Tag: kathryn fox

Cold Grave, by Kathryn Fox

‘What is the exact time?’ The doctor demanded. He was about to stop resuscitation and record time of death. Anya did not want to give up. The girl was young. She deserved every chance. So did her family. Especially on a cruise sip. Death was the last thing anyone expected on a family holiday.

Anya Crichton is excited at the opportunity to take a much-needed break with her six year old son.A trip on a luxury cruise ship will give them plenty of time together, with nothing to disturb them. Or so she thinks. But on their first morning, Anya’s ex-husband Martin discovers the body of a teenage girl shoved in a cupboard. There are no police out at sea, and limited expertise, so Anya finds herself offering to help n the investigation. What she finds, though, is much more than just a single death. A pattern soon emerges of sexual assaults, drug use and disappearances. While she seeks to uncover the truth, she must also face facts that she and her family could now be squarely in the sights of the killer, or killers.

Cold Grave continues the adventures of forensic physician Anya Crichton. As with previous offerings the book is a pleasing blend of pace, intrigue and character development. The novelty of the shipboard location adds interest, though providing an uncomfortable glimpse into the darker side of the cruise experience – drunkenness, crime and lack of accountability among them, along with the poor conditions for some staff and the problems of ecological accountability and the quest for profits.
These issues are dealt with in a way which informs whilst still providing a thrilling read.

Gripping.

Cold Grave

Cold Grave, by Kathryn Fox
Macmillan, 2012
ISBN 9781742610344

Available in good bookstores or online from Fishpond.

Without Consent, by Kathryn Fox

Hands dragged him to his feet and forced him, limping, to a white sedan. The door opened from inside and Geoffrey felt a sweaty weight on his crown, shoving him into the back seat. The bag of special belongings followed. The door slammed and he felt safe – like a fish in its bowl. Not safe enough, though, to show his face.

After serving twenty years for the rape and murder a fourteen-year-old girl, Geoffrey Willard has been released. Now a serial rapist is on the prowl and, when two of the victims are later stabbed to death, forensic scientist Anya Chrichton is called on to assist.

When Anya reviews the twenty-year-old case, she begins to doubt whether Willard was the culprit. If she is right, and Willard is innocent, then another killer has been on the loose for twenty years, and one of Anya’s colleagues has made a terrible mistake.

Without Consent is the second mystery featuring Dr Chrichton, an independent forensic physician struggling to make a name for herself and to balance her personal and professional life. Author Kathryn Fox weaves a mystery which takes twists and turns and doesn’t become predictable.

Absorbing.

Without Consent, by Kathryn Fox
Macmillan, 2006

Malicious Intent, by Kathryn Fox

Businness is slow for Anya Crichton, a freelance forensic physician and pathologist. But after her evidence helps to win a high-profile case, demand for her services grows. Perhaps now she can start building up her income to the point where she can afford to fight her ex-husband for custody of their three-year-old son.

When lawyer Dan Brody asks Anya to investigate the apparent accidental death of the teenaged daughter of a local Lebanese businessman, Anya comes across something unexpected. There are links between this death and those of a nun and a doctor. All appear to be suicides, but there are similarities which make Anya question this finding in all three cases.

As she probes deeper into the case, Anya struggles to find a motive for the deaths and, through her own brand of detective work, to find the evidence which will lead her to the killer. What she finds is as unexpected as it is shocking, leaving Anya fighting not just for her own safety, but also that of her colleague, Detective Sargeant Kate Farrer and of Anya’s son, Ben.

Malicious Intent is a gripping offering from first time author Kathryn Fox. Readers will be absorbed from start to finish, before being taken by surprise with the outcome.

Kathryn Fox is currently working on the second Anya Crichton novel. It will be eagerly awaited by those who read the first.

Malicious Intent, by Kathryn Fox
Macmillan, 2004