this edition an e-book on Libby supplied by my local library
Publisher : Avon (18 April 2019)
Print length : 417 pages
#5 in the DI Callanach series
Synopsis (Amazon)
our darkest moment is your most vulnerable…Stephen Berry is about to jump off a bridge until a suicide prevention counsellor stops him. A week later, Stephen is dead. Found at the bottom of a cliff, DI Luc Callanach and DCI Ava Turner are drafted in to investigate whether he jumped or whether he was pushed…As they dig deeper, more would-be suicides roll in: a woman found dead in a bath; a man violently electrocuted. But these are carefully curated deaths – nothing like the impulsive suicide attempts they’ve been made out to be.Little do Callanach and Turner know how close their perpetrator is as, across Edinburgh, a violent and psychopathic killer gains more confidence with every life he takes…
My Take
This is a complex novel, set in Edinburgh and centred around cases that appear at first to be suicides, but each has elements that cast doubt on that diagnosis. The characters are well drawn, and their relationships complicated.
I regretted a number of times while reading that I have not read earlier novels in the series. There are references to earlier cases that have had lingering impact. So I have listed below the earlier novels in case you are in a position to read them in order, which I think would be rewarding.
My rating: 4.6
About the AuthorHelen Fields studied law at the University of East Anglia, then went on to the Inns of Court School of Law in London. After completing her pupillage, she joined chambers in Middle Temple where she practised criminal and family law for thirteen years. After her second child was born, Helen left the Bar. Together with her husband David, she runs a film production company, acting as script writer and producer. Perfect Prey is her second novel following Perfect Remains. Both are set in Scotland, where Helen feels most at one with the world. Helen and her husband now live in Hampshire with their three children and two dogs. DI Callanach 1. Perfect Remains (2017) 2. Perfect Prey (2017) 3. Perfect Death (2018) 4. Perfect Silence (2018) 5. Perfect Crime (2019) 6. Perfect Kill (2020) 7. One for Sorrow (2022)
