A fine thriller that delivers the mystery and intrigue that series fans have come to expect.
In Regan’s latest mystery, an investigation involving a missing child connects to one of Denton Police Det. Josie Quinn’s first murder cases.
The narrative begins with a memory from 15 years ago from when rookie cop Josie became ill at a grisly crime scene involving the Cook family. The story then cuts to the present where Josie, now a seasoned detective, deals with a new case. A baby, Gracie Tate, is found abandoned in a stroller at a park, along with a bloodied diaper bag, a Polaroid photo of muddy rocks,and no sign of her mother, Cleo, who called 911 and left her phone behind: “She didn’t say anything on the call. There was nothing but dead air,” says Josie’s colleague. Police question Cleo’s husband, Remy, who lacks a solid alibi, which leads Josie and her team to strongly consider foul play. Witness accounts describe Cleo being forced into a white Hyundai automobile, and Josie and her fellow cops theorize that the Polaroid could be a deliberate message. Through interviews and analysis, Josie begins piecing together Cleo’s movements before her disappearance; the investigation takes a stark turn when a body is found stabbed to death in a secluded location. Before long, Josie identifies parallels between that murder and the Cook family homicides. Then the killer begins targeting other people involved in the Cook case—including Josie and her family. Overall, Regan delivers an engaging murder mystery and thriller. Although the primary murder plot will draw in many genre fans on its own, the supporting characters also make the crimes and their consequences feel engagingly real. The narrative pacing is so fast that readers may feel as if they’re making discoveries in real time, right alongside the characters. Despite being the 21st book in a long-running series, newcomers to the sometimes-grim world of Det. Josie Quinn are sure to find it accessible.
A fine thriller that delivers the mystery and intrigue that series fans have come to expect.Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2024
ISBN: 9781835259702
Page Count: 378
Publisher: Bookouture
Review Posted Online: Dec. 11, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A fresh and clever whodunit with an engaging twist.
A 16-year-old savant uses his Groundhog Day gift to solve his grandfather’s murder.
Nishizawa’s compulsively readable puzzle opens with the discovery of the victim, patriarch Reijiro Fuchigami, sprawled on a futon in the attic of his elegant mansion, where his family has gathered for a consequential announcement about his estate. The weapon seems to be a copper vase lying nearby. Given this setup, the novel might have proceeded as a traditional whodunit but for two delightful features. The first is the ebullient narration of Fuchigami’s youngest grandson, Hisataro, thrust into the role of an investigator with more dedication than finesse. The second is Nishizawa’s clever premise: The 16-year-old Hisataro has lived ever since birth with a condition that occasionally has him falling into a time loop that he calls "the Trap," replaying the same 24 hours of his life exactly nine times before moving on. And, of course, the murder takes place on the first day of one of these loops. Can he solve the murder before the cycle is played out? His initial strategies—never leaving his grandfather’s side, focusing on specific suspects, hiding in order to observe them all—fall frustratingly short. Hisataro’s comical anxiety rises with every failed attempt to identify the culprit. It’s only when he steps back and examines all the evidence that he discovers the solution. First published in 1995, this is the first of Nishizawa’s novels to be translated into English. As for Hisataro, he ultimately concludes that his condition is not a burden but a gift: “Time’s spiral never ends.”
A fresh and clever whodunit with an engaging twist.Pub Date: July 29, 2025
ISBN: 9781805335436
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Pushkin Vertigo
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2025
A top-class cozy infused with dry wit and charming characters who draw you in and leave you wanting more, please.
Four residents of Coopers Chase, a British retirement village, compete with the police to solve a murder in this debut novel.
The Thursday Murder Club started out with a group of septuagenarians working on old murder cases culled from the files of club founder Elizabeth Best’s friend Penny Gray, a former police officer who's now comatose in the village's nursing home. Elizabeth used to have an unspecified job, possibly as a spy, that has left her with a large network of helpful sources. Joyce Meadowcroft is a former nurse who chronicles their deeds. Psychiatrist Ibrahim Arif and well-known political firebrand Ron Ritchie complete the group. They charm Police Constable Donna De Freitas, who, visiting to give a talk on safety at Coopers Chase, finds the residents sharp as tacks. Built with drug money on the grounds of a convent, Coopers Chase is a high-end development conceived by loathsome Ian Ventham and maintained by dangerous crook Tony Curran, who’s about to be fired and replaced with wary but willing Bogdan Jankowski. Ventham has big plans for the future—as soon as he’s removed the nuns' bodies from the cemetery. When Curran is murdered, DCI Chris Hudson gets the case, but Elizabeth uses her influence to get the ambitious De Freitas included, giving the Thursday Club a police source. What follows is a fascinating primer in detection as British TV personality Osman allows the members to use their diverse skills to solve a series of interconnected crimes.
A top-class cozy infused with dry wit and charming characters who draw you in and leave you wanting more, please.Pub Date: Sept. 22, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-98-488096-3
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Pamela Dorman/Viking
Review Posted Online: June 30, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2020
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