Dark Truths by A. J. Cross
A fresh case lays bare old bones for DI Watt's team
When a young woman's body is discovered on a popular jogging trail in Birmingham, Detective Inspector Bernard Watts and his team are plunged into a disturbing murder investigation. Not only has the woman been violently stabbed - her head is missing.
When a close examination of the crime scene results in a shocking discovery linking the present murder to a past crime, criminologist Will Traynor is brought in to assist the police. Aware of Traynor's troubled past, Watts is sceptical that Will can contribute anything useful to the investigation.
He's about to be proved very wrong . . .
About the Author.
A.J. Cross is a forensic psychologist with over twenty years' experience in the field. She lives in Birmingham with her jazz-musician husband and is the author of five Kate Hanson mysteries.
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Review.
’Dark Truths’ is an enthralling start to a brand new series! It entrapped you from the get go and the tension ramped up right until the end and that ending was wow!
DI Watts was running the cold case unit, however, his new boss puts him on a ‘live’ case as the body of a jogger has been found. But this is a shocker as they can’t find her head! If that wasn’t hard enough he is paired up with a new recruit who is just too enthused about everything and doesn’t think before she speaks! PC Chloe Judd is a blast! During the search of the site DI Watts stumbles into more forensic evidence of past crimes so it’s recommended that a consultant is brought into help - Dr Will Traynor, a forensic psychologist.
First of all I must say that although this is billed as a series about Dr Will Traynor, I would say there was equal footing between him and DI Watts. I really enjoyed both characters as they both have a good back story but I felt slightly more drawn to DI Watts. However, that is probably due to me thinking that he might be related to the character I am currently writing about who is also called DI Watts - thankfully he has a different forename or that could have been weird! But I also enjoyed PC Judd’s character immensely, as her vulnerability juxtaposed nicely with Watts experience and along with the pathologist Dr Chong they make a solid team. I hope that all four of the characters feature in future books.
This is a great start to a new series and one that I will be keeping my eye upon so see how it all develops!