I have been writing this blog for seventeen years now which is a bit of a facer, though these days I do not blog as much as I used to. I used to get shedloads of books sent to me and found it impossible to keep up sometimes. I don't get so many now, probably there are newer kids on the block who are more up to date with modern literature than I (not that that would be difficult) but I still love reading and reviewing.
Over the years my lovely readers have left comments thanking me for recommendations and how they trust my judgement and I have never let them down. Very gratifying though I have always remembered I am not a seasoned reviewer but somebody who just loves books. This was brought home to me way back in 2009 or thereabouts when I read the first book by Jane Casey, The Missing. It was good and I enjoyed it but I guessed who dun it almost immediately and I felt the ending was rather rushed and a bit of a let down. To my horror after I had published this post Jane Casey got in touch with me and said that my review had mader her 'wince a bit'. It brought home to me that the Author is also a person and that your thoughts and opinions can affect people. She told me that she had had a mixed response to the ending and that I should carry on being honest in my opinions.
I made the decision then to only review books I have enjoyed and loved because, honestly, what pleasure can there be in being overly critical? I have broken this rule a few times when I have thought a book was dreadful or badly written or boring, but on those occasions the books involved have been from huge best selling authors who probably will not give a damn about my thoughts.
Well, after this long preamble for which I crave your indulgence, I am going to write about The Close by Jane Casey.
After The Missing Jane began to write a series of books featuring Maeve Kerrigan and this is what I wrote about it then:
"Maeve Kerrigan is an ambitious detective constable and is keen to make her mark. As a woman in a male environment she has to work twice as hard to prove her worth and also learn to deal with the sexism that is part of her daily routine. She is involved in the investigation to track down The Burning Man, a brutal serial killer who has beaten four young women to death before burning their bodies. A fifth body has been found but there are differences in the manner of her death which make Maeve think that this is a separate murder. She investigates and the more she learns about the victim, Rebecca Haworth from her friends and family, the more she is sure that there are two murderers abroad. She meets Rebecca's ex-boyfriend Gil Maddick, darkly handsome, brooding and dangerous, her best friend Louise North, cold and self possessed and very jealous of others involved with Rebecca. It appears that the golden lifestyle enjoyed by Rebecca has been falling apart, a drug habit, broke and now out of a job and all is not as it seems on the surface.
Once started I read right through until the end. Narrative pacy and strong and I found myself liking Maeve Kerrigan very much and hope that we meet her again in another detective novel".
I thoroughly enjoyed this title and was pleased when more came my way. Good strong writing, great characterisation and terrific plots, they went on my list of Series to Read. But, in my opinion, excellent though the books were they took on an extra dimension with the introduction of DI Josh Derwent into the series. On the surface of it an unrepentant Male Chauvinist Pig, full of himself and scathing to Maeve when she was partnered with him. Josh brings an extra dynamic to the series and from the moment he arrived I, personally, felt the books got better and better. I was now breathless with anticipation waiting for the next one and the steady growth of the relationship between Maeve and Josh. This is not to say that this becomes the focus, the crime and the solving are still central and rightly so, but, and I have to be honest here, the growing underlying sexual tension between them is tantalising and adds spice to the alread excellent writing.
The previous book before The Close was the Cutting Place and I was bowled over by it and, like all the others, read through in one sitting. Far and away the best of the lot thought I until I read The Close which is even better.
Maeve has undergone a traumatic and life changing experience in The Cutting Place about which I will not discuss if you have not read it, and it has effected her deeply. Reluctantly she is teamed with Josh and sent undercover to The Close where things are not what they seem. Vulnerable and disturbed people are vanishig and there is a link to one of the residents so Josh and Maeve go to dog sit for someone who is away and adopt the persona of a couple in order to fathom out what is going on.
We meet all the residents in the Close, some likeable, some not, some with odd foibles and others who are not all they appears on the surface. A perfect setting for a crime novel. But it is the relationship, once again, between Maeve and Josh that keeps us on the edge of our seats, or in my case the sofa. The air positively bristles with things unsaid and emotions unexpressed and Jane Casey keeps us all hanging on every word.
This is her best yet. I cannot wait for the next one and it is my fervent wish that if she has not started it, then can she please do NOW.
So Dear Readers and all of those who trust me and my recommendations please do the following:
1 if you have not read the Kerrigan books yet, then please do so
2 Please read them in order
3 If you have already read them, then get your mitts on this one straight away.
You know it makes sense....
