‘The Stolen Child’ by Alex Coombs was previously published as Time To Die by Alex Howard. The first book in a series featuring DI Hanlon, a woman with a frequent tendency to be a rule-breaker and is a fierce friend to the few she respects. She does things her way and gets results. This is a story that deals with some very tough subjects so, anyone sensitive to it may find it a trigger.
The story begins with different investigations going on, for me, this created a realism as we all know how hard the police work and how much they are underfunded.
A twelve-year-old Type 1 diabetic boy goes missing, without his insulin, Hanlon is given the task to find him before it is too late, to make it worse there has been two gruesome deaths previous to him going missing. One teenager and one child, the question is, are they linked?
A brutally graphic and gritty story that begins a little slower due to the introduction to Hanlon, we find a prickly woman who is no one’s fool. One who, as I said in my introduction will get the job done in whatever way she needs, be that by bending a few rules well, if she thinks that’s what she needs to do so be it. As the story unfolds the pace picks up and time just races by.
A really good story even given the tough subject. A great introduction to DI Hanlon.
Thanks to Rachel’s Random Resources, Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the copy of the book and my place on the tour today.
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