#BookReview: The Broken Afternoon by Simon Mason @SimonMasonbooks @riverrunbooks @QuercusBooks @AnaBooks #TheBrokenAfternoon #SimonMason #DIWilkins

Book Synopsis:

A SHOCKING DISAPPEARANCE

A four-year-old girl goes missing in plain sight outside her nursery in Oxford, a middle-class, affluent area,
her mother only a stones-throw away.

A TRIGGERING RESPONSE

Ryan Wilkins, one of the youngest ever Detective Inspectors in the Thames Valley force, dishonourably discharged three months ago, watches his former partner DI Ray Wilkins deliver a press conference, confirming a lead.

A DARK WEB

Ray begins to delve deeper, unearthing an underground network of criminal forces in the local area. But while Ray’s investigation stalls Ryan brings his unique talents to unofficial and quite illegal inquiries which will bring him into a confrontation with the very officials who have thrown him out of the force.

My Review:

The Broken Afternoon is a gripping, tension filled crime book that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Firstly the thing I most enjoyed about this book were the fabulous characters the author has created. I really liked getting to know the dynamic duo of Ray and Ryan throughout the book. The differences between the two are very striking with Ray being privately educated, well dressed, while Ryan is from more of a deprived background with little education. I liked despite these differences the two were able to help and support each other, each bringing different things to the investigation. My favourite character had to be Ryan’s little boy who made me smile throughout the book with his adorable antics and his attempts to correct his dad’s language. It was heartwarming to see the relationship between the two Ryan’s and see the more caring side of the older Ryan.

I thought this book was really well written and there always seemed to be something happening to keep my attention. The plot covers a few gritty, emotional subjects which I thought was handled sensitively though were quite emotional to read about. I loved the Oxford setting and how the author highlighted the poorer areas of the city as well as the richer, tourist areas.

The tension in the book slowly increases as the story goes on with the many twists and red herrings keeping me guessing. I liked how realistic the investigation seemed with the investigation not always going to plan and the evidence being found in a realistic way. This is the second book in the series but I feel it could be read as a standalone as anything you need to know is explained. I can’t wait to read more from this fabulous series!

Huge thanks to Ana from Quercus for my copy of this book.

About The Author:

Simon Mason has pursued parallel careers as a publisher and an author, whose YA crime novels Running Girl, Kid Got Shot and Hey, Sherlock! feature the sixteen-year-old slacker genius Garvie Smith. A former Managing Director of David Fickling Books, where he worked with many wonderful writers, including Philip Pullman, he has also taught at Oxford Brookes University and is currently a Royal Literary Fund Fellow at Exeter College, Oxford.

At first he wrote books for adults, then books for children, which grew up at roughly the same rate his own children grew up, and now he is back writing books for adults again. He has written a work of non-fiction, The Rough Guide to Classic Novels. His novels have been shortlisted for a number of awards, including the Branford Boase Prize for Best First Children’s Novel, the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize, the Costa Prize for Best Children’s Book, and have won the Betty Trask for Best First Novel and the Crimefest Prize for Best YA Crime Novel.