THE BLURB
In this fascinatingly complex thriller, two people, each shattered by their past, team to solve a series of killings and abductions…
When a woman is beheaded in a park outside Rome and her six-year-old son goes missing, the police unit assigned to the case sees an easy solution: they arrest the woman’s husband and await his confession. But the Chief of Rome’s Major Crimes unit doubts things are so simple. Secretly, he lures to the case two of Italy’s top analytical minds: Deputy Captain Colomba Caselli, a fierce, warrior-like detective still reeling from having survived a bloody catastrophe, and Dante Torre, a man who spent his childhood trapped inside a concrete silo. Fed through the gloved hand of a masked kidnapper who called himself “The Father,” Dante emerged from his ordeal with crippling claustrophobia but, also, with an unquenchable thirst for knowledge and hyper-observant capacities.
All evidence suggests that the Father is back and active after being dormant for decades. Indeed, he has left tell-tale signs that signal he’s looking forward to a reunion with Dante. But when Columba and Dante begin following the ever-more-bizarre trail of clues, they grasp that what’s really going on is darker than they ever imagined.
Expected publication: February 9th 2017 by Simon & Schuster UK
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MY REVIEW
If you are looking to find an outstanding new crime / thriller series to sink your teeth into, then look no further!! This beast of a book (almost 500 pages) has kept me thoroughly transfixed from start to finish.
The main characters are Colomba and Dante and they are called in to help solve the murder of a mother who was found beheaded, whilst her son has disappeared. The immediate suspect is the husband but soon similarities to other unsolved cases begin to appear, bringing the case a little closer to home for Dante especially.
The author cleverly has introduced us to two strong main characters who are flawed due to their troubled pasts, and the ‘now’ story is cleverly interjected with links to the past and, often in gruesome detail, brings their previous terrors to life. These flaws make them such interesting people to read about and seems to make them work together as a team much better.
I found this story had a great pace and never seemed to pause for breath. It also never goes OTT with the details or complexities of criminal proceedures, which can often bog some crime stories down. In Columba it also introduces us to a really strong female character who isn’t afraid of bending the rules and tries not to let the past rule her present.
‘The Father’ is also a great character, in a fabulously evil way, as he always seems to be one step ahead of them and seems to justify his behaviour as more details are uncovered of his choice of victims.
The quest to track him down is an exhilarating rollercoaster ride and I cannot wait for more in this series!! A terrific debut!!
I received a copy of this book courtesy of the publisher in return for a fair and honest review.
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