Aubrey Hamilton Reviews: Dead Woman Walking by Sharon Bolton

Writing under the names Sharon Bolton and S. J. Bolton, Bolton has come to be known for tension-filled plots that have enough twists for a bag full of pretzels. Dead Woman Walking (Minotaur, 2017) was highly recommended to me by a couple of reviewers I respect. This book is indeed a propulsive, mesmerizing read. I galloped through it in one sitting. It is hard to say much about it without giving away one or more of the aforementioned plot twists.

It opens with a piece of fine descriptive prose, recounting the experience of floating above the Northumberland National Park in northern England in a hot air balloon. Jessica Lane and her sister Isabella are two of the thirteen passengers on board. The flight is a treat from Jessica to Isabella for Isabella’s fortieth birthday. The sensation of being absolutely alone above the picturesque wilderness is shattered as the passengers’ attention is called to the sight of a young woman running below and a man in pursuit who captures her and strikes her with a huge rock. Everyone frantically grabs their telephones to snap photos and tries to call for help. The killer in turn sees the balloon and cold-bloodedly shoots it down. All the passengers but one of the sisters die in the crash. She falls into the tightly enmeshed branches of a tree and lies there stunned while she listens to the killer search the bodies and take their phones to ensure that none of the photos of him remain for the authorities. He brings his confederates to help look for her; she understands from their overheard conversation the danger she is in. When they give up for the time being and leave, she goes on the run.

From there, multiple speakers take over telling their part of the story. The detective leading the investigation into the crash, the fleeing passenger, and the killer. Multiple flashbacks in the lives of all three narrators explain how they came to this particular point in time, creating in places a jerky chronicle instead of one that smoothly unfolds. Parts of the killer’s sections are grim and hard to read, yet they are integral to the overall story line.

Part police procedural, part thriller, part psychological suspense, the narrative threads all come together in a series of unexpected and tightly plotted events. I realized afterwards that clues are hidden in plain sight throughout. I like an author that plays fair! A complicated story and a good read with a somewhat ragged flow.

·         Hardcover: 368 pages

·         Publisher: Minotaur Books (September 5, 2017)

·         Language: English

·         ISBN-10: 1250103444

·         ISBN-13: 978-1250103444

Aubrey Hamilton ©2020

Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.