I was completely blown away by Charlotte Langley’s debut novel The Blame. In fact I have not stopped raving about this outstanding police thriller. Everyone else I know that has read it raves about it too! So you can imagine my excitement when I discovered that not only was Charlotte Langley about to release her second novel, it is a sequel to The Blame.
The Intrusion is released today. Like its prequel, this is a compelling, carefully crafted story about the misuse of power. Like its prequel, it is full of twists and turns, and again, like its prequel, this is a fantastic, thought provoking read for readers who love police procedure drama such as Line of Duty.
Whereas The Blame is a powerful explosion of emotive and exciting drama from the onset, The Intrusion is a slow burner, but definitely an addictive and emotive slow burner as it skilfully explores exploitation and police corruption.
I do feel that The Intrusion is not a standalone novel, and to truly understand and appreciate the compelling plot, you will need to read The Blame beforehand. But believe me, this won’t be a hardship!
The Intrusion is centred around the stabbing to death of the popular, easy going DI Mark Stormont. Previously working for the Met, Mark had only worked for the Wakestead police for the past two years, apparently moving from London with his wife in search of a more quiet life. Within a few short hours, 25 year old Amma Reynolds in arrested for Mark’s murder. Many within the police are convinced Amma is the murderer.
Amma and her family have history with the police. Over a decade before, Isaac, her brother died in mysterious circumstances. According to Amma and her family, the police never investigated his death properly, with the force in a rush to close the case and blame Isaac’s death on accidental drowning. Since then, a campaign has gradually gained momentum to put pressure on the police to open Isaac’s case again. Now in her twenties, Amma is now at the forefront of that campaign, with her profile growing and growing.
Therefore according to some in the Wakestead police force, Amma has the perfect motive. But then there are others that are not so sure. This includes DI Lewis Jennings, who is the former colleague and friend of Erin Crane, the no messing protagonist of The Blame. In this new novel, Erin now works as a private investigator and is hired by Amma’s family to try and find out what really led to the cold bloodied murder of Mark Stormont. Yet is Erin truly prepared for the dark history she discovers?
I think Charlotte Langley is a truly gifted and unique writer. In both her novels, the plots are so skilfully crafted out to brilliantly explore the corruption that exists within societal forces. I can’t wait to read more of her work as she is definitely one of the best writers of psychological police dramas ever.
The Intrusion, which is not to be missed, is published today 12 September 2024.
A massive thank you to Anne Cater from Random Things Tours for inviting me to take part in the blog tour. Thank you also to No Exit Press for sending me an advance copy of the novel.
To follow the blog tour, please see below.
Thanks for the blog tour support x