Hunting Shadows by Sheila Bugler

Hunting Shadows

By Sheila Bugler

This is a dark tale, and the darkness works on a number of levels. Firstly, it's about a missing child and the terrible repercussions on her family that her absence causes. But it's also dark because the main character, DI Ellen Kelly is battling to cope with the death of her own husband and the damage this has done to her family.

It also turns out that Ellen has to live with the fact that she took the law into her own hands and confronted her husband's killer. There's a lot of back story here, and I assume it will continue to be explored in future Ellen Kelly mysteries. I hope so, anyway.

Possibly one of the most moving, and disturbing, aspects of the story is that concerning Rob York, father of Molly - a previous missing child whose story had the most tragic of endings. Rob's misery, and the extremes it leads him to, become instrumental in the case, and yet another thing Ellen has to deal with on top of her family problems and the, sometimes equally serious, issues of her colleagues.

On top of this we have a twisting and turning plot, and a genuinely gripping race against time.

I recommend this book to thriller lovers, and look forward to more in the series.

Thanks very much to the publishers for a review copy of this book.

You can find out more here.