I loved all the twists and turns in this intriguing murder mystery. The setting is stunning (and would make a beautiful backdrop for TV). The descriptions of the lake and surrounding countryside give the area a real wow factor. It's this wow factor that is used to entice wealthy people to buy the lodges that have been built at the lakefront resort, The Shore. The lodges are all holidays homes, far outside the purse of the residents of the local village, Cwm Coed. The fact that the lodges are owned by second-homers from England causes lots of friction with the Welsh residents, particularly as the residents of The Shore make little effort to participate in village life.
Residents of The Shore are all well-off, they have to be to afford a second home costing almost half a million pounds. As we are introduced to the residents only five properties exist but there are plans for many more lodges to be built. A wide variety of characters inhabit The Shore. Rhys Lloyd and his family own the land the complex is built on and he has big plans to expand. Jonty Charlton is the financial backer for the project, he lives in one of the homes with his wife and two young children. A third property is owned by retired boxer turned soap star Bobby and his wife Ashleigh who is an influencer. Next up are Clemmie and her teenage son Caleb. Clemmie is trying to start a new life for herself and her son away from London and the life of crime Caleb was being dragged into. The final resident is seventy year old Dee, a mysterious character.
As the story unfolds we realise that everyone is hiding secrets, from financial worries to drugs to affairs. Many of these secrets are simply immoral, however someone may be willing to commit murder to prevent their secret being uncovered.
The story isn't linear. We open on New Year's Day with the discovery of the body and then progress through the investigation into the murder. Every now and again the story jumps back in time, anywhere from a few days previously to the middle of the previous summer, as we uncover everyone's background and the secrets they are desperate to keep hidden. This technique works really well as it allows the reader to feel as if they are gradually uncovering the motive for the murder in much the same way the police must.
This is billed as the first DC Morgan mystery. Ffion Morgan is the police detective investigating the crime for the Welsh Police since the body was washed up on the Welsh side of the lake. Ffion has to work with a partner, DC Leo Brady, from the English Police as the victim lived in one of the homes on the English side of the lake. There is a considerable amount of friction between Ffion and Leo. The detectives are complete opposites. Ffion prefers to work alone, she's headstrong, fiery and has little respect for authority. Leo follows the rules, doesn't like to challenge anyone and won't stand up for himself. Gradually they form a working partnership who really complement each other. I do hope that a second book allows the pair to work together again.
What really made this book for me was the murder victim. In Rhys Lloyd author Clare Mackintosh has written one of the most loathsome characters I've ever come across. Rhys was born and raised in the village of Cwm Coed but rose to fame as a singer. Fame has turned him into a very unpleasant person and now that his star is fading he's becoming even worse. Almost every character has a reason to hate Rhys, therefore almost everyone is a suspect in his murder. We even discover that before he became famous he had a darker side, this means that even some of the locals are suspects too. It's impossible to guess who is responsible and the final reveal is well hidden.
The Last Party by Clare Mackintosh will be published on 4th August 2022 in hardback, ebook and audio format. My thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown UK for a review copy.
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