Charlotte Langley THE INTRUSION

 4.5* Strong females, weak men, lies and obfuscation make for a decent read.


This book didn't feel female-dominant but boy, did the females show the males up. I struggled to believe that weak (as accused by Erin, the PI) Lewis was a detective. He had no instincts, no balls, no courage and he only had a very late Eureka! moment, actually 2 of them, just shortly before the end. Erin, Amma, June and Vicky were strong, passionate, supportive females, in total contrast. And goodness, even bitchy Olivia came through. I thought that the author did well not to make this a total take on Stephen Lawrence's murder, though there were similarities. Thankfully institutional racism didn't rear its head, though male chauvinism and arrogance did, as well as shades of Sarah Everard being more than hinted at. And contempt for policing pretty much was the underlying message of the tale, though reform was mentioned, too.


Erin was surprisingly astute and managed to get the tiniest details from people and have several Eureka moments of her own. Her courage, too, going where she did, at night, phone-less, with someone who'd just admitted to their part in Isaac's murder, paid off, but it could have been at the cost of her own demise. Amma, a female from an ethnic minority heritage, who seemed to straddle 2 worlds, was strong and resolute, and I hope that she ended up suing those involved in what happened to her, her brother, her family, and her reputation. Where we saw her at the end of the tale, was perfect icing on a very nice cake. 


I wish the final words from Mark could have healed Amma a little. He turned out to be less of a b'stard than I thought, but just a little. I think you have to be a certain kind of person to do what he did, but I had hoped he'd ended up being genuinely in love with Amma. Sadly, I didn't feel we got that clarification, though at the same time, I didn't get the impression that Amma needed or wanted it. 


The author has taken quite a bit of artistic license with some of the policing aspects, but overall, it's a very decent story that made me want to know more about Erin, Tom, Lewis and their pasts. I'm off to nose and see if there's a previous tale.


ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Bedford Square Publishers for my reading pleasure.



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