- Paperback: 416 pages
- Publisher: Trapeze (6 Feb. 2020)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1409182673
- ISBN-13: 978-1409182672
Synopsis
When a young woman is attacked and left fighting to survive in hospital, the police are pulled into a race against time to save her life. But just 24 hours later, she dies and a deadly tattoo is discovered on her body.
And when another young woman disappears, Detective Francis Sullivan and his team fear a serial killer walks the streets of Brighton.
His team identify a suspect, Alex Mullins, son of Francis’s lover, Marni. Can Francis forget their shared past and save the next victim before it is too late?
Review
Her Last Breath is the long awaited sequel to Alison Belsham’s Tattoo Thief released last year. A young girl is attacked, badly beaten, and newly tattooed on her back, she dies twenty four hours later in hospital. After a second girl disappears Detective Inspector Frances Sullivan finds himself in a race against time to stop the killer killing again. The problem is the main suspect is Alex Mullins, son of Marni Mullins, who he had an affair with the previous year. Fast paced, gritty and intelligent, this is a book that takes hold and doesn’t let go.
Her Last Breath is even better than The Tattoo Thief, and that was a huge five start read. Alison Belsham has an even more warped killer, and an original way of killing the victims, a bit gruesome at times, but let’s be honest that makes for a more addictive read. The tension builds and I found myself reading and turning the pages faster and faster in a state of anticipation as to who the killer was. The plot is complex, with many layers that seem disparate, but as the book progresses and builds momentum, these threads knit together to reveal the spine tingling conclusion.
I always like revisiting characters and it was good to see DI Sullivan and Marni Mullins back. After their previous affair there is now a coolness between them, a sense of mistrust that only builds when Marni’s son is the main suspect. Marnie already has a deep mistrust of the police after serving a jail sentence many years ago. She feels betrayed by DI Sullivan when he thinks her son Alex is the killer, to her it feels personal.
DI Frances Sullivan is a character I felt great sympathy for. He is the youngest DI in the police and his lack of experience is something that is thrown at him frequently. His boss DCI Bradshaw has no faith in him, either does his Sergeant Rory Mackay, and both collude behind his back seeming to undermine him at every possible opportunity. A well as his problems at work he has family problems. His mother and sister both have MS, and with his mother in hospital he is feeling the pressure. His sister doesn’t think he is around enough, putting work ahead of his mum, and she needs support as she has no one to help her. It is no wonder he is feeling stressed and second guessing some of his actions. I admire the way he does keep the calm, exterior when underneath he is fuming.
Her Last Breath is even better than The Tattoo Thief, and I never thought I would say that, I was blown away by the first book but this is the next level up. A complex and intelligent plot line, a dark and twisted killer, and great characters make for a fantastically compelling read, I can’t wait to read the next book in this series.
I’d like to thank Trapeze Books and Tracy Fenton for my copy of the book in return for my honest review.
