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Maud O’Connor Mysteries #2
The Last Days of Kira Mullan
From international bestselling master of suspense Nicci French comes a chilling new psychological thriller about a woman determined to get justice for a murder no one else believes happened.
Nancy North is ready to put her life back together. After suffering a psychotic break that ruined friendships, stalled her fledgling restaurant, and forced her to move out of her comfortable flat, she’ll do anything to get back to normal. She and her partner Felix—who has been a saint through her recent troubles—move into a new flat for a fresh start.
Nancy is taking her pills, seeing her therapist, and avoiding unnecessary stress. She’s doing absolutely everything right, but something is still very, very wrong. On the first day in the new flat, she hears them again; the mysterious voices that triggered her first episode. It could just be the unfamiliar sounds of water in the pipes, or the screaming baby across the hall, but deep down she knows something more sinister is going on. Her fears are confirmed when the young woman in the downstairs flat, Kira, is found dead. Felix, her neighbors, and even the police insist it’s a tragic suicide, but the pieces aren’t adding up for Nancy. Can she trust her own instincts, or is it all in her head?
Meanwhile, Detective Inspector Maud O’Connor has misgivings about her colleagues’ investigation of Kira’s death. The boys club at the top seems intent on closing the case as quickly as possible, especially since the only person who thinks it could be anything other than suicide is known to be unreliable. But Maud knows what it’s like to be dismissed as an overemotional woman and isn’t so quick to discount Nancy’s claims. As tensions reach an explosive breaking point, the line between fact and delusion becomes dangerously blurred, but Maud will stop at nothing to ensure that the truth comes to light.
Nancy North is ready to put her life back together. After suffering a psychotic break that ruined friendships, stalled her fledgling restaurant, and forced her to move out of her comfortable flat, she’ll do anything to get back to normal. She and her partner Felix—who has been a saint through her recent troubles—move into a new flat for a fresh start.
Nancy is taking her pills, seeing her therapist, and avoiding unnecessary stress. She’s doing absolutely everything right, but something is still very, very wrong. On the first day in the new flat, she hears them again; the mysterious voices that triggered her first episode. It could just be the unfamiliar sounds of water in the pipes, or the screaming baby across the hall, but deep down she knows something more sinister is going on. Her fears are confirmed when the young woman in the downstairs flat, Kira, is found dead. Felix, her neighbors, and even the police insist it’s a tragic suicide, but the pieces aren’t adding up for Nancy. Can she trust her own instincts, or is it all in her head?
Meanwhile, Detective Inspector Maud O’Connor has misgivings about her colleagues’ investigation of Kira’s death. The boys club at the top seems intent on closing the case as quickly as possible, especially since the only person who thinks it could be anything other than suicide is known to be unreliable. But Maud knows what it’s like to be dismissed as an overemotional woman and isn’t so quick to discount Nancy’s claims. As tensions reach an explosive breaking point, the line between fact and delusion becomes dangerously blurred, but Maud will stop at nothing to ensure that the truth comes to light.
456 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 2, 2024
686 people are currently reading
18232 people want to read
About the author
Nicci French
80 books3,636 followersNote: (Nicci Gerrard and Sean French also write separately.)
Nicci Gerrard was born in June 1958 in Worcestershire. After graduating with a first class honours degree in English Literature from Oxford University, she began her first job, working with emotionally disturbed children in Sheffield. In that same year she married journalist Colin Hughes.
In the early eighties she taught English Literature in Sheffield, London and Los Angeles, but moved into publishing in 1985 with the launch of Women's Review, a magazine for women on art, literature and female issues.
In 1987 Nicci had a son, Edgar, followed by a daughter, Anna, in 1988, but a year later her marriage to Colin Hughes broke down.
In 1989 she became acting literary editor at the New Statesman, before moving to the Observer, where she was deputy literary editor for five years, and then a feature writer and executive editor.
It was while she was at the New Statesman that she met Sean French.
Sean French was born in May 1959 in Bristol, to a British father and Swedish mother. He too studied English Literature at Oxford University at the same time as Nicci, also graduating with a first class degree, but their paths didn't cross until 1990. In 1981 he won Vogue magazine's Writing Talent Contest, and from 1981 to 1986 he was their theatre critic. During that time he also worked at the Sunday Times as deputy literary editor and television critic, and was the film critic for Marie Claire and deputy editor of New Society.
Sean and Nicci were married in Hackney in October 1990. Their daughters, Hadley and Molly, were born in 1991 and 1993.
By the mid-nineties Sean had had two novels published, The Imaginary Monkey and The Dreamer of Dreams, as well as numerous non-fiction books, including biographies of Jane Fonda and Brigitte Bardot.
In 1995 Nicci and Sean began work on their first joint novel and adopted the pseudonym of Nicci French. The Memory Game was published to great acclaim in 1997 followed by The Safe House (1998), Killing Me Softly (1999), Beneath the Skin (2000), The Red Room (2001), Land of the Living (2002), Secret Smile (2003), Catch Me When I Fall (2005), Losing You (2006) and Until It's Over (2008). Their latest novel together is What To Do When Someone Dies (2009).
Nicci and Sean also continue to write separately. Nicci still works as a journalist for the Observer, covering high-profile trials including those of Fred and Rose West, and Ian Huntley and Maxine Carr. Novels include Things We Knew Were True (2003), Solace (2005) and The Moment You Were Gone (2007). Sean's last novel is Start From Here (2004).
Nicci Gerrard was born in June 1958 in Worcestershire. After graduating with a first class honours degree in English Literature from Oxford University, she began her first job, working with emotionally disturbed children in Sheffield. In that same year she married journalist Colin Hughes.
In the early eighties she taught English Literature in Sheffield, London and Los Angeles, but moved into publishing in 1985 with the launch of Women's Review, a magazine for women on art, literature and female issues.
In 1987 Nicci had a son, Edgar, followed by a daughter, Anna, in 1988, but a year later her marriage to Colin Hughes broke down.
In 1989 she became acting literary editor at the New Statesman, before moving to the Observer, where she was deputy literary editor for five years, and then a feature writer and executive editor.
It was while she was at the New Statesman that she met Sean French.
Sean French was born in May 1959 in Bristol, to a British father and Swedish mother. He too studied English Literature at Oxford University at the same time as Nicci, also graduating with a first class degree, but their paths didn't cross until 1990. In 1981 he won Vogue magazine's Writing Talent Contest, and from 1981 to 1986 he was their theatre critic. During that time he also worked at the Sunday Times as deputy literary editor and television critic, and was the film critic for Marie Claire and deputy editor of New Society.
Sean and Nicci were married in Hackney in October 1990. Their daughters, Hadley and Molly, were born in 1991 and 1993.
By the mid-nineties Sean had had two novels published, The Imaginary Monkey and The Dreamer of Dreams, as well as numerous non-fiction books, including biographies of Jane Fonda and Brigitte Bardot.
In 1995 Nicci and Sean began work on their first joint novel and adopted the pseudonym of Nicci French. The Memory Game was published to great acclaim in 1997 followed by The Safe House (1998), Killing Me Softly (1999), Beneath the Skin (2000), The Red Room (2001), Land of the Living (2002), Secret Smile (2003), Catch Me When I Fall (2005), Losing You (2006) and Until It's Over (2008). Their latest novel together is What To Do When Someone Dies (2009).
Nicci and Sean also continue to write separately. Nicci still works as a journalist for the Observer, covering high-profile trials including those of Fred and Rose West, and Ian Huntley and Maxine Carr. Novels include Things We Knew Were True (2003), Solace (2005) and The Moment You Were Gone (2007). Sean's last novel is Start From Here (2004).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 721 reviews
March 5, 2025
The Last Days of Kira Mullan is the second book in the Maud O’Connor series but worked very well as a stand-alone novel for me. In this book Nancy North has suffered a psychotic break and is trying to put her life back together. She hears noises at night and is convinced that something is very wrong. When Kira, a young woman in the downstairs flat is found dead, her boyfriend and neighbors believe the young woman committed suicide, but Nancy believes she was murdered. Detective Inspector Maude O'Connor is now on the case and is not too willing to dismiss Nancy or her concerns. Maude is determined to get to the truth and is relentless in her pursuit of justice.
There were times in the beginning of this book where I wasn't quite sure how I felt about it. I went in stages of enjoying it, then not enjoying it, but then around the 30% mark, I was all in and wanted answers myself. I am a big fan of tension in books, and I enjoyed how the tension flowed throughout this book from those who doubted Nancy, from those who wanted Maude to hurry her investigation along, from the suspects being interrogated, from the boy's club and how they treated Maude, and from the circumstances of the victim's death.
I also appreciated how the author showed how dismissive people can be to individuals who have mental illness. How what they share can be swept under the rug or shrugged off as symptoms of their mental illness and not the truth of what they experienced or saw. I appreciated how Maude listened to Nancy and took what she said seriously.
This was a nice police procedural/thriller which kept me guessing and won me over despite my initial misgivings. The Last Days of Kira Mullan turned into a gripping, tense, and thrilling book. I enjoyed Maude and look forward to reading more books in this series.
