#BlogTour ‘The Village’ by Caroline Mitchell

About the book…

Huge thanks to the wonderful Rhiannon at FMcM for inviting me on the blogtour for ‘The Village’ by Caroline Mitchell, which is out in e-book and paperback from Thomas and Mercer, wherever good books are sold, from January 18th, 2022!

From the bestselling author of the DI Amy Winter series comes a thriller about a shocking disappearance—and the village that has conspired to keep the truth buried.

Ten years ago, the Harper family disappeared. Their deserted cottage was left with the water running, the television playing cartoons, the oven ready for baking. The doors were locked from the inside.

Overnight, the sleepy village of Nighbrook became notorious as the scene of the unsolved mystery of the decade, an epicentre for ghoulish media speculation.

For crime journalist Naomi, solving the case has turned into an obsession. So now, with Ivy Cottage finally listed for sale, it’s her chance to mount an investigation like no other. And her husband and stepdaughter don’t really need to know what happened in their new home… do they?

But Nighbrook isn’t quite the village she expected. No one wants to talk to her. No one will answer her questions. And as she becomes increasingly uneasy, it’s clear that the villagers are hiding something—that there is something very dark at the heart of this rural idyll. And the deeper she digs, the more it seems her investigation could be more dangerous than she ever imagined… In raking up the secrets of the past, has she made her own family the next target?

This is not just a murder mystery, as you are not entirely sure that a murder has even occurred.

This is not a family drama based on the centralised, blended family comprised of Naomi, single dad Ed, and moody teen Morgan.

This is not just your bog standard psychological thriller.

It is all these things and so much more, Caroline has taken a Marie Celeste type situation, where 3 much loved Nighbrook relatives literally disappear, as if into thin air, and woven a dark and disturbing narrative about the insular way in which villages operate.

Most people have an urge to move to the country, feeling that the standard of life is better there, the work life balance and the sense of community.

However, what is not considered is the insular and isolating nature of everyone knowing each other-and the consequences that this can render for any newcomers.

Told in multiple narratives between Naomi-true crime reporter turned cake baker and step mother-Morgan-spoilt, gothic teen who hates having to share her dad with Naomi-and various villagers, you get a rounded perspective between the insiders and the outsiders. The difference between appearance and reality is shockingly evidence by Naomi’s initial investigations into selling her  wares in the local cafes.

She is isolated at the house which she purposefully bought, obsessed as she is with the case of the missing family, echoing the way in which she is trying to create her own sense of family.

Morgan’s mother, Harmony, having disappeared from rehab, Naomi is left on her own as Ed goes in search of her, and they circle each other like caged animals both wanting an outcome that the other will not currently tolerate. Naomi wants Morgan to accept her, but is hiding so many secrets of her own.  Morgan wants the family that she never really had in the first place. And then there is Grace, the terminally ill, disabled child, who disappeared with her mother and father, ten years ago.

As a keen observer of true crime, this novel has it all. Tense, psychological mystery, intense and complicated family dynamics all intertwined around a central mystery.

There is something for everyone in this book-for fans of police procedurals there is the knowledge that Caroline writes from a place of expertise in her professional role, and she also writes from a very humanistic viewpoint. She knows what makes people tick and why they hide things from each other for the sake of peace. But sometimes, keeping things quiet, does not always result in a happy ending for all. Sometimes, it ends in murder….

Highly recommended, and for any first time readers, Caroline has a cracking back catalogue to explore!

About the author…

USA Today and Global #1 Bestselling Thriller Author.

Caroline originates from Ireland and now lives with her family in a pretty village on the coast of Essex. A former police detective, Caroline has worked in CID and specialised in roles dealing with vulnerable victims, high-risk victims of domestic abuse, and serious sexual offences. She now writes full time.
Set in Shoreditch, London, her DS Ruby Preston trilogy is described as terrifying, addictive serial killer thrillers.
Caroline also writes psychological thrillers. The most recent, Silent Victim, has been described as ‘brilliantly gripping and deliciously creepy’. Her new DI Amy Winter series is published by Thomas & Mercer.

Links-http://www.caroline-writes.com/

Twitter @Caroline_writes @FMcMAssociates