DARK TRUTHS

DI Bernard Watts  must break in a new team as he tracks a serial killer.

It’s bad enough that his trusted forensic psychologist, Kate Hanson, has gone off to Boston with Lt. Joe Corrigan, the American cop she met on the Della Harrington case (Cold, Cold Heart, 2018). Now Watts has to deal with rookie PC Chloe Judd, whose enthusiasm far outstrips her expertise, as he explores the murder of Zoe Roberts, killed during an early morning run down a public trail. This new murder is particularly unpleasant all on its own, since the killer took the trouble to remove the jogger’s head from her body. But the discovery of several more skulls buried in shallow earth not far from the scene of Zoe’s murder lets poor Watts know that he’s now faced with a detective’s worst nightmare—an active serial killer. Watts’ investigation becomes still more complicated when the higher-ups who’ve decided to bring in a criminologist to profile the killer insist on choosing William Traynor, whose keen insight is paired with an obsession over the unsolved murder of his own wife, Claire. Between Traynor, who sees every murder as Claire’s, and Judd, who’s seen exactly zero murders before these, methodical Watts has his hands full.

Watching an old pro herd cats as he cracks a tough case should tickle procedural fans everywhere.