A stand-alone murder mystery featuring DCI Peter Hatherall.A young mother brutally stabbed in a busy park in front of her son.A paperboy shot in an isolated farmhouse twenty-four years previously.DI Fiona Williams is baffled when her senior officer, DCI Peter Hatherall makes a connection between the two cases. As details of Hatherall’s involvement in the old case emerge, her loyalty is tested to … loyalty is tested to breaking point and she starts to question his decisions.
When the murdered woman’s son goes missing the time for hesitating is over.
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A current murder is linked to an old case that DCI Peter Hatherall was involved in 24 years previously.
Brilliantly written, and a real page turner; I do hope there will be more in this series.
It’s been while since I read a good detective novel, so when I picked this one up, I couldn’t put it down and read far too late into the night. In fact, I read it in a day and thoroughly enjoyed it. I’ve read all the other DI Hatherall books and this one lived up to expectations. A good twisty mystery, plenty of colourful characters, a touch of real sadness and all wrapped round the likably flawed DI and his sidekick, Fiona. Highly recommended!
April 1994, PC Peter Hatherall is part of an investigation into the shooting death of Jeff Powell, a paperboy in the small village of Mickleburgh.
Peter is young and learning the job. Despite a recent tragedy in his private life, he boldly stands up to his superiors. His supervisor, Malcolm O’Toole, runs what Hatherall considers a shoddy investigation, clinging onto unsubstantiated evidence, leaving too many questions unanswered, forgoing too many leads, making too many assumptions. It nearly ruins Peter’s career It does send, what Peter believes, two innocent men to prison.
Fast forward twenty-four years later and a woman named Amanda Beresford is stabbed to death in a park. The only witness to the murder is her young son.
When an old photograph is discovered hidden away in a locked drawer at Amanda’s home, the words ‘Mickle April 1994’ written on the back, alarm bells go off in Peter Hatherall’s head.
The now seasoned DCI, teams up with his partner Fiona, and they reopen a case many don’t want revisited.
The stakes get even higher when a friend of the murdered woman whom the police had interviewed and shown the photograph, goes missing.
‘The Paperboy’ is the 6th installment in the DCI Peter Hatherall Mystery collection.
The author, Diana J Febry, has proven once again, she knows her way around these small town crime tales, keeping the reader on the edge of their seat with her attention to detail and setting up a host of suspects with motive. The characters are real, and those who have read previous stories in the Hatherall Mysteries, will see the growth in Peter and Fiona. This book is a must read for all lovers of this genre. 5 Stars!
It’s been a while since I’ve read a good who-dun-it, but I’m glad I picked up this one. This is the first book in this series that I’ve read, and it can be read without reading the others. The story is compelling, and your heart aches for the characters. Without giving the story away, there’s so much sadness that could have been prevented. Little events, by themselves, would have caused some damage, but when one is built upon the other, they produce a disaster. It shows what can happen when you let your anger, or despair, take control of your life. All of this is worked well into a story that ties the past with the present. When an author can make you feel emotions, you know he/she has succeeded. Well done.