Friday 5 March 2010

CRIME REVIEW: Twisted Wing - Ruth Newman

BOOK BLURB:

Cambridge is home to 18,000 students, 1,500 academics - and one serial killer. The discovery of the headless, mutilated body of a female undergraduate in her bloodsoaked college room heralds the start of a series of bizarre and extremely violent murders. For the students of Ariel College, a siege mentality has developed following weeks of media interest in the 'Cambridge Butcher'. University life has become not about surviving their exams, but surviving full stop. Forensic psychiatrist Matthew Denison is sure that his traumatised patient, student Olivia Coscadden, has the killer's identity locked up in her memory. That within the little clique she belonged to lurks someone with a grudge. Someone who has yet to finish settling their score. In order to get to the truth, Denison must delve into the secrets hidden within Olivia's subconscious. Secrets that are about to lead him into a nightmare beyond imagining.


REVIEW:

A debut that really made me sit up and pay attention to the author, who’s crime novel twists the reader round her little finger with clever devises and a plot line that not only interests but keeps you fascinated regardless of what is being perpetrated on the page. Whilst this does work on a number of levels, the major problem is with the characters. Whilst the supporting cast are dislikeable, they are more real and believable for this. However its with the principle protagonists that the author runs afoul as they feel under developed and as such makes it harder to get a tentative grip upon them let alone allowing the reader to become emotionally engaged with leaving them heavily under utilized. Perhaps future offerings will fix this problem and if it does, then she is definitely a name for some serious crime reading pleasure.

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