2019. 34 year-old Leona Walsh vanishes on a bitter afternoon while jogging on Exmoor. It’s a mystery which captures public interest and ignites wild speculation. The police have a prime suspect: Leona’s husband, Matthew, a renowned crime writer. He can plot the perfect crime. But is he capable of committing the perfect murder?
Despite extensive searches, the police find no trace of Leona. As public interest dwindles, Matthew returns to raising their daughters, aware the cloud of suspicion is never far away.
2024. Some human bones are discovered in a garden. Could they be Leona’s remains? And if so, is there enough evidence to find out what really happened five years ago?
Journalist Gabriela Conti covered the news story back in 2019. The police may have stopped watching Matthew, but Gabriela hasn’t forgotten him. And she is determined this case will define her career… even if that means getting close to a murderer.
He plots the perfect murder...but did he commit one...?
I do enjoy a good Diane Jeffrey thriller, absolutely loving he last one
"The Other Couple" (though that was a tough one to top). This one had great potential and it built gradually to the inevitable conclusion though I felt it fell a little flat. That said, it was a good read but I didn't like the ending. It was too open ended and I like them clear cut not ambiguous.
The story surrounds the disappearance of Leona Walsh, 34 year old wife and mother of two. Events begin in the immediate aftermath the following morning when she didn't arrive home after her evening run, as the police try to unravel the mystery of her disappearance and honing in on their prime suspect: husband, Matt, a renowned crime fiction writer and former police officer. He can plot the perfect murder but is he capable of committing one?
Five years later, no trace of Leona has ever been found and Matt's life has been turned upside down and those of his two daughters Scarlett, now 19 and, Trixie, now 12. And the case has gone cold.
Until bones are discovered in the garden of Rose Cottage, the home in which Matt grew up and where his mother continued to live until moving to a care home due to her advancing Parkinsons.
Journalist Gabi Conti had a tenuous link with Leona in that she went to school with her but the two moved in vastly different circles. She knew Leona could be a bully but did that extend into adulthood? Having interviewed Matt at the time, Gabi now continues to investigate the case with her own podcast on the disappearance. But are the bones that of Leona? And did he do it?
I did feel the story dip in parts as it moved through both past and present timelines before settling in the present. But like I said, the ending was rather ambiguous, leaving the reader to draw their own conclusions and I would like to think the first outcome is the one that really happened and not the twist in the end that left the reader second guessing everything that went before. There were also some aspects I feel weren't explained properly (though I can't say what here as they are spoilers), however, when the remains were actually buried there are not explained properly. You'll see what I mean when you read it.
Overall, it was a good thriller. Well thought out and plotted, even if a little underwhelming for me. But I will still not pass up another by the author and look forward to what she delivers next.
I would like to thank #DianeJeffrey, #Netgalley, #HQDigital and #RachelsRandomResources for an ARC of #TheCrimeWriter in exchange for an honest review.
MEET THE AUTHOR:
Diane Jeffrey was born in 1973 and grew up in the UK: in North Devon and Northern Ireland. She spent a lot of my childhood in the water: either in the swimming pool or the Atlantic Ocean,swimming competitively and also surf life saving for several years. Diane was actually the first female lifeguard to work on the beaches in the UK.
After obtaining a BA joint honours degree in French and German from the University of Nottingham, Diane then decided to become a teacher. Though she felt she wasn't fluent enough in French or German to teach either subject, she moved to France, where she became an English teacher.
Diane always wanted to be an author and started writing poems and short stories at about five years of age. After lots of rejection letters and emails over the years from agents and editors, her debut novel was published when she was 43.
Diane has written five psychological thrillers, all published by HQ, an imprint of HarperCollins, and all bestselling ebooks: Those Who Lie (2017), He Will Find You (2018), The Guilty Mother (2019), a USA Today bestseller, The Silent Friend (2020), A Karin Slaughter Killer Reads pick for ASDA, and The Couple at Causeway Cottage (2022). She is currently working on my sixth novel.
When she's not teaching or writing, she runs (a little) and swim (a lot). She devours chocolate, books and beer. She also love holidays and travelling. Above all, Diane enjoy spending time with my family and friends.
Diane now lives in Lyon with her husband and three children, black Labrador and cat.
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