Publication date: October 6, 2015
Publisher: NAL
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Source: Publisher via NetGalley for an honest review
Description:
From the international bestselling author of Eeny Meeny comes the second thriller in the “truly excellent series”* featuring Detective Helen Grace.
A man's body is found in an empty house.
A gruesome memento of his murder is sent to his wife and children.
He is the first victim, and Detective Helen Grace knows he will not be the last. But why would a happily married man be this far from home in the dead of night?
The media call it Jack the Ripper in reverse: a serial killer preying on family men who lead hidden double lives.
Helen can sense the fury behind the murders. But what she cannot possibly predict is how volatile this killer is—or what is waiting for her at the end of the chase....
My Take:
Pop Goes the Weasel is the second book with Detective Helen Grace and while I haven't read the first book, all necessary information was provided within the second book so that I didn't feel lost while reading. I am however, sufficiently impressed with the character and the story telling to want to go back and read the first book.
Helen Grace is a brilliant, dedicated detective and a very troubled woman. There are things in her past that still haunt her and she has a hard time dealing with her emotional issues. She is also the most perceptive and intelligent detective and some people just don't like that kind of competition. While she is trying to solve a gruesome series of murders, she faces conflicts within the police force and resistance to her methods.Helen Grace is a compelling character and I was pulled in to her personal struggle and the hunt for the killer.
The murder mystery itself is gruesome and very interesting --- in a reverse of a classic murder theme, the men frequenting prostitutes are the ones being killed in very horrible ways. I enjoyed the way the story unfolded with gradual glimpses given of the murderer, the victims, and the others involved in the investigation. It was very well done and kept teasing answers but didn't give too much away.
Since I read a digital galley, I wasn't too critical of the formatting issues in the galley. However, if it were a final digital edition, I would be disappointed with the formatting which tended to lack breaks in the text for location/character changes.
Having addressed the formatting, I have to stress that I was thoroughly caught up in the mystery and read the book in a day. I would definitely recommend Pop Goes the Weasel to anyone who enjoys mysteries and/or thrillers. I will be obtaining a copy of the first Helen Grace book as well.
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