- Hardcover: 384 pages
- Publisher: Constable (4 Jun. 2020)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1472131967
- ISBN-13: 978-1472131966
Synopsis
It’s Christmas and a serial killer is leaving displayed body parts all over Cumbria. A strange message is left at each scene.
Called in to investigate, the National Crime Agency’s Washington Poe and Tilly Bradshaw are faced with a case that makes no sense. Why were some victims anaesthetized, while others died in appalling agony? Why is their only suspect denying what they can irrefutably prove but admitting to things they weren’t even aware of? And why did the victims all take the same two weeks off work three years earlier?
And when a disgraced FBI agent gets in touch things take an even darker turn. Because she doesn’t think Poe is dealing with a serial killer at all; she thinks he’s dealing with someone far, far worse – a man who calls himself the Curator.
And nothing will ever be the same again . . .
Review
The Curator is the fabulous third book in M.W Craven’s Washington Poe series of books. Poe along with analysist Tilly Bradshaw and their boss DI Stephanie Flynn are called back to Cumbria after three sets of two fingers are found at locations in the county over the Christmas period. With no bodies, just fingers, the hunt is on for a serial killer. But even with a suspect in custody, denying these murders but admitting to other crimes, there are more questions than answers. With a call from the FBI, the case takes and even darker turn, there is a serial killer called The Curator, a killer for hire. Fast paced, complex and compelling, The Curator is another fantastic read.
When my proof copy of The Curator arrived I was ridiculously excited as Poe and Tilly are my favourite crime fighting duo. M.W Craven brilliantly balances the the plot line with all its twists and turns with the personalities of Poe and Tilly. In The Curator Poe and Tilly are still best friends with Tilly even making him come with her to DI Flynn’s baby shower, not an event he would have ever see himelf going to. Their relationship is like father and daughter, whose closeness is endearing and sees them defenfding and looking out for each other. Of course there are many Tillyisms, where she says the wrong thing at the wrong time and her observations that really make me laugh, and when she meets pathologist Estelle Doyle she finds a fellow, analyitical mind who cares for Poe as much as she does. DI Flynn, takes a smaller part in this investigagion being eight months pregnant, making her more grumpy and less tolerant than she usually is. Together Poe, Tilly and DI Flynn are very different, but as a team they are formidable.
To say that this is the darkest and most twisted book yet is an understatement. The plot is intelligent and cleverly complex, with many layers that build up gradually until the shocking conclusion. I have no idea where M.W Craven gets his ideas, but they are brilliant, perfectly executed and detailed. The descrptive prose also brings the ragged and desolate landscape of Cumbria and Shap Fell into the readers mind. I loved the beautiful contrast of the bright white snow and the darkness of the bare Hawthorne trees. Humour is also apparent in his observations, like the fact that Geordies don’t wear coats even in winter, and as a Geordie I can confirm that this is true so it made me laugh.
Finishing The Curator has left me bereft, I am already missing the dynamic partnership of Poe and Tilly. I was so immersed in this book that I read in one day barely raising my head out of the book. I love these books and their combination of intelligent and heartstopping plots and wonderful characters, and this is the most complex and thrilling yet with its exhilarating race to the shocking conclusion. For me this is the perfect crime novel and I can’t wait for book number four, so get writing M.W Craven.
I have previously reviewed the previous two books in this series. To read my review of The Puppet Show click here The Puppet Show by M.W.Craven and Black Summer here Black Summer (A Washington Poe Thriller) by M.W Craven.
I would like to thank Little Brown Books for my copy of this book and for inviting me to be part of the blog tour.
