The Last Days of Kira Mullan by Nicci French
3/4/25 (paperback); 464 pages
HarperCollins/William Morrow
Maud O'Connor #2
The Last Days of Kira Mullan by Nicci French is an exceptional, intense, very highly recommended novel of psychological suspense following a woman determined to get justice for a murder no one else believes happened.
Nancy North suffered a psychotic break that resulted in her restaurant closing and friendships lost. She and her partner Felix have been forced by circumstances to move to a new flat. It's in an old house, is dank and dark, and has paper thin walls. Nancy is taking her meds and seeing her therapist, but the move and new circumstances is stressful and she feels it. Nancy responsibly talks to her doctor, who ups her dosage a bit, but she still feels something is not right.
When a young woman in the downstairs flat, Kira, is found dead, Nancy is sure she was murdered. She talked to Kira, who before it happened. Felix dismisses her feelings, blaming it all on her illness. He also cruelly, with a calculated intent, tells everyone else around her about her struggles with mental health and her unreliability. Nancy talks to the police, who also dismiss her instincts. The boys club at the police station closed the case, but when it is brought to her attention, Detective Inspector Maud O’Connor has misgivings about her colleagues’ investigation of Kira’s death.
The writing is outstanding in this well-plotted, fast paced tense, compelling, and un-put-downable thriller.
The atmosphere is increasingly full of paranoia and menace. Readers
will know from the start that Kira was murdered, so they will also know
Nancy is telling the truth. The treatment Nancy receives from the other
residents of the apartment building, along with the neighbors, is
frustrating but also all of these people are potential suspects in
Kira's death.
Nancy is a fully-realized character who is honestly presented with
all her strengths and weaknesses. Based on how she is depicted by Felix
and treated by others, readers may have doubts about Nancy's reliability
as a narrator and her recovery. The gaslighting Nancy experiences along
with the dismissal, punitive measures, and negation of anything she
says is abusive and disturbing. The other residents are also developed
as individuals, and completely untrustworthy.
Maud O'Connor is a wonderful character and it was thrilling to see her back. The first book with Maud is Has Anyone Seen Charlotte Salter?. Her approach to investigating and questioning suspects is insightful. She is observant, intelligent, and detailed oriented. Her tenacity is admirable. (
The Last Days of Kira Mullan is another excellent novel from Nicci French (the writing team of Thanks to William Morrow for providing me with an advance reader's copy via Edelweiss. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion. and