A Deadly Thaw by Sarah Ward.

This mystery is set in a fictional Derbyshire small town called Bampton and has people asking the question why? Follow both the police and the residents as they try to solve the mystery over a number of deaths.

This book does thaw, like the title suggests but rather than deadly it is more like a sliced loaf that has been left to thaw overnight on your kitchen counter. It has lots of short chapters which make it reader friendly, in the same way as sliced bread is toast friendly. But that is a problem as these short chapters usually end with a cliff hanger and the next chapter involves another character, leaving you at a loss. Also the format of this novel is not linear and it drops back in time repeatedly before returning to the present day. Then we have a small amount of adultery between the police officers, which is another of my pet hates. Although there are sexual issues involved in this novel, there is no gritty sex to reward the reader.

There is no specialist police work is solving these mysteries around Bampton, making A Deadly Thaw a character led novel. The chapters flit from character to character and this uneven flow made me unable to develop an empathy for any character.

I found this book a frustrating read, the cliff hangers, the time shifting and poor characterisation. Why could Sarah have not featured a real town in Derbyshire to add some realism or local interest to her sorry tale? She featured Whitby and that is very real. I found the pace slow and the whole mystery dragged on and on through the years. One character really enjoyed dragging this story out and was proud to claim "You of all people should know that everything can't be told." and "Then it's all been for nothing."

I think A Deadly Thaw is a tiresome tale with no humour to brighten it up, the best in the whole story possibly being...

He parked in one of the small gravelled areas used by walkers to leave their vehicles. One couple, returning from a hike, gave a condescending look towards Kat's trainer-clad feet. She felt like shouting that she was a local and could wear what the hell she wanted, but what was the point of adding to the prickle of tension she already felt.

...So sorry Sarah, but I found your novel a POOR 2 star read as it did NOT rock my boat.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Faber & Faber for giving me a copy of this book on the understanding that I provide an honest review.