The Doll's House by M. J. Arlidge

Blurb from Goodreads:

"The Doll's House is the new twisting and terrifying thriller in the Detective Inspector Helen Grace series from M.J. Arlidge.

Arlidge is the author of Eeny Meeny and Pop Goes the Weasel, and has been dubbed 'the new Jo Nesbo'.

A young woman wakes up in a cold, dark cellar, with no idea how she got there or who her kidnapper is. So begins her terrible nightmare.

Nearby, the body of another young woman is discovered buried on a remote beach. But the dead girl was never reported missing - her estranged family having received regular texts from her over the years. Someone has been keeping her alive from beyond the grave.

For Detective Inspector Helen Grace it's chilling evidence that she's searching for a monster who is not just twisted but also clever and resourceful - a predator who's killed before.

And as Helen struggles to understand the killer's motivation, she begins to realize that she's in a desperate race against time . . ."

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This is the third book in a series but the first I have read. I think I was at a slight disadvantage not having read the first two but not so much as it spoiled things for me because I was highly entertained by this book.

The story starts off as it means to go on with a terrifying description of a young woman’s realisation that she has not woken up in her own bed after a night out. It continues with the account of an idyllic family trip to the seaside which quickly descends into terror with the discovery of a young woman’s body buried in the beach. Enter the hero of the book, DI Helen Grace, who you quickly realise has her own demons to deal with which, from the glimpses provided by the author, follow on from the two previous books.

The book is written from several perspectives and this all helps to see and understand things from each of the viewpoints of the main characters including the killer, suspects, victim and police officers. The story is written at a great pace, particularly the ending, which keeps you on your toes throughout and, in my case, my fingers swiping my Kindle screen with enthusiasm and reading deep into the night unable to stop. One thing I didn’t like was the bitching and back-stabbing that went on between police officers but, unfortunately, this is probably quite close to real life.

I really enjoyed this and would recommend to anyone who enjoys a fast-paced, thrill from start to finish but I feel it would be better to read the previous novels first as I feel this would add extra dimensions to the overall story.

Thank you to the publisher, Penguin UK - Michael Joseph, and Netgalley for the uncorrected advance proof copy in return for an honest and unbiased review.