Author: Gillian E. Hamer- Published: June 2014 by G E Hamer
- Category: Murder, Mystery, Suspense
A half-naked woman dead in a ditch. A disappearing pathologist. A teenager run off the road. For a peaceful island, Anglesey is experiencing abnormal levels of crime. What’s the connection?
When the body of a woman is found in the drainage ditch of a farmer’s field, Detective Sergeant Dara Brennan and DS Gethin Evans are called to the scene. Little do they know this is the beginning of an unexplained torturing and killing spree. A voice message left on Dara’s phone alerts him to the fact that Dr Watson, the pathologist, has some information on the dead woman. But the doctor doesn’t return Dara’s calls, he cannot be contacted or traced and is listed as a missing person.
Head of Bangor CID, DI Amanda Gold, is uncertain of her future due to her rather disagreeable DCI and office politics. She and her team, consisting of Dara, Gethin, Kelly Morgan and Duncan Fletcher, have established a good working relationship and she would be devastated if DCI Parry has her transferred to another division.
Amanda had disliked her superior from their first meeting at her interview eighteen months earlier, and considered him the worst misogynist she’d encountered through-out her two decades in the job. Her palms itched as she pictured his smug smile. She took a deep breath, kept her temper in check. Besides, she wasn’t being honest with herself. Everyone knew the real reason Idris Parry hated her and it had nothing to do with IPCC complaints.
Menai Bridge, connecting Snowdonia and Anglesey
As the body count rises, and with nothing substantial to work with the team face an increasingly difficult task. The murderer leaves no DNA traces or evidence of any kind and the murders seem random. To muddy the waters even more Dara is put in charge of the investigation and while he is very capable, his personal life is getting ever more complicated and messy.
I enjoyed the writing style, the cast of characters, their quirks and the interaction between them. The forensic aspect was well researched and handled well, as was the insight into the minds of the victims. The location is beautiful and familiar to me, which is always a bonus.
Gillian Hamer is a new to me author but I’ll definitely be reading more of her work. I had no idea where the story was going and, even though a link between the murder victims becomes apparent, the horror of the motive is gradually revealed and the perpetrator was a complete surprise. The letters from a young and unhappy Andy to his mother spread throughout the narrative add drama and poignancy.
About Gillian Hamer
Born in the industrial Midlands, Gillian’s heart has always yearned for the wilds of North Wales and the pull of the ocean.
A Company Director for twenty years, she has written obsessively for over a decade, predominantly in the crime genre. She has completed six full length novels and numerous short stories.
After completing a creative writing course, she decided to take her writing to the next level and sought representation. She is a columnist for Words with Jam literary magazine, a regular theatre goer and avid reader across genres.
She splits her time between Birmingham and a remote cottage on Anglesey where she finds her inspiration and takes long walks on deserted beaches with her Jack Russell, Maysie.
Author links ~ Website | Twitter | Facebook
