So after a very dissapointing last book in the series, I was giving this one a go, perhaps out of having loved the series up to then. Other plot points seemed to be mentioned (several times) alluding to some big twist, but again, they went nowhere. The two aspects of the story, the mystery and the “tagged on” personal tragedy, just didn’t fit for me. Peter James is a global bestselling author, best known for writing crime and thriller novels, and the creator of the much-loved Detective Superintendent Roy Grace.

I’m pleased to report that Norman Potting is still delivering his cringe worthy one liners and DI Glenn Branson is as sartorially elegant as ever.I did sort of guess where this storyline was going, but that didn’t detract from the enjoyment of it at all. She has vanished without a trace and the police suspect that Niall has murdered her and the evidence points that way, but, with no body it isn’t enough to charge him. As the main plot is the police procedural Grace's colleagues feature heavily and I enjoyed the natural banter and friendly ribbing between the workmates and getting to know more of their personal life. All the regular characters are there with all the backstories that had additional interest to the series.

They had absolutely nothing to do with the murder mystery and I’m at a loss as to why they were included to be honest.For me Peter seems to waffle on and on about names, back history and police and hospital procedures, filling out a book with unecessary mundane writing that I find myself skim reading. Left You Dead is a well written, perfectly paced police procedural that sees Detective Superintendent Roy Grace and his team investigating the sudden disappearance of Eden Paternoster, a young woman who seems to have vanished without a trace after her husband dropped her off at a local Tesco, and even though the husband seems to be the most likely suspect from the very start something just doesn’t seem to fit, and this case may actually be a lot more complicated than anyone could have imagined. Roy Grace is toiling away as happy as he can be with a supervisor he can’t stand, in the Sussex Police. There are many twists and turns throughout this book, making it another gripping read from Peter James.