Cold Winter’s Morning
Author: Alan Bexley
5 out of 5 stars
On a cold January morning, Vicky Crosby is brutally murdered by being run over with a car. She was a former informant against the criminal family, the Morgans, so Detective Sergeant Frank Grey immediately suspects them. But he also learns that Vicky had a messy personal life. Along with Detective Constable Helen Walker and the rest of their team, he sifts through suspects, motives, and alibis. Will they be able to find the killer, or will Vicky’s case go cold?
The story is well-written. The beginning is attention-grabbing by showing Vicky’s death from the killers point-of-view. The pace and flow of the writing is steady throughout. And the plot was interesting. As Frank and Helen investigate, a web of connections appear connecting all of the suspects to each other as well as the victim. A lot of the intrigue comes from trying to figure out which of these connections matter to the case. The ending also had some exciting action, including a car chase.
The story is a police procedural, so the focus is on the murder case instead of the characters. This is shown by opening with Vicky’s murder, then moving to the characters at the crime scene. There are glimpses of Frank and Helen’s lives outside of work, but it’s not the main focus. I like Frank and Helen, and they’re well-written. Frank is very committed to his job. He’s close to retirement, but can’t imagine doing anything else with his time, so he’s going to request to be allowed to work for five more years. He’s been married for ten years, and he and his wife have a very good relationship. Helen also takes her work seriously. She is revealed to be dating a reporter, but she doesn’t tell him anything about the case. She’s also a fun character; she likes to listen to music and sometimes dances to it in the car while she and Frank are following leads.
Overall, I liked the plot and the characters. I couldn’t find any negatives, so I’m rating it 5 out of 5 stars. If you like detective novels and police procedurals, or just want a book that focuses more on the mystery, then you’ll like this book.
Price through Amazon Kindle: $0.99
Link to buy: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07XCMV9JJ
(I do not benefit from the use of this link.)