It is very satisfying to rediscover an author. It is like greeting an old friend. I have read many of Goddard’s early books and thoroughly enjoyed reading them so I looked forward to the latest story.
The plot unfolds with Wada (whose husband has died in a Sarin gas attack) helping her employer Kodaka (a Private eye) who is investigating a corrupt but powerful businessman in Japan. Meanwhile, in Exeter, England we go back in time to student days. The student friends are protesting about a site in Cornwall which has connections with Sarin research.
Kodaka dies in suspicious circumstances, and Wada travels to the UK to seek answers. It soon becomes evident that a powerful enemy is trying to keep old secrets secret! The plot unfolds with more deaths, and a connection in Iceland which involves dubious land deals.
There is plenty of action and a complex mystery to be solved. Just when you think the mystery has been resolved, the author hits you with a clever twist.
What a great read! Welcome back, dear friend.
Due for Publication: March 2021
Review copy provided by Penguin Random House via Netgalley.com Publication date March 18th 2021
Author Bio
His thrillers usually have a historical element and settings in provincial English towns and cities and many plot twists. They usually involve the lead character gradually uncovering a conspiracy which has long been kept secret, by means of historical documents such as diaries or by means of word-of-mouth accounts that have been handed down from one person to another. Goddard’s first novel, Past Caring, was published in 1986. He has since written more than twenty novels; the majority were Sunday Times Top Ten best-sellers in the UK. In 2019, Goddard was awarded the Cartier Diamond Dagger by the Crime Writers’ Association for his outstanding lifetime’s contribution to the crime fiction genre