By Charlie Gallagher
I loved this book.
Truth be told, The Girl Under the Floor first caught my attention because of the author’s name. I though it might be a different Charlie Gallagher, one I knew from my reporter days.
Not so. This Charlie Gallagher is a former UK police officer, now prolific British author and an amazing storyteller.
To quote Gallagher himself, “Coppers scare the best, because the ghost stories you hear, those myths and monsters that sound so ridiculous, we get to see that they’re real.”
The Girl Under the Floor, the eighth in the Detective Maddie Ives series, is no British cozy. It’s an emotional, suspense thriller from start to finish with interesting, well-drawn characters the reader cares about.
Now a temporary detective inspector, Maddie Ives’ and boyfriend Police Constable Vince Arnold’s plates are full with the job, with heartrending family illness and promises to children – some impossible to keep.
Tortuous murders by corkscrew, hiding cupboards and spaces because the murdered knew someone would be coming for them.
Who and what connects the victims have Maddie, Vince and their boss Detective Inspector Harry Blaker and Eileen Holmans (a slipper-wearing, tea cozy-making intelligence analyst), at odds with how to proceed.
I highly recommend The Girl Under the Floor for unbeatable suspense that doesn’t forfeit rich characters for action. I can’t wait to read the seven other books in the Maddie Ives series and hope to watch the characters come to life one day on Acorn or Britbox streaming channels.
I received this advance reader copy from Joffe Books, courtesy of NetGalley. This review is fair and impartial.
Truth be told, The Girl Under the Floor first caught my attention because of the author’s name. I though it might be a different Charlie Gallagher, one I knew from my reporter days.
Not so. This Charlie Gallagher is a former UK police officer, now prolific British author and an amazing storyteller.
To quote Gallagher himself, “Coppers scare the best, because the ghost stories you hear, those myths and monsters that sound so ridiculous, we get to see that they’re real.”
The Girl Under the Floor, the eighth in the Detective Maddie Ives series, is no British cozy. It’s an emotional, suspense thriller from start to finish with interesting, well-drawn characters the reader cares about.
Now a temporary detective inspector, Maddie Ives’ and boyfriend Police Constable Vince Arnold’s plates are full with the job, with heartrending family illness and promises to children – some impossible to keep.
Tortuous murders by corkscrew, hiding cupboards and spaces because the murdered knew someone would be coming for them.
Who and what connects the victims have Maddie, Vince and their boss Detective Inspector Harry Blaker and Eileen Holmans (a slipper-wearing, tea cozy-making intelligence analyst), at odds with how to proceed.
I highly recommend The Girl Under the Floor for unbeatable suspense that doesn’t forfeit rich characters for action. I can’t wait to read the seven other books in the Maddie Ives series and hope to watch the characters come to life one day on Acorn or Britbox streaming channels.
I received this advance reader copy from Joffe Books, courtesy of NetGalley. This review is fair and impartial.
Order online or buy now at your favorite independent bookstore. Mine is Sellers Books and Art in Jim Thorpe, PA.