*I received a free copy of this book with thanks to the author and Rachel Gilbey at Rachel's Random Resources blog tours. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.*
Blurb: An ex-convict. A dead body. A Women's Institute meeting like no other…
It's an unusually challenging meeting at the Wasby Women's Institute, with local resident and former drug-dealer Adam Fleetwood talking about his crimes and subsequent rehabilitation…but events take a gruesome turn when prospective member Grace Thoresby is discovered murdered in the kitchen.
The case is particularly unwelcome for investigating officer DCI Jude Satterthwaite. Adam was once his close friend and now holds a bitter grudge, blaming Jude for landing him in jail in the first place. To complicate things further, the only thing keeping Adam from arrest is the testimony of Jude's former girlfriend, Becca Reid, for whom he still cares deeply. As Jude and his colleague and current partner, Ashleigh O'Halloran, try to pick apart the complicated tapestry of Grace's life, they uncover a web of fantasy, bitterness and deceit. Adam is deeply implicated, but is he guilty or is someone determined to frame him for Grace's murder? And as they close in on the truth, Jude falls foul of Adam's desire for revenge, with near-fatal consequences…
I know, I know, I always bang on about this, but I promise that you really do NEED to read the whole of this series in order! While the main murder plots always stand alone, there is a long-running backstory that has been building up in books 1-7 and comes to something of a climax as this eight story unfolds. There's no way you want to miss any of this excitement!
For anyone not already hooked on the professional and personal intrigues of DCI Jude Satterthwaite, these books are very well-written, classic British police procedurals set in Cumbria. Jo Allen handles the balance between Jude's romantic and familial struggles and his investigation work expertly to keep the reader hooked on both - I am as interested in working out what will happen next with Mikey and Adam, Ashleigh and Becca, as I am about who murdered the new member at the W.I.
That said, the murder mystery is gripping too, with lots of family drama, secrets, estrangement, drugs and adultery. I was thoroughly entertained and immersed throughout!
This series is getting better and better the more I get to know the characters, and I can't wait to find out what the author has planned for them all next.
Find more from Jo Allen at her website here, or follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Death on a Monday Night is available on Amazon right now.
Don't forget to stop by the other blogs on this tour (see the poster below for details) for more great content and reviews, and follow this link to see my review of Death at Rainbow Cottage, this link to see my review of Death on the Lake, this link to see my review of Death in the Woods and this link to see my review of Death in the Mist all by the same author.
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