A very poor rating because this book was an absolute chore to persevere through. This is the first book that I have read from this author as it was handed down to me and will be the last that I read from this author. Overall, this is another good addition to the series. There’s a lot of ground covered in both cases and they are resolved well.

Just not for me, I’ve read far more exciting murder/police procedural books by much less acclaimed writers (to date), such as Neil Lancaster & Charlie Gallagher that leave this book looking like a ‘Midsomer Murder’.

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The sub-plot involving DCI Ridley is another great story and is testament to the writing skills of the author that she can include two stories of equal value in one book. This plot was very unexpected and kept me guessing throughout. To catch a monster and exonerate his friend, Warr must weed out the lies. But what awaits Warr if he uncovers the truth? The “Anna Travis” series was made into a series, that La Plante wrote and produced. Ciaran Hinds and Kelly Reilly starred. BEST LYNDA LA PLANTE BOOKS It read like the work of an amateur. There was no flow. It felt like an annoying coworker giving you a play by play of their indecisive internal monologue.

As you would expect from bestselling author of Lynda La Plante this is a well written novel, the plot is meaty and solidly constructed, there’s clarity between the two cases and there’s never confusion. However, from time to time it does get a bit pedantic which halts the pace. For instance, I do get a bit fed up of the multiple references to wearing face masks, yes, got it, we’re still in the pandemic!!

Clean Cut: This is the third novel in the “Anna Travis” series and was released in the year 2007. James Langton is hunting some illegal immigrants who killed a young prostitute; he is ruthless in his search for them. One of the immigrants almost kills him, and Anna bears most of the frustrations he has and helps get his wounds healing. All the while, she puts her own career, not to mention life, on hold for him. Anna Travis (a Detective Inspector) has to fight time to catch the copycat killer. She turns to James Langton (a brilliant Detective Chief Inspector and Anna’s mentor); the rough patch they are going through in their relationship complicates things. And then a second girl turns up dead. He protests in a convincing way, and Anna might just be giving in to his attention. What if he is put in jail for the crime, but he is innocent? Will he be able to deal with the media attention from that? Her first TV series as a scriptwriter was the six part robbery series Widows, in 1983, in which the widows of four armed robbers carry out a heist planned by their deceased husbands. The book also appears to normalise excessive use of sleeping pills. One of the characters works at a hospital so if she does it then it must be fine.