Thank you to William Morrow | William Morrow Paperbacks NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
Read more of my reviews at www.openbookposts.com 📖
There were times in the beginning of this book where I wasn't quite sure how I felt about it. I went in stages of enjoying it, then not enjoying it, but then around the 30% mark, I was all in and wanted answers myself. I am a big fan of tension in books, and I enjoyed how the tension flowed throughout this book from those who doubted Nancy, from those who wanted Maude to hurry her investigation along, from the suspects being interrogated, from the boy's club and how they treated Maude, and from the circumstances of the victim's death.
I also appreciated how the author showed how dismissive people can be to individuals who have mental illness. How what they share can be swept under the rug or shrugged off as symptoms of their mental illness and not the truth of what they experienced or saw. I appreciated how Maude listened to Nancy and took what she said seriously.
This was a nice police procedural/thriller which kept me guessing and won me over despite my initial misgivings. The Last Days of Kira Mullan turned into a gripping, tense, and thrilling book. I enjoyed Maude and look forward to reading more books in this series.
Thank you to William Morrow | William Morrow Paperbacks NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
Read more of my reviews at www.openbookposts.com 📖
March 16, 2025
As soon as I heard that the suspense-writing duo known as Nicci French had a new novel coming out, I jumped at the chance to read and review it. I loved their first book featuring the tough, brilliant main character of Detective Inspector Maud O’Connor, so I knew that The Last Days of Kira Mullan likely couldn’t go wrong. Boy, was I right. A tale of psychological suspense and light crime fiction that was filled with deep, dark foreboding and unbridled dread, I got sucked into a premise that presented a complex whodunnit that kept me guessing until the very end.
While the case itself was thoroughly intriguing, the domestic suspense bit of the novel was easily the best piece to the puzzle. Featuring a root-for-able protagonist and her master manipulator foil, the suspicion and paranoia that flowed from the pages was simply sublime. Equal parts compelling and depressing, the focus on the mental health system was eye-opening to be sure. At the same time, it was treated delicately and with respect, and felt both true-to-life and incisive as the spotlight shined on its many apparent flaws.
The storyline itself was neither a slow burn nor fast-paced, but felt perfectly plotted as it quickly picked up steam. With a very B.A. Paris vibe, I got sucked in as a controlling gaslighter and his volley of friends turned a recovering woman inside out and her world upside down. As always, these authors’ well-developed characters brought it all vividly to life. Told through dual POVs, there was a whole host of suspicious individuals who each received my side-eye in turn. It was, though, how disturbingly realistic they and the events all were that made this book sing.
All said and done, this second book in a series—which would work just as well as a standalone novel—was a definite home run. Tense, twisty, and profoundly thought-provoking, I was beyond wrapped up in the story from the first gripping chapter until the final soul-satisfying last page. So if you have yet to read something by this pair of writers, take this as your siren’s song to pick this book up today. After all, if you’re looking for an unhinged climax, diabolical villains, or unguessable reveals, you’ve found it right here in this unputdownable novel. Rating of 4.5 stars.
SYNOPSIS:
Nancy North is ready to put her life back together. After suffering a psychotic break that ruined friendships, stalled her fledgling restaurant, and forced her to move out of her comfortable flat, she’ll do anything to get back to normal. She and her partner Felix—who has been a saint through her recent troubles—move into a new flat for a fresh start.
Nancy is taking her pills, seeing her therapist, and avoiding unnecessary stress. She’s doing absolutely everything right, but something is still very, very wrong. On the first day in the new flat, she hears them again; the mysterious voices that triggered her first episode. It could just be the unfamiliar sounds of water in the pipes, or the screaming baby across the hall, but deep down she knows something more sinister is going on. Her fears are confirmed when the young woman in the downstairs flat, Kira, is found dead. Felix, her neighbors, and even the police insist it’s a tragic suicide, but the pieces aren’t adding up for Nancy. Can she trust her own instincts, or is it all in her head?
Meanwhile, Detective Inspector Maud O’Connor has misgivings about her colleagues’ investigation of Kira’s death. The boys club at the top seems intent on closing the case as quickly as possible, especially since the only person who thinks it could be anything other than suicide is known to be unreliable. But Maud knows what it’s like to be dismissed as an overemotional woman and isn’t so quick to discount Nancy’s claims. As tensions reach an explosive breaking point, the line between fact and delusion becomes dangerously blurred, but Maud will stop at nothing to ensure that the truth comes to light.
Thank you to Nicci French and William Morrow Books for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.
PUB DATE: March 4, 2025
Content warning: mental health issues, institutionalization, sexual assault, gaslighting, controlling relationship, harassment, stalking, arson, mention of: infidelity
While the case itself was thoroughly intriguing, the domestic suspense bit of the novel was easily the best piece to the puzzle. Featuring a root-for-able protagonist and her master manipulator foil, the suspicion and paranoia that flowed from the pages was simply sublime. Equal parts compelling and depressing, the focus on the mental health system was eye-opening to be sure. At the same time, it was treated delicately and with respect, and felt both true-to-life and incisive as the spotlight shined on its many apparent flaws.
The storyline itself was neither a slow burn nor fast-paced, but felt perfectly plotted as it quickly picked up steam. With a very B.A. Paris vibe, I got sucked in as a controlling gaslighter and his volley of friends turned a recovering woman inside out and her world upside down. As always, these authors’ well-developed characters brought it all vividly to life. Told through dual POVs, there was a whole host of suspicious individuals who each received my side-eye in turn. It was, though, how disturbingly realistic they and the events all were that made this book sing.
All said and done, this second book in a series—which would work just as well as a standalone novel—was a definite home run. Tense, twisty, and profoundly thought-provoking, I was beyond wrapped up in the story from the first gripping chapter until the final soul-satisfying last page. So if you have yet to read something by this pair of writers, take this as your siren’s song to pick this book up today. After all, if you’re looking for an unhinged climax, diabolical villains, or unguessable reveals, you’ve found it right here in this unputdownable novel. Rating of 4.5 stars.
SYNOPSIS:
Nancy North is ready to put her life back together. After suffering a psychotic break that ruined friendships, stalled her fledgling restaurant, and forced her to move out of her comfortable flat, she’ll do anything to get back to normal. She and her partner Felix—who has been a saint through her recent troubles—move into a new flat for a fresh start.
Nancy is taking her pills, seeing her therapist, and avoiding unnecessary stress. She’s doing absolutely everything right, but something is still very, very wrong. On the first day in the new flat, she hears them again; the mysterious voices that triggered her first episode. It could just be the unfamiliar sounds of water in the pipes, or the screaming baby across the hall, but deep down she knows something more sinister is going on. Her fears are confirmed when the young woman in the downstairs flat, Kira, is found dead. Felix, her neighbors, and even the police insist it’s a tragic suicide, but the pieces aren’t adding up for Nancy. Can she trust her own instincts, or is it all in her head?
Meanwhile, Detective Inspector Maud O’Connor has misgivings about her colleagues’ investigation of Kira’s death. The boys club at the top seems intent on closing the case as quickly as possible, especially since the only person who thinks it could be anything other than suicide is known to be unreliable. But Maud knows what it’s like to be dismissed as an overemotional woman and isn’t so quick to discount Nancy’s claims. As tensions reach an explosive breaking point, the line between fact and delusion becomes dangerously blurred, but Maud will stop at nothing to ensure that the truth comes to light.
Thank you to Nicci French and William Morrow Books for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.
PUB DATE: March 4, 2025
Content warning: mental health issues, institutionalization, sexual assault, gaslighting, controlling relationship, harassment, stalking, arson, mention of: infidelity
June 17, 2025
Firstly, I enjoyed the first book of the Maud O'Connor series: "Has Anyone Seen Charlotte Salter?" and I honestly jumped at the chance to read another Maud O'Connor book without hesitation because I loved the tough, brilliant, smart, observant, self-reliant, capable detective inspector who catches the details no one sees and helps women who have been forgotten or neglected.
This time, Maud's part intertwines with an unreliable woman, Nancy North, who is going through trauma, having been hospitalized twice and being watched like a hawk by her extra-protective boyfriend Felix and a group of her neighbors. These neighbors leave a bad taste in your mouth with their unlikable attitudes and their insistence that Nancy is unhinged and that anything she says can't be taken seriously.
Interestingly, Nancy insists she's the last person who saw a presumed suicide victim alive, a woman who lived in the same apartment building. She claims the victim wanted her help before she died because she was scared of someone. The trouble with this conviction is that when Nancy saw Kira Mullan on the street the day she died, Nancy was also in the middle of an episode, feeling like she was walking on air and hearing voices, which raises more questions about her statement.
From the beginning of the book, we see how Nancy struggles with her mental illness, taking her pills, seeing her psychiatrist, doing everything to cure herself. Her boyfriend's suffocating protectiveness, which pushes him to tell everyone about her episodes with exaggeration, raises red flags. Unfortunately, all the inhabitants of the apartment building - including a middle-aged couple, a gym trainer who insists she tried to seduce him, the married couple with a nonstop crying kid, and the young man who spends his time playing video games - think she should be put in a cage like a wild animal, having no intention of helping her.
