THE REPLACEMENT by Matt Brolly

 4* Another good story, but when oh when will Liam make his life more meaningful, real? Will he make his father's mistakes?

Book 2 in this very good police procedural series can be read as a standalone. There's enough mention of Liam's past in drips and drabs to clue new readers in. It picks up shortly after the scary ending (for the almost-girlfriend, his son George's teacher, whose name I've forgotten just minutes after she appears in the penultimate chapter) with Liam giving her space. 

It's quite clear that Liam's heart sort if thinks it lies elsewhere, in his past, which as this book ends, might also end up lying in book 3 - I'm hoping the 'lying' doesn't turn out to mean bad decisions lying. I hope he treads with caution as there's something about Grace that raised red flags in book 1, and here, the police professional body feel the same, although by the end of the book, she's back in favour. And far more local. Liam isn't entirely using his big head where she's concerned, buying a burner phone to contact her whilst the professional investigation is ongoing and whilst he's still being questioned. I'm not sure he's capable of long-lasting feelings or a relationship. His head's far too much in his past with his parents' mistakes, but he's not that far off the., putting work first, disappointing his son and rightly irritating his ex.

The storyline is freaky but you don't see the baddies until right at the very end, other than the glimpses in the prologue. The book should've featured them a bit more given the unique premise and twisted mindsets of more than one generation. How social services didn't pick up on things requires a bit of suspension of disbelief.

Still, it's a decent read, though emotionless. 

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

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