Despite their common interest in true crime, Laura keeps her distance from Roach, resisting the other woman’s overtures of friendship. Undeterred, Roach learns everything she can about her new colleague, eventually uncovering Laura’s traumatic family history. When Roach realizes that she may have come across her very own true crime story, interest swiftly blooms into a dangerous obsession. It wasn't bad, I liked it enough to get to the end, but I wouldn't suggest it to a friend and for certain it will not be among the books I will read a second time. Alice Slater absolutely NAILS the pacing in this. Not so fast that you lose out on the detail & feeling of suspense, but gripping enough that I binge-read the whole thing in a couple of days. I liked Roach at first, I think it really affected her, the way Laura treated her. It became an obsession to show Laura that they could become friends, that they shared a common interest although at two different polars of the same spectrum. Some of her decisions were extremely ill advised and she took on a different identity, someone more than Roach, more confidence, more outspoken, a person she wanted to be. It didn’t really work for her though, she should’ve given Laura the two-finger sign and moved on. You should always be yourself.

Alice Slater also does such an incredible job at balancing the serious and imperative with the humorous commentary. The book in its entirety is both unsettling, focusing on true crime, real cases, statistics and conversations on Roach's fascination with serial killers, as-well as hilarious and full of bookselling jokes and knowledge. It made for both a deeply humorous yet deeply compelling read! The PERFECT amount of fun! Alice Slater’s compelling debut is a brooding tale of obsession told from the alternating perspectives of two women, Roach and Laura thrown together through their jobs at a struggling bookshop in Walthamstow, an up-and-coming area of London. Both are drawn to true crime but for vastly different reasons. Roach is a veteran fan of true crime, much of her spare time taken up by podcasts, shows and books that delve into the practices and processes of serial killers from Ted Bundy to the Manson family. Laura’s drawn to similar narratives but for her it’s all about the victims, something that’s rooted in a traumatic incident from her childhood. Isolated and socially awkward, Roach outwardly despises the normies all around her but something about Laura makes her yearn for connection, while Laura’s repelled by Roach and her associations with the seamy and the salacious, as well as her shabby, down-at-heel appearance. Then a chance event gives Roach the perfect opportunity to get closer to Laura, in ways Laura could never have imagined.It’s almost as bad as making a cereal pouring the milk first then the cereal but instead of the milk it’s just water. I don’t think I’ve disliked a book more, and felt so passionately against it.

a collaborator of the detective, suddenly disappears and Wigan doesn't care too much about what might have happened to him ... not seeing him, he thinks he will wait a few more days to look for him, even though he knows that the situation could be dangerous ... and then in reality he doesn't even look for the man!There’s no need for a sequel, but I kind of want one. I want to see what happened next and what the future held for our characters. A dark masterpiece of grief and obsession. It will work its way under your skin like a splinter and stay there.” a villain who confesses to a murder because if he doesn't confess the devil will be summoned and the devil will turn his mother into a rat ... hey come on ! The book is set in the 50's and not in the middle ages, who can believe such threats?