Book Synopsis:
The police belonged to another world – the world they saw on the television or in the papers. Not theirs.’
When two eighteen-year-old girls go missing on their gap year in Thailand, their families are thrust into the international spotlight: desperate, bereft and frantic with worry.
Journalist Kate Waters always does everything she can to be first to the story, first with the exclusive, first to discover the truth – and this time is no exception. But she can’t help but think of her own son, who she hasn’t seen in two years, since he left home to go travelling. This time it’s personal.
And as the case of the missing girls unfolds, they will all find that even this far away, danger can lie closer to home than you might think . . .
The Suspect us available now in all formats and you can purchase your copy using the link below.
My Review:
I’m a huge fan of Fiona Barton, having read her first two books, so I was very excited to be invited onto the blog tour for her new book The Suspect. I was definitely not disappointed as I thought The Suspect was another gritty, emotional read.
The story again features reporter Kate who is normally a very capable, together reporter. However her current investigation seems to be quite close to home and it was interesting to see a few cracks appearing in her normally calm manner. The reader gets to see her as more than just a reporter and I found myself warming to her even more as I discovered more about her family. The personal feel of the investigation also affects Kate’s long standing friendship with DI Sparkles as the stress of the investigation gets to them both. I felt very sorry for DI Sparkles throughout the book as I felt he had an awful lot on his plate and was trying his best.
The story is told from three points of view; Kate, DI Sparkles and the two missing girls. This really helped add to the tension in the book especially if the reader figures something out from one thread before it’s discovered in one if the other two. I felt this helped give the reader a more rounded view of the disappearance and I felt that I was a fly on the wall watching everything unfold. This also gives the reader a chance to get to know the characters and the world they inhabit better. The cut throat world of a reporter is vividly described and made for uncomfortable reading at times as some of the tactics used by reporters to get a story are revealed. I’d love to say I hope these aren’t used in real life but due to the author being an ex reporter I think they must be.
This was an incredibly gripping book which I tore through in a few days as I was very engrossed in the story and really wanted to see how it would work out. There are lots of twists and false leads that kept me on my toes and made the book incredible hard to put down. Just when I thought I’d figured everything out something would happen which had me questioning everything.
This is the third book in the series but it could easily be read as a standalone as anything you need to know is explained. I can’t wait to read more and hope this isn’t the last we hear from Kate and DI Sparkles.
Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Thomas Hill from Transworld publishers for my copy of this book.
About The Author:
Fiona Barton’s debut, The Widow, was a Sunday Times and New York Times bestseller and has been published in 36 countries and optioned for television. Her second novel, The Child, was a Sunday Times bestseller. Born in Cambridge, Fiona currently lives in Sussex and south-west France.
Previously, she was a senior writer at the Daily Mail, news editor at the Daily Telegraph, and chief reporter at the Mail on Sunday, where she won Reporter of the Year at the British Press Awards.
While working as a journalist, Fiona reported on many high-profile criminal cases and she developed a fascination with watching those involved, their body language and verbal tics. Fiona interviewed people at the heart of these crimes, from the guilty to their families, as well as those on the periphery, and found it was those just outside the spotlight who interested her most . . .
Over The Rainbow Blog 
Huge thanks for the Blog Tour support Jo x
LikeLike