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damppebbles 's review for:
Murder Town
by Shelley Burr
All my reviews can be found at damppebbles.com
Seventeen years ago the Rainier Ripper put the small, close-knit town of Rainier on the map for all the wrong reasons. With a body count of three, the Ripper was finally caught and sentenced to life in prison. But the town could not distance itself from the devastation caused, particularly those who were up close and personal with the killer’s victims. Gemma, then a nineteen-year-old working alone late at night in her Grandmother’s Teashop, was one of the last people to see Dean Shadwell alive as he banged on the door, crying for help. Now, seventeen years later, a dark tourism company wants to organise a Rainier Ripper tour, calling at the shops and locations where the Ripper’s victims were found. Many in the town aren’t keen but businesses are failing, footfall in the town is at an all-time low. On the eve of a meeting to discuss the proposal, a grisly discovery is made. The tour organiser is found dead in the fountain outside Gemma’s teashop. He’s been killed to look exactly like one of the Ripper’s victims. Is this a copycat or does the Ripper’s influence reach further than anyone ever thought….?
Murder Town is a riveting, fully engrossing, perfectly plotted murder mystery and I loved it. This is the second book in the PI Lane Holland series but if you haven’t read the first book, WAKE, then there’s no need to worry (although it’s sublime and absolutely worth picking up). Murder Town is a book I’ve been wanting to get my hands on for a while now so as soon as it arrived, I got stuck in. I didn’t even waste time with reading the blurb. Which is why I didn’t realise initially that it features Lane Holland. Lane does absolutely play a part in this story, and references are made to his previous case (the previous book), but they’re only in passing. I don’t think any in-depth knowledge is needed. But I will say again, it is worth picking up a copy of WAKE, just because both books are so very good and definitely worth your time. Back to the point I was making; even though Lane does feature, he’s not the main character in this one. He’s participating from afar, miles away from Rainier on the end of a phone. For me, this book was all about Gemma Guillory and the residents of Rainier. I thoroughly liked Gemma who is doing the best she can as a wife, mother and business owner in a town that is tarnished with a dark past. There is a large cast of characters in Murder Town but Gemma stood out above them all. Rainier is a place where everyone seems to know your business and this intrusiveness, the claustrophobia of such an environment is handled beautifully by the author.
Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. I loved everything about Murder Town. The characters are believable, disparate and diverse, and all seemed to fit perfectly in Rainier. The setting is vivid to the reader. You really get a strong feeling of a what Rainier was, compared to what it is now, post-Ripper. The inability of the townspeople and the businesses to shake their association with a serial killer was a little heart-breaking. So why not just go with the flow and use what they have to their advantage? I could see the town’s reasons for considering the proposal. The murder mystery aspect of the book is handled well with plenty of intrigue and suspense. The reveal came as a shock to me. I wasn’t able to guess the outcome but that only added to my overall enjoyment of the novel. With the large cast of characters there are many suspects to pick from. Really clever, immersive plotting which I loved. All in all, Murder Town is superb. It’s a well-written, fully-engaging murder mystery with a different feel compared to others in the same genre. Utterly compelling, very addictive and a real highlight of my reading year. Highly recommended.
Seventeen years ago the Rainier Ripper put the small, close-knit town of Rainier on the map for all the wrong reasons. With a body count of three, the Ripper was finally caught and sentenced to life in prison. But the town could not distance itself from the devastation caused, particularly those who were up close and personal with the killer’s victims. Gemma, then a nineteen-year-old working alone late at night in her Grandmother’s Teashop, was one of the last people to see Dean Shadwell alive as he banged on the door, crying for help. Now, seventeen years later, a dark tourism company wants to organise a Rainier Ripper tour, calling at the shops and locations where the Ripper’s victims were found. Many in the town aren’t keen but businesses are failing, footfall in the town is at an all-time low. On the eve of a meeting to discuss the proposal, a grisly discovery is made. The tour organiser is found dead in the fountain outside Gemma’s teashop. He’s been killed to look exactly like one of the Ripper’s victims. Is this a copycat or does the Ripper’s influence reach further than anyone ever thought….?
Murder Town is a riveting, fully engrossing, perfectly plotted murder mystery and I loved it. This is the second book in the PI Lane Holland series but if you haven’t read the first book, WAKE, then there’s no need to worry (although it’s sublime and absolutely worth picking up). Murder Town is a book I’ve been wanting to get my hands on for a while now so as soon as it arrived, I got stuck in. I didn’t even waste time with reading the blurb. Which is why I didn’t realise initially that it features Lane Holland. Lane does absolutely play a part in this story, and references are made to his previous case (the previous book), but they’re only in passing. I don’t think any in-depth knowledge is needed. But I will say again, it is worth picking up a copy of WAKE, just because both books are so very good and definitely worth your time. Back to the point I was making; even though Lane does feature, he’s not the main character in this one. He’s participating from afar, miles away from Rainier on the end of a phone. For me, this book was all about Gemma Guillory and the residents of Rainier. I thoroughly liked Gemma who is doing the best she can as a wife, mother and business owner in a town that is tarnished with a dark past. There is a large cast of characters in Murder Town but Gemma stood out above them all. Rainier is a place where everyone seems to know your business and this intrusiveness, the claustrophobia of such an environment is handled beautifully by the author.
Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. I loved everything about Murder Town. The characters are believable, disparate and diverse, and all seemed to fit perfectly in Rainier. The setting is vivid to the reader. You really get a strong feeling of a what Rainier was, compared to what it is now, post-Ripper. The inability of the townspeople and the businesses to shake their association with a serial killer was a little heart-breaking. So why not just go with the flow and use what they have to their advantage? I could see the town’s reasons for considering the proposal. The murder mystery aspect of the book is handled well with plenty of intrigue and suspense. The reveal came as a shock to me. I wasn’t able to guess the outcome but that only added to my overall enjoyment of the novel. With the large cast of characters there are many suspects to pick from. Really clever, immersive plotting which I loved. All in all, Murder Town is superb. It’s a well-written, fully-engaging murder mystery with a different feel compared to others in the same genre. Utterly compelling, very addictive and a real highlight of my reading year. Highly recommended.