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May 26, 2017
This is such a love story. I can see jaws dropping. Don't get me wrong, it is also a straight-forward police procedural. But still, such a love story. The all-encompassing love of family, in Manon's case her adopted son Fly, her unborn child, her sister, and her ridiculously adorable nephew. There is also the love of one's job and one's co-workers, corrosive self-love, the unexpected romantic love. But where there is love there is usually heartbreaking betrayal. Co-workers just doing their jobs, adopted sons looking for their blood fathers, a mother ripping a child from all he knows, and that same mother wondering why she wanted a child so badly. And the worst betrayal of all... letting someone else bear your sin. A five months pregnant Manon and Fly have moved to Cambridgshire, Manon's old nick. Manon to cold cases, Fly to an all white school. The only plus for Fly is that aunt and cousin have come too. Manon is wanting to keep Fly away from the negatives of being a black kid in London. Instead he is introduced to the joy of being the only black kid around. The only black kid who is in the wrong place at the wrong time. He soon finds himself put under arrest for murder. Arrested by his new mother's closest friends. Manon, of course is exiled from anything to do with the case. But by good friends and her force of will she is soon being supplied with information. A straight ahead murder investigation. Well plotted. fast moving and exciting. A few quibbles. I can't say I loved any of the characters. Which is too the good, I guess, because it means Steiner did a great job in making them real. I think if Solly had been my kid, he would have been sitting on the curb with a for sale sign, even though he is only a toddler. Davy did seem to finally grow a pair. While Manon was so irritating at times. Most of the time. Also the London parts and some of those characters just seemed to show up, without any-as they say in court-foundation. It took a long time for some of the characters to show any affiliation with the rest of the book. This is a series that should have legs. Very strong legs.