‘The Killer in the Cold’ by Alex Pine

Published by Avon,
7 November 2024.
ISBN: 978-0-00-870681-4 (PB)

DCI James Walker is enjoying a quiet Boxing Day at home in the small village of Kirby Abbey, when a phone call shatters his peace.  A local dog walker has found a body in a Father Christmas costume.  It is Nigel Booth, a former police officer, whom James and his family know well.  As his colleagues arrive at the crime scene and start investigations, James walks to Nigel’s house to check on his wife, Elizabeth, as it seems odd that she has not reported her husband missing.  He finds her dead in the kitchen, stabbed as was her husband

The residents are naturally shocked and want to know what has happened and, as a well-known resident of the village, James knows that his role as the senior detective on the case will not be an easy one.  The investigation is far from straightforward.  There is little evidence to work with and the close-knit community is emotional, tense and fearful.  Rumours flourish and secrets and lies are revealed.  James and his colleagues come under increasing criticism as their failure to find a quick solution costs them the confidence of the villagers. 

There are constant twists and turns as bits of evidence turn up – the ex-friend who commits suicide, the unexpected involvement of a gangland boss, the son in need of money who resents his parents’ decision to move abroad to the sun.  James experiences the difficulties of running an investigation in his own village – people are constantly asking for updates, phoning his wife for information and it’s difficult to maintain friendships in such a situation.  But technology plays its part with door cameras providing useful information, as gradually and carefully the police sift the evidence and home in on an unlikely murderer.

This book, the latest in a series, opens with an introduction to DCI Walker and his team, providing a useful introduction for new readers and a reminder for those already following the series. It’s not a high-speed, high-tension story – it moves carefully along, as clues are identified, secrets are uncovered, and a community has to cope with a frightening situation. 
------
Reviewer: Jo Hesslewood
Other books by this author:  The Christmas Killer, The Killer in the Snow, The Winter Killer, The Night before Christmas. 

Alex Pine is the pseudonym of a bestselling author who has also written books under the names Jaime Raven, James Raven and JP Carter. He was born and raised on a council estate in South London and left school at sixteen. Before becoming a full-time writer, he spent a career in journalism as a newspaper reporter and television producer. He was, for a number of years, director of a major UK news division and co-owned a TV production company. He now splits his time between homes in Hampshire and Spain with his wife. 

http://www.james-raven.com/

Jo Hesslewood.  Crime fiction has been my favourite reading material since as a teenager I first spotted Agatha Christie on the library bookshelves.  For twenty-five years the commute to and from London provided plenty of reading time.  I am fortunate to live in Cambridge, where my local crime fiction book club, Crimecrackers, meets at Heffers Bookshop .  I enjoy attending crime fiction events and currently organise events for the Margery Allingham Society.