No Time to Cry: Constance Fairchild Series 1 (The Constance Fairchild Series)

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Oswald’s USP if you will, is his ability to weave just the right amount of supernatural into his stories in such a way that he leaves it open to the reader to decide if they are spooky goings on, or just easily explained coincidence. It makes his novels a little like a choose your own adventure story. You want to believe that Madame Rose lives in a magic house you can, or if you want to believe Constance doesn’t leave the house for three days because she’s exhausted – you can. It’s so cleverly done, in all of his books. So you kind of get a two for one deal. A police procedural, and a fantasy book rolled into one. The first one is the DCI Gilchrist series authored by Frank Muir. The featured protagonist, called Andy Gilchrist, is a detective inspector domiciled in St Andrews, a coastal town in Scotland.

Having read and thoroughly enjoyed No Time To Cry by James Oswald, I was delighted to finally get the opportunity to read the second book in this fantastic crime fiction series, Nothing to Hide. We also get Welsh legends of a faithful hound, a cauldron with healing powers, and the hiding place of the Holy Grail, so those who enjoy the supernatural strand of Oswald's crime series will not be disappointed. Con, like McLean, is a sceptic - but sometimes otherworldly explanations are as good an answer as anything. I loved Constance Fairchild, the main character, and the attitude she has to what other people think which was very inspiring. She really doesn’t care what others think of her and is able to stand up for herself when needed which had me cheering for her in all the awkward situations she finds herself in. I liked that she is so supportive to other female police officers and lends her support to them when needed. My frustration with how her colleagues were treating her meant I was firmly on her side and I wanted to keep reading to find out if she would prove them all wrong. Con doesn’t get on with her parents as they disapproved of her choice to become a police officer. Despite her upbringing she is far from being the lady she was raised to be. With tattoos on her arms, she likes to drink a pint when in the local pub and her language is hardly that of a refined lady! Just when it seems as if things couldn't get any worse, Con discovers the almost dead body of a mutilated young man near her home. It turns out he isn't the first victim either and all these cases could be linked to some bizarre religious cult.As this new case gains momentum and more victims are discovered, Con finds herself on a journey to Edinburgh in the hope of unearthing more about the victim found near her flat. She remains officially off-duty and works somewhat outside of her legitimate parameters. While in Edinburgh, Con encounters characters who may be familiar to readers of James Oswald’s McLean series. I love how the two series ‘accidentally’ overlap and how James Oswald subtly weaves these characters into each separate plot-line. The first thing that really draws me into James Oswald’s novel is the feeling of place, I love the rural Wales setting – the detail on Aberystwyth and the surrounding area really makes the book sing – it reminds me of childhood holidays to the Welsh coast; the high cliffs, hidden coves, and smugglers caves. The female characters come across much better written and empathetic here. Most of the male characters seem one-dimensional, and generally grumpy and / or dumb. There’s a potential love interest with an old friend of her brother’s, but that storyline doesn’t develop very far. Con Fairchild, the main character, is from a rich aristocratic family: she’s actually Lady Constance Fairchild. She is also a detective constable in the Metropolitan Police; in the last book, she was instrumental in breaking up a ring of corrupt police in her own unit. Now she’s suspended from duty and pretty much all her colleagues dislike her. This dislike is supposed to be because of what she did, but to be honest, the way she’s written, it comes across far more as if Con Fairchild is the kind of colleague whom, while you wouldn’t wish them to die in a fire, if you heard they’d been involved in a tragic accident you wouldn’t lose much sleep over it. Ardent readers of the Inspector McLean series penned by James Oswald also sought these book series.

My thanks to Headline/Wildfire for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘Nowhere to Run’ by James Oswald in exchange for an honest review.With action from the start, numerous scenes of peril and suspense all wrapped up perfectly in a plot which mixes contemporary themes with Welsh folklore and a touch of the unexplained, this is a book that I have no hesitation in recommending.

Another inmate murders the perpetrator, who has been jailed for over a decade. As such, detective McLean is surprised to discover a reenactment of the festive season serial killings, prompting him to conclude that he either arrested the wrong person or the act was imitated.

Publication Order of Jane Casey Short Stories/Novellas

The second book, The Book of Souls, revolves around a series of gory deaths wherein the serial killer has been striking during Christmas every year for a decade. The victims, who are all youthful women, are murdered in the same way: their throats cut, undressed, and their corpses sparkling clean. However, when detective McLean’s fiancee, Kirsty Summers, is targeted and the perpetrator seemingly leaves a clue, the detective is happy to finally nab the perpetrator. McLean has nipped the killings in the bud, or so he thinks. The fact that I finished this book at all, and until near the end was contemplating giving it four stars is a testament to Oswald’s skill as a writer. I don’t like Con Fairchild, but the story kept me going until close to the end – it was only then, and when I sat down to think about what I’d read, that the weaknesses became apparent. I powered through this book. Ate it up. Gone in a day, much to my delight and my regret. There are so many elements of the book that I loved. It possibly helps that I know some of the area the book is set, Aberystwyth and it's surrounds being one of my 'local' beach resorts. It's familiar to me and many of the references made me smile. Then there are the elements of the mythological which permeate the series. It's not quite supernatural, it's not a ghostly presence we experience, but there is something ... otherworldly which informs the story. The knowing glances between certain characters, the kind of sixth sense that comes to the fore. The local legend, the folklore which is beautifully blended into the tale in a way which didn't even make me bat an eyelid. Folklore and legend in a book set in Wales? Well, duh. That whole concept just fits. This is the second book in the series which features DC Constance Fairchild which is written by James Oswald and I have taken to this series just like the Inspector McLean series, I love it! The Main Character. Con is someone it's easy to identify with despite the classic 'poor little rich girl' motif. She is gutsy and vulnerable, has family problems and work problems, self-confidence and self-doubt. A very well rounded, believable and engaging character.