A review by outsmartyourshelf
The Wire in the Blood by Val McDermid

dark tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

 Following the harrowing events of the first book, Dr Tony Hill has just taken up a position training officers within a new Profiling task force, whilst DCI Carol Jordan is running a department in Seaford. They are brought together again when a training exercise based on examination of cases of missing teenage girls leads one of the trainees to offer up their theory that a serial killer is at large. Shaz Bowman identifies TV celebrity Jacko Vance as the perpetrator and when no-one takes her seriously, she tries to obtain further evidence with devastating results.

I can't help but compare the characters in the books to the ones in the TV series, and it's becoming more and more clear that Robson Greene delivered an absolute masterclass in acting as Dr Tony Hill. I remember this episode on TV and it differed from the book quite significantly. Whilst not quite as brutally graphic as the first book, there are certain scenes which are difficult to read so be warned. A gripping thriller.
 
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