Until their paths cross with Maud, who is trying to move on with her life, attending law classes and meeting a charismatic stranger, having no idea Nancy's stopping at the station to talk to someone about reopening Kira's case. When they finally meet, you feel a little relieved about Nancy's well-being, as she has finally found a supporter who can believe in her.
From the beginning, we know Kira Mullan didn't hang herself; somebody killed her. As the tension builds about Nancy's struggle to make somebody hear her voice while everyone in her circle tries to shut her up, you may start guessing that anyone in this apartment could be a killer, having secret agendas as they keep blaming Nancy as unreliable when it's the other way around!
Overall: This is one of the most tense readings I've had lately. The mental health awareness is perfectly represented. The gaslighting, paranoia, and abuse are sensitive subjects that the author perfectly approached as well. I couldn't put it down even though it truly made me nervous. I truly loved Maud O'Connor and her straightforward approach to interrogation, her sharpened senses, her ability to see the details and piece together puzzles. I'm definitely looking forward to reading more of her adventures if one of my favorite writer duos gives life to them.
This one is even more brilliant than the first book, which also highly deserved my full obsession. Five manipulative stars!
Many thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for sharing this unputdownable masterpiece's digital reviewer copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.
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This time, Maud's part intertwines with an unreliable woman, Nancy North, who is going through trauma, having been hospitalized twice and being watched like a hawk by her extra-protective boyfriend Felix and a group of her neighbors. These neighbors leave a bad taste in your mouth with their unlikable attitudes and their insistence that Nancy is unhinged and that anything she says can't be taken seriously.
Interestingly, Nancy insists she's the last person who saw a presumed suicide victim alive, a woman who lived in the same apartment building. She claims the victim wanted her help before she died because she was scared of someone. The trouble with this conviction is that when Nancy saw Kira Mullan on the street the day she died, Nancy was also in the middle of an episode, feeling like she was walking on air and hearing voices, which raises more questions about her statement.
From the beginning of the book, we see how Nancy struggles with her mental illness, taking her pills, seeing her psychiatrist, doing everything to cure herself. Her boyfriend's suffocating protectiveness, which pushes him to tell everyone about her episodes with exaggeration, raises red flags. Unfortunately, all the inhabitants of the apartment building - including a middle-aged couple, a gym trainer who insists she tried to seduce him, the married couple with a nonstop crying kid, and the young man who spends his time playing video games - think she should be put in a cage like a wild animal, having no intention of helping her.
Until their paths cross with Maud, who is trying to move on with her life, attending law classes and meeting a charismatic stranger, having no idea Nancy's stopping at the station to talk to someone about reopening Kira's case. When they finally meet, you feel a little relieved about Nancy's well-being, as she has finally found a supporter who can believe in her.
From the beginning, we know Kira Mullan didn't hang herself; somebody killed her. As the tension builds about Nancy's struggle to make somebody hear her voice while everyone in her circle tries to shut her up, you may start guessing that anyone in this apartment could be a killer, having secret agendas as they keep blaming Nancy as unreliable when it's the other way around!
Overall: This is one of the most tense readings I've had lately. The mental health awareness is perfectly represented. The gaslighting, paranoia, and abuse are sensitive subjects that the author perfectly approached as well. I couldn't put it down even though it truly made me nervous. I truly loved Maud O'Connor and her straightforward approach to interrogation, her sharpened senses, her ability to see the details and piece together puzzles. I'm definitely looking forward to reading more of her adventures if one of my favorite writer duos gives life to them.
This one is even more brilliant than the first book, which also highly deserved my full obsession. Five manipulative stars!
Many thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for sharing this unputdownable masterpiece's digital reviewer copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.
medium blog
January 31, 2025
EXCERPT: . . . she was happy, if happiness means joyful immersion in a task. She was also, she realised now when it was too late, scared that it was too good to be true and couldn't last.
It couldn't.
Four months ago, on a Sunday in the hot middle of July when she was making raspberry sorbet, a voice had whispered to her, 'It's coming.'
Nancy had looked around. The kitchen was empty.
She pushed an escaped lock of hair back inside her sap and returned to her task.
'It's coming,' said the voice again, nasty, menacing, making her heart beat faster.
There was still no one there. Perhaps she had been talking to herself. She often talked to herself, giving herself instructions, admonitions.
'Get out of the bath, Nancy North,' she would say, or she would tell herself where she was putting her keys so that she wouldn't forget them. She talked in her sleep as well. Felix would gently shake her awake and tell her she had been shouting out, asking for help.
That sinister voice was the last thing she remembered.
ABOUT 'THE LAST DAYS OF KIRA MULLAN': She thinks it was murder.
But if she can’t trust herself, can anyone else?
Nancy North and her boyfriend Felix are making the move across London to Harlesden. A new flat, a new area, a new start. Because while Nancy is fine now, she wasn’t fine before. But settling into the new flat and meeting the new neighbours isn’t helped by Felix’s hovering concern. She is all right. She is sticking to her breathing exercises and doctor-prescribed help.
So, when their new neighbour Kira Mullan is found dead by suicide, Felix is understandably worried about Nancy’s frame of mind. But Nancy saw Kira the day before she died and she didn’t strike her as someone who was suicidal – she was upset and angry, yes, but was she upset and angry enough to take her own life?
Nancy is the only one convinced that there’s more to Kira’s death than has been discovered. But all the police and the neighbours see is a vulnerable woman who isn’t sure of what she saw, and might even be imagining things . . .
Is Nancy imagining things, or are there more questions that should be asked about the last days of Kira Mullan?
MY THOUGHTS: A gripping psychological thriller.
Nancy only meets Kira briefly, but that meeting has a great impact on Nancy via what happens to her as a result of that meeting.
It is the characters who are the strength in this book. Nancy's seeming fragility - the way even she doubts herself at times - is crushing. She had me doubting her! I was unsettled by the way everyone conspired against her - her boyfriend, her neighbors and friends, the police, and the medical team who were supposed to be treating her. Her treatment by so-called professionals made me angry, yet I am only too aware that this actually happens.
The shining light in The Last Days of Kira Mullan is Maud O'Connor, the DI who featured in Has Anyone Seen Charlotte Salter? Maud both loves and is disillusioned by her role in the police force, and is studying law (quite why law, I am unsure) part-time. I loved the way Maud listened to Nancy and didn't dismiss her out-of-hand, as everyone else did. I loved Maud's tenacious character; the way, once she found a discrepancy in the investigation, she kept going against all opposition, following the leads.
Although The Last Days of Kira Mullan didn't flow quite as well as Charlotte Salter, I was gripped by the circumstances and entirely happy with the resolution.
⭐⭐⭐⭐.4
#TheLastDaysofKiraMullan #NetGalley
MEET THE AUTHORS: Nicci French is the pseudonym of English husband-and-wife team Nicci Gerrard (born 10 June 1958) and Sean French (born 28 May 1959), who write psychological thrillers together.
DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Simon & Schuster, Australia, via NetGalley for providing a digital ARC of The Last Days of Kira Mullans by Nicci French for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.
https://sandysbookaday.wordpress.com/...
It couldn't.
Four months ago, on a Sunday in the hot middle of July when she was making raspberry sorbet, a voice had whispered to her, 'It's coming.'
Nancy had looked around. The kitchen was empty.
She pushed an escaped lock of hair back inside her sap and returned to her task.
'It's coming,' said the voice again, nasty, menacing, making her heart beat faster.
There was still no one there. Perhaps she had been talking to herself. She often talked to herself, giving herself instructions, admonitions.
'Get out of the bath, Nancy North,' she would say, or she would tell herself where she was putting her keys so that she wouldn't forget them. She talked in her sleep as well. Felix would gently shake her awake and tell her she had been shouting out, asking for help.
That sinister voice was the last thing she remembered.
ABOUT 'THE LAST DAYS OF KIRA MULLAN': She thinks it was murder.
But if she can’t trust herself, can anyone else?
Nancy North and her boyfriend Felix are making the move across London to Harlesden. A new flat, a new area, a new start. Because while Nancy is fine now, she wasn’t fine before. But settling into the new flat and meeting the new neighbours isn’t helped by Felix’s hovering concern. She is all right. She is sticking to her breathing exercises and doctor-prescribed help.
So, when their new neighbour Kira Mullan is found dead by suicide, Felix is understandably worried about Nancy’s frame of mind. But Nancy saw Kira the day before she died and she didn’t strike her as someone who was suicidal – she was upset and angry, yes, but was she upset and angry enough to take her own life?
Nancy is the only one convinced that there’s more to Kira’s death than has been discovered. But all the police and the neighbours see is a vulnerable woman who isn’t sure of what she saw, and might even be imagining things . . .
Is Nancy imagining things, or are there more questions that should be asked about the last days of Kira Mullan?
MY THOUGHTS: A gripping psychological thriller.
Nancy only meets Kira briefly, but that meeting has a great impact on Nancy via what happens to her as a result of that meeting.
