First Victim by L.A. Larkin

Publisher's Synopsis

Ex-cop Sally Fairburn has put the world of crime behind her, but when her old boss contacts her about working her first case as a detective, she can’t resist. The high-profile Austin case will be her first opportunity to prove herself.

Retired accountant Joseph Austin has been found dead and his wife, Fiona, in a coma, in their exclusive Peakhurst mansion. It’s a suspected burglary gone wrong, but something about the murder scene doesn’t add up: why is nothing valuable missing?

Nobody seems to know who might want to hurt this sweet old pair, but as Sally investigates, she discovers the wealthy couple weren’t as popular as she first thought. They’d been embroiled in heated arguments with their neighbor, ex-con Salvador Sobral, for months. His is the strongest motive she can find.

But before Sally can pounce, she receives a chilling call. Sobral has been brutally murdered with a thin strip of wire. Racing to find the missing link between the murders, Sally grows ever more desperate to catch the killer—especially when her violent ex-husband returns to his post with the Franklin police department, determined to discredit her.

Fiona Austin holds the answers Sally needs. But will she come round from her coma before the murderer strikes again? Or will the killer lead Sally down a dangerous path that will leave her balancing on a knife edge between life and death?

My Review of First Victim by L.A. Larkin

Sally Fairburn returns for a third cracking outing in what is fast becoming a completely absorbing police procedural / thriller series. She has been called out of retirement from the police force to take up a temporary role as a consulting detective with the Franklin PD. Her recent performances when it comes to solving perplexing crimes as a civilian (Next Girl Missing) has come to the notice of friends in the police.

She’s asked to come in and run a cold case that involves a murder and attempted murder of an old couple, Joseph and Fiona Austin, in their own home by an unknown intruder. Joseph has been left dead and Fiona in an induced coma in hospital from the attack. Although she’s a little daunted by the prospect of resuming her career in the police force, even if on a temporary basis, she’s pleased to be out doing a job that she feels she’s well suited to.

A massive fly in the ointment comes in the form of her ex-husband, an abusive man with a penchant for grooming underage girls. He has returned from Chicago with his young wife and child and appears intent on destroying Sally and their son Paul’s happy life in Franklin.

When Sally is brought in to begin the investigation, the case is termed a cold case. However, it’s actually only a matter of weeks old, still relatively recent with plenty of scope for fresh eyes to unearth new leads. And then it becomes a very hot case again when, first one and then a second person closely related to the original case, is murdered. At this point I was rather surprised that the resources thrown at the case, i.e. Sally and a rookie cop, wasn’t dramatically scaled up. 

This aspect felt like a rather large misstep and severely damaged the credibility of the storyline in my mind. But I was prepared to overlook the shoddy police procedure for the sake of enjoying the broader storyline.

Unlike a lot of other cold case mysteries, there is some real momentum to this story as Sally and her partner, Clarence, hit the ground running. There also appears to be some glaring holes in the original investigation, things that Sally picks up only moments into her investigation. The fast-paced nature of the story is exacerbated by the growing tension that comes from the developing drama of Scott’s return.

Larkin writes with a free-flowing style that draws you into the story with an easy conversational tone. It feels as though you’re invited directly inside Sally’s head as she reveals all of her motivations, fears and emotions as she’s faced with both the intricacies of her job and her complicated personal life. 

One of the more intriguing characters in the story continues to be Richard Foster. He has been part of the ongoing Sally Fairburn story since Next Girl Missing, the first book in the series, a dirty cop who currently sits in prison courtesy of Sally’s investigative work. He’s an enigmatic, powerful character who appears to have a great deal of reach outside the four walls of his cell. He repeatedly makes contact with Sally via text messages, which she ignores…until she doesn’t. I get the feeling that there’s more in store that will make far more use of Foster’s uniquely insidious abilities. 

Once again, I found myself drawn in by the intense drama created by L.A. Larkin. The strong combination of a complex murder mystery and a harrowing domestic abusive relationship really tortured my emotions. Although it’s clearly set in the United States I loved the little Aussie place name references for the local areas around Franklin (made me chuckle). I can’t wait to find out what’s in store for Sally and her friends in coming episodes.