Title: Last Witness

Author: Lucie Whitehouse

Genre: Crime/Thriller

Publisher: Orion

Publication Date: 25th April 2024

Rating: 5/5

Cover:

Book Summary:

One murder, three families destroyed
And a detective guilty of a crime of her own 

When 18-year-old Ben Renshaw is found dead in city woodland, DCI Robin Lyons is plunged into one of Birmingham’s most controversial cases. 

Months earlier, Ben and his best friend gave testimony that sent a former classmate, Alistair Heywood, to prison for a vicious sexual assault. Before the trial, the boys and their families endured months of brutal witness intimidation, for which the Heywoods, a privileged and influential local family, faced no legal repercussions. Instead, they vowed revenge.

Is Ben’s murder the fulfilment of that vow, the beginning of a bloody new chapter that will go on claim lives on all sides? Or is the truth – as the Heywoods claim – something entirely different?

To solve the case, Robin has to negotiate the city’s networks of power while walking a dangerous line: her own daughter, Lennie, has a secret that could threaten her liberty – and, if it comes out, Robin’s, too. Before long, Robin comes to question whether she knows what justice is at all.

Review:

I really enjoyed the first two books in this excellent crime series that focuses on DCI Robin Lyons so I was thrilled to jump back into her life with another harrowing and compelling case in Birmingham. I have to say, I actually think this is Whitehouse’s best yet, I was completely gripped by Last Witness, from beginning to end. Perhaps because I now feel like I know Robin and the rest of the cast of characters pretty well, I found myself holding my breath at the tension and moved by the complex and dark case Robin was under pressure to solve fast and satisfactorily for the police top brass. What I like about Robin is that she feels genuine. She’s not perfect or superhuman, she is simply someone who cares a great deal about doing her job well and keeping her family safe.

The case in Last Witness is a particularly thorny and intense one, which involves many moving parts and powerful players. As a result, there is an increasing urgency to the entire book, that almost feels like a countdown to the dramatic conclusion. The mix between the case Robin is investigating and what is going on with her personally, regarding her relationships and family is pitched perfectly. Often in crime books the balance is off slightly but Last Witness is expertly crafted in a way that gives both aspects the right amount of attention. All in all, this is a propulsive, darkly realistic and incredibly engaging book and the only complaint I have is that the next book (I’m very much hoping there will be one) in the series isn’t out and available for me to read now.

★★★★★

Huge thanks to Tracy Fenton of Compulsive Readers for my place on Team Lyons and for the copy of the book. My review is entirely my own honest opinion.

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