discovers a cyanide pill lodged in the back of her teeth.  The pill is fast acting.  Later, the pathologist tells Shaw that the cyanide pill had been forcefully crushed in her mouth by someone else.

DNA tests provide nothing on the cold case.  The pathologist suggests to Shaw that the concentrate on the dead woman and not the cold case, because on the same day that she had been murdered, an old man had died in a gas explosion at home.  She found evidence of cyanide in him.

When another body is found, badly burned in the nearby woods, Shaw is able to smell cyanide in the mouth.  The victim doesn’t seem to have any connection to the other two, but with the use of maps, Shaw’s wife shows that he could.

With a few suspects in mind, Shaw and Valentine maintain a vigorous investigation, but as each is eliminated they have only one suspect left, but DNA evidence eliminates him. 

Author Jim Kelly has written a gripping murder thriller, which will leave the reader wondering if there are going to be more victims.  He also provides a number of surprises in the closing pages.  A thoroughly enjoyable read.

The Autumn Throne

By 1176, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Queen of England, had been held prisoner by her husband, Henry II, in the Palace at Sarum.  When Henry summons her to Winchester she wonders if this means freedom or a final reckoning.  There she meets her children with warmth and gladness, but for Henry it is coldness.

She quickly finds out that Henry wants an annulment and Eleanor in a convent.  That way, he will have power over Aquitaine.  She refuses, however would agree if he gave her Aquitaine.  She is returned to Sarum.

It isn’t until 1182 that Eleanor gains freedom because Henry wants a truce.  He still vets any correspondence she has, so she has to be careful.  However, the following year she is once again imprisoned at Sarum when Harry and Geoffrey rise up in rebellion against Henry.  Unfortunately, Harry would die of the bloody flux in June of 1183.

With Harry gone, the next in line to the throne is Richard.  Henry decides to reorganise the inheritance.  He gives Richard England and Normandy and takes Aquitaine away from him, giving it to John.  This is done without consulting Eleanor, for in reality it is hers to give.  Richard is naturally upset.

Early in 1186, Geoffrey dies at a jousting match in Paris.  Henry and Eleanor are devastated.  However, it comes out that he had been scheming with the King of France.

Three years later on the sixth of July Henry was dead.  Richard is now king.  Eleanor now was to act as Queen of England in his place while he goes to the Holy Land.  It is not an easy time of it; John is constantly stirring the pot in England, although he has no power, Philippe of France decides to return from the same crusade as Richard is on, so Eleanor has to be in Normandy to protect it from the French.

In 1192, while returning home, Richard is taken prisoner by the Holy Roman Emperor.  Eleanor knows that Philippe of France will now wage war on Normandy.  An outrageous ransom is demanded for Richard’s release.  Can England afford it, and not beggar itself?

Having been released, Richard forgives John his treachery and together they wage war.  In April of 1199 Richard receives a mortal wound during a siege.  Eleanor is devastated.  Later in the same year, her daughter Joanna dies in childbirth.

John doesn’t have the staying power of his father, nor his brother Richard.  As Eleanor’s life declines, so does John’s grasp on his territory.  In April of 1204, Eleanor passes on.

This novel brings to a close the life of Eleanor of Aquitaine.  All three novels in this series by Elizabeth Chadwick bring to life a powerful woman who had many trials and tribulations.  The series is well researched and is well written.  They are a good read for fans of historical fiction.

Snowblind

Ari Thor Arason has been studying to become a policeman after giving up on philosophy and theology.  To his surprise he is offered a job in Siglufjordor, up by the Arctic Circle.  His girlfriend, Kristin is not impressed and stays in Reykjavik to continue her studies.

They are unable to be together for Christmas, and Ari Thor feels that they are growing apart.  Early in January there is an accident at the local theatre where a well known author appears to have fallen down a set of stairs to his death.  Ari Thor is unsure about the cause of the fall, while his boss, Tomas is positive that it was an accident.

A few days later a woman is found partially naked out in the snow near her home; she has some slashes on her body.  Paramedics determine that she has a slight pulse.  Could her husband have done this to her.  Not long after this, Kristin calls Ari Thor, wondering what’s is going on.  She had just seen about the woman in the snow on the internet.

As Ari Thor’s investigation progresses, he discovers evidence of a 25 year old killing, plus one that had happened in Denmark.  How can he prove his case?

Author Ragnar Jonasson writes as if he was describing a picture.  You see things in your mind’s eye.  He had me captured on his first page.  His first novel is fast paced with a surprising conclusion.  This was a thoroughly enjoyable read, and hard to put down.  I’m looking forward to reading the sequels.

The House of Eyes

DI Wesley Peterson is concerned about a missing nineteen year old girl.  However,  DCI Gerry Heffernan isn’t as concerned because he knows the father, an ex-con.  Apparently, the father claims, a photographer has been stalking her.  She wants to be a model, so when Peterson and DS Rachel Tracy visit the place they are surprised to find nothing amiss.  That is until Peterson notices a stain on the man’s duvet.  Could it be blood?

Later, Peterson’s good friend and archeologist, Dr. Neil Watson, who has been on a dig in Sicily drops by.  He provides Peterson with a picture of the photographer implicated as the stalker.  He had been doing some work in Sicily, but seems to have since disappeared.

The following day, the father of the missing girl is found dead near his work site.  The autopsy shows that he could have been killed by an arrow.  It doesn’t take long for them to come up with a suspect.  Now to bring him in. 

As the investigation progresses, a new suspect is added to the list just after the photographer is arrested.  The pair have a connection, but is either guilty of either crime?

Then, the wife of the man killed is in turn killed nearby where he had been found.  Do they have a serial killer on their hands? 

It is going to take some serious investigative work on the part of Peterson and his team before they can come up with answers.  Peterson also has other issues that he is dealing with while the case is ongoing.  Author Kate Ellis’ latest thriller is full of plot twists with a couple of surprises at the end.  A good quick read.