The Lost by Simon Beckett

Good morning, everyone! Today I’m a stop on the Compulsive Readers blog tour for Simon Beckett’s latest, The Lost!

It’s been ten years since Jonah Colley fell out with his friend and fellow officer Gavin McKinney. But when he receives a call from Gavin asking for help, he can’t say no. 

Jonah arrives at a remote warehouse only to find Gavin and a handful of others dead and wrapped in plastic. Except one person seems to have survived. Determined to save her, Jonah is distracted and attacked himself. He only barely survives and manages to connect a call before passing out. 

He wakes up in the hospital to find that he’s under suspicion. Of exactly what, he isn’t sure. What he does know is that the killer appears to have gotten away. Now, in order to clear his own name as well as find out the truth about what happened at the aptly named Slaughter Quay, he’ll have to dive into the investigation himself. All while facing the memories of the worst time in his life.

Ooh! I really hope this is the start of a new series from Beckett! I was a really big fan of his David Hunter books and have been looking forward to reading more from him!

Jonah Colley is a haunted man. Ten years ago, his four-year-old son disappeared while playing in the park. Jonah was with him that day but fell asleep.

Everything fell apart for him after that. But even after his wife has left and he’s fallen out with Gavin, the godfather of his son, he continued to work. But now, battered and trying to recover from the ordeal, even his job is threatened.

This is the first time Jonah finds himself a suspect. It’s usually his job to do the questioning. His job to put pressure on the suspects. But now the tables have definitely turned. That and the fact that it involves his once best friend, Jonah knows he won’t find peace until he solves the case. 

As the story unfolds, the reader is given glimpses of the events of a decade ago. His son’s disappearance and the investigation around that. And also the real reason he and McKinney haven’t spoken since. 

It’s been my experience that Beckett’s books tend to read at a propulsive pace and The Lost is no different! There is no easing into this story. To use a cliche phrase, we hit the ground running and the story never lets up!

And this is a dark read, to be truly honest! One that is quite difficult at times. Especially reading about Jonah’s son and watching how that affects Jonah and his life. 

I am so freaking glad that Beckett is back and expect that we’ll be seeing more of him and Jonah to come! I highly, highly recommend checking this one out if you’re a fan of dark thrillers and police procedurals. This is the best of both worlds and a character that’s perfect for a new series!

Huge, huge thanks to Tracy for inviting me to be part of the tour!

To find our more about Simon Beckett and his work you can check out his website here. The Lost is out this week!

If You Love Forensic Thrillers...

In 2006, I came across Simon Beckett's debut, Chemistry of Death. I thought it was amazing. The first in a new forensic series, Beckett's book managed to be fresh and new even amongst the plethora of forensics reads popping up all over bookstores. When Written in Bone was released a year later, I immediately ran out and bought a copy. Beckett maintained the pacing and newness that he'd established in Chemistry and I loved it. So when Whispers of the Dead landed on shelves in 2009, I was super excited. Apparently so were Scandinavian and German readers.

Unfortunately, Whispers of the Dead got lost in the shuffle of my TBR and moving. And then I saw that his latest in the series, The Calling of the Grave, has been recently released -- in the UK.

US readers are and have been missing out. While other forensic series have flourished here, the amazing Simon Beckett appears not to have done as well as the publisher had hoped. I can't find any US release date for Calling and so have pulled Whispers out of my TBR to be started today and called the ever reliable Cynthia of High Crimes to place an order for an import copy of Calling.

My brain is not so fabulous that I can pull a review of a 2006 book out of my hat, but I do happen to have a possibly spoiler free review of Written in Bone for you. Both Chemistry and Bone are available in paperback here and with all of the various resources available (Cynthia would be my rec) it's easier than ever to get your hands on a reasonably priced UK release now. If you're looking for a really top-notch and gritty forensic mystery, I'd highly recommend giving Beckett a try. Now I'm off to read Whispers of the Dead before my copy of Calling arrives!

After the events of The Chemistry of Death, Dr. David Hunter has returned to his calling as a forensic anthropologist. David is ready to go home after helping on a case in the Grampian highlands when he is called to yet another scene. It seems a body has been discovered on Runa, a small island off the coast of Scotland. Most of the official police force is tied up with a massive train wreck and they need David to examine the remains and determine whether it is in accidental death or something requiring further investigation. David grudgingly agrees, knowing that it will cause problems back home, but also realizing that his help is necessary given the circumstances. Upon arrival in Runa, David discovers that the circumstances surround the death certainly do warrant further serious investigation. In fact, David is certain that the body in question is the result of a homicide, but before the investigative team can arrive, a severe storm system cuts off all access to the island. What’s more, communication with the mainland also goes down and David finds himself trapped on the tiny island with a killer who is getting more desperate every day. Simon Beckett’s series is every bit as entertaining and well written as Kathy Reichs and Jefferson Bass’s respective series. Great for readers who can’t get enough of the forensic craze, or anyone looking for a well-plotted mystery.