Cut To The Bone

Cut To The Bone
Roz Watkins

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Roz and I will be taking part in a live online panel with Jane Bettany and Liz Mistry as part of National Crime Readers Month at 19:30h BST Tuesday 15th June.
"Crafting a Compelling Copper".
For a FREE ticket, follow this eventbrite link.
There will be a 30% discount code on featured books for all attendees.
I look forward to seeing you there!

Cut to the Bone is the third in Roz Watkin's DI Meg Dalton series and I wish I had met her sooner.
The story concerns the disappearance of a young women from a pig abattoir. Taking place over a scorching summer, and set in the Peak District, there is so much I enjoyed about this book.
First of all the central mystery. It is a real, meaty investigation (pardon the pun). There are several viable suspects from the outset, all of whom have their own dark secrets. As the book unfolds, we learn how their lives intertwined, decades before the disappearance of the victim.
All of Watkins books are set in fictionalised versions of places that the author is familiar with. If you visit her website, she lists the real-life town that she bases each book on, something I've never seen before. This gives the book a really strong sense of place, and so the history and legends that she invents for the town, which are integral to the story, are anchored to the real location and feel more authentic.
The themes in the book are disturbing, and Watkins is unafraid to push the boundaries, but it's deftly handled and suitable for all but the most squeamish. The final reveal, when it comes is original and unexpected, but all the clues were there.


But my favourite thing about this book is DI Meg Dalton herself. Aside from occasional forays into the past, the narration is mostly first person from the perspective of Meg. A strong, accomplished detective, she is nevertheless self-critical and her inner monologue is brilliantly witty, and her unspoken thoughts are sometimes gloriously inappropriate. I found myself laughing some times, and feeling slightly guilty at other times, as Meg had naughty thoughts that I might share, but would also never say out loud.
Watkins has built a world around Meg, populated by interesting characters that each share a  relationship with her. Having not read any of the earlier books in the series, I look forward to going back and getting to know them before the next instalment.
This is a very enjoyable #RecommendedRead.