The Ones Who Are Buried (Whitecliff Bay mysteries #3) by Kerry Wilkinson
Genre: Cosy mystery
Read: 13th April 2023
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UK
UK
Published: 17th April 2023
★★★★ 4.5 stars
DESCRIPTION:
Up on the desolate moor, she tightens her coat against the bitter wind. The man she followed here points to a rock embedded in the mossy earth. ‘This is the place.’ But when they dig, what will they find?
Everyone in the small seaside town of Whitecliff knows the name Kevin Ashworth. Two boys disappeared thirty years ago – and although local teacher Kevin never admitted to knowing where their bodies are, he’s been in prison ever since.
Now, Kevin is finally ready to talk: but only to amateur sleuth Millie Westlake and journalist Guy Rushden. With the families of the boys desperate for answers, Guy and Millie are led to a lonely spot on the moors above Whitecliff. They’re on the moors expecting to find bodies… but what if they find something even more terrifying?
Reeling from their discovery, as Millie scours the local countryside and speaks to heartbroken families what she discovers changes everything she believes about Whitecliff and the people who live here. With rumours about her own dark past still haunting Millie, can she ever get justice for a decades-old wrong? Or as she gets closer to finding out who else Kevin has hurt, will she learn that some secrets are destined to stay buried?
An absolutely addictive mystery read that fans of LJ Ross, Mary Burton and Faith Martin won’t be able to put down.
MY THOUGHTS:
The third in Kerry Wilkinson's new Whitecliff Bay mysteries series, THE ONES WHO ARE BURIED is so far my favourite of the three as each one has progressively gotten better. Maybe that's because the characters are evolving more and we are learning a little more about them or whether the mysteries are more interesting...I don't know. But this one also ended on something of a cliffhanger. And one I'm itching to find out more about...
Millie and Guy have been asked to accompany the police, a killer and the prison officers guarding him up to the moors in the hope that Kevin Ashworth will finally reveal the final resting place of the two boys he went to prison for killing nearly three decades before. He's never told them where they are buried and their bodies have never been found, leaving the families without closure. But now Ashworth wants to talk...but only to Guy Rushden.
Ashworth leads them to a remote clearing on the moors where a discovery is made. But not one they were expecting. Millie and Guy continue to ponder over the mystery and what this latest discovery means and if Ashworth will ever truly reveal the whereabouts of the missing boys' bodies.
Meanwhile, Guy and Millie have been tasked with a delicate investigation of sorts for a former girl band member, Zoe. It seems a very large and very revealing photo of her has been stolen from her house and Zoe doesn't want the police involved as that will surely mean publicity which is the last thing she wants. Guy doesn't do investigating, he reports but Millie steps up and offers to help find the missing photo. She keeps Guy updated but in the end proves her worth and that she really is a natural when she acts on a hunch which proves right. Well done, Millie!
The ongoing saga of Millie's acrimonious relationship with her ex Alex and his horrid fiance Rachel continues but in this installment they up the ante. Their wedding is finally going ahead...on Christmas Eve, of all days...and what a spectacular event that turns out to be! In more ways than one. But I can't help but feel things have only been made worse for Millie who, actually, hasn't done anything. Rachel is just purely spiteful for spite's sake and just couldn't resist having the last word which I fear will come back to bite Millie.
But in the midst of all this, Millie meets someone. Someone she thinks she could like...that she may even like, should she dare. Luke is down to earth, funny and isn't at all bothered by what other people think or what they think they know. He likes Millie, and it's as simple as that.
We see more of Jack and Rishi, who have now adopted a four year old boy Isaac...which comes with a whole new set of problems. And then there is the mystery of Millie's parents' suicide. Did they really make a pact? Or was Millie somehow involved? The water continue to be murky in this regard but more questions are raised leaving the reader pondering if she really is guilty or innocent. There are loads more secrets that we are drip-fed, including the cliffhanger ending. Didn't see that one coming...which totally blindsided the questions that were raised leading up to that moment.
So now having read all three books this one is my favourite of them so far. I love the character development between them all - the love, the hate, the laughter, the angst. And of course Kerry's witty prose keeps me coming back for more. I love that Guy featured more in this story. He really is a loveable character. While Millie is still an enigma.
For new readers, I recommend beginning with the first book "The One Who Fell" followed by "The One Who Was Taken" before delving into this one. While each one has a standalone story and mystery, the underlying themes throughout continue to develop and readers would miss that without starting from the beginning.
So now I have a conundrum. Do I move on to my next read (which is not by Kerry) or do I go with the fourth installment of this exciting new series (of which I do have a copy already)? And if I do, will I finish it in time before I need to finish my next read? Decisions decisions...
I would like to thank #KerryWilkinson, #Netgalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #TheOnesWhoAreBuried in exchange for an honest review.
MEET THE AUTHOR:
Kerry Wilkinson has had No.1 crime bestsellers in the UK, Australia, Canada, South Africa and Singapore. He has also written two top-20 thrillers in the United States. His book, Ten Birthdays, won the RNA award for Young Adult Novel of the Year in 2018 and Close To You won the International Thriller Award for best ebook in 2020.
As well as his million-selling Jessica Daniel series, Kerry has written the Silver Blackthorn trilogy - a fantasy-adventure serial for young adults - a second crime series featuring private investigator Andrew Hunter, plus numerous standalone novels. He has been published around the world in more than a dozen languages.
Originally from the county of Somerset, Kerry spent way too long living in the north of England, picking up words like 'barm' and 'ginnel'.
When he's short of ideas, he rides his bike, hikes up something, or bakes cakes. When he's not, he writes it all down.
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