Judy’s Review
“Ingrid Lewis loves her job as a criminal barrister, despite her terrifying encounters with a man she once successfully defended on a stalking charge. John Webster had become obsessed with her, conducting a creepy campaign of harassment which ruined her relationship with her fiancé, and burned her house down. Webster goes to jail and life goes on for Ingrid, until one wet day she lends her bright red umbrella to a colleague. A few hours later Belinda is dead, crushed beneath the wheels of a truck near the Old Bailey where the two women work. While police think her death is a tragic accident, Ingrid believes it’s no such thing: she thinks her friend was murdered, mistaken for Ingrid because of that borrowed bright and distinctive umbrella.
Richard’s Review
So begins this truly excellent and engaging crime thriller. Ingrid is convinced John Webster has returned and is out to kill her, but the police think she’s mistaken, even paranoid – they can’t find any evidence to connect Webster to what they believe is a terrible accident. But soon a second young woman with direct links to Ingrid is found savagely murdered. Convinced Webster is stalking her, Ingrid is blindsided when he suddenly reappears, claiming total innocence and offering to protect her, and help to find the real culprit.
Webster is a masterly creation, a repugnant psychopath so skilfully drawn by the author that at times he makes you feel sorry for him. The Killing Kind is superbly written, powerfully evoking paranoia and fear, an intelligent and thought provoking thriller that feels totally authentic. We both loved it.
