Strike and Robin are back for their latest instalment and the story is really good.
The latest client wants his son brought to safety from a Cult run from a farm in Norfolk.
The clan have long been accused of abusive and coercive behaviour, but hide behind a wall of of litigation against those that make the accusation they appear almost bomb proof.
The only way to shut them down, and release their clients son, is to gather evidence from inside.
Somebody needs to go undercover. Join the “religion” and live at the farm.
Whoever that is is going to need a strong mind to withstand the torturous regime inside that attacks both body and mind.
It fall to Robin to enter the building but both Strike, her family, and her new Police Officer boyfriend are against it..
Nevertheless she insists she has to be the one and worms her way in.
What follows is a dark tale of a manipulation of the mind and a weakening of the body.
Can she stay strong enough to stay true to herself, to gather evidence, and to get out unharmed and mentally undamaged.
Meanwhile on the outside Strike and his team carry on that investigation whilst covering the usual distractions of day to day detective agency work.
Bullet points. I loved the story, I loved the characters, I loved the little side stories that detract from the main plot and give a bit of humour, and yes there’s a but coming.
“But” it’s long and I’m pretty sure the story wouldn’t have lost any of its impact if some of the more erroneous text was left out. As much as I like descriptive narratives at times it can go too far.
On numerous occasions I found myself skipping pages which described the decor of a pub, or room within the compound.
I like long books, but only where the text is relevant. Unfortunately, and really unusually for me, I stopped reading this book twice and went to read other books before going back.
After reading 900 plus pages the end seemed a little rushed. Which surprised me.
But the last few paragraphs, of the last chapter , made reading every word worth it.
Pages 961. Audio book length 34 hours 13 minutes. Narrator Robert Glenister
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