“What do you want me to do? Pretend that none of this has happened? Let you go off to a house that could be run by murderers? Let them pick their time to come after you and me? I’m looking to get out of this in a way that can give us back our peace. I’m not going to just close my eyes and pretend that peace is here already.”
“Death in a Lonely Place”, by Stig Abell
I’m delighted to join the Blog Tour of “Death in a Lonely Place” by Stig Abell. Many thanks to the Insta Book Tours team and of course the author for organising the tour and gifting me a copy of the book.
The story:
Former police detective Jake Jackson has a life of peace and simplicity at Little Sky, his property outside the small village of Caelum Parvum. He also has a blossoming family, with his relationship with local vet Livia and her young daughter Diana.
But when friend and local policeman Watson comes to Jake with a missing child case, one that might have ties to the cold cases Jake worked on in the past, his conscience won’t allow him to turn away. The trail leads in some dark directions, to a sinister conspiracy known only as No Taboo. Will Jake and a few trusted colleagues have the power to bring down an organisation that may reach to the very top of the UK establishment? And will he be able to protect those closest to him, and the life he’s built for himself at Little Sky?
My thoughts:
“Death in a Lonely Place”, by Stig Abell is the second book in the Little Sky series (following “Death Under a Little Sky”), and we pick up the story around 18 months on from the events of that novel.
Jake is now well established in his life at his amazing property of Little Sky — complete with his own woods, lake and even a sauna! As with the first book, I really enjoyed the descriptions of Jake’s simple life, from his music collection, to his daily exercise routine, to the simple but delicious sounding food. But most especially I envied his wonderful library, stocked with hundreds of crime and thriller classics from the golden age onwards (and I particularly enjoyed the mention of “The Daughter of Time” by Josephine Tey, one of my favourite golden age mysteries!).
“Wimsey is, Jake thinks, his favourite amateur detective: dismissed by many as fey and posh, but actually a tough, determined figure, scarred by the traumas he has seen in warfare, desperate for something beautiful and redeeming with a brilliant woman.”
“Death in a Lonely Place”, by Stig Abell
But with Jake it’s very much ‘once a detective, always a detective’; he feels the weight of his responsibility to help when he can, and also craves the sense of being needed and the validation he feels when solving a case. So when his friend Watson comes to him about a child kidnapping, which he thinks might connect to a similar cold case Jake worked on while still on the force, he can’t say no to getting involved, despite exposing himself and his partner and her child to possible danger.
As well as some returning characters from book one, this story had some new additions, and I particularly enjoyed meeting Martha (another crime novel fan), an expert in security and all things IT (a good addition, as technology is definitely not Jake’s strong point!).
While this book is a continuation of the characters’ stories from book one, I think this book could be read as a standalone, as the mystery is self-contained (and as long as you’re happy to accept Jake’s unusual living arrangements!). But I enjoyed seeing how things had moved on, particularly for Jake and Livia’s relationship. The mystery itself is an intriguing one, and I changed my mind about who to trust the more I read! Overall, this is a great addition to the series and a must for all crime fiction fans!
Pages: 352
Published: 11th April 2024
Rating: 🐈🐈🐈🐈/5
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