Darkside

Starred review from March 21, 2011
Bauer (Blacklands, which was shortlisted for the CWA Debut Dagger) joins such contemporary masters of psychological suspense as Ruth Rendell and Minette Walters with her twisted and tricky second novel, set in the Somerset village of Shipcott. When someone uses a pillow to suffocate Margaret Priddy, who was paralyzed below the neck after a riding accident three years earlier, Det. Chief Insp. John Marvel, the cynical head of the local CID, chews out an inexperienced police constable, Jonas Holly, for contaminating the crime scene. Some suspect a mercy killing, possibly by her son, a corrections officer. Apart from Marvel's scorn, Holly must contend with beloved wife Lucy's multiple sclerosis as well as the taunts of the killer, who leaves insulting notes that call his professional abilities into question. More deaths follow, and tension among the police ratchets up. The shattering conclusion pulls no punches and will leave many readers stunned, even as they realize how everything fits together.

March 1, 2011

Caregiving can be life-threatening.

Bedridden in her 200-year-old cottage, Mrs. Priddy is helpless to avoid the strangler approaching. Mrs. March, slipping into dementia, is equally helpless to avoid the killer intent on drowning her in the icy waterside. But two murders in eight days aren't enough to command the full attention of plodding PC Jonas Holly, in charge of protecting the rural Exmoor village of Shipcott. His wife Lucy is in the throes of rapidly advancing MS, barely able to manage the stairs and taking half a day to prepare the tea, never mind drink it. DCI John Marvel, called in from Taunton, begins by humiliating Jonas and assigning him guard duty at the Marsh house, as if he expects the killer to return. Worse still, Jonas begins receiving personal messages from the killer—from "If you won't do your job, then I'll do it for you" to "Do your job, crybaby"—that he's unwilling to share with either Marvel or Lucy. He finds a button that may be a clue. Then four more murders follow. Three aged, ailing residents of the Sunset Lodge are dispatched, as is missing nurse Gary Liss, whom Jonas soon finds swaddled in curtains behind the lodge's sunroom piano. Although she's barely able to hold a knife, Jonas insists that Lucy carry one for her protection, leading ultimately to her demise and the plot twist that sets the killer free.

Genteel and suspenseful until Bauer (Blacklands, 2010) overplays her hand and makes explicit what might better have remained implicit. Still, better written than most and a minor glitch in a most promising career.

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

Starred review from March 15, 2011

Bauer returns to the gloomy moors of England for another riveting psychological thriller (after her CWA Gold Dagger Award-winning Blacklands). A serial killer is brutally picking off the old and infirm in the tiny town of Shipcott, and village police officer Jonas Holly feels powerless to stop the violence. Enter DCI John Marvel, the bullying detective who takes over the investigation and delights in humiliating his subordinates. When the killer sends Jonas a contemptuous note mocking his police skills, the frazzled bobby doesn't even dare tell Lucy, his ailing wife, let alone the obnoxious Marvel. As the bodies pile up, so do the anonymous missives, until the increasingly isolated Jonas defies orders and doggedly pursues the chilling truth about the killer's identity. VERDICT Claustrophobic and suffused with pitch-black atmosphere, Bauer's novel keeps readers guessing until the deliciously unsettling conclusion. No sophomore slump here--fans of Ruth Rendell and Minette Walters would do well to make room on their shelves for Bauer. [See Prepub Alert, 11/1/10.]--Annabel Mortensen, Skokie P.L., IL

Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2011
This is Bauers second novel to be set in the small Exmoor hamlet of Shipcott, after her prizewinning Blacklands (2008). When an elderly paralyzed woman is murdered in her bed, local policeman Jonas Holly turns over the investigation to a team of homicide detectives led by the abrasive Inspector Marvel, who soon starts humiliating Jonas in front of the villagers who have known him all his life. In addition, Jonas is dealing with the deteriorating condition of his wife, who suffers from MS and who recently tried to kill herself. When there are more murders of the sick and the elderly, the investigative team as well as the townspeople begin to unravel. Bauer creates a grim atmosphere as she conjures a small town isolated by the moors, the snow, the darkness, and murder. Like Minette Walters, Bauer excels at depicting the psychology behind the crimes, and shes not afraid to take some bold risks with her plotline. Melding the classic horror setting of a small, rural town with an atmosphere of creeping dread, this is sure to appeal to both crime-fiction and horror fans.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)