Sunday, April 24, 2022

One for Sorrow

One for Sorrow by Helen Fields
3/3/22; 384 pages
Avon Books/HarperCollins
D.I. Callanach #7

One for Sorrow by Helen Fields is a highly recommended police procedural and the seventh book in the D.I. Callanach series.

DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach take on a case that requires all hands on deck as a bomber seems to be targeting/taking specific people hostage and then using them in the crimes. The bombs are also resulting in the deaths of investigators and emergency medical personal. While investigating the current bombings they need to try and uncover why this is happening and find some clues or evidence that link all the victims to the individual responsible.

In alternate chapters titled "Before" that are set back in time before the current situation, the relationship between a young woman and her boyfriend is examined. At first these offer a bit of relief from the tension created by the current investigation, but soon they also take a chilling turn.

Turner is taking this case very personally and is out for justice no matter the personal cost. Each new situation created by the bomber places all the team members present in a dangerous, precarious situation. Clearly these bombings are personal to the perpetrator too.

While the tension is high in the investigation in the present, clues can also be found in the chapters set in the before chapters. The alternating story lines work well in this novel as each have their own separate plot and clues while they become more anxious and suspenseful. Both lead to an explosive ending. The writing is excellent and the pacing is taut and brisk.

As my first book in the series, One for Sorrow can be read as a stand alone procedural. I think it would help with backstory to have read others in the series, but I didn't experience any real problems following the plot due to a lack of information about the characters. I was not as invested as long time readers in Turner and Callanach's relationship, however, and don't have all the information on the team members.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Avon/HarperCollins.

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