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A review by nzlisam
Making A Killing by Cara Hunter
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Rounded Up to 3.5.
Before I proceed, I need to warn you that this review contains major spoilers for the first book in the series, Close to Home, so if you plan to read that one stop reading now! I’m not using spoiler tags since there are no spoilers (teasers only) for this book.
In Making a Killing the seventh instalment of the series, six years has passed since #6 Hope to Die. Which I’ve just realised means that the events of books 1-6 took place over a mere two years. Yikes! No wonder Adam and co. are so traumatised.
Just like the summer of 2016 when eight-year-old Daisy Mason disappeared, the summer of 2024 is a scorcher! Love those parallels.
Deep in the woods of Hescombe a woman walking her dog stumbles upon a grisly discovery. A shallow grave containing the body of a woman – estimated time of death, a few weeks ago. Stuck to the duct tape binding the body is a single hair, soon identified as belonging to Daisy Mason.
But Daisy’s case was closed eight years ago. DI Adam Fawley was the SIO. Yes, Daisy’s body was never found, but the person responsible was convicted based on strong forensic evidence and is currently serving a life sentence. Did they get it wrong?
Could Daisy Mason (who would be sixteen years old now) still be alive?
For those who are worried that they have little recall of the events of Close to Home, because like me they read that one years ago, never fear, you will be able to follow this one just fine. Adam Fawley (now a DCI), and his core team, are some of my favourite characters, and it was great to see them return. And I loved Adam’s six-year-old daughter Lily (who was only a baby in the last book), and their father/daughter relationship. So sweet! The notion of ‘The Shadow Self’, first conceived by psychologist Carl Jung, popularised in recent years by Keila Shaheen’s bestselling self-help book, The Shadow Work Journal, was an effective way of offering a voyeuristic POV of a certain character. I enjoyed the tie-in to Cara Hunter’s standalone novel, Murder in the Family, and the Infamous Netflix series from that book. The title of this one was also genius.
Unfortunately, the novel was a super slow burn, and the crime plot failed to hook me and hold my attention. It took me ages to get into the swing of the investigation, and the pace never really picked up – in fact the second half dragged more than the first. I never resorted to skim reading, but I did keep glancing down at the percentage willing the plot to move faster. Because of this I had a lot of time to think about the mystery and had nearly every twist worked out prior to its reveal. And, with the exception of one that really got me, the remainder I didn’t guess were average. If I’m being honest, I was never sold on the idea of a continuation of the Daisy Mason case, and was surprised to learn that it was something readers were asking for, as I was more than satisfied with the conclusion of Close to Home.
There were CID detectives assigned to the cases in this novel coming out of the woodwork. I counted fifteen, and I think I may have missed some. I know we were dealing with two police teams, hence the influx of characters, and they were all interesting and well fleshed-out, but it was still a lot. There was a handy character summary included by the author at the start, which I appreciated, but it didn’t include the Gloucester characters which would’ve been helpful. I kept losing my concentration trying to nail down which pair of investigators were in each scene. Not to mention that there were plenty of other characters – victims, witnesses, suspects – centred around the crimes to keep track of as well.
I love Cara Hunter, will continue to read this author, and the other six books in the Adam Fawley series were all five-star reads for me, but this instalment wasn’t my favourite. It should also be noted that most of the early reviews for Making a Killing are 5-stars, meaning my opinion is very much in the minority.
I’d like to thank Netgalley, Harper Collins UK, and Cara Hunter for the e-ARC.
Release Date: 27th February 2025.
P.S. I may have squealed when Cara Hunter mentioned The Scold’s Bridle by Minette Walters. I predict an upcoming reread.
Before I proceed, I need to warn you that this review contains major spoilers for the first book in the series, Close to Home, so if you plan to read that one stop reading now! I’m not using spoiler tags since there are no spoilers (teasers only) for this book.
In Making a Killing the seventh instalment of the series, six years has passed since #6 Hope to Die. Which I’ve just realised means that the events of books 1-6 took place over a mere two years. Yikes! No wonder Adam and co. are so traumatised.
Just like the summer of 2016 when eight-year-old Daisy Mason disappeared, the summer of 2024 is a scorcher! Love those parallels.
Deep in the woods of Hescombe a woman walking her dog stumbles upon a grisly discovery. A shallow grave containing the body of a woman – estimated time of death, a few weeks ago. Stuck to the duct tape binding the body is a single hair, soon identified as belonging to Daisy Mason.
But Daisy’s case was closed eight years ago. DI Adam Fawley was the SIO. Yes, Daisy’s body was never found, but the person responsible was convicted based on strong forensic evidence and is currently serving a life sentence. Did they get it wrong?
Could Daisy Mason (who would be sixteen years old now) still be alive?
For those who are worried that they have little recall of the events of Close to Home, because like me they read that one years ago, never fear, you will be able to follow this one just fine. Adam Fawley (now a DCI), and his core team, are some of my favourite characters, and it was great to see them return. And I loved Adam’s six-year-old daughter Lily (who was only a baby in the last book), and their father/daughter relationship. So sweet! The notion of ‘The Shadow Self’, first conceived by psychologist Carl Jung, popularised in recent years by Keila Shaheen’s bestselling self-help book, The Shadow Work Journal, was an effective way of offering a voyeuristic POV of a certain character. I enjoyed the tie-in to Cara Hunter’s standalone novel, Murder in the Family, and the Infamous Netflix series from that book. The title of this one was also genius.
Unfortunately, the novel was a super slow burn, and the crime plot failed to hook me and hold my attention. It took me ages to get into the swing of the investigation, and the pace never really picked up – in fact the second half dragged more than the first. I never resorted to skim reading, but I did keep glancing down at the percentage willing the plot to move faster. Because of this I had a lot of time to think about the mystery and had nearly every twist worked out prior to its reveal. And, with the exception of one that really got me, the remainder I didn’t guess were average. If I’m being honest, I was never sold on the idea of a continuation of the Daisy Mason case, and was surprised to learn that it was something readers were asking for, as I was more than satisfied with the conclusion of Close to Home.
There were CID detectives assigned to the cases in this novel coming out of the woodwork. I counted fifteen, and I think I may have missed some. I know we were dealing with two police teams, hence the influx of characters, and they were all interesting and well fleshed-out, but it was still a lot. There was a handy character summary included by the author at the start, which I appreciated, but it didn’t include the Gloucester characters which would’ve been helpful. I kept losing my concentration trying to nail down which pair of investigators were in each scene. Not to mention that there were plenty of other characters – victims, witnesses, suspects – centred around the crimes to keep track of as well.
I love Cara Hunter, will continue to read this author, and the other six books in the Adam Fawley series were all five-star reads for me, but this instalment wasn’t my favourite. It should also be noted that most of the early reviews for Making a Killing are 5-stars, meaning my opinion is very much in the minority.
I’d like to thank Netgalley, Harper Collins UK, and Cara Hunter for the e-ARC.
Release Date: 27th February 2025.
P.S. I may have squealed when Cara Hunter mentioned The Scold’s Bridle by Minette Walters. I predict an upcoming reread.