‘The Putney Bridge Killer’ by Biba Pearce

Published by Joffe Books,
16 May 2025.
ISBN: 978-1-80573-107-8 (PB)

When the body of a young woman is discovered on the wharf under Putney Bridge, the first officer belonging to the MIT (Major Investigation Team) is PC Trent, a junior officer who was spotted as having potential by DCI Rob Miller, the head of the MIT team. Trent is eager to prove himself and earn a permanent place on the team, but he is horrified to realise that the tide is coming in and the first crime scene he is in sole charge of may be underwater before any of his more experienced colleagues arrive. However, Trent rises to the occasion and preserves the integrity of the crime scene evidence in a way that wins the approval of Rob Miller, as well as providing for numerous photographs.

There was no identity found on the victim, but pictures of the way her body was laid out startle Rob and the more established members of his team, because it bears a strong resemblance to a previous case. The end of the earlier case had been very traumatic for Rob and had significantly personal connotations. As soon as the victim is identified, the link with the earlier case becomes even more alarming, and brings more tragedy to the victim’s fiancée and her a family, after they have already been subjected to almost unbearable grief. Rob knows better than anybody that the serial killer, known as the Surrey Strangler, is dead, killed as he attempted to commit another murder. Now it seems a copycat killer is mimicking the Surrey Strangler’s crimes, and this copycat seems to know far too much about the original murders, including things the police had kept back from the media and the public. As the murders mount up, the links to the original Surrey Strangler increase, and Rob struggles to retain his conviction that he was correct in his original identification of the serial killer. Tensions in the team are running high, especially when they realise there must be an informer in the police force leaking information to the press, however Rob’s fiancée, Jo, and his MIT team remain stalwart in their trust and support for him. His superior officer, Superintendent Felicity Mayhew, also has his back, even though their relationship has always been strained. They are both aware that if there is just one more scandal surrounding Rob and his team, it will destroy both his career and Mayhew’s. The violence grows more intense, and the killer grows even more ruthless. As Rob and his officers fight desperately to identify and capture him, it becomes evident that both Rob and Jo are in imminent and acute danger of becoming the murderer’s next victims.

The Putney Bridge Killer is the eighth book in the series featuring Rob Miller and his MIT team, but it works beautifully as a stand-alone, because of the skill with which the author introduces the central characters and backstory, weaving them seamlessly into the narrative. This is a superb book, with an interesting, fast-paced, tense plot. All the characters are fully rounded personalities, which are engaging and believable, and the dynamics within the MIT team work well. The Putney Bridge Killer is a compelling read, which I wholeheartedly recommend.
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Reviewer: Carol Westron

Biba Pearce grew up on the wild eastern coast of Southern Africa. She now lives in Surrey, and when she isn’t writing, can be found rambling through the countryside or kayaking on the river Thames. She writes gritty police procedurals and is the author of the bestselling DCI Rob Miller series published by Joffe Books. Her latest release, The Marlow Murders, was published in October 2023.  Look out for The Frost Killer, published 9 January 2024.

 her mid-forties.  She completed a M.A. in Special and Inclusive Education at the Institute of Education, London and now teaches part-time and writes mainly about educational issues.  Dot sings jazz and country music and plays guitar, banjo and piano as well as being addicted to reading mystery and crime fiction.   

Carol Westron is a Golden Age expert who has written many articles on the subject and given papers at several conferences. She is the author of several series: contemporary detective stories and police procedurals, comedy crime and Victorian Murder Mysteries. Her most recent publications are Paddling in the Dead Sea and Delivering Lazarus, books 2 and 3 of the Galmouth Mysteries, the series which began with The Fragility of Poppies.  

www.carolwestron.com