Review: The Sleepover by Carol Wyer

Title: The Sleepover

Author: Carol Wyer

Series: Detective Natalie Ward, #4

Published: September 2019, Bookouture

Format: ARC E-copy, 376 pages

Source: Netgalley via Publisher

Summary: 

Roxy had a secret. Now she’s gone.

When
fourteen-year-old Roxy says she’s going for a sleepover at her best
friend Ellie’s house, Cathy sees no reason to check her daughter’s
story. The two families are neighbours, and the girls are in and out of
each other’s homes every day.

It is a decision she will regret.
A day later, Roxy is found murdered in exclusive Linnet

Lane, miles
across town, in a house owned by two brothers with no apparent
connection to Roxy. Detective Natalie Ward, called to lead the
investigation, is determined to get to the bottom of why Roxy was in the
basement of this grand Victorian mansion when she should have been
eating chocolate in her pyjamas with her best friend.

As
Natalie begins to look closely at Roxy’s stepfather and three brothers,
she discovers that Roxy had recently been admitted to hospital with
suspicious injuries. Her mother Cathy seems very jumpy and Ellie refuses
to talk. Who are the people that knew Roxy best in the world
protecting?

Then Roxy’s mother Cathy disappears.

When
Cathy’s body is discovered close to where her daughter was found,
Natalie is forced to face the grim fact that the killer is just getting
started. She is troubled by the reaction of Roxy’s brother Seth to the
tragedies and when his alibi falls through she brings him in for
questioning, certain she is making headway.

But while Seth is
in custody, one of Roxy’s school friends is found murdered and Natalie
knows she must cast her net wider. Things take a more sinister turn when
Ellie vanishes, her mobile phone switched off. What is Ellie hiding
about the night Roxy died that could put her in terrible danger? And can
Natalie work it out before another innocent life is taken?

My thoughts: This
is the fourth book in Carol Wyer’s Detective Natalie Ward series, and each book has been fantastic…one more addicting
and thrilling than the previous one! I just love the series that Carol Wyer gives us – I was a huge fan of her DI Robyn Carter series and I am loving this one just as much. Carol definitely knows how to write a strong female lead and I absolutely love that!!!

One of my favorite aspects of this series is that we get such an intimate look at both sides of the characters lives – both on the job and at home. Natalie is still dealing with issues on the home front – things with her husband David have not improved and now it looks like there are some issues with her son, which is causing even more friction between her and David. I did like that there was a small development at the end of the book that might finally shake things up…and I can’t wait to see how that plays out in the next book.

The case that the team is involved in is all centered around secrets and lies. And incidentally it happens to mirror what is going on in Natalie’s life. This isn’t the first time this has happened, but it does hit home that what Natalie does at work isn’t all that far removed from what she deals with on a regular basis on the home front.

Nothing is straightforward with this case and it really keeps the team spinning their wheels trying to get to the bottom of things. The different threads that spin out from this one incident seem to be unrelated but yet are they? No one is being truthful with Natalie and her team and she wants to know why. What is it that everyone seems to be hiding?

I love that this book kept me guessing and on my toes the entire time. This is why I love reading police procedurals. They make me think. And when I get to the end to that final reveal…I am usually shocked! And I love that…I love when I can’t figure it out. Or if I do happen to, I love finding out the why – what was their motivation, because I usually don’t know that part.

The
books in this series can all be read as stand-alones, but I think they
work so much better if you read the books in order. Each book has a different case but the character development builds for all the main characters and that is what really makes this series so strong. I cannot wait to read the next book in this
series, The Blossom Twins, which is out in December…these books
are so addicting and binge-worthy. They keep you on the edge of your
seat as you try to figure out just what is going on.

Books in this series: 

1. The Birthday
2. Last Lullaby
3. The Dare 
4. The Sleepover
5. The Blossom Twins – due out December 2019