Critical Incidents

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It had two main mysteries to be solved; the disappearance of Becca, a woman in her twenties and the murder of Corrina, Robin's best friend. What I loved was the desperation and strength of will in the character Robin. Here she was a single mother of a teenager who had worked hard not only to forge a career in the MET but also in raising her daughter single-handedly. Then through her decision to follow her own beliefs about a case is dismissed for misconduct. Finding herself unemployed she has no other choice but to head back to her childhood home with her tail between her legs.

Robin is offered a job with a family friend Maggie who works as a private investigator, as they are interviewing the mother of the missing woman news that Corrina has been murdered is filtered to them. Robin is determined to find out what happened to her childhood friend and to clear Corrina's husband of the murder. Having worked in the Homicide department of the MET you can truly understand how frustrated Robin is at not being able to work alongside the Birmingham police in solving this murder and putting the real murderer behind bars. At every step Robin is shut down in her own investigation causing more fractures between those closest to her. Whitehouse gives you a main character who is flawed, at her absolute lowest point, constantly making the wrong decisions and yet I couldn't help but like and admire her stubbornness and drive.

This novel genuinely kept me guessing throughout and I had no idea how it was going to end. The plot was cleverly written, the characters very relatable and I loved how connections were made to tie everything together. For me this was definitely the page turn I was hoping for and it felt very realistic. I will absolutely be looking out for future novels by Lucie Whitehouse and the sequel to Critical Incidents.