Michelle Davies: FLO Maggie Neville and thriller standalones

A little bit of background📃

I've found another British author I love! Her name is Michelle Davies and she is the author of six crime novels to date. Davies has a long history of journalistic writing, as a freelance features writer and editor at Grazia magazine and a crime fiction reviewer for The Sunday Express. She has written two standalone books. I have read both of them, reviewed in this post. She's also written a four-book series featuring DC Maggie Neville. I've read Book 4 in the series, also reviewed in this post.

I'd like to read more of the Maggie Neville series as the book I've read really connected with me. Maggie is a great character and I liked reading about a criminal investigation from the perspective of a Family Liaison Officer.

Dead guilty | Maggie Neville Book 4 | Published July 2019 | Read November 2024

The story📖

Dead guilty takes DC Maggie Neville to Majorca as part of a team investigating the cold case murder of Katy Pope some ten years earlier. Katy was just 17 when she was brutally murdered while in holiday with her family. Her mother, Patricia, is a now-retired high ranking Met officer. She is leading a campaign to reopen the case on the tenth anniversary of Katy's death, hoping for fresh leads. Maggie is on the team as the Family Liaison Officer (FLO) and must contend with the formidable Patricia Pope and the possibility that the killer might strike again.

My thoughts on the book💭

I loved this book! Maggie Neville is a super character - clever, composed and compassionate. She doesn't always get things right, but I liked the way she used her intuition and people skills to approach to the case. Her complicated personal life added interest, too. I warmed to her straight away! There's also enough backstory in the novel to flesh Maggie out even for a reader like me coming in at Book 4.

The whole cast of characters in the novel is fleshed out. There's the small but dedicated investigation team, Patricia and her family (and Katy's former boyfriend), and the bar and restaurant staff on the resort who witnessed Katy's disappearance. There's also the family of the most recent missing girl, Jade. Kidnapped on the island during the reinvestigation of Katy's murder, Jade is resilient and capable. I loved her determination. Davies was clever to humanise Jade (and make her a bad ass!) and not just relegate her to a bit player to advance the plot.

I saw one reviewer on Goodreads comment that "a better reason for the murder would have made the killer interesting." I completely agree. That is my only criticism of the book and the reason why I knocked one star off my rating.

In sum📝

Dead guilty it is an intelligently-written and creative story, told from the unique angle of a FLO. The story progresses at a cracking pace once the action moves to Majorca, as each person in Katy's orbit becomes a suspect. New evidence emerges that makes several people look guilty. There is misdirection at every turn and I would defy anyone to guess the murderer. Did I mention that I loved Maggie? Maggie is definitely a reason to give Dead guilty a go.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Shadow of a doubt | Published November 2020 | Read June 2024

The story📖

Shadow of a doubt is Cara Belling's story. Twenty-six years ago, Cara was eight years old and accused of killing her brother, Matty, who died after being trapped in the curtains of the family home. Cara was sent to a psychiatric unit after being diagnosed as delusional because she blamed the murder on a paranormal entity - Limey Stan - she swears was haunting their house. She is rejected by her family and placed in foster care after her release from the psychiatric unit. The story sees Cara returning to her childhood home for the first time since her brother's death after learning that her mother, Anita, has passed away.

Cara receives a chilly reception when she returns to her hometown for the reading of her mother's will. She is shocked to learn that her family home has been left to her. Cara's Aunt Karen, Anita's sister, feels she is owed the house and wants to sell it and pocket the proceeds. Cara moves back into the house and soon feels the presence of Limey Stan once again.

My thoughts on the book💭

I was captivated by this book from the outset. I loved Cara and felt terribly sorry for her. To treat an eight-year-old like that was appalling. At least she had a loving foster family and her foster mother, Anne, always believed in her innocence.

Davies has created a super creepy, well crafted thriller in Shadow of a doubt. I ploughed through the book as I wanted to find out what happened all those years ago. The unique premise had me keen to discover what was behind the Limey Stan ghost. I also wanted to know why Anita left the house to Cara after rejecting her and cutting off all contact following Matty's death. I understand the novel was inspired by true events and that makes it even more intriguing.

Cara manages to convince some people that she is being truthful while others - her aunt in particular - are determined to force her out of the town. Sadly, people cannot accept that she is anything but guilty of Matty's murder.

There's a clear thread throughout the book the threats to Cara's life and her sanity. There's a load of misdirection to make the reader stick with the story to find the truth. As with Dead guilty, my one niggle is that the reason for Anita rejecting Cara after Matty's death seems a little weak.

In sum📝

Davies is a skilled writer and it's so easy to warm to her storytelling. The book is intriguing, chilling, shocking, and heartbreaking and Davies made me connect with Cara's struggles to be taken seriously from the outset. This takes the reader through a whole gamut of emotions as they progress through the story. I had an inkling of what might be going on, but not all of it, and I loved the way the Reveal unfolded. Clever!

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The death of me | Published November 2021 | Read July 2024

The story📖

The death of me centres around the death eight years previously of successful musician, Isaac Naylor, who commits suicide after a teenage fan is found dead in his hotel room. He'd been in rehab for drug addiction and was later arrested for causing the girl's death. Naylor was on police bail when he drowned himself in the sea off the Devon coast.

In the present day, music journalist, Natalie Glass, stumbles across a blind item on a gossip site that suggests Naylor may still be alive. Natalie investigates the rumours while trying to solve her financial woes and fight her estranged husband, Spencer, for full custody of their young son, Daniel.

My thoughts on the book💭

Again Davies writes a well-plotted and atmospheric thriller. There's plenty of tension and suspense as Natalie delves deeper into what may have happened on that fateful night. The book is an unsettling exploration of the downside of fame.

Unfortunately, I couldn't warm to Natalie. I found her a bit dim, actually. She makes a bunch of odd decisions in pursuing the story. Her characterisation was heavy on using emotion rather than common sense, which seemed odd to me, given her profession. I do find it hard to completely enjoy a reading experience if I can't get on board with the main character. Even though I thought the story was cleverly put together, it did lose its way towards the end, resulting in an overblown and rushed finale.

In sum📝

Davies does a great job of delivering on the creepiness factor in The death of me, causing the reader to wonder who can be trusted. Davies's writing is tight and it's easy to get sucked into her books. I had a sense of what was happening, but didn't guess the full detail of The Reveal so props to Davies for clever plotting.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