THE OTLEY MURDERS by JR Ellis

3* Feels like a cosy mystery without any real sense of danger or urgency. 

This is quite decently written but it bigs itself up to something that the writing doesn't deliver, unfortunately. We are told the characters are great at their jobs, but investigations and the initial prison escape plot were quite mundane and there was no feel of danger or urgency. The cops weren't clever - take Andy, for example. He plans to capture the escaped prisoner when he turns up at an agreed place at 1pm, so he and some cops turn up at 12.30pm, not wondering, seemingly, that the guy would've likely been casing the place. 

The reveal of the prisoner's fate was believable. The arc that suddenly appeared around 66% of the tale gone was believable, too, but felt like too much too late, and as if the police should've been detecting and investigating more. Had it not been for the female DC who was good at research, they'd have been at it for years, it felt like. The DI with the Mc surname solved the escaped prisoner case far too easily and quickly, with some very basic access to what should've featured earlier on in the tale. That is, if policing was happening. 

The dialogue was un-rushed, slow and without any sense of urgency. For example, 'We've got evidence that makes XY a suspect. We just need his address and we'll be over there.' Really? The pace was sooo lax all over the book. I'm not sure I'd read another, as these cops felt they thought they were great but embodied the country bumpkins stereotype sadly.

ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Thomas and Mercer, for my reading pleasure. 

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