Survivor’s Guilt by Michael Wood (Matilda Darke 8)

Synopsis: A TEAM TORN APART

Nine months ago DCI Matilda Darke survived a bullet to the head. The brutal attack claimed dozens of lives, including those she loved most, and the nightmares still plague her every waking thought.

A MEMORY SHE’D RATHER FORGET

Now, she’s ready to get back on the job. But a new terror awaits. A woman is found murdered and her wounds look eerily similar to several cold cases. Desperate to find a lead, DCI Darke and her team must face a terrifying truth: a serial killer is on the loose in Sheffield.

A THREAT CLOSE TO HOME

Matilda has led countless murder investigations before but the lingering emotional scars from her ordeal and the uneasiness within her once-tight team have left tensions high. As the body count rises, Matilda realises that this might just be where it all ends.

My Rating: 3/5

** WARNING** If you plan on reading the series in order and are not yet at this stage in the series please do not read the review as it will inevitably contain spoliers

My Review: Okay, I am in a quandry here. I am binge reading this series and think the author is extremely talented and has created a series full of characters that I love. I am invested as a reader and of course as an avid reader I am able to put aside those times when storylines go a little outside the realms of belief. However….this time I just can’t put that aside for this latest book.

The last book was a huge shock to the system and with the devastation that happened to the team following the last case I was already reeling. So when we are brought a new storyline with prostitutes being murdered it gives the team (what’s left of them) the chance to get their teeth back onto something. I like the fact that the characters that I love didn’t just fall right back into their normal ways and are all struggling to get back on an even keel. Nearly all the remaining characters have their own battles following the shootings nine months earlier.

The storyline was written well as ever and I enjoyed the book immensley until the killer was revealed. I mean look, I like it when author’s aren’t afraid to do things that aren’t necessarily fan favourites as they normally have good reasoning for it, but this time I think it suspends belief a little too much for my liking. I mean how much bad luck can one team have? That alone was a shocker but this latest storyline just felt too contrived. I am really hoping that the next book takes us back to a new level of normal (at least as far as this particular team and set of characters goes).