Death in a Far Country by Patricia Hall

Suprise, suprise, suprise! This is another one I got through an Audible sale. What can I say, I bought a few during their last $4.95 sale.

I’m afraid it’s yet another crime/mystery as I remain in my relaxing, shut down summer mode.

DCI Michael Thackeray is just back from sick leave after having been shot. He’s still facing an inquiry from his last case where his girl friend, Laura Ackroyd a local journalist, became involved in his case with deadly consequences. He has no time for respite on the job as he is catapulted into a new case involving the local football club and human trafficking when a young girl of unknown identity is found dead. Again this leads him and Laura down a path they don’t want to take, but must deal with all the same. Both face difficult decisions as they race against the clock to find a murderer and those who brought the girl into the country.

Frankly, I didn’t care for this one. Despite the potentially loaded subject matter and moral quandaries of human trafficking and abuse of those in no position to defend themselves, the whole thing seemed much too formulaic and one dimensional. Thackeray is a standard detective with his girl friend who is often in the way of things. Hall spent much too much time going over the past instead of focusing on the present. It wasn’t a long book as it was, but if you removed the discussion about events in the last book, there wouldn’t be much left of the current one. What was left felt a bit like Hollywood schema #47. It felt unoriginal and unrealistic, and if the recaps of the last book are anything to go by, the plot was fairly repetitive with Ackroyd doing the same thing all over again. The ending was also too pat and too convenient to be realistic and left me feeling a bit like Disney had its oar in there somewhere. 2 out of 5 with a recommendation to read only if you’re bored or not in the mood for challenging.