A Killer in the Family: The gripping new thriller that will have you hooked from the first page

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That being said, there is an enormous cast of characters and some of them actually become vital to the plot, so be prepared to keep track of siblings, half-siblings, estranged fathers, adopted fathers, police detectives and their teams of officers and suspicious teenagers. I thought Jonah was strangely absent here - mainly musing on how good it is that his partner Michelle is going out every night getting drunk while he works late and their nanny (whom I hope they are paying double) raises their daughter. Obviously, there are enough characters to keep the reader guessing and Lodge adds the right number of twists and turns right until the unexpected end. A Killer in the Family is the fifth in Gytha Lodge’s Jonah Sheens police series set in Southampton, but my first experience of the books and characters.

I don't think I'll be trying another Jonah Sheens in the future, but I can appreciate why many people enjoy this series. How Gytha Lodge can leave us dangling like that I don't know, but if you are looking for drama, that final chapter has it in spades. A neglected housewife makes an unexpected friend at a nursing home, where she hears a true tale about an independent woman in 1920s Alabama, who ran the town diner, served food to people of color and protected her sister-in-law from an abusive spouse.Dubbed the 'bonfire killer' because of the circumstances in which the victims are found, the killer shows no signs of slowing down. That the story was very complex, with quite a few people to keep track of, made it even harder to process. The actual mystery was also excellent - twisty and turny in a logical way, although the DNA ramifications and the inter-relatedness (or not) of the characters made my brain hurt at times.

Lodge kept me guessing, and second-guessing myself, at the edge of my seat, until the exciting final scenes. Each stand alone film in this new true crime series investigates three shocking murders, where the victim and perpetrator are family, telling stories of ordinary relationships that take extraordinary and ultimately tragic turns. The story is tight, tense and utterly addictive, I was rushing to reach the conclusion whilst trying not to miss any of the clues that we had been given. From a deep, dark secret that had been kept hidden for decades to family drama that was thoroughly hard-hitting, the impeccability of this novel is not to be overlooked. Some of the small details – like the weird pizza toppings – really add to the enjoyment as it again makes the characters seem real.From the minute I knew this book was coming out the countdown couldn’t come soon enough and I was very excited when I got an advanced copy sent to me so I got to enjoy it that little bit earlier too! This novel tests the old adage what a parent would do for their child and lengths they would go to protect them. This book is quite gruesome, but not at all glorified and ultimately it’s the storytelling that is memorable. For years, she has been haunted by the disappearance of her father, who abandoned both her and her mother one night many years ago, never to be heard from since. You can see the twist coming from a mile away, but if everyone had acted normal and the detectives had done their job properly, the book would've ended about 60 pages earlier.

I love a happy, supportive, cohesive team, working on one myself IRL, so appreciate that representation here. In this latest novel, Jonah and the team are hunting a killer known by the press as The Bonfire Killer, someone who is murdering women and disposing of their bodies on bonfires. It’s something that is currently untested, but one which a lot of conspiracy theorists will already be up in arms about no doubt.

Aisling Cooley, a single mother and game developer, is haunted by the disappearance of her father, who abandoned her and her mother years ago.