Gripping
The Puppet Maker by Jenny O’Brien is a gritty contemporary murder suspense that I just could not put down. It is the first book in the Detective Alana Mack series. I am looking forward to the subsequent books.
The plotline is extremely well thought out and executed. This is not a book for the faint-hearted as there are some gruesome scenes. The author has clearly done her research into police and medical procedure.
All the characters are well drawn and realistic. There are some very unsavory characters. The leading lady is fair, kind to the innocent and tenacious in her pursuit of justice.
The weather mirrors the action. The tale is set in the week before Christmas with snow on the ground and generally very inclement weather.
Dublin is the location as we travel from police headquarters around the city.
Our upbringings shape the adults we become. Cruelty begets cruelty with disastrous consequences.
The Puppet Maker was a gripping, realistic read. If you like cosy mysteries, this is not for you.
I think The Puppet Maker would make a marvellous Netflix series – definitely not for the squeamish!
I received a free copy via Rachel’s Random Resources for a blog tour. A favourable review was not required. All opinions are my own.
JULIA WILSON
The Puppet Maker
The scrap of paper looked as if it had been torn from a diary. The words written in faint pencil. The letters rounded, almost childlike: Please look after her. Her life and mine depend on you not trying to find me.
When Detective Alana Mack arrives at Clonabee police station, in a small Irish seaside town on the outskirts of Dublin, she doesn’t expect to find a distressed two-year-old girl sobbing on the floor. Abandoned in a local supermarket, the child tells them her name is Casey. All Alana and her team have to go on is a crumpled note begging for someone to look after her little girl. This mother doesn’t want to be found.
Still recovering from a terrible accident that has left Alana navigating a new life as a wheelchair user, Alana finds herself suddenly responsible for Casey while trying to track down the missing mother and solve another missing person’s case… a retired newsagent who has seemingly vanished from his home.
Forced to ask her ex-husband and child psychiatrist Colm for help, through Forensic Art Therapy, Alana discovers that whatever darkness lies behind the black windows in Casey’s crayon drawing, the little girl was terrified of the house she lived in.
Then a bag of human remains is found in a bin, and a chilling link is made – the DNA matches Casey’s.
Alana and her team must find the body and make the connection with the missing newsagent fast if she is to prevent another life from being taken. But with someone in her department leaking confidential details of the investigation to the media, can Alana set aside her emotional involvement in this case and find Casey’s mother and the killer before it’s too late?
Heart-pounding and totally addictive, The Puppet Maker is the first in the Detective Alana Mack series that will have fans of Ann Cleeves, Angela Marsons and LJ Ross racing through the pages late into the night.
Purchase Links
Author Bio –
Born in Dublin, Jenny O’Brien moved to Wales and then Guernsey, where she tries to find time to write in between working as a nurse and ferrying around 3 teenagers.
In her spare time she can be found frowning at her wonky cakes and even wonkier breads. You’ll be pleased to note she won’t be entering Bake-Off. She’s also an all-year-round sea swimmer.
Jenny is represented by Nicola Barr of The Bent Agency and published by Storm Publishing and HQ Digital (Harper Collins).
Social Media Links – Twitter https://twitter.com/ScribblerJB
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