Review - Cry of the Children by J M Gregson

 

  A Lambert and Hook mystery....

The disappearance of a child strikes fear into the very heart any police force and Chief Superintendent Lambert and his team of officers have very few clues to follow when seven year old, Lucy Gibson goes missing after spending an evening at a local fairground. What then follows is a fairly straightforward police procedural crime story which has the added advantage of being part of a series and which will no doubt appeal to the author’s legions of fans who follow the Lambert and Hook style of crime resolution.

In many ways this is a rather gentle story, which sits oddly alongside the story of child abduction, and yet, for me, what sets this story apart, is in the finely observed character detail and in the calm attention to the minutiae of daily life. Beautifully written, the story carries the reader along without ever needing to resort to sensationalistic tactics. Sure, there is more than enough gusto in the story, but the blood and gore is firmly left at the crime scene, and sometimes I enjoy that more than standing in a mortuary with the pathologist as they poke around in someone’s insides.

The severity of the crime being investigated and the outcome of the enquiry into child abduction is resolved by the end of the book, and whilst there are no great surprises in the outcome, the journey to get there is a very enjoyable reading experience.

Expected publication January 2014

My thanks to NetGalley and Severn House for my advance e-copy of this book.