Saturday, June 3, 2017

The Girl on the Bridge by James Hayman




James Hayman's latest book in the McCabe and Savage series is a page-turner. Kerry Hammond is here to tell us why.

The Girl on the Bridge is the 5th book in the McCabe and Savage series written by James Hayman. I was woefully unaware of this author and this series and felt that I needed to rectify that as soon as possible. I’m glad I did, the book kept me turning the pages and the characters have ensured that I will need to start from the beginning of the series to see everything I’ve missed. But first, a little bit about the book.

Hannah Reindel is the girl on the bridge. A brutal gang rape at a fraternity house twelve years ago has left mental scars that she cannot heal. Finally unable to live with the trauma, she jumps to her death from the bridge into icy water one December evening.

Her rapists were never prosecuted and Hannah was viewed as a slut rather than a victim. She never got justice for the crime the college seniors committed. After her death, though, one of the rapists is found brutally murdered on a dirty mattress miles from his home. The timing is a little bit too close for Detectives McCabe and Savage to believe that the murder is unrelated to Hannah’s suicide, but they need to figure out who could be exacting revenge on her behalf, if that really is the reason for the killing. When another victim turns up it’s clear that the college rape is at the heart of the crimes.

I really enjoyed this book. The subject matter, although extremely disturbing, is well done. Rather than cringe at the violence against Hannah, I was able to revel in the perpetrators getting the tables turned on them. The writing is very concise and the dialogue fast-paced and realistic. It was the kind of book where you tell yourself ‘just one more chapter’ until it’s 2 am and you reach the last page. I found McCabe and Savage entertaining and I enjoyed their teamwork and their history together. I came into the series at book 5, but I in no way felt lost or unable to jump in and follow along. 


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