The Pier is a book in the DI Blackwell series by Matt Brolly. It can be read as a standalone or part of the series.The idyllic seaside setting doesn’t mean the human element matches it. Investigate more below in the blurb and then my opinions in my review.
DI Blackwell will do anything to keep her niece safe. And the bomber knows it.
When a local school is the target of a bomb threat, DI Louise Blackwell finds herself embroiled in her most personal case to date. Not only is her niece among the terrified pupils—there’s also a chilling note hidden under the device: Next time you won’t be so lucky, DI Blackwell…
The explosion of a nearby caravan offers a connection…and a suspect. But when he hangs himself after interrogation, leaving another note promising more carnage, Blackwell fears there’s an accomplice.
Could Tim Finch, a former DCI on remand for attempted murder, be pulling strings from prison? He certainly seems set on bringing Blackwell down, if only to derail the case against him. Or could the devious nephew of Max Walton, the serial killer Blackwell shot and killed, be seeking revenge on behalf of his uncle?
As the threats escalate and pressure to solve the case mounts, Blackwell is sucked into a series of horrific events that reach a chaotic and terrifying crescendo on Weston-super-Mare’s Grand Pier. Can she stand firm against a rival hell-bent on destroying her—or will she fall into the killer’s deadly trap?
The series is set in the seaside town in England of Weston-Super-Mare. DI Louise Blackwell is once again on a case, time there is a personal element as her niece is in the school that is the target of a bomb threat. It is chilling to the bone and yet we all know this sadly does happen somewhere in the world from time to time.
There is also the former DCI Tim Finch on remand for attempted murder as fiction mimics real life. He wants out and Max Walton also wants revenge. It is chillingly twisted and compelling as you can’t help but need to know how it can all end. There is a lot for DI Blackwell to untangle and there is a lot to handle with her emotions and the facts. The glimpses into her personal life are insightful, so readers have the opportunity to see her outwith her work mode and who else is in her world.
As the personal and professional collide, she is aware at what is at stake between the former DCI from her past wanting to ruin her life and what is happening to her niece and the people she knows. It is her toughest case yet to get to grips with, right up to an intense climax.
The Pier has plenty to engage in, contemporary themes and is action-packed with lots of emotion.
Bookmarks and Stages by Lou 