MERCILESS by Heleyne Hammersley.
Merciless by Heleyne
Hammersley.
"I
can't seem to stop what I've started. It's his fault. I can feel his poison in
me, flowing through my veins."
Police
procedural murder investigations combined with the thriller genre make up for a
dynamic combination. You won't be disappointed.
"Merciless" is the second novel in the D.I. Kate
Fletcher series. Set mainly around south Yorkshire you are presented with a
bunch of down-to-earth detectives working with Kate. Hollis was a key part of
her team, Sam Cooper, efficient but an extremely private person, Barratt and
O'Connor who Kate tolerated but disliked. Nothing untoward. Kate takes her work
seriously and it dominates her life. She seems a little more compassionate and
human showing how different she is from how
the stereotypical D.I. is portrayed. Nick Tsappis becomes romantically attached
to Kate at the end and sums up her caring nature when he tells her:"It matters. These people aren't just
cases, they're individuals with lives and hopes and dreams."
As
expected, the opening has the usual excitement and drama with one of Kate's
D.C.s Cooper taking an early morning jog along the towpath to cool off after
having had a squabble with her partner Abbie. Her turning point was the lock
and it was here, even in the dark, that she was able to see movement in the
water, something that initially looked like a black bin bag.
"The
surface of the object was ribbed or rippled and it appeared to have a lot of
air trapped inside. There was something floating next to it. A pale shape
against the dark water."
The
shocking revelation came in the form of a hand then she noticed the jacket and
the body! An immediate call to the emergency services and we meet Kate’s team.
No identity although the autopsy later showed that she had a scar from a
c-section. Patterns of disturbances around the area suggested there had been a
struggle which indicated a murder rather than a suicide.
Kate
is summoned by her boss D.C.I. Raymond, an officious man to inform her that a
woman has turned herself in after confessing to “murdering” her father, Dennis Lambert. Kate interviewed Caroline Lambert
who seemed to lack emotion and this unsettled the D.I. although the confession seemed to
be straight-forward. Dennis was in stage 4 of liver cancer and had months to
live. It seemed that he wanted to end his life so his daughter supplied him
with the means to send him on his journey-whisky and oramorph by his bedside.
It seemed to be a simple case of euthanasia or was there more to this?
A
neighbour and a lady friend, Brenda Powley had been looking after Dennis in the
absence of his family. She had contacted Caroline as the next of kin informing
her that Dennis had taken a bad turn and was in hospital. Incidentally, Brenda
hadn’t seen the daughter for twenty years which suggests that something isn’t
quite right here! Caroline’s description of her father isn’t exactly flattering
either: “manipulative, calculating and flint-hard.” We discover
that he was the “cock of the school”
and he had a “right reputation.” When
Brenda meets up with Caroline their discourse is tense and downright bitchy. It
is Brenda who accuses the daughter of being responsible for Dennis’s sudden decline
in health. Caroline soon puts her in her place!
As
the investigation gets underway we discover the tragic nature of the Lamberts
as a family-first daughter Jeanette mysteriously disappeared followed shortly
by Irene’s suicide (mum). Mystery letters in italics are meant to throw you off
the scent addressed to Caroline and signed J.
“Of
course I want him to pay for what he did and I know that he deserves it.” Is it possible that sister
Jeanette is still alive? So, where is she?
“Killing
Dennis isn’t murder though, it’s justice.”
What is this notion of justice? What’s going on here?
The
cases aren’t straightforward. Two deaths. A woman who confessed to one of the
deaths. Complications set in when a nurse becomes collateral damage. Another
victim?
Caroline
Lambert does a runner but the clever D.I. sees through it all. It’s a set up,
staged from start to finish. We encounter a number of cliff-hangers towards the
end and a message reading: “FIND JEANETTE left in Caroline’s abandoned car.
The
denouement shows tension when Kate is threatened and it’s touch and go as to
whether she’s going to come out of this scrape alive. The final piece of the
jigsaw is fitted but we know Kate’s already one step ahead in working out the
whys and wherefores. A sentimental ending hints of a romantic rendezvous or two
between Kate and Nick Tsappis.
All
loose ends tied up neatly. You’ll find it a satisfying read. Highly
recommended.
REVIEW
it by Carol Naylor.
Publisher: Bloodhound Books 2018. ISBN: 978-1-91-2604-34-0Copyright 2018. Permission must be obtained from the author before any of this article review is reproduced.
Sounds a good read Carol...I was only confused by a piece earlier on when I read "The autopsy showed SHE (?) had a scar
ReplyDeletefrom a C section.."
The unidentified body who was obviously female!
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