Luke and his team investigate goings-on at GNE, a global news and entertainment company, after a whistleblower asks for their help.

They are shocked by what they uncover but executives refuse to act, even when it becomes apparent there have been deaths that are unaccounted for.

Genre: Crime thriller 
Publisher: Apple Loft Press 

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A serial killer is taking advantage of the culture of secrecy and no one is safe.

My Review

First of all let me say that this is so well written. It’s tight, witty, humorous, perfectly constructed and full of believable characters. If the author were to write a new version of the telephone directory, I’m sure it would still be entertaining.

I wish I’d read the first two books in the series, but if I didn’t know they existed, I wouldn’t have guessed. We know that Luke Sackville was in the police before becoming Head of Ethics at Filchers, but then every main character in a book will have a past of some sort, especially if they are a bit older. We know he was a DCI, and that his wife died in a hit-and-run a year ago.

Luke and his team comprising Helen, Sam, Josh and Maj have been asked to investigate some worrying goings-on at GNE, a global news and entertainment company. With several references to Jimmy Saville and Operation Yewtree, they need to take it seriously. Are some of the celebrities and contestants actually involved in child abuse, procuring children for underage activities, and possibly even murder, after one teenage boy disappears and another is found in a watery grave.

GNE is responsible for a number of successful TV reality shows and the celebrities have a lot of fans. Fans who wouldn’t miss the chance to attend parties where they will get to meet their heroes. So when we first meet teenagers Alfie and Owen, all excited and raring to go, their experience turns out to be very different from what they expected. In fact Alfie is too scared to even talk about what happened and what he saw. But Owen goes again and discovers more than he bargained for.

There are a couple of ‘side stories’ going on as well like the one involving poisonous mushrooms, Sam’s mum’s online romance, and the obvious misogyny in another company. As an ex-copper, Luke leaves no stone unturned. His team loves working for him and often put their heads on the line to support him. Sometimes they walk straight into danger.

This book is brilliant. I literally read it in two sittings. Definitely 5 stars – and I don’t give 5 for crime fiction very often, and while the premise isn’t totally unique, it’s relevant, important and so much better executed than much of what is out there.

Many thanks to @lovebookstours for inviting me to be part of the #FogOfSilence blog tour

About the Author

“Let’s get one thing straight: my name’s Steve. I’ve never been called ‘SJ’ but Steve Richards is a political writer hence the pen name.

“I was born in Bath and have lived at various times on an irregular clockwise circle around England. After university in Manchester my wife and I settled in Macclesfield before moving to Bedfordshire then a few years ago back to Somerset. We now live in Croscombe, a lovely village just outside Wells, with our 2 sprightly cocker spaniels.

“I’ve always loved writing but have only really had the time to indulge myself since taking early retirement. My daughter is a brilliant author (I’m not biased of course) which is both an inspiration and – because she’s so good – a challenge. After a few experiments, and a couple of completed but unsatisfactory and never published novels, I decided to write a crime fiction series as it’s one of the genres I most enjoy.”

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