‘A Killing in Paradise’ by Elliot Sweeney

Published by Wildfire,
6 June 2024.
ISBN: 978-1-47229272-8 (PB)

Private Investigator Dylan Jasper and his friend Mani watch another friend of Mani’s – Patience, convincingly win her boxing match. After the bout Mani tells Jasper, as he is known, that Patience’s younger brother Kwami was murdered on Paradise Estate. Despite its name Paradise is a really run down place, full of gangs and drugs with regular stabbings and shootings.

Mani takes Jasper to meet Patience in the changing room later. She tells him Kwami had started thieving and shows them a camcorder with a note from her brother telling her to destroy it should anything happen to him. They view it and it shows a young woman being tortured and killed, reminding Jasper of a snuff movie. But is it real? Patience wants him to investigate further, refuses to go to the police and gives him the camcorder.

Jasper starts making enquiries on the Estate, he lived there as a child and knows it well. He visits a supposed witness to Kwami’s murder and is set upon by two men. However, they soon wish they hadn’t touched him! Of course, this makes Jasper all the more determined to get to the truth. He unofficially enlists the help of an old girlfriend DS. Diane McAteer of Holborn Police.

Then there is the murder of a man who they discovered was linked to the film. Through a prostitute friend of Jasper’s the woman in the movie is identified, she was also a prostitute and an illegal immigrant.

On making enquiries about the producers of the film – Red Rose Productions – Jasper is led to Nate Willoughby, a rather well-known film maker with connections to Paradise Estate. However, he soon discovers he is certainly not as affable and pleasant as he seems to be at first and Jasper’s life is soon in jeopardy. It then becomes clear that a member of the police is also involved.

Soon Jasper’s friends are also exposed to grave danger. Can he prevent any more deaths? Can he prevent his own?

A rather brutal but very gripping and enthralling thriller, even surprisingly at times, amusing. Really highly recommended.
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Reviewer: Tricia Chappell

Elliot F. Sweeney is a community psychiatric nurse. In 2018 he was awarded the HW Fisher Scholarship to attend the Curtis Brown Creative novel writing course, and he’s also been supported by Spread the Word through their London Writers Awards Scheme 2019 Cohort, and Hachette's Future Bookshelf scheme. He’s written for Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine and Switchblade, amongst others.

 

Tricia Chappell. I have a great love of books and reading, especially crime and thrillers. I play the occasional game of golf (when I am not reading). My great love is cruising especially to far flung places, when there are long days at sea for plenty more reading! I am really enjoying reviewing books and have found lots of great new authors.