Review: Dead Jealous (Calladine & Bayliss #7) by Helen H. Durrant

Print Length:  229 pages

Publisher: Joffe Publishing (July 16, 2017)

From Goodreads.com: TWO MOTHERS HAVE LOST THEIR DAUGHTERS — SEVENTEEN YEARS APART. CAN DETECTIVE CALLADINE BRING THEM JUSTICE? 

A teenage girl’s body is found in the back of a car on the notorious Hobfield housing estate. No one had reported her missing, but she’s been dead for a week. 

Meanwhile, an old jar is brought into the station. It was found carefully wrapped in a blanket, with a child’s pink hairclip. The jar contains ashes and bone fragments. 

Seventeen years ago, Detective Tom Calladine had been part of a team investigating the disappearance of Jessica Wilkins. Her mother had taken her to Leesdon Park one summer afternoon. She went to get the child an ice cream and when she returned her daughter was gone. Over the years there were no sightings, no witnesses — nothing. 
Will there finally be closure for this unsolved mystery? 

And why was the girl found in the car killed and why are her friends not telling the police the whole story? 

Detectives Tom Calladine and Ruth Bayliss will unravel a web of lies and pain, in this fast-moving and gripping crime mystery. 

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My Rating: 4 stars out of 5

Let me start off by saying that although this is book #7 in the series, you do not have to have read any of the other books in order to understand and enjoy this one. It would be helpful if you have, just so you have an understanding of the teams dynamic, but it's not completely necessary. 

This is a series that just keeps getting better and better! It continues to amaze me how each novel comes across as fresh and new, drawing the reader in from the first chapter, and leaving them glued to the pages in order to find out what happens next. Each story in the series is billed as "a gripping crime thriller full of twists" - and it is the pure truth. 

In this installment, the author just goes to prove how small the world really is, and how when dealing with people, there is often more than meets the eye. Just when I thought I had everything figured out, the author managed to throw a new curve-ball in that not only went against everything I thought I knew, but that made the story even better. 

One thing I have to say is that with so much going on in this novel it would have been all too easy to become over-complex and confusing, however the author handled it in such a way that each thread was beautifully woven in with the others  causing the story to flow smoothly. 

Overall, I believe this novel will appeal to those who enjoy a story that is gripping crime novels. I would read more from this author! 

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

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                                   Dead Jealous is available from Amazon.com