Killing A Stranger

Naomi Blake #4

by Jane A. Adams

The new Naomi Blake crime novel A teenage boy is found drowned in a canal, just hours after telling his mother that he has killed a man. Rob Beresford was a schoolfriend of Patrick?s; in their shock and grief, Patrick and his mates turn for help to Naomi. The dead man is identified as Adam Hensel: in his mid-forties, from the other side of town. There seems to have been no link between the two, and Rob was a model student, who had never been in trouble with the police. His mother, Clara, is devastated, adamant that Rob could not have killed anyone ? despite evidence to the contrary ? and his friends rally around her. Naomi is drawn into the case, by her friendship with Patrick, and because the detective handling it is her boyfriend, Alec. Then a surprising alliance is formed, between Clara and Ernst Hensel, father of the dead man. It becomes clear to Naomi that there is a complex, tragic story behind the bald facts of the case, one that has its roots in the past?

Genres: Mystery

218 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2006

About the author

Some of her early books were published under the name of Jane Adams. This should not be confused with this Jane Adams who is a different author.

Reviews

[Linden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rob comes home covered in blood, telling his mom Clara that he killed someone. Then he vanishes, until he turns up dead. Clara was a single mom, and unbeknownst to her Rob had been trying to find out who his father was. Disturbing secrets and a manipulative teen seem to hold the solution. A well-written mystery, but unfortunately not much about Naomi and her service dog Napoleon.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm really enjoying this series but I think it should be called" A Naomi Blake, Alec Friedman,Harry and Patrick Jones mystery. ". It takes a village.

[scherzo♫ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good, except for limp ending.

[Julie Powell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was another good British crime mystery where a teenager drowns after confessing he's killed a man.

There were some twists and turns in this story that created more mystery. I liked the main characters but not necessarily the rest, though all suited the plot.

Well-written and fast-paced, it was engaging from the start.

Worth a look.

[Wendy Hearder-moan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish I had been able to find the earlier books in this series—I don’t like starting in mid-stream. There were some details of the back story that I wanted to know more about. That said, however, it does work OK as a stand-alone. A sad story, though.