The Sixth Window by Rachel Abbott
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
After eighteen months of grieving for her husband Bernie, killed in a horrific hit and run accident, Natalie Grey has found love with her husband’s best friend – Ed Cooper – and has moved herself and fifteen year old daughter, Scarlett, into his home. But Natalie begins to suspect Ed has a dark side – and even darker intentions.
Desperate to get her daughter to a place of safety, she and Scarlett move to a new home that holds secrets of its own. But has removing Scarlett from one potential threat placed her in far greater danger?
This was a really enjoyable read, despite the subject matter. With a deft pen and a penchant for always moving the story forward, Ms Abbott creates an excellent crime thriller, mostly told from the POV of the victims. However, an added layer is that Natalie’s husband Bernie was a policeman and Natalie’s new love is also a policeman. This added an extra frisson to the investigation into his death. The adjoining investigation into a predator grooming young girls and blackmailing them with their sexy photographs and eventually the sex act itself, was really well written, with a ring of realism that was upsetting to read. Ms Abbott never fails to deliver, and is well deserving of the accolades heaped upon her.
Wendy Cartmell 