Strange and unusual seem to be an everyday occurence for our favourite Detective and Nowhere to Run is absolutely no exception to the norm. It's one of the things I like about this series, and James Oswald's books in general to be fair. They are not your average police procedurals. Not by a long chalk. And Constance Fairchild is not your average Detective. She has seen her fair share of the inexplicable and the scene is set for more to come with local legends and mythology intermingling with a case very much grounded in the real life atrocities that could all too easily have been ripped from the headlines. It is a story which is very topical, a touch dark in terms of theme perhaps, but told in the series trademark first person, almost conversational style which keeps readers immersed in the action but a step removed from the real depravity of what is happening. It works brilliantly in this case, with Con's conscience and natural curiosity driving her to get involved in a very complex investigation, even though she is meant to be on sabbatical. But from her perspective we get a unique take on what is happening, and I found myself faced with a real determination of our own to see the whole thing through to its conclusion. Con Fairchild, the main character, is from a rich aristocratic family: she’s actually Lady Constance Fairchild. She is also a detective constable in the Metropolitan Police; in the last book, she was instrumental in breaking up a ring of corrupt police in her own unit. Now she’s suspended from duty and pretty much all her colleagues dislike her. This dislike is supposed to be because of what she did, but to be honest, the way she’s written, it comes across far more as if Con Fairchild is the kind of colleague whom, while you wouldn’t wish them to die in a fire, if you heard they’d been involved in a tragic accident you wouldn’t lose much sleep over it. Trouble always seems to find her, and even if she has nothing to hide, perhaps she has everything to lose…. On her way she calls in home and stays with her Aunt Felicity. Her brother Ben is getting married to Charlotte shortly and Con needs to tell her mother that she won’t be attending. The last thing Charlotte and Ben need is a bunch of paps turning up at their wedding in search of the ‘Posh cop’ and her family.

I thoroughly enjoyed Nothing to Hide which is an exciting read that held my attention from start to finish, to the extent that I read it in one sitting. It is told in the first person by Con which allows the reader to identify with her and get absorbed in her perspective and as there is always something going on this is easy. The plot builds well with two strands of interest, Con’s on/off involvement in the investigation and the fallout from her previous case, nastiness from her fellow officers, her suspension and constant attention from tabloid journalists. These strands often intertwine with her actions in one leading to events in the other or vice versa. It’s done seamlessly and while there may be a touch of serendipity it makes for an exciting read. James has also introduced the world to Detective Constable Constance 'Con' Fairchild, whose first outing was in the acclaimed No Time To Cry. With the Madame Rose character (hovering between the two series, Fairchild and McLean ) and her the overall fantasy occult transgender crystal ballall-knowing magical circusy mystery aura added to the mix of nothing much happening except a lot of wandering around, not much of a plot, lots of padding out with not much happening. Each character seems silly, including each Fairchild, cop, villain, extras superfluous to requirements ... Everyone's a cliche. There's nobody 'normal' to move a police story along. The style of telling this story is all over the place. The subsidiary characters, particularly the villains, were rather one dimensional, and only the dog and Karen's girlfriend stood out from the crowd.

Publication Order of Jane Casey Short Stories/Novellas

In custody she meets a young Ukrainian woman, Lila, who confides in Con that she's been forced by her manipulative boyfriend into prostitution and running drugs. Fearing for her life, she has run away from him, only to end up in the cells. The first thing that really draws me into James Oswald’s novel is the feeling of place, I love the rural Wales setting – the detail on Aberystwyth and the surrounding area really makes the book sing – it reminds me of childhood holidays to the Welsh coast; the high cliffs, hidden coves, and smugglers caves. Con doesn’t get on with her parents as they disapproved of her choice to become a police officer. Despite her upbringing she is far from being the lady she was raised to be. With tattoos on her arms, she likes to drink a pint when in the local pub and her language is hardly that of a refined lady! Con isn’t all that popular with some members of her own force, either, Cops died in the final fall out that Con was at the heart of and that won’t be forgotten for a very long time. So she’s returned home to her cold and stark London flat, where she does her best to avoid the journalists that seem to be dogging her every footstep. I’m a huge fan of this author’s books as they are always fantastic, gritty and dark stories which I really enjoy! This story had a bit of a modern feel to it as it included witch doctors and spice addicts which have both been in the news recently. This instantly intrigued me and also made the story seem very real as I knew that some of the things in this book could actually happen.

Nothing to Hide is a terrific addition to the series. It’s very interesting to follow DC Constance Fairchild’s career and to follow her relationship with her family and colleagues. I really, really wanted to love this. James Oswald is one of my favourite authors, and although I didn’t enjoy the first Con Fairchild book as much as his Inspector McLean series, I hoped that this second Con Fairchild book would be different. Nowhere To Run’ is the third outing for James Oswald’s Constance Fairchild but it can be read as a standalone book. As this new case gains momentum and more victims are discovered, Con finds herself on a journey to Edinburgh in the hope of unearthing more about the victim found near her flat. She remains officially off-duty and works somewhat outside of her legitimate parameters. While in Edinburgh, Con encounters characters who may be familiar to readers of James Oswald’s McLean series. I love how the two series ‘accidentally’ overlap and how James Oswald subtly weaves these characters into each separate plot-line.

Despite Con being suspended from all duties and warned to stay away, she defies her superiors and continues to look into what is happening. She goes to Edinburgh in what was supposed to be her getting away from the press but she has an ulterior motive which is to visit the mother of the young man who she had found.

She’s been suspended since then, awaiting her opportunity to testify at the trial of wealthy businessman Roger De Villiers and D.S. Gordon Bailey who between them ran a murky business empire. Trouble always seems to find her, and even if she has nothing to hide, perhaps she has everything to lose . . . When Con does stumble across a clue, she often doesn’t follow it up – on several occasions, she notices something important, and I expected that the next scene would show her investigating further – but she never did. Once again, Mr Oswald creates fantastic characters even ones of the four legged variety; I absolutely loved Gelert the deerhound who embodies the phrase "[wo]man's best friend" and I guarantee you will want a Gelert in your life albeit without the flatulence! Propaganda writing is not entertaining to the reader, even when presented as a thriller, the characters have to fit the new woke patterns of a world that does not exist and has never existed the main character is a woman but her relations with men is obscure and mostly horrible, she is upper class and rich but she hates it and has joined the proletariat to show her family she is better, we have the obligatory transgender character, that is also asexual (to complicated to explain sexual tates, suffice to add one of the required quotas and the writing will be fine; after all it is just propaganda) when a religious ritual of blood and torture is performed by a person or group of different culture it must be explained that they are not practicing their religion in the right way this covers all possible complications of being culturally insensitive or worst.

The Setting. Well presented and feeling real. Gritty but avoiding the sense of being utterly bleak which can be the downfall of such books. There are pools of peace and good people as well as bad. Meanwhile Con is also dealing with her brothers impending wedding and meets her mother, who is now part of The Church of the coming light and the disturbing Reverend Dr Masters….. Often worrying but there is also humour, the type that I love. Con doesn’t take any prisoners, she refuses to show respect if she doesn’t feel its deserved and she definitely doesn’t suffer fools. Her friendship with Karen Eve is one I want to see develop and I also want to see her family become more settled after the events that happen here. I also want to see how she handles an officer who I expect she will have to work with closely. I would like to thank Netgalley and Headline for an advance copy of Nowhere to Run, the third novel to feature Detective Con(stance) Fairchild of the National Crime Agency.