Lucy Halliday was a DI in the police force, married to investigative journalist Nico Halliday. When her husband disappears in mysterious circumstances, everyone is convinced that Nico has just upped and left her, however Lucy’s insistence that her husband has been murdered has led to subject to suspicion and derision from her peers and superiors. When we meet her, we learn her actions as she tried to get someone to take her seriously, have ultimately lead to her being demoted from from DI to PC. She is currently working with PC Moss, a cadaver dog, who is her main companion as she shuns the outside world, and lives, rather slovenly, amongst dirty dishes and clothes and doesn’t really look after herself.
News comes in that a body has been found buried, but with parts missing. Lucy and Moss head out and Lucy wonders if this time, it’s her husband that has turned up dead. This is not unusual for her, she goes through this every time a body is found, however Moss does his job and although it’s not Nico, it’s the start of a mystery that Lucy is increasingly sure includes her husband, although this is nothing new to her colleagues and you can almost feel them rolling their eyes through the pages as she tries to make her point for the umpteenth time.
New DI Jack Ellis turns up out of the blue, to take over the case. He has his own history though, and is at first horrified at Lucy and her behaviour and quickly concludes that she is not in the best mental state, and should probably not be anywhere near this case. However, it seems that Lucy has never been very good at taking ‘no’ for an answer. Moss is the only one who can keep her focused.
The story moves apace, and corruption, character history and secrets are revealed as we step through the book, but Louisa managers to do this in an entirely non-contrived manner. The characters are complicated and believable, and there are a series of reveals that are perfectly placed and paced.
I read this book over ten days via the Pigeonhole online book club – each day a ‘stave’ was released, and it’s one of the best books I’ve read this year – and I read a lot! I believe this is the first in a series and although I’ll be seeking out some of Louisa Scarr’s back catalogue before the next one drops, I’m very excited to see where Lucy and Moss go next.
Published by Canelo Crime on 11 July 2024
About the Author: Louisa Scarr
Urban Bookworm 