A young girl, not-quite-5-year-old Molly McCarthy, is dawdling rather than getting ready for school. She's looking out the window at a white van. A young woman walks by; someone jumps out of the van, grabs the young woman, tosses her into the van; and then drives off. Molly's mother thinks she's making it all up, but eventually does call the police. They send around DS Karen Hart to talk to Molly. Hart believes Molly, in part because Molly reminds her of her own daughter, Tilly, still deeply mourned after her demise in an auto accident. And so, the search begins for the van and the missing woman.

Complicating the investigation is that a new chief inspector, DCI Churchill, has just been appointed to oversee the police station in which Karen works. Churchill is skeptical of the competence of women in general, and of DS Hart in particular. He has heard that DS Hart has a way of being a bit unorthodox at times, and also a bit prickly. Some of that may be true, but she does have a way of getting cases solved.

An additional complication is that Dr. Michaels, a famous criminologist from the U.S., is visiting on a book tour with his entourage of publicists, right-hand man, Zane Dwight, and photographer, Nicholas Phinny. Dr. Michaels wants to "help out". But, is he actually helping, or is he hanging out to generate more publicity for himself?

Eventually, they figure out that the missing woman is likely Tamara Lomax. When the police interview her husband, he seems unusually nervous. Was he, perhaps, involved in some way? Later on, they find that Tamara's sister, Rachael has also been abducted in a similar fashion. One intriguing feature of all this is that a playing card, the Queen of Hearts, is found at each abduction site, and so as not to be missed, stuffed through the Lomax's mail slot. Dr. Michaels detailed a serial crime of female abduction wherein an Ace of spades was the "calling card" feature of the crime. Is someone recreating one of Dr. Michaels' previous cases? If so, that would certainly be Good for publicity.

So, why are the sisters targeted? Why is Aidan so twitchy? What's up with the Queen of Hearts? Where is the van? It all comes out in the end in this book. This is essentially yet another British police procedural story. It's a rather popular form of fiction these days, and justifiably so. I've read some of DS Hart's adventures previously, and will likely do so in the future.

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Review of eBook

When Detective Sergeant Karen Hart arrives on Royal Oak Lane in Aubourn to investigate an abduction report, she knows the witness is Molly, the four-year-old daughter of Karen and Terry McCarthy. While her mother insists Molly often tells imaginative stories, Karen finds the child’s report strangely compelling.

Determined to follow up on the little girl’s story, Karen visits the crime scene. The discovery of a playing card provides a clue and a home security system provides a partial view of a vehicle that might match the one Molly described.

When the report of a missing Aubourn woman, Tamara Lomax, seems to match the information provided by Molly, Karen and Detective Constable Sophie Jones visit Tamara’s husband, Aiden, but are left feeling unsettled by what was said . . . and not said. However, the delivery of a playing card, dropped through the Lomax's mail slot, gives credence to the investigation since it matches the one found at the crime scene.

When a second woman disappears . . . one related to Tamara . . . and then a body turns up in a field, the team finds itself racing against time to discover the reason for the kidnapping and the murder before there can be another victim.

It’s a case made all the more difficult by a visiting serial-killer expert turned well-known true-crime writer who may want to help or may just want the publicity that will come from being involved in the case and who manages to worm his way into the investigation as a consultant.

But can even an expert hope to find the truth amid the multitude of secrets surrounding the case?

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Sixth in the author’s Detective Karen Hart series, the story works fairly well as a standalone although a few references to previous events fail to provide sufficient information for readers new to the series. However, the coherent story is strong enough to overcome this slight bump in the telling of the tale.

Several unexpected twists in the plot keep the suspense building and are certain to surprise the reader. The fast pace of the unfolding narrative keeps readers involved and guessing. Strong characters, a “who should you believe” scenario that keeps readers wondering, and a captivating plot that keeps the whole team involved all work together to make the narrative both realistic and believable. That said, the unexpected solution to the complex mystery in the denouement is sure to stun readers.

Recommended.

I received a free copy of this eBook from Amazon Publishing UK and NetGalley
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A woman is abducted; the only witness is a young child known to fantasize. DS Karen Hart’s belief in the child’s story is validated when a woman is reported missing. A playing card found at the scene may or may not be a clue and soon a second abduction takes place.

This is the sixth in the Karen Hart series; it is the third I have read. I like this main character. She is likable, capable, and doesn’t suffer fools gladly. The story is fast paced; I didn’t want to put it down and, in fact, read it in one day.

Fans of British police procedurals will enjoy this well written book, along with others in the series. Although there is mention of events from Karen’s background that are not fully explained, this will work well as a standalone. I look forward to the next issue in this series for another entertaining read.

Thanks to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for the DRC. ( )