![Bye Bye Baby](https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1546257278m/43417536.jpg)
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
“Bye Bye Baby” is a murder mystery set in and around London in 2003.
A serial killer in on the loose - the victims, all male, are drugged, and the bodies left emasculated with their lips removed – leaving them with a permanent smile. The bodies also have a single stab wound to the chest, and a particular shade of blue paint daubed on their faces.
DCI Jack Hawksworth is put in charge of the case. Handsome, intelligent and ambitious, Jack also has something to prove after an affair with one of his colleagues during a previous case indirectly resulted in the death of an officer.
At first, the police can’t find a link between the victims apart from the fact that they are of similar ages. But as the investigation continues, details of a terrible crime, committed many years before, comes to light, leading the police to change their perspective of the whole case.
Meanwhile, Jack finds himself falling for a beautiful, but wheelchair bound, woman in his building, causing tension between him and DI Kate Carter, who is in love with him despite being engaged to someone else. This makes for some tense scenes between them, especially as the case heats up and Kate’s feelings seem to get in the way of her judgement.
Most of the story is told in the third person, but the killer’s story is also told in the first person – making for an interesting and suspenseful read. Also, as the story goes on, and the full scale of the decades old crime is revealed, you soon lose any sympathy you might have had for the victims. Despite the gruesome nature of the killings, I found myself rooting for the killer to get away with it!
The story is a fast paced and very enjoyable read, with an exciting climax and a nice little twist at the end. At around 500 pages, it never flags, and I liked the touch of romantic suspense as well. I have several of Fiona McIntosh’s other novels (women’s fiction, I suppose you’d call them), but until I received this book for review, I wasn’t aware of her other talent as a crime writer. I will definitely be checking out the second DCI Jack Hawksworth novel, “Beautiful Death”.
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