It is the characters who are the strength in this book. Nancy's seeming fragility - the way even she doubts herself at times - is crushing. She had me doubting her! I was unsettled by the way everyone conspired against her - her boyfriend, her neighbors and friends, the police, and the medical team who were supposed to be treating her. Her treatment by so-called professionals made me angry, yet I am only too aware that this actually happens.
The shining light in The Last Days of Kira Mullan is Maud O'Connor, the DI who featured in Has Anyone Seen Charlotte Salter? Maud both loves and is disillusioned by her role in the police force, and is studying law (quite why law, I am unsure) part-time. I loved the way Maud listened to Nancy and didn't dismiss her out-of-hand, as everyone else did. I loved Maud's tenacious character; the way, once she found a discrepancy in the investigation, she kept going against all opposition, following the leads.
Although The Last Days of Kira Mullan didn't flow quite as well as Charlotte Salter, I was gripped by the circumstances and entirely happy with the resolution.
⭐⭐⭐⭐.4
#TheLastDaysofKiraMullan #NetGalley
MEET THE AUTHORS: Nicci French is the pseudonym of English husband-and-wife team Nicci Gerrard (born 10 June 1958) and Sean French (born 28 May 1959), who write psychological thrillers together.
DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Simon & Schuster, Australia, via NetGalley for providing a digital ARC of The Last Days of Kira Mullans by Nicci French for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.
https://sandysbookaday.wordpress.com/...
February 25, 2025
Wow wow wow. Nicci French has hit this right out of the park. From the very first page, its go go go!
Maud returns from the first book, this time she sort of inherits a colleague's case and has to fish out which of the occupants in an apartment building is the killer when a woman is found hanging in her flat. What was thought to be a suicide is starting to look very suspect.
The only person who seems to think it was murder has a history of a mental break down and her concerns are being dismissed. The other residents seem to be convinced she is losing her mind! Boyfriend isn't helping matters eithers
solid 4.5 stars!!!!
Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for this ARC! Beyond grateful and humbled
"THE LAST DAYS OF KIRA MULLEN" out MARCH 4th 2025
P.S; please bring Maud back again, I love her wit and sass!!!! She clearly loves what she does, and is such a badass!!!!!
Maud returns from the first book, this time she sort of inherits a colleague's case and has to fish out which of the occupants in an apartment building is the killer when a woman is found hanging in her flat. What was thought to be a suicide is starting to look very suspect.
The only person who seems to think it was murder has a history of a mental break down and her concerns are being dismissed. The other residents seem to be convinced she is losing her mind! Boyfriend isn't helping matters eithers
solid 4.5 stars!!!!
Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for this ARC! Beyond grateful and humbled
"THE LAST DAYS OF KIRA MULLEN" out MARCH 4th 2025
P.S; please bring Maud back again, I love her wit and sass!!!! She clearly loves what she does, and is such a badass!!!!!
March 11, 2025
Nancy North is taking her medication after a terrible mental breakdown. With her husband, Felix, they have moved into their new flat. After moving in, she has visions and hears voices from a woman in distress. Then, they find a woman, Kira Mullan from downstairs, dead from a hanging. It’s ruled a suicide. However, something just doesn’t sit right with Nancy.
At first, I was really into the storyline. I, too, wanted to find out what happened to Kira Mullan. I was definitely intrigued. Unfortunately, as the story went on, I realized most of the plot focuses on GASLIGHTING. It really irked me! I wanted to get past that. The gaslighting was making me furious. On top of that, I think the story was a bit too long.
Overall, it was an okay read. Please check out other reviews as people have really enjoyed this one.
3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Massive trigger warning of gaslighting. Suicide. Mental breakdowns
At first, I was really into the storyline. I, too, wanted to find out what happened to Kira Mullan. I was definitely intrigued. Unfortunately, as the story went on, I realized most of the plot focuses on GASLIGHTING. It really irked me! I wanted to get past that. The gaslighting was making me furious. On top of that, I think the story was a bit too long.
Overall, it was an okay read. Please check out other reviews as people have really enjoyed this one.
3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Massive trigger warning of gaslighting. Suicide. Mental breakdowns
May 26, 2025
*Consequences*
This is the second book in the Di Maud O’Connor series. While we delve a little deeper into Di Maud O’Connor’s character, the main focus shifts to Nancy North. Seeking a fresh start after a psychotic breakdown, Nancy moves home to a flat in Harlesden with her boyfriend Felix. However, her newfound fresh start is short-lived as she feels increasingly confined by her boyfriend, Felix. His constant concern for her mental state and his willingness to share her struggles with the building residents leave Nancy feeling isolated and vulnerable.
Despite the appalling state of the flat, Nancy continues to convince herself that Felix has made sacrifices for her. But fate intervenes when a young girl’s body is discovered in the building. While the police dismiss the case as an open and shut matter, Nancy remains steadfast in her belief that there’s more to it. Her assumptions are met with ridicule and dismissal from the police, who dismiss her concerns due to her mental state. Despite this, Maud O’Connor senses a deeper truth and decides to investigate, even though it’s not her case.
As Nancy faces opposition from the other tenants, she is forced to endure being sectioned again. However, upon her release, she emerges with newfound determination. Despite her unreliable nature, Maud O’Connor decides to investigate the case and give Nancy the benefit of doubt.
As the investigation unfolds, we gain insights into Felix’s character, revealing his biases and lack of sensitivity. Despite the skepticism from others who dismiss Nancy as wasting police time, Maud O’Connor perseveres in her pursuit of the truth. However, her efforts are thwarted when someone else takes credit for her findings.
The novel concludes with a sense of foreboding, as both Maud O’Connor and Nancy find themselves in danger.
While I would have appreciated more reactions from the other tenants to the investigation’s outcome and additional information about an incident that occurs towards the end of the book, I overall enjoyed this instalment more than the first.
This is the second book in the Di Maud O’Connor series. While we delve a little deeper into Di Maud O’Connor’s character, the main focus shifts to Nancy North. Seeking a fresh start after a psychotic breakdown, Nancy moves home to a flat in Harlesden with her boyfriend Felix. However, her newfound fresh start is short-lived as she feels increasingly confined by her boyfriend, Felix. His constant concern for her mental state and his willingness to share her struggles with the building residents leave Nancy feeling isolated and vulnerable.
Despite the appalling state of the flat, Nancy continues to convince herself that Felix has made sacrifices for her. But fate intervenes when a young girl’s body is discovered in the building. While the police dismiss the case as an open and shut matter, Nancy remains steadfast in her belief that there’s more to it. Her assumptions are met with ridicule and dismissal from the police, who dismiss her concerns due to her mental state. Despite this, Maud O’Connor senses a deeper truth and decides to investigate, even though it’s not her case.
As Nancy faces opposition from the other tenants, she is forced to endure being sectioned again. However, upon her release, she emerges with newfound determination. Despite her unreliable nature, Maud O’Connor decides to investigate the case and give Nancy the benefit of doubt.
As the investigation unfolds, we gain insights into Felix’s character, revealing his biases and lack of sensitivity. Despite the skepticism from others who dismiss Nancy as wasting police time, Maud O’Connor perseveres in her pursuit of the truth. However, her efforts are thwarted when someone else takes credit for her findings.
The novel concludes with a sense of foreboding, as both Maud O’Connor and Nancy find themselves in danger.
While I would have appreciated more reactions from the other tenants to the investigation’s outcome and additional information about an incident that occurs towards the end of the book, I overall enjoyed this instalment more than the first.
January 16, 2025
I received a free copy of, The Last Days of Kira Mullan, by Nicci French, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Nancy North has experienced a psychotic episode, she is on medicine and feeling better, until she starts hearing things again. This book was a little to intense for me.
March 5, 2025
Nicci Gerrard and Sean French write under the name Nicci Franch. You can depend on them for great psychological thrillers, so i was happy to pick this one up. This is the seond book in the Maud O'Connor series and I enjoyed the first one and was ready for more.
Description:
Nancy North is ready to put her life back together. After suffering a psychotic break that ruined friendships, stalled her fledgling restaurant, and forced her to move out of her comfortable flat, she’ll do anything to get back to normal. She and her partner Felix—who has been a saint through her recent troubles—move into a new flat for a fresh start.
Nancy is taking her pills, seeing her therapist, and avoiding unnecessary stress. She’s doing absolutely everything right, but something is still very, very wrong. On the first day in the new flat, she hears them again; the mysterious voices that triggered her first episode. It could just be the unfamiliar sounds of water in the pipes, or the screaming baby across the hall, but deep down she knows something more sinister is going on. Her fears are confirmed when the young woman in the downstairs flat, Kira, is found dead. Felix, her neighbors, and even the police insist it’s a tragic suicide, but the pieces aren’t adding up for Nancy. Can she trust her own instincts, or is it all in her head?
Meanwhile, Detective Inspector Maud O’Connor has misgivings about her colleagues’ investigation of Kira’s death. The boys club at the top seems intent on closing the case as quickly as possible, especially since the only person who thinks it could be anything other than suicide is known to be unreliable. But Maud knows what it’s like to be dismissed as an overemotional woman and isn’t so quick to discount Nancy’s claims. As tensions reach an explosive breaking point, the line between fact and delusion becomes dangerously blurred, but Maud will stop at nothing to ensure that the truth comes to light.
