From Sorrow’s Hold

By Jonathan Peace https://www.jpwritescrime.com/

Published by Hobeck Books https://www.hobeck.net/

360 pages ISBN 1913793753

Publication date 12 July 2022

Dirty Little Secret is the second novel in the DC Louise Miller series.

I was sent an electronic copy to enable me to take part in this Blog Tour. I would like to thank Rebecca at Hobeck Books and the author for the invitation to participate.

From the blurb

Christmas beckons.

What should be a time of excitement and joy is forever tainted when a teenager’s body is found in the graveyard of Ossett’s Holy Trinity Church. A suspected suicide.

As they respond to the devastating event, WDCs Louise Miller and Elizabeth Hines, together with psychologist Karla Hayes, each use their own experiences of suicide to help the wider community as it struggles to understand the terrible choice that was made.

Another missing teenager.

Louise starts to believe there is something even more sinister behind the events…

Synopsis

Its 1988 and Miller and Hines have settled into a good working partnership, though they are still seen as a bit of a novelty amongst the male detectives.

When teenage Wendy Jackson bursts into Sunday service covered in blood the congregation are both shocked and horrified but luckily Miller is on hand and takes charge on the scene. Wendy has found the bleeding body of her boyfriend, James Willikar, in the graveyard. He appears to have slashed his wrist, another terrible teen suicide. Miller secures the scene because she is not so certain, she is bothered because he seems to be posed and the knife is in the wrong hand.

Inside the church self-appointed moral guardian Catherine Hallum, who also runs her own ‘church’, has complete clarity, its all down to the kids being drawn into devil worship by heavy metal music. This is something she will not let go.

When Hines carries out a search of the area she finds a wallet, but the owner proves to be somewhat elusive.

Louise will need to draw strength and knowledge from her psychologist girlfriend, Karla Hayes. They have been together for some months now, but something seems to be holding Louise back, she knows she needs to commit to Karla but so far, she has not let her stay the full night. She is also aware that she must keep the relationship a secret from her colleagues for now. Elizabeth Hinds knows but will keeps quiet, she his issues of her own to resolve, but how the rest of the station might react worries her, it could compromise her career.

When it proves that everything is not straightforward the pressure is on for a resolution, but things are not as they seem, and a wrong step could prove to be devastating for those involved.

My thoughts

After the child abduction of Dirty Little Secret, the author now turns to another difficult subject in teenage suicide. It takes a confident author to tackle such subjects and an accomplished one to write about it well. Mr Peace seems to be quite adept at producing a plot incorporating such topics, covering them tactfully with empathy and compassion yet producing an entertaining crime novel.

The pacing was slow but in keeping with the subject matter, this is a story dealing with the emotions of those involved, which need space to develop. The tension is allowed to build up gradually, right up to the second disappearance, when there is more urgency. The style well-judged too, not overly dark or gritty and not at all flashy, this is small town England of the 1980s.

The setting is strong and well get a real sense of the relatively small location and its community. The immediate post war tight-knit community has passed, this is a place starting to develop but already beginning to be left behind. It feels of its time, in the past, and there are enough social references to give context to this time and place, without detracting from the overall flow. There is one exchange between Karla and Louise regarding the old names of Snickers and Starburst that will bring a smile to the face of the over 40s reader. As a fan of non-league football, I also appreciate the reference to Ossett Town, after all its not all about the premier league.

There’s some great dialogue too. It doesn’t fall into the ‘buddy cop’ realm but the reader gets a good feel for the developing friendship between Miller and Hints as well as working relationship. These are women who are becoming able to tackle the issue of being an outsider, women in a man’s world of 1980s policing. Don’t expect them to just type and make tea, to thrive in this environment they need to develop a thick skin. The bluntness and cussing of Louise and Elizabeth is in keeping with their roles, even if it upsets Aunt Fiona and Mrs Hallum. The subject matter doesn’t allow for much humour but there is a lovely joke by one of the school pupils about his dad’s underpants.

Characterisation is excellent as we see the development of three strong females in Louise, Karla and Elizabeth. It’s also the small touches such as the humanity of Stinky Pete and the feeling of being an outcast, the teenage angst that James and Wendy feel that appeals.

Some of the character back story is being filled in. Here we discover that Louise became an orphan due to a car crash, which she relives through nightmares and has a profound effect on making her the woman she has become.

From Sorrow’s Hold is a powerful examination at the desire to ‘fit-in’ and the need to listen to, understand and accept people as they are. Don’t be overwhelmed by the darkness though, at its core is an intelligent and entertaining police procedural.

From Sorrow’s Hold can be purchased direct from the publisher here

The Author

Jonathan Peace is a husband, cat-dad and author of the WDC Louise Miller novels.

A Yorkshire lad at heart, Jonathan sets his gritty psychological police procedurals in a fictionalised version of his hometown during the 1980s. The first book, Dirty Little Secret is due to be released this year by Hobeck Books, with the second in the series, From Sorrow’s Hold publishing later in 2022.

​He is currently writing the third book while finishing a degree in creative writing at Derby University.

He now lives and works out of his home in Derbyshire, where he shares his writing office with his author wife, Lucy, and their three cats.

Jonathan is a member of the Crime Writers’ Association

Don’t forget to check out some of the other stops on this Blog Tour:

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