Published by Severn House,
28 September 2018.
ISBN: 978-1-7278-8827-3 (HB)
28 September 2018.
ISBN: 978-1-7278-8827-3 (HB)
When two bodies are washed up on the Kentish marshes, DS Mickey Hitchens sent from London with DCI Henry Johnstone, to investigate, quickly identifies one of the bodies as Billy Crane, one of the henchmen of the East End’s notorious gangster Josiah Bailey. The other he has no doubt will be from the same stable.
Investigating a disturbance
at a nearby gypsy camp site gives them no actual information, as no will tell
them anything, but a witness account unrelated to the camp has them certain
that it merits more investigation. Whilst pondering their next more, a further
death provides links that lead them to secrets long buried in the past.
As Mickey and Henry
seek to unravel the mysteries more bodies are discovered. What the
investigation team can’t work out is who is orchestrating the killings. Is it Josiah Bailey, or is someone brave enough
or foolish enough to try taking over his patch, or is it a vendetta, or just
simple revenge – but for what?
Set in December 1928,
although 10 years after The Great War, the shadows of that time are still very
alive. Where did you serve? is still the question often asked?
Although written in the
third person, the narrative is interspersed with first person journal entries from
Henry Johnston. It was
clear when reading the book that it was written by someone who had researched that
period extensively. It is universally
known that it was a terrible war, and one can only imagine how those
experiencing it would long to be back home – or would they? One passage in Henry’s journal really had me
thinking.
I
can’t even recall wanting to live. I can’t recall wanting anything except to be
away from that place. I don’t think I even had a desire to be at home because I
could no longer remember what home felt like. It had been too long, and the
change had been too great, and I don’t think I felt that I could ever belong
anywhere, ever again.
Whilst following the investigation
we learn much of the protagonists lives and meet some interesting characters
along the way. The most enigmatic of the
characters is Henry Johnson, and although we learn more of him there is, I feel
more to be learned. The background to
the close relationship between him and his Sergeant Mickey Hitchens is also
revealed.
Eventually the tenuous
threads come together taking us back to 1918.
A cleverly plotted the story that reaches a satisfying conclusion,
whilst providing a couple of hooks to keep one on edge for the next book in the
series..
Kith
and Kin is the
third book in this series, with a fourth due out in July 2019, entitled The Clockmaker. I look forward to it.
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Reviewer: Lizzie Sirett
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Reviewer: Lizzie Sirett
Earlier books in this
series are The Murder Book (2016) and
Death Scene (2017.
Jane
Adams was born in Leicestershire, where
she still lives. She has a degree in Sociology and has held a variety of jobs
including lead vocalist in a folk-rock band. She enjoys pen and ink drawing;
martial arts and her ambition is to travel the length of the Silk Road by
motorbike. Her first book, The Greenway,
was shortlisted for the CWA John Creasey Award in 1995 and for the Author's
Club Best First Novel Award. Jane writes several series. Her first series featured Mike Croft. Several
books featuring DS Ray Flowers. Twelve titles featuring blind Naoimi Blake, and
more recently seven featuring Rina Martin. Her latest series is set in the 1920’s
and features Chief Inspector Henry Johnson. Jane has also written three
standalone novels. She is married with two children.
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