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Content snapshot
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Violence
Very heavy
Serial killings of women described in graphic forensic detail; the killer's methodology is clinical
Language
Some
Some strong language
Sexual Content
Barely any
Mild content
Substance Use
Barely any
Heavy drinking by Carol; her self-destruction is a significant subplot
Emotional Intensity
A lot
The cost of a partnership that defined two people when it ends; a killer targeting the shape of someone's grief
What this book is about
Carol Jordan has resigned from the police after a catastrophic personal loss. Tony Hill is working with a new, less effective team. And a killer is targeting women with a particular profile — women who resemble Carol. McDermid's eighth Wire in the Blood novel is her most focused on the consequences of everything that has happened to the central relationship: Tony alone, Carol self-destructing, and a killer exploiting the gap. The investigation is procedurally solid; the emotional weight of Tony and Carol's separation carries most of the novel.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
eighth of the Wire in the Blood series
very graphic violence against women
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