My Thoughts:
I disliked Felix so much! It had to be horribly smothering the way he was treating Nancy and the things he ended up doing were unforgivable. With her mental condition, Nancy feels unsure of herself and yet, when Kira Mullen dies, something tells her it is not suicide. That something is very wrong. Only no one will believe her, including the police. The investigation was nonexistent as the police decided it was suicide. How could Nancy get them to investigate and did she even trust herself to believe what she was feeling? Maud O'Connor finally gets involved. I like her so much as she is a strong female character with good instincts. She is smart and observant and is willing to listen to other women. She doesn't mind delving into the details that others may have ignored. This is a really good psychological thriller and anyone who enjoys that genre will like it.
Thanks to William Morrow | William Morrow Paperbacks through Netgalley for an advance copy.
Description:
Nancy North is ready to put her life back together. After suffering a psychotic break that ruined friendships, stalled her fledgling restaurant, and forced her to move out of her comfortable flat, she’ll do anything to get back to normal. She and her partner Felix—who has been a saint through her recent troubles—move into a new flat for a fresh start.
Nancy is taking her pills, seeing her therapist, and avoiding unnecessary stress. She’s doing absolutely everything right, but something is still very, very wrong. On the first day in the new flat, she hears them again; the mysterious voices that triggered her first episode. It could just be the unfamiliar sounds of water in the pipes, or the screaming baby across the hall, but deep down she knows something more sinister is going on. Her fears are confirmed when the young woman in the downstairs flat, Kira, is found dead. Felix, her neighbors, and even the police insist it’s a tragic suicide, but the pieces aren’t adding up for Nancy. Can she trust her own instincts, or is it all in her head?
Meanwhile, Detective Inspector Maud O’Connor has misgivings about her colleagues’ investigation of Kira’s death. The boys club at the top seems intent on closing the case as quickly as possible, especially since the only person who thinks it could be anything other than suicide is known to be unreliable. But Maud knows what it’s like to be dismissed as an overemotional woman and isn’t so quick to discount Nancy’s claims. As tensions reach an explosive breaking point, the line between fact and delusion becomes dangerously blurred, but Maud will stop at nothing to ensure that the truth comes to light.
My Thoughts:
I disliked Felix so much! It had to be horribly smothering the way he was treating Nancy and the things he ended up doing were unforgivable. With her mental condition, Nancy feels unsure of herself and yet, when Kira Mullen dies, something tells her it is not suicide. That something is very wrong. Only no one will believe her, including the police. The investigation was nonexistent as the police decided it was suicide. How could Nancy get them to investigate and did she even trust herself to believe what she was feeling? Maud O'Connor finally gets involved. I like her so much as she is a strong female character with good instincts. She is smart and observant and is willing to listen to other women. She doesn't mind delving into the details that others may have ignored. This is a really good psychological thriller and anyone who enjoys that genre will like it.
Thanks to William Morrow | William Morrow Paperbacks through Netgalley for an advance copy.
May 6, 2025
“Once you’ve had a mental diagnosis, every time you’re a bit impulsive, a bit passionate, if you just raise your voice, people think it’s happening again. Everything’s a symptom.”
The Last Days Of Kira Mullan is the second book in the Maud O’Connor series by best-selling British writing duo, Nicci French. Less than a year after Nancy North opened her successful little restaurant in Stoke Newington, she’d been sectioned, spent time on a mental ward, and almost lost everything she cared about: her beloved restaurant, the friends who were drawn into her psychotic episode, her self-belief, her self-respect, her joy. She feels lucky and a little guilty that her partner, Felix Lindberg has stuck by her despite it all.
They can’t afford their cosy East End flat and make the move to a tiny, damp flat in a Victorian house in Harlesden, where Nancy knows no one. She meets the house and next-door neighbours, dismayed that Felix seems to have forewarned them about her mental health history, even though she has been diligently taking her medications under his constant surveillance, and feels fine.
A few days after the move, the body of their downstairs neighbour, Kira Mullan is found hanging from a beam, an apparent suicide. Nancy recognises the young woman’s boots through the open door: it’s the same person she encountered on the front path the day before, angry and afraid, but not, to Nancy’s eye, suicidal. It’s true, though, that Nancy had a minor episode, and Felix asks “Did you actually see her, or was she part of your episode? That’s why you didn’t tell me. Because you didn’t know if it was real or not.”
Having already chatted about Kira to some neighbours, when she meets Kira’s distressed mother, that impression of a young woman not the least bit suicidal is strengthened. Even though the police have ruled the death a suicide, Nancy demands to have her opinions heard, but DI Danny Kemp dismisses her concerns, and Felix warns her that her insistence is upsetting their neighbours.
It’s when Kemp is on annual leave and Nancy makes a last-ditch attempt to be heard in Kira’s behalf, before trying to quit the house, that DI Maud O’Connor takes a close look, notes anomalies, and gets her crime scene expert, Matt Moran to take a look. Nancy has told her she had “A very mild episode, but yes, and that’s why nobody takes me seriously. But it doesn’t make me wrong.” Turns out Nancy could well be right, and Maud’s CI reluctantly allows her to investigate further.
It’s quickly clear that Felix is aiming to subtly control Nancy: gaslighting, isolating, stalking, undermining her sanity with all those around her, removing her independence in every way possible. But is he a murderer?
The story demonstrates just how easily a woman becomes powerless against the system, how little it takes to be put into a mental health facility, how demoralised and desperate patients can be made to feel, and how it can be virtually impossible to negate the stigma of a mental health history. Luckily the authors do give gutsy Nancy the smarts to catch on quickly to how she needs to act to be discharged.
There are enough distractions, red herrings, and potential suspects to keep the reader guessing right up to the final reveal, and the authors also further develop the character of Maud. There is a third book in the series, Tyler Green Can Never Be Released which, so far, exists in Dutch translation, and fans can only hope the English version will soon be published, as more of Maud O’Connor is most definitely welcome. The writing talent of this duo is unmatched and they never disappoint.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Australia.
The Last Days Of Kira Mullan is the second book in the Maud O’Connor series by best-selling British writing duo, Nicci French. Less than a year after Nancy North opened her successful little restaurant in Stoke Newington, she’d been sectioned, spent time on a mental ward, and almost lost everything she cared about: her beloved restaurant, the friends who were drawn into her psychotic episode, her self-belief, her self-respect, her joy. She feels lucky and a little guilty that her partner, Felix Lindberg has stuck by her despite it all.
They can’t afford their cosy East End flat and make the move to a tiny, damp flat in a Victorian house in Harlesden, where Nancy knows no one. She meets the house and next-door neighbours, dismayed that Felix seems to have forewarned them about her mental health history, even though she has been diligently taking her medications under his constant surveillance, and feels fine.
A few days after the move, the body of their downstairs neighbour, Kira Mullan is found hanging from a beam, an apparent suicide. Nancy recognises the young woman’s boots through the open door: it’s the same person she encountered on the front path the day before, angry and afraid, but not, to Nancy’s eye, suicidal. It’s true, though, that Nancy had a minor episode, and Felix asks “Did you actually see her, or was she part of your episode? That’s why you didn’t tell me. Because you didn’t know if it was real or not.”
Having already chatted about Kira to some neighbours, when she meets Kira’s distressed mother, that impression of a young woman not the least bit suicidal is strengthened. Even though the police have ruled the death a suicide, Nancy demands to have her opinions heard, but DI Danny Kemp dismisses her concerns, and Felix warns her that her insistence is upsetting their neighbours.
It’s when Kemp is on annual leave and Nancy makes a last-ditch attempt to be heard in Kira’s behalf, before trying to quit the house, that DI Maud O’Connor takes a close look, notes anomalies, and gets her crime scene expert, Matt Moran to take a look. Nancy has told her she had “A very mild episode, but yes, and that’s why nobody takes me seriously. But it doesn’t make me wrong.” Turns out Nancy could well be right, and Maud’s CI reluctantly allows her to investigate further.
It’s quickly clear that Felix is aiming to subtly control Nancy: gaslighting, isolating, stalking, undermining her sanity with all those around her, removing her independence in every way possible. But is he a murderer?
The story demonstrates just how easily a woman becomes powerless against the system, how little it takes to be put into a mental health facility, how demoralised and desperate patients can be made to feel, and how it can be virtually impossible to negate the stigma of a mental health history. Luckily the authors do give gutsy Nancy the smarts to catch on quickly to how she needs to act to be discharged.
There are enough distractions, red herrings, and potential suspects to keep the reader guessing right up to the final reveal, and the authors also further develop the character of Maud. There is a third book in the series, Tyler Green Can Never Be Released which, so far, exists in Dutch translation, and fans can only hope the English version will soon be published, as more of Maud O’Connor is most definitely welcome. The writing talent of this duo is unmatched and they never disappoint.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Australia.
