After the success of her first television special for the Under Suspicion series, producer Laurie Moran us under pressure to find the next unsolved crime to feature. The series has a very specific type of crime it focuses on, and while there are lots of unsolved crimes out there, not everyone is willing to take their chances with a trial by media. Laurie has already chosen the next story for the series, but it may be tricky to get all those involved in the original case in front of the camera.
Twenty years ago college student Susan Dempsey rang her parents to tell them she wasn't going to make it home for her fathers birthday because she had an audition for a role in a new movie - it was disappointing for her to miss the birthday party, but when the Police called to say they had found her body her parents were devastated. Because Susan was found lying in a park with one shoe on and one shoe off the case was dubbed the Cinderella murder by the press - a name that stuck much to her mothers disgust.
In a surprising turn of events Laurie and her team are able to bring together all the people involved in Susan's life at the time of her disappearance, and as the filming progresses it becomes clear that everyone has secrets. It is up to Laurie and her team to break through all the secrets and lies to uncover the truth, and hopefully bring some peace for Rosemary - the mother who has mourned her daughter for twenty years. Laurie and her team are playing with fire though, some people don't want their secrets to come to light, and once you have killed someone it easier to do it again, and again.
This is a well written series that keeps you guessing right up until the end of each book - with little hints and clues that you have to unravel to try and stay ahead of Laurie and her team. I like it when an author challenges you to think about what you are reading, and Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke have managed to do that time after time. These books also have a deep understanding of what makes people 'tick', and the authors use chapters told from the perspective of the different characters to flesh out the story without distracting from the 'real' story. Using different perspectives and short chapters helps keep this story moving while also allowing us to see the people behind the story.
I accidently read book three before book two but it did not spoil the story at all - but in recommending this series it is really important to read the first book in the series first. I have also found that it pays to read book three before starting book four! This series is lots of fun to read because it is challenging to figure out whodunit before Laurie and her team can figure it out, and the switching perspectives means that you get a full reading experience because you get to experience the story from all sides with all the motivations and secrets that keep things very interesting indeed. Hopefully there are many more books to come in this series because it has become one of my favourite series of all time.
If you like this book then try:
- I've got you under my skin by Mary Higgins Clark
- All dressed in white by Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke
- City of fear by Alafair Burke
- Now you see her by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge
- Murder past due by Miranda James
- Dipped, stripped, and dead by Elise Hyatt
- Dead secret by Ava McCarthy
- Behind closed doors by B.A. Paris
- Eeny meeny by M.J. Arlidge
- One step too far by Tina Seskis
- City of the lost by Kelley Armstrong
- Breaking Creed by Alex Kava
Reviewed by Brilla
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