THE DEAD CAN TALK – WE JUST NEED TO LISTEN . . .
Camden mortuary assistant Cassie Raven has pretty much seen it all. But this is the first time she’s come face to face with someone she knows on the slab. Someone she cared about. Her friend and mentor, Mrs E.
Deeply intuitive and convinced that she can pick up the last thoughts of the dead, Cassie senses that there must be more to the ruling of an accidental death. Is her grief making her see things that aren’t there, or is her intuition right, and there’s something more sinister to her friend’s death than the ME thinks? Harbouring an innate distrust of the police, Cassie sets out to investigate and deliver justice to the woman who saved her life.
My Review:
This is the first in an exciting, original and gripping new series featuring Cassie Raven, a mortuary technician based in Camden Town and DS Phyllida Flyte, a policewoman who has been transferred to Camden for reasons unclear at the start of the book.
Both female characters are strong, engaging and interesting in their own unique ways; Cassie has been brought up by her Polish grandmother, dipped her feet into living rough, taking drugs and dropping out of society but luckily a teacher spotted her potential and encouraged her back to education where she is now a mortuary assistant. Having been fascinated by all things dead during her childhood she believes the dead can talk and treats all the bodies under her care with the utmost love and respect. When one of the bodies turns out to be the teacher who “rescued” her from a dark life, Cassie believes Mrs E is a victim of murder and is determined to find out what really happened.
When a body goes missing from the mortuary, DS Flyte is tasked with investigating and meets Cassie who intrigues her but not necessarily in a good way. The story slowly unfurls allowing the reader to find out more about Cassie and Flyte.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will definitely be reading the next in the series as the chemistry between the two main characters continues to develop and the plots are original and clever.
A K Turner likes to create memorable characters, throw them into unusual settings, and add a hefty dose of murder and a twisty-turny plot. Her latest book, Body Language, introduces a new kind of forensic heroine – a crime-solving Goth-girl mortuary technician who talks to the dead, a character first launched in two crime shorts aired on BBC Radio 4. A K’s previous series, written under the pen name Anya Lipska, starred a London-based Polish fixer who’s happy to crack heads to solve crimes – which saw her being selected for Val McDermid’s prestigious New Blood Panel at Harrogate Crime Festival in 2012.
A K (aka Ali) lives in East London where she is writing more mortuary-set mysteries. Her day job is producing TV documentaries on true crime and science topics. And just for light relief she is training to be a City of London guide…
Read more about A K’s books over at www.anyalipska.com where you can sign up to her newsletter for news and giveaways
