As my lockdown experiences seem to mainly involve going through murder mysteries at the speed of light, I was very grateful to NetGalley for granting me the opportunity to read this before it comes out in July 2021 – as always. opinions are entirely my own.
This book opens with an ex-journalist, Heather Evans, returning to her childhood home after the suicide of her mother. While clearing out the house, she finds letters that make it obvious that her mother has been writing to a serial killer who has been in Belmarsh Prison for over 20 years, Michael Reave or ‘The Red Wolf’. As strange and creepy events occur to Heather, a murder victim is found with all the markings of a Red Wolf killing and Heather is forced to confront the truth about her mother’s past.
I’ll admit, I read most of this book with my heart pounding! There is tension galore and it is a true page-turner – I had to keep reading on because I needed to find bits I wasn’t scared by! All in a good way, of course – I did find I was caught up in Heather’s story and wanted to find out the truth about her family’s past, especially when it became involved with a commune, an intriguing location (and another terrifying one!)
There are some really dark elements to this story that I found a little disturbing. I don’t want to give any spoilers, but the abuse element needs a cautious approach (although it isn’t a huge part of the book). Some of the events are also a little unbelievable at times, but I did think that Jen Williams handled the plot well – I certainly wanted to read on, although I found the sections focusing on Reave’s childhood very uncomfortable (as, I guess, was intended!)
Overall, I’d recommend this to those who like their crime stories with a dark heart. It is fabulously twisty, tense, pacey and will keep you reading – even if you then have to sleep with the lights on.
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Header photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
