From The Ashes by Deborah Masson

As the house burns, the hunt for a killer begins...

In the dead of night someone starts a fire in a home for underprivileged children in Aberdeen. The flames spread quickly, and one person doesn't make it out alive.

But the victim wasn't found in their bedroom; they were discovered locked inside a secret basement underground. As DI Eve Hunter and her team search the blackened ruins, the case takes them into even darker territory.

Soon Eve unearths a horrific discovery at the heart of the property - one that turns the whole investigation on its head. Everyone in this home has something to hide, but who has a secret worth killing for?

About the author

Deborah Masson was born and bred in Aberdeen, Scotland. Always restless and fighting against being a responsible adult, she worked in several jobs including secretarial, marketing, reporting for the city's freebie newspaper and a stint as a postie - to name but a few.

Through it all, she always read crime fiction and, when motherhood finally settled her into being an adult (maybe even a responsible one) she turned her hand to writing what she loved. Deborah started with short stories and flash fiction whilst her daughter napped and, when she later welcomed her son into the world, she decided to challenge her writing further through online courses with Professional Writing Academy and Faber Academy, where she wrote her award-winning debut novel Hold Your Tongue, the first in the DI Eve Hunter series. Since then she has published two more books in the series, Out For Blood and From the Ashes.

Review

‘From the Ashes’ is the third instalment of the DI Eve Hunter series and my favourite so far despite the dark subject matter. It was powerful and full of empathy and begins to build upon and strengthen our knowledge of those who support Eve in her team.

It is DI Eve Hunter’s birthday, a day she likes to forget so she is up with the birds working in her shed when she receives a call out. A local residential children home, Wellwood, is on fire and a child's body has been found. But the child who died, 11-year-old Lucas, wasn't found in the main living area but in a locked basement which up until three weeks ago was a secret both to staff and the children. It's Eve’s job to work out whether he was in there voluntary or if he was placed, especially since the cause of the fire is now arson.

Whilst on the way to the fire DC Scott Ferguson is part of a car accident. He runs out to help and sees that someone has been hit by a van. Whilst waiting on the ambulance the young man grabs Scott’s hand and asks that he doesn't leave him. Scott becomes very personally involved in trying to identify the boy even though he should be working on the Wellwood case. He is haunted by past trauma and is clearly identifying with this kid.

This was a less linear book than the previous two outings but soon the threads began to intertwine and make sense. As I said above a topic like this can be emotional to read but Deborah manages that fine line of making it an entertaining read while having the empathy and skill to make sure important issues are fully addressed. I liked getting to know more about Scott and seeing the team work together, even if it means covering for a colleague as far as they can. It shows that you never really know a person's background but sometimes its better to share with those close to you.

I loved this outing for a series I have grown to love and I can't wait for the next one!

If you like the sound of this then here is a buy link to my shop!

https://www.murderatthebookshop.com/shop/p/from-the-ashes-by-deborah-masson?rq=From%20the%20ashes