May 7, 2024
Nancy North en haar vriend Felix zijn net in een goedkoper appartement in West-Londen getrokken, dat Felix heeft gevonden terwijl zij ziek was. Ze heeft een psychose gehad, maar nu is ze er weer bovenop. Ook al is de woning wat vervallen en ligt die aan de verkeerde kant van de stad voor Nancy, de verhuizing betekent een nieuwe start.
Toch heeft Nancy al vanaf de eerste dag geen goed gevoel over de plek en over enkele andere bewoners van het pand, en ze merkt dat dat een weerslag op haar stemming heeft.
Wanneer haar buurvrouw Kira dood wordt aangetroffen denkt iedereen aan zelfmoord. Maar Nancy heeft haar nog kort voor haar dood gezien en is ervan overtuigd dat er kwade opzet is.
Niemand gelooft haar. Alleen rechercheur Maud O’Connor staat haar te woord...
Altijd als er een boek van duo Nicci French uitkomt, word ik enthousiast. Dus dit verhaal stond zeker op mijn lijstje om te lezen!
'Stemmen in het duister' is het tweede deel met rechercheur Maud O'Connor. Het eerste deel vond ik 'oke' om te lezen, dus ik hoopte dat dit mij iets meer kon bekoren.
Het begint echt heel erg goed en je leest over Nancy en haar partner Felix. Ze verhuizen naar een appartementencomplex en leren daar andere bewoners kennen. Eentje daarvan is een jonge vrouw, Kira. Op het eerste oog lijkt er niets met haar aan de hand te zijn, maar dan wordt ze dood aangetroffen en iedereen gaat uit van zelfmoord. Behalve Nancy...
Dit gedeelte vond ik dus supergoed en mysterieus! Vervolgens lees je heel veel over de twijfels en de zoektocht naar de waarheid van Nancy. Het probleem met haar is alleen dat niemand haar gelooft, ook mede door haar psychische verleden. En dan komt rechercheur Maud op haar pad. Samen proberen ze achter de waarheid te komen.
Het concept van dit verhaal vond ik erg goed en ook het gevecht dat Nancy voerde met zichzelf en omstanders was interessant om te lezen. Toch miste ik wederom iets in dit verhaal. Vooral als ik het vergelijk met eerder werk van dit duo...
Misschien is dit geen populaire mening, maar ik vind de laatste paar boeken niet meer zo heel goed van ze (of ik ben gewoon strenger geworden, haha).
Beoordeling: 3,0/3,5 ⭐️
Toch heeft Nancy al vanaf de eerste dag geen goed gevoel over de plek en over enkele andere bewoners van het pand, en ze merkt dat dat een weerslag op haar stemming heeft.
Wanneer haar buurvrouw Kira dood wordt aangetroffen denkt iedereen aan zelfmoord. Maar Nancy heeft haar nog kort voor haar dood gezien en is ervan overtuigd dat er kwade opzet is.
Niemand gelooft haar. Alleen rechercheur Maud O’Connor staat haar te woord...
Altijd als er een boek van duo Nicci French uitkomt, word ik enthousiast. Dus dit verhaal stond zeker op mijn lijstje om te lezen!
'Stemmen in het duister' is het tweede deel met rechercheur Maud O'Connor. Het eerste deel vond ik 'oke' om te lezen, dus ik hoopte dat dit mij iets meer kon bekoren.
Het begint echt heel erg goed en je leest over Nancy en haar partner Felix. Ze verhuizen naar een appartementencomplex en leren daar andere bewoners kennen. Eentje daarvan is een jonge vrouw, Kira. Op het eerste oog lijkt er niets met haar aan de hand te zijn, maar dan wordt ze dood aangetroffen en iedereen gaat uit van zelfmoord. Behalve Nancy...
Dit gedeelte vond ik dus supergoed en mysterieus! Vervolgens lees je heel veel over de twijfels en de zoektocht naar de waarheid van Nancy. Het probleem met haar is alleen dat niemand haar gelooft, ook mede door haar psychische verleden. En dan komt rechercheur Maud op haar pad. Samen proberen ze achter de waarheid te komen.
Het concept van dit verhaal vond ik erg goed en ook het gevecht dat Nancy voerde met zichzelf en omstanders was interessant om te lezen. Toch miste ik wederom iets in dit verhaal. Vooral als ik het vergelijk met eerder werk van dit duo...
Misschien is dit geen populaire mening, maar ik vind de laatste paar boeken niet meer zo heel goed van ze (of ik ben gewoon strenger geworden, haha).
Beoordeling: 3,0/3,5 ⭐️
March 6, 2025
Nancy North used to run a small restaurant in Stoke Newington, East London. However, following what seemed like a psychotic breakdown, she had to close the restaurant and now she and her boyfriend Felix Lindberg are moving to a smaller flat in Harlesden, West London, ostensibly to aid Nancy’s recuperation.
However, soon after moving in to their new home, one of their neighbours, 23 year old Kira Mullan is found dead by hanging. Although the original police investigation rules Kira’s death as suicide, Nancy has her doubts. She’d only encountered Kira once the previous day and, although it was only briefly, Kira had struck her more as being angry and upset, rather than depressed. However, because of her recent history, neither her boyfriend nor her new neighbours seem to take her suspicions seriously.
Thankfully, there is someone who does. This novel marks a welcome return for Detective Inspector Maud O’Connor, who previously appeared in the authors’ previous novel “Has Anyone Seen Charlotte Salter”. Maud is definitely not a “team player” but someone who doggedly follows the evidence to its natural conclusion.
This is a superb police procedural mystery which finds Maud meticulously examining all the evidence and confirming Nancy’s original doubts. If Kira didn’t commit suicide but was murdered, who was responsible? Eventually, Maud manages to steer her path through the gaslighting and manipulation and arrest the real culprit. A tense and often harrowing read.
However, soon after moving in to their new home, one of their neighbours, 23 year old Kira Mullan is found dead by hanging. Although the original police investigation rules Kira’s death as suicide, Nancy has her doubts. She’d only encountered Kira once the previous day and, although it was only briefly, Kira had struck her more as being angry and upset, rather than depressed. However, because of her recent history, neither her boyfriend nor her new neighbours seem to take her suspicions seriously.
Thankfully, there is someone who does. This novel marks a welcome return for Detective Inspector Maud O’Connor, who previously appeared in the authors’ previous novel “Has Anyone Seen Charlotte Salter”. Maud is definitely not a “team player” but someone who doggedly follows the evidence to its natural conclusion.
This is a superb police procedural mystery which finds Maud meticulously examining all the evidence and confirming Nancy’s original doubts. If Kira didn’t commit suicide but was murdered, who was responsible? Eventually, Maud manages to steer her path through the gaslighting and manipulation and arrest the real culprit. A tense and often harrowing read.
July 22, 2025
Skimmed until the ending. Finished it a couple of days ago and have more or less forgotten it already.
July 2, 2025
Oh My. I picked this up on audio for a long car drive (saw a review of it in the NYT Sunday book review and put it on hold in Libby). Not sure how I got stuck in a modern day story of someone dealing with mental health problems so soon after reading The Vanishing of Esme Lennox which also covers this theme. I wasn't looking for another of this type but after several hours of listening I was hooked. Nicci French always manages to weave a compelling psychological mystery and I just had to find out who of all these characters did the murder.
As a mystery it was a 4.5 star. A little long at times, and an unreliable narrator type story--my least favorite as it makes me suspect everyone. The story is of a young woman, Nancy just released from a mental hospital after overwork, anxiety, hallucinations and hearing voices. She is on medication and placed in the care of her current boyfriend, Alex. The two decide to move to a new flat as he feels it will help her to heal and not worry so much about money. After only a few days in the new flat, a women next door, Kira is found hung. The police call it a suicide and the case is closed.
Nancy remembers that she met this woman the day before her death and how scared she seemed and in a rush. Alex feels this imagined meeting or Nancy's concerns about it are due to Nancy's illness and tries to reassure her and encourage her to talk to her doctor and perhaps increase her meds. Nancy does so but finds she can not ignore what happened. She believes Kira's death was not a suicide but a murder. No one will listen to her and attribute her concerns to her mental condition. The set up is a good one. Slowly we meet all the neighbors in the divided flat. Is Nancy hallucinating or are her concerns real. Why does everyone want to shut her up or is this her imagination. Who will listen?
Its a good mystery and had me guessing all the way. The end was a little too convenient for my taste, but it was one I had not envisioned and it took me by surprise. Another compelling mystery by Nicci French. Always good for a long car ride.
As a mystery it was a 4.5 star. A little long at times, and an unreliable narrator type story--my least favorite as it makes me suspect everyone. The story is of a young woman, Nancy just released from a mental hospital after overwork, anxiety, hallucinations and hearing voices. She is on medication and placed in the care of her current boyfriend, Alex. The two decide to move to a new flat as he feels it will help her to heal and not worry so much about money. After only a few days in the new flat, a women next door, Kira is found hung. The police call it a suicide and the case is closed.
