Who could possibly be deranged enough to brutally murder a mother right in front of her baby boy? And follow that up with another bloody murder, once again leaving a young child without a mother? Figuring that out is the task of Detective Natalie Ward and her team of police officers in Samford, U.K. The only clues are the words "why" and "who" written in the victims' own blood - and, partly because they're written out of the usual who-what-where-when-why journalistic sequence, they don't provide much help.
There is, however, no shortage of suspects - ranging from first victim Charlotte Brannon's dicey husband, Adam, to Adam's ex-con friend, a couple of young thugs, a teenage babysitter, a rock star and an estranged sister who triggers unpleasant memories of Natalie's relationship with her own sister. But every single one denies committing the crimes, and several have seemingly ironclad alibis. Or do they?
Later in the book, readers get a glimpse at what's on the culprit's mind through interactions with a psychologist. And as if she doesn't have enough on her plate, Natalie is wondering if her husband David, who is becoming more morose every day since losing his job as a practicing attorney, has gone off an all-too-familiar deep end from which, this time, there may be no recovery.
Well-developed characters, a fast-moving plot and plain old solid writing make this - the second in a series - a don't-miss book. Many thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read an advance copy. I'm already looking forward to the next one, reportedly due out early in 2019.
Last Lullaby by Carol Wyer (Bookouture, December 2018); 361 pp.
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