No Bodies (The Kent Fisher Mysteries Book 2) | Robert Crouch | Review #NoBodies

Available in ebook and paperback | Published 19 October 2017

375 pages

|   About the Book   |

 

NO MOTIVE. NO CONNECTION.

Why would environmental health officer, Kent Fisher, show any interest in finding Daphne Witherington, the missing wife of a longstanding family friend?

The police believe she ran off with Colin Miller, a rather dubious caterer, and Kent has problems of his own when a young girl who visits his animal sanctuary is rushed to hospital.

When enquiries into Colin Miller reveal a second missing wife, Kent picks up a trail that went cold over a year ago. But he’s struggling to find a connection between the women, even when he discovers a third missing wife.

Is there a killer on the loose in Downland?

With no motive, no connection and no bodies, Kent may never uncover the truth.

|   My Review   |

Kent Fisher is not your usual crime busting sleuth. He’s not a policeman, nor a private investigator but an environmental health officer for a local Council. Yes. You did read that correctly! I believe that No Bodies follows on from the first book in the series, No Accident. I haven’t read this first book so had no idea of what had gone before. Kent has apparently solved a murder disguised as an accident at work and is somewhat of a local hero. As well as his EHO work, he also runs an animal sanctuary from his home.

A local Councillor, Colonel Witherington asks Kent to look into the disappearance of his wife, Daphne. It is believed by some that she ran off with a local mobile caterer but the Colonel is not convinced. Although initially reluctant to get involved, Kent follows up some leads; his investigations not only bring him into contact with some very unsavoury people but he also discovers that Daphne is not the only woman to have suddenly gone missing from the area.

Solving crime is not part of his normal employment duties but public health is and Kent is kept busy with a case of E Coli, which puts a young child in hospital. When it is suspected that the outbreak could have come from his animal sanctuary he ends up battling to save both his reputation and his animal sanctuary.

It is difficult to categorise this book. It’s not wholly a traditional crime suspense thriller as it gives more than a passing nod to cosy crime. Kent is a very engaging character and easy to like, although I found him rather frustrating at times. I do like some humour in a crime story and No Bodies is sprinkled with humorous asides and clever observations.

Kent may be a likeable chap although I wasn’t so sure about some of his fellow characters. I couldn’t quite work out his relationship with Gemma, his work colleague. I understand that they have history but I was never quite sure what the current situation was between them and whether Gemma could be trusted when Kent was facing his bosses’ wrath (as he so often seemed to be!). His stepmother Niamh came across as a bit of a blabbermouth and an interfering busybody and although I should have been sympathetic as she had just lost her husband, as well as her home, I couldn’t take to her at all.

I did have a couple of very minor issues with No Bodies. There were some details that I felt were unnecessarily over described whilst a little bit more insight now and again into the backstory would have been appreciated. The background given is minimal and there were times when I was completely in the dark about characters and events – one of the downsides of not reading a series from the beginning I guess. However, No Bodies is extremely well written, the author’s experience in the field of environmental health clearly comes through and it’s a very intriguing and entertaining read. I enjoyed it and was as keen to know as Kent what had really happened to Daphne!

My thanks to Caroline of Bits About Books for the review copy and for including me on the blog tour.

|   About the Author   |

Inspired by Miss Marple, Inspector Morse and Columbo, Robert Crouch wanted to write entertaining crime fiction the whole family could enjoy.
At their heart is Kent Fisher, an environmental health officer with more baggage than an airport carousel. Passionate about the environment, justice and fair play, he’s soon embroiled in murder.
Drawing on his experiences as an environmental health officer, Robert has created a new kind of detective who brings a unique and fresh twist to the traditional murder mystery. With complex plots, topical issues and a liberal dash of irreverent humour, the Kent Fisher mysteries offer an alternative to the standard police procedural.
Robert now writes full time and lives on the South Coast of England with his wife and their West Highland White Terrier, Harvey, who appears in the novels as Kent’s sidekick, Columbo.

Author Links:   Website   |   Twitter   |   Facebook   |   Amazon UK   |   Goodreads

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