Deep Fear - Rachel Lynch

DI Kelly Porter is back. 

But will this new case push her beyond her limits?

On a peaceful summer's morning in the Lake District, a woman's body is discovered outside a church. She's been murdered and a brutal, symbolic act performed on her corpse. 

DI Kelly Porter is in charge of the team investigating the crime and is determined to bring the killer to justice. But as more deaths occur it is clear this is the work of a disturbed, dangerous and determined individual. Can Kelly put the puzzle pieces together before the danger comes closer to home?

Having enjoyed Rachel Lynch's first book, Dark Game, I was really looking forward to reading Deep Fear and, thankfully, it didn't disappoint. DI Kelly Porter returns, on a high after successfully solving one of the hardest crimes of her career. Little does she know what the immediate future holds for her. Backed up by her incredibly hardworking team, who know she likes to operate by now, they are stunned when a woman's body is found with a piece of poetry by a Lakes poet on her body. 

What follows is a frightening case, as more bodies turn up, and more poetry is located on each body. This case is getting the better of Kelly, and she doesn't like it. Frustrated at every turn, knowing she's missing something, her home life continues to deteriorate with her relationships with both her mother and sister hitting rock bottom. Her sister Nikki cannot get over her bitterness about Kelly having created a better life for herself, and her mother is in hospital.

The perpetrator of the latest series of crimes to hit the Lakes seems to be trying to teach people a lesson, each piece of poetry points to what could be considered a sin. Kelly can't help but think that she's missing something and when the case hits too close to home for comfort she's going to need all her strength to find the killer before it's too late.

I think of all the Kelly Porter novels this one is probably my favorite. I loved the literary twists and turns Deep Fear took and how it added to the storyline. Because of the poetry angle, I can only assume that everyone who reads it will leap to the same conclusions I did, that the culprit is somebody immersed in the academic world, or at least on the periphery. The red herrings from book one make a welcome return, follow the clues that Rachel plants and you'll be second-guessing yourself on every page. I spectacularly failed to guess who the killer was right up until the very last moment but this is something she does incredibly well.

Deep Fear is another fantastically written police procedural, the background of the Lakes adds to the sense of menace throughout the book, and as always, the character of Kelly is ably supported by well fleshed out colleagues, friends, and family.

Deep Fear (Kelly Porter #2) - Rachel Lynch

Publisher - Canelo

Release date - May 14th, 2018

Find - Goodreads | Kindle UK