Dead Man's Footsteps
ISBN: 9780330545983
Description
Amid the tragic unfolding mayhem of the morning of 9/11, failed Brighton businessman and ne'er-do-well Ronnie Wilson sees the chance of a lifeline: to shed his debts, disappear and reinvent himself in another country. Six years later the discovery of the skeletal remains of a woman's body in a storm drain in Brighton leads Detective Superintendent Roy Grace on an enquiry spanning the globe, and into a desperate race against time to save the life of a woman being hunted down like an animal in the streets and alleys of Brighton.
Reviewed on 12th December 2013
Book four in the series is just an engaging as the first three. While more of a procedural novel than a mystery, there are puzzling aspects and it's more a question of seeing how the jigsaw comes together.
This book sees detective Roy Grace investigating the death of a body found in a storm drain, while simultaneously dealing with a new colleague who seems to be out to get him. The author manages to cleverly weave together two plot strands several years apart to create a narrative that flows really well.
The first third of the book is quite focused on the main character and serves to re-establish and deepen his backstory a little. There's certainly a feeling throughout the series so far that it's building up to something and it's almost painful having to wait to find out what it will be. Obviously as I write, there are another five books already available in the series, but they are quite chunky and I generally dislike reading consecutive books back-to-back.
After that the book moves much more solidly into this plot and some of the character stuff seems to get forgotten about. This didn't interfere with the flow as I read, but looking back felt a bit weird. Overall an enjoyable and interesting read from a series I'm certainly planning to continue with.
