Nick Louth

The first in the Detective Jan Talantire series. Ruth Lyle is found murdered in a cottage in Ilfracombe, the weapon being a crucifix. As the investigation progresses, it’s discovered that a 16 year old girl with the same name was murdered in a similar way 50 years previously. All records point to them being the same person. How can the identical woman die twice?

I enjoyed this murder mystery. The plot has quite a sinister vibe to it and it rattles along nicely with plenty of twists and turns. It kept my attention throughout, trying to guess ‘whodunnit’. There are some well written characters and I liked the setting. I read this book via the Pigeonhole app, one stave a day for ten days. I looked forward to each stave and was gripped from beginning to end. It is a little far fetched at times but, hey ho, it is fiction - you just have to suspend belief. I look forward to joining Detective Talantire on her next case.… (more)

Great Britain, greed, family, friendship, thievery, theft, due-diligence, law-enforcement, informants, procedural, murder, deceit, planning, murder-investigation, cooperation*****

The investigation started when Gillard's pregnant wife ran afoul of a pair of malicious petty thieves in a shopping mall. Of the two people involved in the incident with his wife, one is found dead (proved to be murdered) and the other missing. It seems that they were involved with a professional group planning a high-priced heist. And then things get really exciting. This was another great story and it kept me up much too late reading it!
I requested and received a free temporary e-book from Canelo via NetGalley. Thank you!… (more)

I started this book sometime in 2019, was intrigued by the beginning, but then had to put it aside and only now got back to it.

An imaginative, well-crafted plot and good location descriptions are the strength of this book. The writing style is competent but not special, character development doesn't figure in, and no great moral/ethical issues are addressed. So, none of my favorite elements of a crime novel are present.

But the plot is clever and well presented. Louth pulls together seemingly unconnected elements smoothly. And (always important to me), the female characters are neither all good, nor bad, nor smart, nor dumb. They function to move the story along much the same as the men.

In short, although it wasn't a life-altering read and won't make it to my favorites list, I really enjoyed the book and feel comfortable recommending it to anyone who likes crime fiction.… (more)