We go all local when we review the first in the Stone and Oliver detective series – The Lost.
The Lost – the blurb
‘He was her child. The only one she’d ever have. It would kill her to learn that he was missing.’
Alex arrives home from holiday to find that her ten-year-old son Daniel has disappeared.
It’s the first case together for Northumbria CID officers David Stone and Frankie Oliver.
Stone has returned to his roots with fifteen years’ experience in the Met, whereas Oliver is local, a third generation copper with a lot to prove, and a secret that’s holding her back.
But as the investigation unfolds, they realize the family’s betrayal goes deeper than anyone suspected. This isn’t just a missing persons case. Stone and Oliver are hunting a killer.
Insider knowledge
A book by Hannah set in Northumberland was always going to feel realistic. It was lovely to read about local roads, towns and even authors. In fact it felt so familiar I kept expecting to see faces I knew pop up ready to be interviewed.
As well as Northumberland, Hannah knows policing a fact that shines through in The Lost. You can tell by the language used. The reader is given just enough by way of explanation to get the general gist and no more. The approach makes The Lost much easier to read than those that are at pains to explain their research without moving the plot on in the slightest.
New beginnings
This is a new detective series for Hannah whose books previously centred around DCI Ryan. Stone and Oliver are individuals who have plenty of history, hinted at throughout The Lost. The ending of the book leaves it so the partnership has plenty of future. Whether it will be romantic or not I’m not sure, there is clearly a bond between the two of them. I like them both, perhaps Oliver more than Stone as we saw more emotionally from her than we did her boss.
Boss/Stone leads me onto my only niggle with the book. For me there were too many names for each character. Frank, Frankie, Oliver, DS, or Alex’s husband, Tim, Parker, Curtis’ business partner. I get that in real life we are referred to by numerous names but given it’s the first in a series the characters didn’t stick enough for me to recognize them by each new reference.
Who is lost?
At first I was a little confused as to why it was called The Lost. But as the seemingly false start of a young boys disappearance progresses you realize Hannah is weaving something much darker. There are a number of people/children who the title could potentially be referring to. I still haven’t decided who exactly is the most lost. If you have read it I would love to hear your thoughts.
The ending was expectedly climatic and fans of detective fiction will not be disappointed. I haven’t read any previous Hannah books so can’t comment as to how this one measure up but for sheer enjoyment of the local-ness you can’t go wrong. If you like your crime with a strong sense of setting try The Black House by Peter May.