Almost: Perfect Crime by Helen Fields @Helen_Fields @AvonBooksUK @Sabah_K #BlogTour

Reading Helen Fields’ Perfect series is like drinking a hot cup of tea after having walked miles in the rain. It’s comforting, absorbing, and feels oh-so-good!

I would like to thank Sabah for inviting me to be part of this amazing blog tour!

Title: Perfect Crime
Author: Helen Fields
Date of publication: 18 April 2019
Publisher: Avon Books UK
Format: Paperback proof
Number of pages: 400

Your darkest moment is your most vulnerable…

Stephen Berry is about to jump off a bridge until a suicide prevention counsellor stops him. A week later, Stephen is dead. Found at the bottom of a cliff, DI Luc Callanach and DCI Ava Turner are drafted in to investigate whether he jumped or whether he was pushed…

As they dig deeper, more would-be suicides roll in: a woman found dead in a bath; a man violently electrocuted. But these are carefully curated deaths – nothing like the impulsive suicide attempts they’ve been made out to be.

Little do Callanach and Turner know how close their perpetrator is as, across Edinburgh, a violent and psychopathic killer gains more confidence with every life he takes…

Are you looking for a disturbing read?

I mean, really disturbing.

Really.

Upsetting even.

Awfully dark.

Terribly good.

It all starts with vulnerability. Someone ready to take their life, saved at the eleventh hour by a stranger who happens to be a prevention consellor. My heart broke within the first pages of the book. Helen Fields invades a man’s thoughts in such a spot-on way, describing his mental state, letting us in on his fears, his pain, to give the reader an idea of what can spur a person to think of ending their days. This is no easy subject. In fact, suicide is still a taboo, and its name bears strong stigmas. But when the author takes the matter in her hands, it is with respect and honesty. This is why it hurt so much. I could understand Stephen Berry’s heavy heart, I wished I could help him. I sighed with relief when he changed his mind…

Only to discover him dead a week later. Now here is the most amazing part of this book. Amazing and stunningly insane! I mean, dear Helen, you killed me with this plot… No joke intended!

One body. A suicidal man. Ava and Luc are called but everything points towards suicide. Except… Doubt isn’t enough to build a case on, and the team isn’t even sure of what they can make of their assumptions. Is there more than meets the eye?

Then another body is found. And another. The victims fit the profile of suicidal patients. Yet their deaths are orchestrated to perfection. Isn’t this scary? Everything looks painful, a bit too neat, but there is no proof someone else has been involved. Could those people have chosen the most difficult and painful ways to go? How many police officers would rule those deaths as suicide to be back in time to the station to have lunch? I was afraid. Yes, this is the right word. Afraid and feeling the injustice in those deaths. Thinking your life isn’t worth living is one thing. Planning the worst way to leave this world is another. But with no leads and only a few details which could be deemed normal to the eye of 99% of the population, crime professional or not, what can you do? I had a nagging feeling I couldn’t shake, and I applaud the author for giving away just the right amount of information to keep me wondering.

Helen Fields took me into the darkest days of people I didn’t know and they left carved images of sadness in my mind. A brilliantly cold accuracy froze my brain at each scene. I was dreading the next phone call that would announce another person had died. Wasn’t there more we could have done to prevent these events from happening? But hey, what was actually happening? As you can see, I was totally engrossed and absolutely lost!

With four bodies in four weeks, I was convinced we had a killer on the loose! Now, I must say that while the lines of the plot were absolutely flawless in their execution, I quickly realized there was only one possible suspect. The more pages I turned, the firmer I believed I was right. Was I? Yes!!! But there is so much going on that knowing who was behind it never prevented me from enjoying the book. That’s how good this series is!

On top of a possible serial killer playing God, Ava and Luc have other issues to deal with. You can run from your past, but Helen Fields reminds us it always catches up! Luc involuntarily finds himself tangled up in an investigation linked to his past and handled by his own team, leading to intense moments between him and Ava. I love their relationship and this new installment in the series takes things to another level… When your world is shaken, you turn to the closest person to you… But is it the best idea? My lips are sealed!

Perfect Crime is intense and wins the Crime Plot of the Month award! A subtle, precise writing I can’t get enough of, multi-layered characters with heavy backgrounds, and a pace that never lets up – Helen Fields has written another unputdownable thrilling book!

Find my review of the previous book in the series: Perfect Silence

And grab your copy of Perfect Crime! Amazon

As you can see, I was lucky to meet the wonderful Helen last year during Bloody Scotland (thank you, Kelly!) I thought it’s been nice to use this fabulous picture and memory with the author’s bio!

Helen Fields studied law at the University of East Anglia, then went on to the Inns of Court School of Law in London. After completing her pupillage, she joined chambers in Middle Temple where she practised criminal and family law for thirteen years.

After her second child was born, Helen left the Bar. Together with her husband David, she runs a film production company, acting as script writer and producer. Perfect Remains is set in Scotland, where Helen feels most at one with the world. Helen and her husband now commute between Hampshire and California with their three children and two dogs.

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