A Deadly Thaw
By Sarah Ward
Published by Faber & Faber (Paperback - 2 February 2017)
ISBN: 978-0571321049
Publisher's description
Autumn 2004
In Bampton,
Derbyshire, Lena Fisher is arrested for suffocating her husband, Andrew.
Spring 2016
A year
after Lena's release from prison, Andrew is found dead in a disused mortuary.
Who was the
man Lena killed twelve years ago, and who committed the second murder? When
Lena disappears, her sister, Kat, sets out to follow a trail of clues delivered
by a mysterious teenage boy. Kat must uncover the truth - before there's
another death . . .
My verdict
A Deadly Thaw sucked me in straight away and was a highly addictive read.
The body of a man (Andrew Fisher), believed to have been killed by his wife years earlier, is found in a disused mortuary. This is a recent murder, which baffles the local police, as his wife, Lena, confessed to the original crime and served her time. So who did Lena kill originally and why? Why did she not disclose the identity of her original victim? And where had Andrew been all this time?
A Deadly Thaw is an easy read and moves at a fast pace. It's a character-led police procedural that's filled with red herrings, twists and turns. I had no idea where the complex plot was going as the body count rose, and found myself totally immersed in the atmospheric setting of the Derbyshire countryside.
Sarah Ward has constructed a chilling plot and an array of strong characters, weaving the past and present together in a tangled web of deceit. The plot darkened as the book progressed, with flashbacks to events in the past that explored the relationship between Lena and her younger sister Kat.
This is the second book in the DC Childs series. Although I have read the first book (In Bitter Chill), I do believe this can easily be read as a standalone. I look forward to Sarah Ward's next book.
I received an Advance Reader Copy.
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