Nancy remembers that she met this woman the day before her death and how scared she seemed and in a rush. Alex feels this imagined meeting or Nancy's concerns about it are due to Nancy's illness and tries to reassure her and encourage her to talk to her doctor and perhaps increase her meds. Nancy does so but finds she can not ignore what happened. She believes Kira's death was not a suicide but a murder. No one will listen to her and attribute her concerns to her mental condition. The set up is a good one. Slowly we meet all the neighbors in the divided flat. Is Nancy hallucinating or are her concerns real. Why does everyone want to shut her up or is this her imagination. Who will listen?
Its a good mystery and had me guessing all the way. The end was a little too convenient for my taste, but it was one I had not envisioned and it took me by surprise. Another compelling mystery by Nicci French. Always good for a long car ride.
February 10, 2025
This one is a slow unfolding, but never boring. Nancy was a nicely developed character. She was likable and vulnerable which made her story interesting, even if I wasn't entirely sure she was reliable. I felt sorry for her and I also wanted her to defend herself. The way her boyfriend and then the mental health professionals treated her stirred emotions in me that made me stick with this, wanting to hear a good outcome for her.
Maud, the DI, is an interesting character, too. I didn't realize she is featured in another book as well. I'm not big on detective novels anymore, but I was relieved this wasn't so bogged down in police procedures and remained more focused on the ongoing story.
Narration was very good. Enjoyed! 🎧
Thanks to HarperAudio as always, for allowing me to listen to this ARC!
Maud, the DI, is an interesting character, too. I didn't realize she is featured in another book as well. I'm not big on detective novels anymore, but I was relieved this wasn't so bogged down in police procedures and remained more focused on the ongoing story.
Narration was very good. Enjoyed! 🎧
Thanks to HarperAudio as always, for allowing me to listen to this ARC!
did-not-finish
April 4, 2025I made it through ten chapters, but that's all I can take. I'm just not a fan of the writing style. Everything is choppy and bland. At 464 pages, maybe the story picks up eventually, but the beginning didn't spark my interest. Thank you to the publisher for providing me a copy for review.
October 4, 2025
Dit boek staat bol van vervelende, nare en niet sympathieke karakters. En toch wil je door lezen, knap gedaan.
April 26, 2025
Honestly, this should be titled "The Gaslighting of Nancy North"
This book starts out good, interesting premise. Everyone vs Nancy.. but then the middle, we were in the fucking trenches. Poor Nancy just being completely gas lit, I was so bored, repetitiveness and just sad a glimpse into the world of mental illness. I kept hoping we'd hold out for some small victory, but the whole story was SO underwhelming for the amount of gas lighting this poor woman had to deal with. Sigh.
This book starts out good, interesting premise. Everyone vs Nancy.. but then the middle, we were in the fucking trenches. Poor Nancy just being completely gas lit, I was so bored, repetitiveness and just sad a glimpse into the world of mental illness. I kept hoping we'd hold out for some small victory, but the whole story was SO underwhelming for the amount of gas lighting this poor woman had to deal with. Sigh.
November 30, 2025
Das neue Apartment
Nancy North zieht mit ihrem Lebensgefährten Felix in ein neues Apartment in London. Eigentlich wollte Nancy das nicht, aber nach einer psychischen Erkrankung, braucht sie wohl erstmal Ruhe und einen Ortswechsel. In einem anderen Apartment wohnt Kira Mullan, die etwas später tot in ihrer Wohnung aufgefunden wird. Sie hat sich wohl erhängt. Alle im Haus sind entsetzt und betroffen. Nur Nancy, die Kira kurz vor ihrem Tod für einen Moment auf der Straße gesehen hat, glaubt nicht an einen Selbstmord. Doch wegen ihrer psychischen Probleme glaubt niemand, dass an ihrer Beobachtung etwas dran ist.
In diesem zweiten Fall fängt DI Maud O’Connor irgendwann an gegen Windmühlen zu kämpfen. Zunächst wird der Fall Kira Mullan jedoch geschlossen, weil man meint, die Selbstmordthese sei eindeutig. Nancy kann mit ihrer Beobachtung nicht durchdringen. Es scheint als habe die ganze Nachbarschaft sich gegen sie verschworen. Felix ist aber auch zu überzeugend, mit seiner Ansicht, dass Nancy wieder am Rande eines Zusammenbruchs ist. Das ist ja auch einfacher als zuzuhören. Erst als Nancy es schafft, zu Maud vorzudringen und diese sich die Fallakte ansieht, ist klar, dass der Fall nochmal geöffnet werden muss.
Wenn man den ersten Band der Reihe gelesen hat, hat man sich vielleicht gefragt, wie diese Art Krimi in einer Reihe fortgeführt werden kann. Und hier hat man die Antwort. Irgendwie ist die Struktur ähnlich und doch anders. Wie krass, wenn jemand unter psychischen Problemen leidet, dass er oder sie behandelt wird, als seien seine Worte nicht für bare Münze zu nehmen. Wie weit das hier geht, ist echt erstaunlich und irgendwie auch schrecklich. Wenn dann der eigene Partner nicht aus tiefen Herzen hilft, sondern eher eigennützige Ziele verfolgt, weckt dieser Typ einigen Widerwillen. Als DI Maud O’Connor endlich ermitteln darf, wird Etliches aufgedeckt. Dieser Krimi beginnt ruhig, wird unheimlich und man vermeint die Gefahr zu spüren. Dann wird es sehr spannend und überraschend.
Nancy North zieht mit ihrem Lebensgefährten Felix in ein neues Apartment in London. Eigentlich wollte Nancy das nicht, aber nach einer psychischen Erkrankung, braucht sie wohl erstmal Ruhe und einen Ortswechsel. In einem anderen Apartment wohnt Kira Mullan, die etwas später tot in ihrer Wohnung aufgefunden wird. Sie hat sich wohl erhängt. Alle im Haus sind entsetzt und betroffen. Nur Nancy, die Kira kurz vor ihrem Tod für einen Moment auf der Straße gesehen hat, glaubt nicht an einen Selbstmord. Doch wegen ihrer psychischen Probleme glaubt niemand, dass an ihrer Beobachtung etwas dran ist.
In diesem zweiten Fall fängt DI Maud O’Connor irgendwann an gegen Windmühlen zu kämpfen. Zunächst wird der Fall Kira Mullan jedoch geschlossen, weil man meint, die Selbstmordthese sei eindeutig. Nancy kann mit ihrer Beobachtung nicht durchdringen. Es scheint als habe die ganze Nachbarschaft sich gegen sie verschworen. Felix ist aber auch zu überzeugend, mit seiner Ansicht, dass Nancy wieder am Rande eines Zusammenbruchs ist. Das ist ja auch einfacher als zuzuhören. Erst als Nancy es schafft, zu Maud vorzudringen und diese sich die Fallakte ansieht, ist klar, dass der Fall nochmal geöffnet werden muss.
Wenn man den ersten Band der Reihe gelesen hat, hat man sich vielleicht gefragt, wie diese Art Krimi in einer Reihe fortgeführt werden kann. Und hier hat man die Antwort. Irgendwie ist die Struktur ähnlich und doch anders. Wie krass, wenn jemand unter psychischen Problemen leidet, dass er oder sie behandelt wird, als seien seine Worte nicht für bare Münze zu nehmen. Wie weit das hier geht, ist echt erstaunlich und irgendwie auch schrecklich. Wenn dann der eigene Partner nicht aus tiefen Herzen hilft, sondern eher eigennützige Ziele verfolgt, weckt dieser Typ einigen Widerwillen. Als DI Maud O’Connor endlich ermitteln darf, wird Etliches aufgedeckt. Dieser Krimi beginnt ruhig, wird unheimlich und man vermeint die Gefahr zu spüren. Dann wird es sehr spannend und überraschend.
July 25, 2025
I really wanted more from Maud O'Connor as a detective character having become interested in her when she first popped up in a Nicci French book, so I was really happy she came in 2 thirds of the way through the book and reopens an investigation that had been closed as a suicide. She is the only one who believes Nancy North, and it was believable that a person with a history of mental illness is not listened to. Parts of the book were very hard to read, particularly Nancy being sectioned and emotionally gaslit. It is a psychological thriller, alongside a murder investigation. It's a suspenseful domestic thriller with some really unlikeable characters written brilliantly. It can be read as a stand alone, so don't worry if you've not read any other books from this writing duo. Enjoyable, gripping, clever with powerful themes.
March 18, 2025
felt this book was a slow burner could of been better but just how felt about this book
September 5, 2025
Finally. This is my Nicci French
December 8, 2025
Това е фантастичен психологически трилър. Какво правите, когато сте сигурни, че е извършено убийство, но никой не вярва на нито дума от това, което казвате?
Това е предпоставката зад тази книга и, трябва да кажа, тя работи абсолютно перфектно. Книгата е зашеметяваща от началото до края, не можех да я оставя и я завърших за три дена. Просто аплодирам силно тези семейни автори! Вече са ми любимци и ще наблегна на тяхните книги.
