Where Demons Hide by Douglas Skelton

Where Demons Hide, the new book in the Rebecca Connolly series, by Douglas Skelton was published this time last week. I am delighted to share my review of this excellent book.

The Blurb

Something scared Nuala Flaherty to death. When her body is found in the centre of a pentagram on a lonely moor, Rebecca is determined to find out what. Was she killed by supernatural means, or is there a more down-to-earth explanation?

Rebecca’s investigation leads her to a mysterious cult and local drug dealings. But what she doesn’t know is that crime matriarch Mo Burke still has her in her crosshairs. Mo wants payback for the death of her son, and after one failed attempt to hurt Rebecca, she is upping the ante. And this time, it could be lethal.

My Review 

I have read several of Douglas's books and loved them all. Where Demons Hide is the fourth book in the Rebecca Connolly series following Thunder Bay, The Blood Is Still and A Rattle of Bones. As with any series, you might have a richer reading experience if you start at the beginning. Having said that, Where Demons Hide works perfectly as a standalone - everything you need to know is there, but not overdone for those coming to this from the previous books. 

Rebecca Connolly is a young journalist based in Inverness working for a news agency, writing freelance pieces for local and national newspapers, magazines and TV companies. She's had it tough, as Skelton has fair put her through the wringer in the previous books, but things are calmer now and she's looking forward to her best friends' wedding. Trouble is, the wedding is on the island of Stoirm - pronounced 'Stirrum' - a place that holds bad memories for Rebecca, and possibly enemies too. A week before the wedding a woman is found dead in mysterious circumstances in the woods on Stoirm. Rebecca investigates from the mainland, ably assisted by Chaz and Alan on the island itself. But, unbeknownst to Rebecca, trouble is also brewing near to home...

The opening chapter is breathtaking, drawing the reader in immediately. It's dark, atmospheric and scary. I'm not sure I took a breath for the whole chapter as I became immersed in it, the woman's fear seeping through the pages, the nod to the supernatural and the dark arts. Very evocative. 

The storyline is dark and troubling. Who are the mysterious Children of the Dell? Commune? Cult? Something else? And who is The Father, who only the chosen few have met? Delia has been happy with the Children for a good while, having given everything she had up to them when she joined, as was required. But now, a visitor to the island has put doubts in her mind about it all...

Rebecca is fab. As mentioned above, things haven't been easy for her but she's still here. She's resilient, tenacious and determined. And always looking for a story. I adore Elspeth, Rebecca's boss. She has discovered her true sexuality in later life, doesn't give a stuff what she looks like or what she says. She doesn't really seem to have a filter. The final woman I must mention is Mo Burke, a woman broken and twisted by grief, who refuses to believe what deep down she knows to be true and, instead, turns her grief into hatred for Rebecca. And I also have to mention Seb - in whom, looks wise (only), Douglas has pretty much created my ideal man! After Jason Momoa, obviously. 

There's always some humour in Douglas Skelton's work and there is plenty to be found here, more than in some of the previous books in the series. My favourite was 'He hadn't reached full drunkenness but he was definitely on the inebriation express.' And these humorous moments are very welcome between the more sinister ones. Douglas has once again used the wild beauty of the Scottish highlands and islands in his scene setting and it is often in these instances  that so the story feels at its most foreboding. Conversely, some of the Inverness action happens in a pub, so well described, I know I wouldn't want to go in it! 

For all its good humour and light touches, Where Demons Hide is a beautifully written tale of the worst of humanity, of grief, anger, hate, greed and desperation and will send a shiver down your spine more than once. Douglas Skelton is such a talented writer of crime fiction and I am delighted we've got more Rebecca to look forward to and excited for his first historical crime thriller, An Honourable Thief, coming in September. 

The Author

Douglas Skelton was born in Glasgow. He has been a bank clerk, tax officer, taxi driver (for two days), wine waiter (for two hours), journalist and investigator. He has written several true crime and Scottish criminal history books but now concentrates on fiction. Thunder Bay (longlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Novel of the Year 2019), The Blood Is Still, A Rattle of Bones (longlisted for the McIlvanney Prize 2022) and Where Demons Hide are the first four novels in the bestselling Rebecca Connolly thriller series.