A former Customs and Police Officer, Andrew Hill’s first book in a crime series set in the New Forest, where he lived for 30 years, will be published in Spring 2022. An avid reader across the crime genre and regular at crime writing festivals, he now lives in West Sussex and works in property.
Paul Harrison’s debut novel is firmly footed in the day-to-day pressures of modern policing. It explores the burden of clear-up figures, stresses of media interest, strain on personal relationships and how stretched ‘the thin blue line’ really is.
The author deploys encyclopaedic and a meticulous first-hand knowledge of Police procedure to develop an absorbing contemporary tale; in what promises to be an engrossing detective series set in the Yorkshire seaside town of Bridlington.
There is detail at the murder scenes for DI/DCI Will Scott and DS Daisy Wright to investigate when a mounting number of bizarre and grisly deaths are discovered. This leads to Will and Daisy to conclude that they have a serial killer on their patch. But this is a serial killer with a difference, as the victims are paedophiles and the killer leaves no trace evidence - except a ‘calling card’ at the crime scene; which takes the shape of a trinket sized silver angel.
This is the Malakim of the title, and whilst typically a messenger according to Hebrew history; this Malakim comes to wreak destruction on mortals who have harmed children.
Will is given a temporary promotion to DCI and made Senior Investigating Officer as the number of murders grow. It appears that the killer [or killers] are widening their reach out from Bridlington and further into Yorkshire. This poses political and territorial issues with neighbouring Police Stations that Will and Daisy have to manage.
Helping out our detectives is Forensic Psychologist Mandy Ward, how assists them in uncovering the killer [now dubbed by the Press as ‘Paedo Preyer’].
However, there comes interference from the Home Office, the dark shadows of MI5, the Home Secretary and even the Lord Chief Justice.
Soon a call to our intrepid Yorkshire Cops leads to the discovery of a vital clue, and a twist that will blindside even the most jaded of crime reader.
The author tackles ‘the elephant in the room’, being whether Vigilante Justice can ever be tolerated even for the most heinous of crimes - to children - where in some quarters of society, the Vigilante Justice may be justifiable.
I’m looking forward to the second in this trilogy as what I suspect is a story arc that seems to be exploring high-level ‘cover ups’, conspiracies and the darkest peccadillos of what we term The Establishment.
