Hope to Die

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I enjoyed getting to know DI Fawley and his team again and I also enjoyed trying to solve the puzzle over the very unsympathetic character of Camilla Rowan – Milly Liar – and what really happened to her missing baby boy. Biography: Cara Hunter is the author of the Sunday Times bestselling crime novels Close to Home, In the Dark, No Way Out, All the Rage and The Whole Truth all featuring DI Adam Fawley and his Oxford-based police team.

What continually sets it apart though is the multimedia, as the many different types that are used provide layer upon layer of intrigue. stars - this was a real page turner but it was more the format than the storyline that had me hooked. I have no doubt that this series would translate extremely well onto the small screen, but even in book form it offers a enjoyably immersive experience to the reader. Pages and pages of tiny writing that not only strained my eyes, but made me wish for more text, more story in the straightforward manner of a police procedural. In the acknowledgements, Hunter notes that Camilla’s history of multiple unplanned and secret pregnancies, resulting in two babies given up for adoption in addition to the missing baby, is based on the case of Australian Keli Lane.

When they arrive, they find an elderly couple, Richard and Peggy Swann, with the body of a young man in their kitchen. The most effective one here by a mile is the transcripts from the Netflix documentary, which are super authentic and leave you hungry for more information. I must say though the Keli Lane case aspects, which the author was inspired by, was just a bit too repetitive if you've watched docos or read up on it. As she did with the previous novel, Cara Hunter provides a little background précis of the central characters at the start of the book, which shows wonderful practical consideration for her audience.

Along with such a well crafted plotline that is made to flourish even more by the familiar multimedia format, the series arc moves along impressively too with good development of existing characters complemented by the arrival of several new faces, who are well fleshed out. If you want to find a book that is the very definition of a page-turner, then look no further than this series. And when the couple are found to have a connection to a high profile murder trial 20 years ago everything becomes very complicated. It is an enthralling story told at a fast pace as the case unravels in tantalising style; addictive in the extreme. What I did like was the character ‘recap’ as such at the start of the book, with specific things about them and what rank they were.

Once again the book has clever little chapters from different points of view and I particulary enjoyed the “Netflix” series which ran alongside the narrative from the main characters. The Camilla Rowan case is one of the most notorious of recent times and was even the subject of a Netflix documentary, with the whole affair causing her parents to live a secluded life. Overall, this a brilliant book that might just claim the honour of being the best DI Fawley novel to date, thanks to a case that proves impossible to get out of your head and impressive steps forward in character development. Under questioning, Richard Swann and his more evasive wife Margaret insist that the man was an intruder and they were defending their household, but the police believe the real story is much more complex than that.