Crime thriller set in The Fenlands PETERBOROUGH

• Book: After You Die
• Location: Peterborough, Waku Kungo
• Author: Eva Dolan

Review Author: tripfiction

Another outing for detective duo Ferreira and Zigic based out of Peterborough, UK.

This sleepy, picturesque village normally sees little in the way of excitement, but a gas leak in one house, leads to the discovery of two bodies in an adjoining house. Mother Dawn and daughter Holly are found dead. Husband and biological Dad is not living far away with his new partner and her family.

After an accident Holly became severely disabled, tended by Dawn, and as the story progresses it becomes clear that her one lifeline was the internet, where she has been building a reputation as a blogger for disability rights. Hate crime, however, has reared its ugly head.  Dawn, meanwhile has been building a reputation quite different in nature, by entertaining multiple sexual partners. Enough material for the detectives to get their teeth into right from the off.

The story opens with a young boy making his way along country lanes, too young surely to be on his own? He is an inhabitant of the village, living in foster care with a local family. His backstory and the activities of Dawn and Holly all warrant closer inspection by the investigating team, as several characters come under intense scrutiny.

The narrative rolls around as the search for the perpetrator continues, the idiosyncrasies of village life permeate the process, relationships between the locals skew the dynamics, and deliberately steer investigations in circuitous directions. Who is to know whether they will get the team to their goal…

I enjoyed reading After You Die, and for me the plot unfolded in a slow and thoughtful way – slow for me is good; explanations for any shifts in the storyline concretise the unfolding strands, one clue leading to another in a measured and planned way. Twists turn into credible leads until the detectives hit a brick wall, and then have to open up new avenues.

The setting is fairly bleak, fitting for a murder story, mists descend, the weather closes in. Dolan conveys the stultifying feel of a close knit English community under the pressure of suspicion.

A good murder mystery to get your teeth into.

This review first appeared on our blog where we chat to Eva about writing, what’s next and poker

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