Нанси страда от психично здраве, губи ресторанта, който е открила, и дома си - принудена е да се премести в ужасен влажен и мрачен апартамент с приятеля си Феликс. Малко след като се нанася, Кира, момичето от апартамента отдолу, е намерена да виси на въже от трегера на тавана. Полицията го отхвърля като смърт от самоубийство, но Нанси не вярва на тази идея. Тя е абсолютно сигурна, че Кира не се е самоубила, но никой не ѝ вярва. Нанси мисли друго, тъй като е видяла Кира малко преди смъртта ѝ и вярва, че може да е била убита. Спирам с разказването, защото не искам да издавам допълнително нищо, просто я прочетете.
Напрежението се засилва, докато Нанси се бори с психическата си нестабилност, докато разследва. Разбирането на начина, по който един случай на психична нестабилност може да повлияе на разбирането за последващото поведение, е неразделна част от този роман. Авторите са населили тази книга с набор от герои, които брилянтно усложняват сюжета още повече. В началото те изглеждат достатъчно нормални и подкрепящи Нанси, но в хода на книгата всеки от тях има тайни и недостатъци, които се разкриват по начин, който поражда съмнения относно мотивите и ро��ите им в живота на Кира Мълан.
Съседите й бяха отвратителни и не само те. И все пак в съзнанието ми, все още имах елемент на съмнение, че Нанси може би си е измислила всичко.
Честно казано, не разбрах кой е убиецът. Бях убеден, че са много различни герои, но не разбрах истинския убиец. За мен това е истински знак за добре изграден сюжет.
Това е предпоставката зад тази книга и, трябва да кажа, тя работи абсолютно перфектно. Книгата е зашеметяваща от началото до края, не можех да я оставя и я завърших за три дена. Просто аплодирам силно тези семейни автори! Вече са ми любимци и ще наблегна на тяхните книги.
Нанси страда от психично здраве, губи ресторанта, който е открила, и дома си - принудена е да се премести в ужасен влажен и мрачен апартамент с приятеля си Феликс. Малко след като се нанася, Кира, момичето от апартамента отдолу, е намерена да виси на въже от трегера на тавана. Полицията го отхвърля като смърт от самоубийство, но Нанси не вярва на тази идея. Тя е абсолютно сигурна, че Кира не се е самоубила, но никой не ѝ вярва. Нанси мисли друго, тъй като е видяла Кира малко преди смъртта ѝ и вярва, че може да е била убита. Спирам с разказването, защото не искам да издавам допълнително нищо, просто я прочетете.
Напрежението се засилва, докато Нанси се бори с психическата си нестабилност, докато разследва. Разбирането на начина, по който един случай на психична нестабилност може да повлияе на разбирането за последващото поведение, е неразделна част от този роман. Авторите са населили тази книга с набор от герои, които брилянтно усложняват сюжета още повече. В началото те изглеждат достатъчно нормални и подкрепящи Нанси, но в хода на книгата всеки от тях има тайни и недостатъци, които се разкриват по начин, който поражда съмнения относно мотивите и ро��ите им в живота на Кира Мълан.
Съседите й бяха отвратителни и не само те. И все пак в съзнанието ми, все още имах елемент на съмнение, че Нанси може би си е измислила всичко.
Честно казано, не разбрах кой е убиецът. Бях убеден, че са много различни герои, но не разбрах истинския убиец. За мен това е истински знак за добре изграден сюжет.
February 27, 2025
3.75 stars. thank you to the publisher for an early copy of this book in exchange for my honest feedback
2nd book in the Maud O’Conner series - publishes March 4th and it follows a suspected open and shut suicide case of a woman named Kira. That is, until her new neighbor named Nancy claims she heard something before Kira was discovered and leads her to believe she was actually murdered. The problem is, Nancy has a history of mental illness and is deemed an unreliable witness.
So, throughout the story we follow 2 investigations - the one by investigators and the one by Nancy.
I was a bit apprehensive to start this book since I hadn’t read the 1st book in the series, but I was assured by the publisher that it could be read as a standalone and I found that to be true. I really enjoyed this book and I didn’t feel I was missing out on any background information.
I will say while this book is quite long, that it really didn’t feel like it. The story was quite fast paced, there was a good level of suspicion set on each character meanwhile grappling with whether or not to believe the FMC herself.
I did think part of the ending was anticlimactic but the very ending was absolutely unhinged and explosive which I really enjoyed
Video: https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZT2mpNMtq/
2nd book in the Maud O’Conner series - publishes March 4th and it follows a suspected open and shut suicide case of a woman named Kira. That is, until her new neighbor named Nancy claims she heard something before Kira was discovered and leads her to believe she was actually murdered. The problem is, Nancy has a history of mental illness and is deemed an unreliable witness.
So, throughout the story we follow 2 investigations - the one by investigators and the one by Nancy.
I was a bit apprehensive to start this book since I hadn’t read the 1st book in the series, but I was assured by the publisher that it could be read as a standalone and I found that to be true. I really enjoyed this book and I didn’t feel I was missing out on any background information.
I will say while this book is quite long, that it really didn’t feel like it. The story was quite fast paced, there was a good level of suspicion set on each character meanwhile grappling with whether or not to believe the FMC herself.
I did think part of the ending was anticlimactic but the very ending was absolutely unhinged and explosive which I really enjoyed
Video: https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZT2mpNMtq/
February 19, 2025
The Last Days of Kira Mullan is another brilliantly written police procedural about DI Maude O’Connor and how she sees evidence her lazy, misogynistic fellow police officers miss. It is a story about how she is essentially all alone while pursuing clues and trying to help other women and find out the truth. It is also a very realistic and sad look at how people with mental health issues are treated and ignored. The way Nancy North was treated by her partner, her neighbors, and the mental health professionals was so intense and disturbing at first that I had to take a break from listening. (Perhaps if I had been reading instead it wouldn’t have been so bad, but I could literally hear her panic and feel her despair.)
December 4, 2025
Води се втора книга от поредицата за инспектор Мод и ми допадна, че беше спомената на едно място първата книга - "Някой виждал ли е Шарлот Солтър"
Има развитие в живота на инспекторката, но случаят е съвсем нов и различен. Харесвам такива поредици, които всъщност могат да се четат и като самостоятелни книги. Дуото Ники Дренч не разочарова никога. Признавам, че от поредицата за дните от седмицата с герой психоложката Фрида, съм прочела само Черен понеделник, но някой ден ще прочета и другите, защото авторите много умело изграждат образите на главните си герои. За мен инспекторката не е главен герой нито тук, нито в предишната книга. Нанси е главната героиня, на нея се случват всички важни неща в сюжета, нейния живот и лични драми преживяваме и тя е представена (за мен) по почти гениален начин! Имаше черти от нейния образ, които исках да прочета по-силно развити. Засегнати са много и различни социални теми, като всеки читател съпреживява сюжета по индивидуален начин и така, както той би се справил с тези теми.
Има развитие в живота на инспекторката, но случаят е съвсем нов и различен. Харесвам такива поредици, които всъщност могат да се четат и като самостоятелни книги. Дуото Ники Дренч не разочарова никога. Признавам, че от поредицата за дните от седмицата с герой психоложката Фрида, съм прочела само Черен понеделник, но някой ден ще прочета и другите, защото авторите много умело изграждат образите на главните си герои. За мен инспекторката не е главен герой нито тук, нито в предишната книга. Нанси е главната героиня, на нея се случват всички важни неща в сюжета, нейния живот и лични драми преживяваме и тя е представена (за мен) по почти гениален начин! Имаше черти от нейния образ, които исках да прочета по-силно развити. Засегнати са много и различни социални теми, като всеки читател съпреживява сюжета по индивидуален начин и така, както той би се справил с тези теми.
April 21, 2025
This was an uncomfortable read dealing with amongst other things coercive control. I found it a little uneven and would have preferred more focus on the detective Maud but I did find it a compulsive read.
April 27, 2024
Na enkele tegenvallende boeken van Nicci French is mijn vertrouwen dat ze nog steeds kunnen schrijven weer iets gegroeid.
Een thriller is het naar mijn idee niet, een spannende psychologische roman wel. De beklemmende sfeer van een (armoedig) huis waar mensen dicht op elkaar wonen is goed beschreven, de vrouwelijke agent (die in het vorige deel ook voorkwam, waarmee dit een nieuwe serie is?) een interessant vasthoudend personage. Ik zie nu wel uit naar een 3e deel.
Een thriller is het naar mijn idee niet, een spannende psychologische roman wel. De beklemmende sfeer van een (armoedig) huis waar mensen dicht op elkaar wonen is goed beschreven, de vrouwelijke agent (die in het vorige deel ook voorkwam, waarmee dit een nieuwe serie is?) een interessant vasthoudend personage. Ik zie nu wel uit naar een 3e deel.
June 20, 2025
I thought the pacing was too slow for a majority of the book, and then the pacing was at warp speed as it led up to the conclusion, definitely wrapped up too quickly.
This is my exact review for the first book in this series. I preferred that one over this one as I'm tired of the unreliable potentially crazy FMC trope
This is my exact review for the first book in this series. I preferred that one over this one as I'm tired of the unreliable potentially crazy FMC trope
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