I do have a few posts I prepared earlier, and I’m delighted today to join the blog tour for Beneath The Ashes by Jane Isaac: this is the second DI Will Jackman crime thriller, published by Legend Press on 1st November, and available in paperback and for kindle. I’ve been wanting to read a book by Jane Isaac for quite a long time – I’ve met the lovely lady so many times at book-related parties, and it was so lovely to discover that she’s a very fine writer too.
The floor felt hard beneath her face. Nancy opened her eyes. Blinked several times. A pain seared through her head. She could feel fluid. No. She was lying in fluid.
When a body is discovered in a burnt-out barn in the Warwickshire countryside, DI Will Jackman is called to investigate.
Nancy Faraday wakes up on the kitchen floor. The house has been broken into and her boyfriend is missing. As the case unravels, DI Jackman realises that nothing is quite as it appears and everyone, it seems, has a secret.
Can he discover the truth behind the body in the fire, and track down the killer before Nancy becomes the next victim?
I actually read very few crime thrillers – and I’ll admit I was slightly nervous that this book was the second in a series. I actually need not have worried about that at all, because the background is quite clear – I just wish I’d encountered the wonderful Will rather earlier. Police procedural isn’t really my “thing” either – and I think it’s fair to say that the procedure, although it features heavily, is exceptionally well handled, clearly thoroughly researched and simply fascinating.
Above all else though, this book was an excellent read and a gripping story, with well drawn characters to engage with and a plot full of totally unexpected twists and turns. I was hooked from the very cleverly done prologue to the totally unexpected ending – this was one of those wonderful books where you’re convinced you’re a step ahead of both the investigation team and the author, but are delighted when you’ve actually got it entirely wrong. And I loved the human interest side of Will Jackman’s story and the interactions with his wife and family – he’s someone I’d most definitely like to spend time with again.
Many thanks to Legend Press and #TBConFB for my advance paperback copy: I actually bought and read this one on kindle just to make the reading easier for my old eyes. Many thanks to Lucy at Legend Press for her support.
About the author
Jane Isaac lives with her husband, daughter and dog, Bollo, in rural Northamptonshire, UK. Her debut novel, An Unfamiliar Murder, introduced DCI Helen Lavery and was nominated as best mystery in the ‘eFestival of Words Best of the Independent eBook awards 2013.’
The Truth Will Out, the second in the DCI Helen Lavery series, was nominated as ‘Thriller of the Month – April 2014’ by E-thriller.com and winner of ‘Noveltunity book club selection – May 2014’.
In 2015 Jane embarked on a new series, featuring DI Will Jackman and set in Stratford upon Avon, with Before It’s Too Late. The second in the series, Beneath The Ashes, was published by Legend Press on 1st November 2016 with the 3rd, The Lies Within, to follow on 2nd May 2017.
Both DI Jackman and DCI Lavery will return again in the near future. Sign up to Jane’s newsletter on her website for details of new releases, events and giveaways.