The Trophy Taker is the second book in the DC Charlotte Stafford series, but it can be perfectly enjoyed as a stand-alone novel. It is written by Sarah Flint, who spent thirty five years working in the Metropolitan Police, surrounded by victims, criminals and police officers. This undoubtedly explains why the investigation part of the novel seems particularly realistic and detailed.
The prologue shows us a beaming bride, walking down the aisle, watched by her happy guests. The narrator, however, watching the scene, reveals that she ripped out his heart and will have to pay. Fast forward thirty two years to the next chapter and he has put his dastardly plan into action, killing her in a churchyard, chopping off her ring finger and cutting out her heart. Evil job done ... or is it?
DC Charlotte Stafford, also known as Charlie, is busy dealing with her current cases, in particular an evil, racist thug who thinks nothing of attacking his elderly victims with a broken bottle, just for the hell of it. When the graveyard killer strikes again (and again), adding more victims to his list who seem to have no relation to each other, she has her work cut out, trying to get ahead of him in his evil game.
Aided by her trusty team of police officers, she follows the clues to an unlikely suspect. Will she manage to track down all of her bad guys before more innocent victims have to suffer?
Charlie is a likeable and believable character, as are her work mates. I'd be interested to follow on with further books in the series (there are currently four available), to find out what they all get up to. The criminals in the book seem slightly overdone - are real-life people genuinely this thoroughly evil? - but I really enjoyed reading this one.
star rating : 4.5/5
RRP : £7.99
- Paperback: 280 pages
- Publisher: Aria (3 Oct. 2019)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1788549899
- ISBN-13: 978-1788549899
- Product Dimensions: 12.7 x 2.5 x 19.7 cm
No comments:
Post a Comment