Review: The Doll’s House by MJ Arlidge

Amazon blurb:

Detective Helen Grace is on the trail of a twisted serial killer in this riveting thriller in the “gripping”* international bestselling series.

Ruby wakes up in a strange room. Her captor calmly explains that no one is looking for her. No one wants her. Except him.

When the body of a woman is found buried on a secluded beach, Detective Helen Grace is called to the scene. She knows right away that the killer is no amateur. The woman has been dead for years, and no one has even reported her missing. But why would they? She’s still sending text messages to her family.

Helen is convinced that a criminal mastermind is at work: someone very smart, very careful, and worst of all, very patient. But as she struggles to piece together the killer’s motive, time is running out for a victim who is still alive…

I’m going to just cut to the chase and admit that this was the best of the three DI Grace series, so far 🙌🏼 What was it exactly? I can’t put my finger on any specific reason 🤔 Was it because it felt less ‘new’ being the third book? I mean, I’ve always said that the author has a great writing style, very easy to read, flows naturally, characters aren’t forced into any action or dialogue, the pace is good… No, it’s not that.

Previously, I’ve commented on the nasty cliche’s but this one did well not to include any. I think I particularly liked that the author didn’t go a female serial killer again. Considering how over the top the first two were, it really grated my nerves. This time around though, it felt less like the author was trying to ‘show off’, but instead really made the reader want to know more about the antagonist. I was intrigued by him and his motivations, I sort of wanted more of him at the end of the book. I enjoyed the way he read so naturally and the little twists and reveals were superb.

I very much dislike Harwood. She really wasn’t a character I enjoyed or felt any reader connection with at all.

I still love the shorter chapters, however I’m not a fan of the ‘dramatics’ the author seems to be in the habit of leaving chapters in. Towards the last few sentences they yes to feel too theatrical or use too much wordage and I think would be snappier shorter. That could just be a personal preference, though.

Overall, pretty impressed with this one and I’m looking forward to getting into the next book in the series, Liar Liar.

I rated this: 4/5

You can purchase it here from Amazon.

Happy reading

Nat 😬