I may have left on of the best reads of 2025 to one of the last reads of 2025.
N. Joseph Glass is a new name to me but one I will be watching out for.
The story is that of the investigation into the murder of Sandra Rawlings, an innocent 17 year old, church going girl.
A girl who it appears has been murdered by a serial killer who had previously killed eleven young girls, of a similar age, but having not been caught has laid dormant for four years. Is Sandra really the 12th victim of a man who killed girls who had either just lost their virginity, or are just about to.
The story is cleverly told via six main characters, all of which have equal billing. Each chapter has one of these characters at its centre but is not written in the first person.
Walker Michaels is the veteran senior detective who was the lead on the first series of murders. A middle age man with virtues and an ethos that are typical of his age and experience.
Brandon Jones, the junior detective on his first murder case. His youth and enthusiasm, along with his misplaced confidence and machismo getting him into trouble with his more experienced partner.
The other main characters are the immediate family of the dead girl.
Allen Rawlings, a hard working man who is a pastor in the local church. An oxymoron of a man he rules his own house with a sullen harsh hand. At the same time he is having an affair with a foxy single mother in his congregation.
His wife Sonya, the down trodden and at heal wife who outwardly defends her husband attitudes and actions, whilst secretly harbouring more liberal thoughts.
Their son, Connor, a typical moody teenage boy who spends most of his time on his computer shielded from the outside world by his headphones. His sisters death brings him closer to his mom and he starts to rebel against his dad.
There are peripheral characters that add to the investigation. The mysterious M, who it quickly become obvious is a killer.
Pete, one of the other Pastors and Charlotte, the single mother Allen Rawlings is having an affair with.
The plot is nicely written with a fast pace.
I like to think I’ve usually got an idea of who the killer is relatively early in a book, not this one.
And the reveal when it came, although surprising, wasn’t one of those unlikely or unrealistic reveals. It was perfectly in context, just really well hidden.
Pages: 404. Publishers: Monocle Books. Available on Kindle unlimited.
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