Needless to say things aren’t as straightforward as they seem and long hidden historical events play their part. All in all, it was a sharp, perfectly crafted story that spoke volumes about the virtuoso behind the keyboard. The driver John Lyons, his wife Dannelda, their young niece Teresa, and their baby are terrified of Gary, even though Donny tries to calm them down by promising they will not harm them. I have been a big fan of the DCI Sheens books and was excited to catch up with one of my favorite detectives again.

She studied English at Cambridge University and received an MA in creative writing from the University of East Anglia. The story is narrated by Aisling, of course, but also by Jonah and a few of his counterparts at the police department (all introduced in previous novels. How Gytha Lodge can leave us dangling like that I don't know, but if you are looking for drama, that final chapter has it in spades.I'm pretty sure much of that comes because it's the first in the series that I've read, and what background was included wasn't sufficient for me to be able to really "connect" with any of the characters.

The Bonfire Killer was on the loose, and unknown to Aisling someone whose blood type matched blood at the newest murder scene belonged to a close relative of hers. From detective to victim – and everything in between – each character leaps off the page: real, rounded and relatable. Gytha Lodge has illustrated so many ways your DNA can be somewhere you are not, and I never considered any of them.

They support one another, they treat each other with respect and the camaraderie is frankly, workplace goals. It felt like different story lines were being pursued and they all connected to one another in a very convoluted way. Aisling Cooley, a single mother, uploads her DNA to an ancestry site to locate her father, but what she finds is a detective knocking on her door advising that the DNA is closer related to a homicide he is working. It was different and the characters were appealing but I would have liked to have been clued in a little sooner on the rest of the story. The conclusion in this one is fantastic, and I like how all characters’ endings are included so we aren’t left wondering.