The Branded

We have so many new and amazing Irish crime writers on the list at the moment and I’m happy to say that list is expanding.  One of the best police procedurals around is by Martina Murphy. The Branded is her second featuring DS Lucy Golden, who has left Dublin and returned to her rural hometown of Achill Island.  Appropriately enough for this summer, the action takes place during an unprecedented heatwave  where the body of a young girl is found in a submerged suitcase in Loch Acorrymore and Lucy Golden is tasked with identifying her and returning her to her family. With the help of her team, they discover that the girl was a runaway, who had spent some time in a homeless shelter. She has been murdered and an investigation is launched.

Gripping, taut and heartbreaking, this is such an intelligent and consuming read.  And if you haven’t discovered Lucy Golden and her world yet, I thoroughly recommend her to you.

Krystyna Green