Assessment:

Plot: Blake’s novel is at once a tightly plotted mystery and a tale unafraid to wander into the realm of family tales and character studies. Though it builds on genres some readers would initially think are opposed, this novel is expertly balanced and will intrigue readers of multiple tropes.

Prose/Style: Protagonist Delia Carter’s curiosity and warm personality, along with her overcoming the trauma of her husband’s heart attack as well as her prior brush with a serial killer from the first novel in the series enhance the realism of the first person narrative.

Originality: Suspense abounds in The Thief Catcher, which immediately pulls the reader into the dual worlds of an island resort where things—and people—seem to mysteriously disappear, and the myriad of issues faced by a family reuniting after difficult circumstances.

Character Development/Execution: The curious nature of protagonist Delia Carter is balanced by her trying, and not trying, to come to terms with everything that happened in the first book within the series. A small but memorable supporting cast of fellow vacationers and resort staff flesh out the limited setting.

Date Submitted: August 11, 2021