Deep Waters
Book five of the Kate O’Donnell mysteries follows Detective Sergeant Harry Barnard as he hunts for a missing club owner while his girlfriend Kate, our main heroine, is off photographing a piece about the historic flood that devastated Canvey Island in 1953. When a body turns up during the investigation and complicates things, Barnard is desperate to close the case. Meanwhile, Kate captures the photo of a person of interest in her travels, and old crimes resurface. Now the couple must work together, stay alive, and puzzle out the connections before it’s too late.
I found the setting and main characters of this story charming and enjoyable. I appreciated Hall’s details that brought life in the ´60s sharply to the page. We have subtle reminders of WWII’s lasting impression on the country, and feel the frustration of Kate trying to enter a workforce comprised mostly of men. The historical aspect grabbed my attention, and the mystery was intriguing, if not a bit expected, but the story centers largely on Harry rather than Kate, and I would have liked to know more about her. A sizeable cast of characters tends to complicate the scene, and I found myself lost a few times, but Hall weaves the two plots together to a satisfying end. I also wished for a bit more clarification on a few points, but overall, this was an enjoyable mystery.
