This is a book I read straight after reading the Ann Cleeves crime novel Raven Black. I had not heard of Cleeves before, it was a book chosen by our reading group, but I enjoyed her style in Raven Black so I thought I had to try this one next. It had another attraction in that it is set in Northumberland where I live and I was curious to see how she would treat the area. She described it perfectly. In fact I wish I could remember her descriptions and carry them off as my own!
The story is about Lizzie Bartholomew, an orphan who has grown up in foster homes and, despite a lot of trouble in her youth, she became a social worker hoping to help children who are where she was. However because of a traumatic event, that is slowly revealed through the book, she is now no longer working and, following a strange request from a man she only knew briefly but who has recently died, she is slowly drawn into a murder investigation.
Like Raven Black this book is full of interesting characters who all have secrets to hide, it is up to Lizzie, and the reader if you want to play the 'detective game' along with her, to try to work out which secrets are the red herrings and which will unlock the mystery. At times this is a very dark book but it does draw you in beautifully, it is definitely one to start when you have a whole day ahead of you to do nothing but read ... you won't want to put it down. ( )