I’m excited to share my review for The Lonely Lake Killings by Wes Markin as part of the blog tour. A new author for me, the Yorkshire location and blurb caught my attention.
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Book Review: The Lonely Lake Killings by Wes Markin
Title: The Lonely Lake Killings
Author: Wes Markin
Publisher: Boldwood books
Genre: Crime
Release date: 21st November 2022
Purchase Link – https://amzn.to/3Xt9K80
Blurb
A lonely recluse. A missing girl and a community in fear.
When the body of a young local girl is found next to an isolated lake, the main suspect is the old recluse who has lived next to the lake for many years – especially when the young girl’s purse is found on the old man’s doorstep.
But DCI Emma Gardner and her partner DI Paul Riddick aren’t so sure. Why would the old hermit leave such an obvious clue? And who would want to set the old man up?
As they dig deeper into the murder they discover a community in fear, determined to keep hold of long buried secrets. And Riddick is convinced that his own dark past is somehow linked to this crime, too.
Gardner fears that she may never get the answers she needs, until a break leads her down a path she’d rather not face. One that runs directly to her own front door…
My Thoughts
This is the second book in the Yorkshire Murder series but can easily be read as a standalone as I did because all you need to know about the detectives from the previous book are revealed while reading. I love crime thrillers, but there are only a handful that make me search for the back catalogue as soon as I finish reading or browse for the next one. This is one of those.
DCI Gardner and DI Riddick are a complex police duo with messed up personal lives which engaged my attention just as much as the crime they were solving. With a psychopathic brother, a traumatised niece and a fellow detective dealing with his own turmoil, Gardner’s life is on a knife edge personally and professionally.
While the murder promised to be simple, the twists and turns kept me on my toes and turning the page to until the unnerving truth was revealed. The novel is chocked full of action, traipsing into the underworld of Knaresborough and looking at how the stigma of being seen as different, and vulnerable can lead to suspicions correct or otherwise. All the characters have depth and backstories which played into the current investigation and beyond.
The investigative team were well formed, with a strong chemistry and camaraderie that gives a good foundation for the in future books and scope for more drama, betrayal and fissions. Set against the backdrop of the stunning locations in Yorkshire, I’m eager to read the next one and was thrilled that my local library had the previous one, The Viaduct Murders available for loan. It was just as thrilling as this The Lonely Lake Killings adding to my conviction that this series will soothe my crime drama addiction now Happy Valley is over.
Author Biography
Wes Markin is the bestselling author of the DCI Yorke crime novels, set in Salisbury. His new series for Boldwood stars the pragmatic detective DCI Emma Gardner who will be tackling the criminals of North Yorkshire. Wes lives in Harrogate and the first book in the series The Yorkshire Murders will be published in November 2022.
Social Media Links
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WesMarkinAuthor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wesmarkinauthor/
Bookbub profile: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/wes-markin
Thank you, Rachel’s Random Resources for the invite and advanced copy of this book to review.
Happy reading!
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