85. The Shadows in the Street by Susan Hill

The Shadows in the Street by Susan Hill (Canada) - (USA)
A Simon Serrailler Crime, Book 5

Pages: 372 pages
Ages: 18+
Finished: May 16, 2010
First Published: May 4, 2010 (Canada)/ Apr. 2010 (UK)/ Sept.2 (USA)
Publisher: Knopf Canada
Genre: British police procedural, mystery
Rating: 4.5/5

First sentence:

Leslie Blade stopped in the overhang of the college entrance to put up his umbrella.

Acquired: Received a review copy from Random House Canada.

Reason for Reading: Next in the series.

I enjoy Susan Hill as a writer so much, even though I've only read three of her books so far! Fortunately she has an extensive backlist that will keep me busy for a long time. This latest Simon Serrailler novel continues on very much with the private lives of the Serrailler family, namely his sister and her children and his father and his new wife. They dynamics of Simon's private life takes up a good amount of space in these novels. The book also starts out by introducing all the characters and having them going about their daily lives that one becomes wrapped up in the story and is well into the book before a murder even happens.

Prostitutes are being strangled and found in the river of the Chapel town that Simon and his family live in. They have two strong suspects but neither can be proved nor do they really seem to fit as the unsub. Trying to work an angle involving an unsub who has some psychological reason for going after prostitutes is thrown for a loop when the resident Dean (Reverend)'s wife goes missing, then next a married a mom with two children. A case that has Simon and his teams going nowhere fast as every clue ends up back where they started.

I enjoy these mysteries tremendously. The characterization is wonderful. All players are fully fleshed out with backstories and personalities. The mystery is intelligent and clever. I had my eye on the culprit but can't really say I solved this one as I also had my eye on a few others! I read the book quickly over the weekend; it was one of those can't put it down 'til I'm finished books. The type of mystery found here is best described as a psychological suspense. The pace of the writing keeps in tempo with the pace of the case, at times slow as we bang our heads on desks trying to make sense of it all and then boom! we're off on another lead or another body has been found. Another great entry to the series. Recommended.