Book Review: MURDER ON THE RIVER by JANICE FROST

  Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received this ebook, free of charge, from Joffee Publishing, via their Joffe's Arc Program, for review purposes on this blog. No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about it. All opinions are my own

It’s the one piece of evidence that will crack the case . . . but is it too shocking to reveal?

Synopsis:

A murdered student. A secret buried in the past. A killer who’s still watching.

Detective Steph Warwick is halfway through her Christmas shopping when she gets the call. The body of a young man has been pulled from the icy River Witham.

The victim is Max Barsby, a quiet, hardworking archaeology student with no enemies – or so it seems. But Max didn’t drown. He was murdered. Bludgeoned over the head and left for dead.

With the university all but deserted for the holidays, Steph finds herself with few leads and even fewer witnesses.

Meanwhile Special Constable Jane Bell is investigating a routine break-in when she stumbles across an unexpected link to Max. As Jane and Steph’s paths cross once more, Steph reluctantly brings the warm-hearted mother-of-two into the fold – knowing Jane can reach people – and places – that she can’t.

Their enquiries unearth a mysterious girlfriend, a controversial dig site, and a discovery someone will kill to protect.

But when Jane finds a piece of evidence too explosive to share, her silence may prove deadly – for both of them.

Review:

This is book 5 of the series, and Det Warwick and Jane Bell have come to an understanding, of sorts. Each does their own job, and if Jane "happens" to hear something, she is supposed to tell Det Warwick immediately. But when they both have a case that crosses over to the other's, Jane wants to work her case and not turn it over to Warwick. With her son and daughter in town, also wanting to help, they soon end up working on the same investigation from two different angles. It's an interesting look at how a case can have varying sides, and how taken one way, you get one conclusion, but when taken another with different clues, you get something different. As they both rush to solve the case before anyone else gets hurt, it's a page turner of an ending!

About the Author:

Janice was born and grew up in West Lothian, Scotland. After completing an English degree at St Andrew's University, she moved to London where she lived for ten years doing an assortment of jobs. Her passions are reading, writing and walking in Scotland and the Lake District. She lives in Lincolnshire with her husband and two sons.