An elderly woman lies dead on the stone floor of St Govan’s Chapel, a tiny medieval church wedged into the Pembrokeshire cliffs. She wears a long white dress.

Flowers are woven through her hair and threaded between her bare toes. A red rose rests in her hands. There’s not a mark on her.

Detective Vicki Blunt has seen plenty of ugly deaths. She has never seen one arranged with such care.

Blodwen Williams was eighty-two. She left her care home in the night and somehow reached the coast two miles away. Nobody saw her go. Nobody can explain how she got there.

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A photo of the scene goes viral. Online, the talk is all of rituals and sacred places. Vicki’s boss calls it nonsense, but Vicki isn’t so sure. No one could have chosen that chapel by accident.

Then a second old lady is found laid out on her own bed, in the wedding dress she wore as a young bride.

As the summer heat builds and the press close in, Vicki is running out of time.

Because whoever is doing this isn’t finished. And the next old lady on their list is already sleeping behind an unlocked door.

My Review

I’ve never read this author, and I know this is Book 4 in the series, but I am instantly attracted to any crime fiction books that mention witchcraft and the supernatural. So I knew this would be just up my street.

The body of an elderly lady is found lying on the floor of St Govan’s Chapel. She is wearing a long white dress and has flowers woven through her hair and toes. She looks like she has been laid out in some kind of ceremony, but there are no marks on her. No stab wounds, no strangulation marks, nothing. It’s a mystery. Did she take her own life? If so, how did she get there and pose herself?

Then a second body is discovered in similar circumstances. She’s been taken from a nursing home to her own home and laid out in her wedding dress, again with flowers surrounding her. Detective Vicki Blunt and her team are stumped. Why would someone do this to a couple of old ladies?

Now I have to admit that because this is part of a series, it took me a while to work out who was who. It’s also a police procedural, and there is a lot of ‘procedure’ which tends to slow down the action. It’s not a fast-paced action thriller if that’s what you are looking for. I did guess the killer quite early on, but it didn’t spoil it for me.

I really enjoyed it though, my favourite character being Ffion Evans, the solitary witch. I think she will be back in the future, as will Vicki’s possible new love interest. I think the series needs a dog as well. Something small and fluffy. It could live with Susan. She needs a canine friend.

Many thanks to @ZooloosBT for inviting me to be part of the #MurderOnGovansHead #blogtour.

About the Author

Nicola Clifford lives in rural Wales with a crazy dog and a fountain pen for company. She has been a banker, traveller, model engineer and prison visitor. An enthusiastic storyteller, Nicola specialises in crafting crime thrillers set in the astonishing countryside of Mid-Wales.

When she isn’t writing, Nicola enjoys photography, gardening and spending quality time with steam engines. Nicola is a past winner of the Wells International Literary Festival Short Story Award, and one of her novels was shortlisted at Hastings Litfest.

Goodreads:
www.goodreads.com

Purchase Links:
www.amazon.co.uk