Grave Doubts

This is the third in Elizabeth Corley's "Inspector Fenwick" series. Fenwick has just returned from a secondment to the Met and is trying to catch up with  current cases. The big news is that Sargeant Louise Nightingale was used as bait to catch a serial rapist/ killer and, although she is back at work, she is having second thoughts about staying with the police. Her feelings for Fenwick she assumes are unreciprocated and it is emotionally painful to work around him, although it is clear he thinks she is a good detective and feels protective of her. Fenwick persuades her to take a leave of absence rather than resigning and she retreats to a crumbling old house in Devon that once belonged to her aunt but has been derelict for years. She tells no one where she is going, and since she has no cell service there, she is largely out of touch with her former colleagues. So unbeknownst to her, the rapes and murders have started again, even though the person they are sure was responsible is in prison. Fenwick digs deeper and concludes that there have been two people involved in the serial crimes and it seems likely that the one who is still free has targeted Nightingale as revenge for putting his partner in jail.
Surprisingly, Corley is a well known financial executive and yet manages to write these novels in her spare time. The characters are interesting and the settings are well described. This is primarily a plot-driven book and it is certainly tense and engaging. A good read for those who like this genre.