The novel opens explosively with the suicide of the Headteacher of a Devon boys’ school after he receives a mysterious package, which clearly holds some meaning for him. There are more deaths, increasingly bizarre, and the reader is given clues that they are linked…somehow.
There are clear warnings about this novel not being for the faint-hearted, but I wasn’t prepared for the level of sadistic violence that was exhibited. The violence makes sense, eventually, but it is pervasive and it seemed that everyone had some deep secret or an event that had tarnished them in some way. Even people who hadn’t shown any inclination for violence are revealed to be capable of extreme cruelty.
Putting the graphic violence aside, I did struggle a little initially with the ever-changing points of view and shifting time-frames. Ultimately, this also makes sense but there are moments early on when it feels like it intrudes on the events. I was also surprised by the ending-it just felt a stretch too far, given what we know about the characters involved.
The thing that saved the novel for me was the relationship between DS Miles and DS Grey, and their resolve to uncover the truth rather than accepting the easy answer. Both traumatised by their own events, they quickly establish a working relationship that is entertaining to see. The sequencing of events and gradual revelation of details does lead to a pretty explosive climax (though you will probably guess the killer’s identity long before it’s revealed).
Not one of my favourite reads of the year so far, but it is a fairly decent example of its genre (just not really my thing).