Beneath the Ashes by Jane Isaac

Beneath the Ashes
By Jane Isaac
Published by Legend Press (1 November 2016)
ISBN: 978-1785079474

Publisher's description

The floor felt hard beneath her face. Nancy opened her eyes. Blinked several times. A pain seared through her head. She could feel fluid. No. She was lying in fluid.

When a body is discovered in a burnt-out barn in the Warwickshire countryside, DI Will Jackman is called to investigate.

Nancy Faraday wakes up on the kitchen floor. The house has been broken into and her boyfriend is missing. As the case unravels, DI Jackman realises that nothing is quite as it appears and everyone, it seems, has a secret.

Can he discover the truth behind the body in the fire, and track down the killer before Nancy becomes the next victim?

My verdict 
Beneath the Ashes is beautifully written crime fiction. It's well-plotted and gripping, with a lot of emotion at its core.

Jane Isaac is a talented writer and has created an authentic police procedural thriller with a fascinating background. The vivid descriptions put me right into the heart of the Warwickshire setting  - and the well-researched intelligent plot kept me engrossed from beginning to end.

DI Will Jackman is a brilliant & very realistic character - certainly someone I have taken a shine to (and I'm sure many other readers have too). He cares about the victims and is determined to get to the truth - possibly due to his own tragic family circumstances, which weigh heavily on his mind.

This is the second in Jane Isaac's DI Jackson series, but I am sure this could easily be read as a standalone. Looking forward to her next book!

I received an Advance Reader Copy.