A detective thriller with an undercurrent of romance and set in the Cotwolds, Dead in the Water makes for pleasurable reading. Suspend disbelief at the way the local bobby co-operates with private detective and web designer Sarah Edwards when a teacher at her children's school is found dead in the river after the school prom, and that the head teacher calls her in to investigate with no financial discussion - and we know how tight public service budgets are these days. But, putting these niggles aside, it's a good yarn. Was the death the result of foul play or a symptom of how far drugs have become a part of school life? And why has Jack Brennan, with whom Sarah has investigated a case in the past, returned from the States without letting her know? There is suspense, there is danger and there is a satisfying solution. Worth spending time with.
