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A review by helenh
Hidden on the Fens by Joy Ellis
3.0
From the first page a reader knows “revenge for a life wasted” is coming. Ah, but whose life and whose revenge will take some time to reveal, in Hidden on the Fens, the 11th book in the English police procedural series by Joy Ellis. Revenge is never a good thing in a murder mystery, well, in anything, really, and in not too many pages the foreboding proves correct.
The series is obviously well established, but the author does a good job of “filling in the blanks” as to who’s who, for a new reader who might somehow pick this book up without realizing there are many more preceding. A reader could start with this one, but you shouldn’t – this is a very entertaining group of fictional people, who have grown with each book. The setting is the coastal plains of eastern England, a character all by itself, one that draws you to it and infuses the book with life. The isolated spaces lend themselves to trouble.
The policemen of DI Nikki Galena’s station (Greenborough Police Station, to name it) soon find themselves investigating from the get-go. And it leads to a missing person case – a young girl that has been missing for a very long time. This revelation may mean that a man that is in prison may not be guilty.
There’s always a second case in these books, and this one involves someone assaulting widows, and getting away with it. A couple of Nikki’s detectives are determined to take down this scum bag.
That missing person case involves an eerie, hidden cottage, strange gifts being left around that have ties to pagan beliefs, and an all-around aura of something supernatural that may have you scratching your head. Along the way the author drops hints that all is not well in a certain family’s background – you can draw your own conclusions as you read along.
And as the investigation(s) progress, a connection is (conveniently) found. Could have done without that little plot device. Seems to me it just made everything way too complicated. Everything becomes rather unpleasant very quickly, and somewhat confusing. Plus, the book bogs down in the middle, an unfortunate happenstance of many a police procedural as the evidence is gone over time and again. True to life, I suppose, but it does tend to slow things down.
People that are presumed guilty have their stories told… and innocent ones, too. The book becomes thrilling and there’s quite a few surprises at the end. It is sort of a creepy story, and I confess I was glad to see it end. Not sure that that beginning actually fits the ending, come to think of it, though. Almost seems like a red herring.
Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for a copy of this book, in exchange for this review.
The series is obviously well established, but the author does a good job of “filling in the blanks” as to who’s who, for a new reader who might somehow pick this book up without realizing there are many more preceding. A reader could start with this one, but you shouldn’t – this is a very entertaining group of fictional people, who have grown with each book. The setting is the coastal plains of eastern England, a character all by itself, one that draws you to it and infuses the book with life. The isolated spaces lend themselves to trouble.
The policemen of DI Nikki Galena’s station (Greenborough Police Station, to name it) soon find themselves investigating from the get-go. And it leads to a missing person case – a young girl that has been missing for a very long time. This revelation may mean that a man that is in prison may not be guilty.
There’s always a second case in these books, and this one involves someone assaulting widows, and getting away with it. A couple of Nikki’s detectives are determined to take down this scum bag.
That missing person case involves an eerie, hidden cottage, strange gifts being left around that have ties to pagan beliefs, and an all-around aura of something supernatural that may have you scratching your head. Along the way the author drops hints that all is not well in a certain family’s background – you can draw your own conclusions as you read along.
And as the investigation(s) progress, a connection is (conveniently) found. Could have done without that little plot device. Seems to me it just made everything way too complicated. Everything becomes rather unpleasant very quickly, and somewhat confusing. Plus, the book bogs down in the middle, an unfortunate happenstance of many a police procedural as the evidence is gone over time and again. True to life, I suppose, but it does tend to slow things down.
People that are presumed guilty have their stories told… and innocent ones, too. The book becomes thrilling and there’s quite a few surprises at the end. It is sort of a creepy story, and I confess I was glad to see it end. Not sure that that beginning actually fits the ending, come to think of it, though. Almost seems like a red herring.
Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for a copy of this book, in exchange for this review.