About the book…
From BAFTA award-winning creator of Prime Suspect, starring Helen Mirren, comes the blistering follow-up to the bestselling Tennison. Jane Tennison, a young, inexperienced WPC, learns the hard way never to take anyone, or anything, at face value, whether in her dealings with her police colleagues or when confronted by seemingly innocent suspects.
‘Hidden Killers’ sees Jane acting as a ‘decoy’ prostitute, with the hope of capturing a suspect wanted for numerous sexual assaults. The attacker is drawn in and put under arrest. Commended for bravery in the case, Jane is given CID status and moves from Hackney to Bow Street Station as Detective. Her first call-out is to a non-suspicious death. The victim is a young mother, drowned tragically in her bath, leaving a bereft and doting husband and a young child.
The two storylines interweave as Jane begins to doubt the evidence against her assailant in East London, and becomes certain that the young woman in the bath did not drown in tragic circumstances. Two entirely different cases but one common thread – the lingering doubt in Jane’s mind around the evidence, and around her colleagues…
My thanks to publishers , Bonnier Books and Simon and Schuster for having me on the #TeamTennison readathon which goes back to the start of the world renowned detective, Jane Tennison, to discover how she came to be the person we first met in Prime Suspect.
In Book 2, we see not only how the aftermath of the events of book 1 change the dynamic of the police station-just the meaning behind a laminated ‘Ladies Room’ sign really got to me-and how the rest of the team face moving onward.
Jane is picked to act as a decoy for a repeat sex offender who is assaulting young women and prostitutes walking late at night.
She uses her sister’s clothing and a coat from the evidence room for a realistic prostitute look, and the blue fur coat comes back to haunt her in ways she never expected. Firstly, she completely kicks arse in taking down this vile individual who bizarrely, accuses her of assault to get out of what very much looked like attemoted rape.
But there is a detail in the attack that her superiors keep going on about that Jane isn’t sure she remembers happening.
And in order to advance to detective ranking it is expected that she keeps her mouth shut and play by the same rules as the big boys club do.
Add in the horrifying detail that the men meant to be keeping her safe left out, and Jane is sure that the evidence is not adding up…this continues to bug her when she is pulled into her first detective case, where a young mother has apparently accidentally drowned in the bath.
Her eye for a case is unflinching as she notices several discrepancies in the scene, which point away from accident and towards murder. But who is going to listen to her now she is the bottom rung of the ladder? What will she sacrifice to stay on her chosen career track? Will ambition trump truth?
Jane is so very smart, she deals with the situation of being a woman in a make dominated profession with aplomb, whether its feeding info to her superiors, sneaking around to find evidence which confirms her suspicions , or being a female role model in the footsteps of her predecessor, who has downgraded to a desk job, unable to handle the unrelenting pressure.
And in her private life, she continues to be a foil for her sister, Pam, whose traditional female role as a hairdresser is swiftly followed by a pregnancy announcement which derails Jane’s own about her promotion. Her parents clearly prefer the daughter taking on the traditional female roles whilst Jane’s ambition and lack of interest in womanly things makes her inexplicable and scary.
How and why Jane follows her gut instinct to bring what is concealed, into the light, is a fascinating journey .This is a great police procedural and also a glimpse into the career of one of the few women who made it further than the bottom rung of the ladder, as either biology or toxic masculinity , or both, made it impossible for so many to advance. In a world darkened by ill intent, let Tennison shine a light for women to follow.
Lynda La Plante‘s fourteen novels, including the Prime Suspect series, have all been international bestsellers. She is an honorary fellow of the British Film Institute and a member of the UK Crime Writers Awards Hall of Fame.
She was awarded a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list in 2008 and in 2009 was inducted into the Crime Thriller Awards Hall of Fame. Her novels have all been international bestsellers.
She runs her own television production company and lives in London and Easthampton, New York.
Twitter @LaPlanteLynda @simonschusteruk @Tr4cyF3nt0n
Author
bridgeman.lenny@gmail.com