THE BURNING
Jane Casey
St. Martin's/Minotaur
August 2011
London is in the grip of panic after the brutal murders of four young women. The killer, dubbed by the press as "The Burning Man", attacks his victims with a stun gun, a claw hammer and boots and then sets the bodies on fire. Maeve Kerrigan is a young Detective Constable attached to the task force charged with apprehending the killer and has worked long hours in the search, putting her health and relationship with her live-in boyfriend in jeopardy. When a fifth victim is found, Maeve notices enough differences to make her think the new victim might be be a copy-cat. When she presents her doubts to her charismatic boss he assigns the new case to her to investigate separately. The victim, Rebecca Haworth, was a young woman who should have had everything going for her, but upon closer examination was in a downward spiral.
The Burning is a very solid police procedural with extremely well drawn characters. The story is told from several viewpoints, primarily those of Maeve and the friend of the latest victim, Louise. While I had pegged the real killer very early, Casey threw in a few red herrings that kept me doubting my own judgement. Maeve herself is an appealing character, very likable, and very driven to find the answers. I am looking forward to catching up with the next four books in the series. The Burning is a great read for fans of psychological crime fiction.
Thanks to netgalley and St. Martins for a digital copy of The Burning.
RATING- 4 STARS
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