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Thursday, 27 June 2019

Murder in the Fens by Clare Chase

Having enjoyed the previous Tara Thorpe books (review links are further down the page), I was delighted to read this, the latest in the series. Huge thanks to Noelle Holten at Bookoutre for inviting me on to the blog tour, and for providing my review copy, which I received via Netgalley.



The Blurb:

When the body of twenty-year-old Julie Cooper is found – her pockets stuffed full of wilting flowers – in an iron-age hill fort on the edge of the fens, Detective Tara Thorpe and her team are called in to investigate. The evidence points to an illicit affair gone wrong… but is there more to the story? 

As always at the Cambridge Constabulary, the case turns personal. Detective Blake is exhausted after the arrival of a new baby with wayward wife Babette, and Tara is keen to put as much distance between herself and Blake as she can – both at the station and on the hunt for the killer. Charming rookie officer Jez is the perfect distraction… but is he a little too good to be true?

Then Tara makes a startling breakthrough when she finds an unsettling family heirloom hidden in the late victim’s bedroom – a golden statue of a sinister-looking cat with emerald eyes. As she traces its origins, Tara begins to realise that Julie’s murder is no one-off crime, but a sinister plot with its roots in a terrible secret that was covered up decades earlier.


Murder in the Fens was published by Bookoutre on 24th June 2019 and you can buy it here.

The links to my reviews of the previous books in the series can be found below:

Book 1 – Murder on the Marshes
Book 2 – Death on the River
Book 3 – Death Comes to Call


My Review:

I have followed Tara Thorpe from the beginning when she was a journalist, and on as she settled into the Cambridge police force as a detective constable. And I've enjoyed the wee frisson between her and her boss (now) Garstin (what a name!) Blake.

I have to say at this point, I disagree with the cozy (and why isn't cosy when it's British? Grr) mystery label. I said the same regarding the last book, so this time I looked up the kind of things that tend to feature in a cozy mystery. In my opinion, this isn’t one, and that's a good thing. For me anyway, because they're not my cup of tea.

The team are investigating the murder of a young, political active student from Cambridge University. There are crushed flowers in her pocket, and in her digs a felt tip heart torn into tiny pieces. And it looks like she was recently wearing a ring that 's no longer there.

There are plenty of dodgy characters linked to Julie, all of whom must be investigated. Her ex boyfriend doesn't really seem that upset about her death, unlike her best friend who is completely devastated, but she's maybe not telling the whole truth. Julie's predatory lecturer also goes under the microscope, and the master of the college too because Julie had been investigating him. And why the note about Scotland?

I love Tara. Due to her background as a journalist she has a different way of looking at things, tending to be more intuitive, which often yields good results. She has settled in to her role in the police and bonded well with her partner Max. Blake is still troubled by his difficult marriage and now struggling with sleepless nights due to a new baby. Something needs to change. But my favourite characters are Bea and Kemp, Tara's support system. Always loving (although Kemp shows this in his own unique way), dependable and just who Tara needs.

The investigation was interesting, with some good discoveries along the way, and a few dead ends along the way. The pacing is fine, and increases momentum as the case does, to a terrific denouement and the wee bit right at the end made me give a little cheer. You'll need to read it to find out why!

An easy, enjoyable read, and I'm already looking forward to Tara's next (non cozy) adventure!


The Author:


Clare Chase writes women sleuth mysteries and recently signed a deal with Bookouture for a new crime series set in Cambridge. The opening book, Murder on the Marshes, was published in July 2018. The mystery follows investigative journalist Tara Thorpe as she teams up with Detective Garstin Blake to solve the murder of a young female professor at Cambridge University. The case takes them through the dark underbelly of Cambridge and in to the murky fens that surround the centuries-old city. The second and third books followed in late 2018 and early 2019, with Murder in the Fens, the fourth in the series, published this month.

After graduating from London University with a degree in English Literature, Clare moved to Cambridge and has lived there ever since. She's fascinated by the city's contrasts and contradictions, which feed into her writing. She's worked in diverse settings - from the 800-year-old University to one of the local prisons - and lived everywhere from the house of a Lord to a slug-infested flat. The terrace she now occupies, with her husband and teenage children, presents a good happy medium.

As well as writing, Clare loves family time, art and architecture, cooking, and of course, reading other people's books.

Clare’s debut novel, You Think You Know Me, was shortlisted for the Novelicious Undiscovered Award 2012, and an EPIC award in 2015. It was also chosen as a debut of the month by Lovereading.

You can find Clare's website and blog at  www.clarechase.com.


Author Social Media Links:



Do remember to check out the other blogs taking part in the tour! 
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