Narrated by Sarah Barron.
Released 01 August 2022 by Isis Publishing Ltd.
From the cover:
Something scared Nuala Flaherty to death. When her body is found in the centre of a pentagram on a lonely moor, Rebecca is determined to find out what. Was she killed by supernatural means, or is there a more down-to-earth explanation?Rebecca's investigation leads her to a mysterious cult and local drug dealings. But what she doesn't know is that crime matriarch Mo Burke still has her in her crosshairs.
Mo wants payback for the death of her son, and after one failed attempt to hurt Rebecca, she is upping the ante. And this time, it could be lethal.
Rebecca Connolly is an investigative journalist working for a small news agency in Inverness. She always has her eye out for a canny story, but this time she is not going to be the first one of her little circle to get the jump on a scoop.
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Rebecca's friends Chazz and Alan are on the wild Scottish island of Stoirm to prepare for their wedding, and during their stay a visitor called Nuala Flaherty is found dead on the moors. Her cause of death is unknown, but rumours of supernatural goings on abound when it is discovered that Nuala's body was found in the centre of a hastily fashioned pentagram. Chazz, as Rebecca's news photographer, knows that there is a story here, so he and Alan plunge headlong into finding out what they can about the mystery, while Rebecca sets to work on the mainland.
Douglas Skelton was born in Glasgow. He has been a bank clerk, tax officer, taxi driver (for two days), wine waiter (for two hours), journalist and investigator. He has written eleven true crime and Scottish criminal history books but now concentrates on fiction. His novel Open Wounds (2016) was longlisted for the McIlvanney Award.
What they discover opens whole can of worms around a strange cult on Stoirm, dodgy characters in the shadows, and links to organised crime. Meanwhile, Rebecca continues to be the target of vengeful crime boss Mo Burke's hatred, which puts her in very real danger, and she finds that things she has always considered 'hocus pocus' might hold real power after all.
I first came across the Rebecca Connolly books last year, in her previous excellent mystery A Rattle of Bones (my review HERE). I was hooked from the start, so could not wait to meet up with her and her friends (and enemies) once more in Douglas Skelton's latest twisty mystery Where Demons Hide.
This time the action splits quite evenly between Rebecca's side of the story on the Scottish mainland, as she plays Nancy Drew, and Chazz and Alan's Hardy Boys amateur sleuthing on Stoirm. Skelton brings in so many lovely elements on both sides of the story with beautifully contrived feelings of danger around every corner that make the absolute most of your worries for Rebecca's safety as she follows up her leads, and squeeze every ounce out of the wind and wuthering on Stoirm to whisper supernatural sweet nothings in your ears throughout. Unsettling notions of occult shenanigans, and dubious cults play ever so cleverly against the grittiness of the very real risk of harm from the criminal fraternity. Rebecca's own recent brush with the unexplainable also weaves throughout the story nicely, which has you questioning quite whether there is a solution to this mystery that involves real demons after all, as opposed to the monsters that lie within - and her own history with Stoirm adds an extra bit of frisson to the proceedings.
Skelton brings in themes of revenge, jealousy, secrets and lies, while throwing in some likely characters whose loyalties you are never quite sure of, and some you are certain you know have violent intent. As usual he gets you looking in completely the wrong direction most of the time, so he can floor you with a trademark twist or two at the end. You got me again Mr Skelton, and I adore being fooled by you!
I have to say that, as much as I enjoy spending time with Rebecca and appreciate her sense of humour, I loved how Chazz and Alan carry so much of this tale here: their bickering is a delight, and there were times when I found myself laughing out loud at their banter. It was also intriguing to see Rebecca opening herself up to the prospect of romance after all she has been through - I await developments in the next book.
Once again Sarah Barron does an excellent job with the narration, and after a while you become so immersed in the characters that you don't even notice they are voiced by the same person. This really is the best compliment I can pay to an audio book voice artist. Great job!
I absolutely loved this story from creepy start to heart-warming ending. I cannot wait to meet up with Rebecca and the gang once more!
Where Demons Hide is available to buy now in paperback, ebook, and audio formats.
Thank you to Isis Audio for granting me access to the audio version of this book in return for an honest review, and to Danielle Price at The Reading Closet for inviting me to take part in this blog tour.
About the author:
Douglas has investigated real-life crime for Glasgow solicitors and was involved in a long-running campaign to right the famous Ice-Cream Wars miscarriage of justice.
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