A review by kizzia
The Mercy Chair by M.W. Craven

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

This is the sixth book in the Washington Poe and Tilly Bradshaw series and, as always with MW Craven's books, I couldn't stop myself devouring it in less than 24 hours.

It is a dark book, with some really distressing themes, yet it tries very hard not to sensationalise them and, for the most part, doesn't. It is well plotted, well paced and Washington Poe remains one of my favourite detectives; well written and compelling. That said in this book I found the rest of the characters flattened in a way that did reduce my enjoyment of it.

I think that flattening is entirely down to the conceit used to tell the story, something that is clearly hinted at in the blurb. Without spoiling anything I can say that the set up is that Poe is literally telling the story to someone else across the pages in real time (rather than the close third person perspective in the midst of the action as the other five are) and conversations in the present - between him and the person he's talking to about what happened - are interspersed with the "telling" where we see what happened entirely from Poe's view point. 

The present day conversations do add an element of reflection on the story that does help mitigate the darkness of the plot and I can see why it was decided to write this particular novel in this way. However, for me, it didn't quite work. I felt cheated out of the depth of friendship between Poe and Tilly we usually see, being somehow more divorced from the proceedings, and this lack was highlighted by one "joke" Poe told about Tilly's behaviour that was repeated several times and wasn't even funny on the first mention.

That's not to say it isn't a good book, because it is, I was captivated. It is just that the mechanism used to tell this story, especially given the way it ended*, made it feel uncomfortably contrived. I'm just hoping that in the next instalment in the series (which I already have on kindle pre-order) reverts to type in terms of the way it is told.

*which was sort of mitigated by the author's note at the end but still.