Blood in the Water introduces DS Alice Rice. Alice is in her 30s, lonely, unattached, devoted to her dog & obsessive about her work. The first chapter of the book takes us into the life of Dr Elizabeth Clark, a gynaecologist, & her work at various clinics & hospitals. I was just becoming fond of her when the doorbell rings while she's in the bath, talking to her mother on the phone about Christmas presents. At the beginning of the next chapter, Alice & the team are investigating Dr Clark's murder. Dr Clark's throat has been cut & the obvious suspect seems to be her ex-lover, an artist who broke off their relationship when he felt betrayed by Dr Clark's actions.
This theory starts to look a little tenuous when the next murder occurs. The victim, Sammy McBride, is a labourer with no obvious connection to Elizabeth Clark. The MO is the same & a piece of paper has been left by both bodies with a single word printed on it. Unreliable, Untrustworthy. Is there a connection & what could it be? Then, a prominent QC is murdered in the same way. Desperate to find a connection before the press start creating a panic about a serial killer on the loose, Alice relies on old fashioned legwork to find a pattern to the murders. Until she can find a pattern, she won't know how many victims the killer has their sights on.
I was intrigued by the plot right from the beginning. It was fascinating to follow the victim through their final day, trying to work out how they could be connected. The police interviews with friends, famillies & suspects slowly brought out more & more of the story with a few red herrings to throw the reader off the track. Although the setting is completely modern, this was a traditional police procedural with very little of the flashy forensics that seems to be the fashion these days. I've reserved the second book in the series, Where the Shadow Falls, also on CD read by Hilary Neville. I can't wait!