Simply Angela : Their Lost Daughters by Joy Ellis

Deep in the muddy fields of Lincolnshire Fens, a teenage girl is found wandering, delirious, claiming to have been drugged at a party. Mere feet away, the drowned body of another girl turns up on an isolated beach. All this on a small stretch of land where, nearly 10 years ago, the shocking disappearance of a young girl remains an open case. Are the crimes linked? Who are these girls? Is a twisted predator living among the families on this secluded English coastal enclave? For detectives Rowan Jackman and Marie Evans, the pressure is on to unravel these unsettling crimes and bring the perpetrator to justice.

Series: Jackman & Evans (Published Order), Book 2, Jackman & Evans (Recommended Listening Order), Book 1: Publisher: Audible | Genre: Mystery/Thriller | Narrator: Richard Armitage | Length:9 hours 46 mins | Source: Publisher | Rating: 4 Cups

I wasn’t sure what to expected when I started this one as Joy Ellis is a new-to-me author and, honestly, I’ve not really heard that much about her. Although I’m a massive fan of British suspense/crime drama (Blue Murder, Happy Valley, Unforgotten, DCI Banks, In The Dark) so I wanted to give this series a try and then when I found out that Richard Armitage was narrating, that sealed the deal. I’m so glad that I took a chance with this one because it’s just the type of mystery/suspense book that I enjoy.

Here’s what’s going on. When the body of a young girl is found on the beach, DI Jackman and DS Evans never expected that it would hit so close to home and are determined to discover just what happened. Their investigation takes a shocking turn when Toni, a teenage girl, is found drugged and wandering around in a muddy field. What makes things even more troubling is that she’s saying she saw her friend, Emily, being dragged from the party. Not only is the whereabouts of Emily a mystery, her identity is as well. These discoveries lead to Jackman and Evans wondering if they’re connected to an illegal underage drinking club that they’ve been trying to bring down. And just how is the disappearance of a little girl, a decade ago, connected to these new missing girls?

I’m not going to give too much away because this is one of those where the mystery could be if too much was revealed.

This one is rather intense and it took me down a rather twisted path as more information surfaces and sheds light on the who and why. It also left me on the edge of my seat and had me wracking my brain as I tried to piece together how the characters were connected to these hideous crimes. I was impressed that this one left me guessing until nearly the end and I have to say bravo to Ellis at how she worked this web of disturbed individuals together in a way that made me feel both horrified and sympathetic.

As for the main characters, I found that I liked both Rowan Jackman and Marie Evans. Not only did they work brilliantly together, I enjoyed their histories and I’m eager to learn more about them. They also have this slight flirtation about them and I’m eager to see how it plays out. I also found that I enjoyed the secondary characters as well. They were well-rounded and added such a nice touch to the story.

I really enjoyed the investigation in this one and watching the policing that was involved. It’s always interesting to see what’s involved in other countries policing.

Richard Armitage narrates this book beautifully. His voice is just suited for mysteries and his accents are spot on.

This is the second book in the series although this was the first one in the recommended listening order according to Audible so this is why I started with book two. As I’ve not read book one yet, I’m not sure if I’ve missed anything but if I have I’ll let you know when I come back and update this after reading book one.

Overall, this one was intense but engrossing. It had some gruesome bits but they weren’t overly explained so I wasn’t turned off of the book. I’m really interested in what comes next.