Hirelings Tale

I was looking for an entertaining book for a rainy weekend, and picked this up without knowing anything about the author. Now I want to read the rest of her books. This book has everything I would want in a police/crime/suspense story: action, character development, and interesting plot twists. But I ended up getting quite a bit of food for thought as well as entertainment. This is one of a series of police novels set in a small city in the Fens region of the UK,and it has a convincing sense of place and an ensemble of strong central characters. The author created a suspenseful story with plenty of surprises, without going too far outside the bounds of reality. But on a more serious level, the novel explores the psychology of the criminals and their pursuers, in a way that gives new insights and avoids cliches-no mean feat. (Anything else I say may give away some secrets so I'll stop there).

Just when you think you've reached the plot's climax- ZAP! - another cliffhanger moment hits you out of the blue. Plus, you get a theme that repeatedly brings you up short. This edition of author Jo Bannister's Castlemere Mystery is top drawer. Don't miss it!