Der Totschreiber

by Steve Mosby

14 Briefe, 14 Opfer – 13 Gänsehaut-Thrill von Steve Mosby, Englands Meister der abgründigen SpannungSchierer Zufall bringt die Polizei auf die Spur eines Killers, der den Ermittlern jährlich höhnische Post mit Informationen über sein letztes Opfer zukommen lässt. 14 Briefe, 14 tote Frauen – doch es werden nur 13 Leichen gefunden, säuberlich verstaut in Plastikfässern. DI Will Turner ist überzeugt, dass der Mann einen Komplizen haben muss. Außerdem hat er ein sehr persönliches Interesse an dem Fall, von dem niemand erfahren darf. Als plötzlich der Krimiautor Jeremy Townsend auf dem Revier auftaucht und merkwürdige Fragen stellt, vor allem zur Anzahl der Leichenfunde, blickt Will in Abgründe, vor denen er lieber die Augen verschlossen hätte ...»Steve Mosby gehört zu der Handvoll Autoren, die meine Phantasie beflügeln.« Val McDermid

Genres: Mystery, Thriller, Fiction, Crime, Mystery Thriller, Suspense, Serial Killer

Perfect Paperback

First published April 6, 2017

Reviews

[Sunflowerbooklover · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh 😑. So NOT what I expected. DNF at 75%. I tried I really did.

Sorry Mosby but this was a serious fail.

[j e w e l s · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have had this book from Netgalley for months now. I can't explain why, but it just doesn't capture my attention for more than a few pages (even though the book description really sounds good).

DNF for now, maybe one day I will have read everything in my house and go back for another looksie....

[Liz Barnsley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m crazy about this book because it hooked me straight in then I had to look threateningly at anyone who tried to stop me reading before I finished it. Then I finished it and cried. Even though it is a book about very dark subjects, a crime book with a big dose of creepy that kept me up at night, the emotional resonance Steve Mosby brings to his writing is second to none in the field and I felt every moment of it.

What this author does, not only here but in his previous novels, is put a little subtle twist on the genre, a clever bit of a run around things that makes you feel you are right in your crime reading comfort zone but about to be shoved off a cliff at any moment. And quite often are. Its a long drop that can leave you dazed in the best way. Always terrifically character driven I think “You Can Run” was probably even more so – not only in the creation of Will Turner who is incredibly engaging yet full of hidden depths, but in the wider cast and the intelligent manipulation of the various dynamics – add into that a plot that rather gracefully manages to defy expectations and assumptions and you are onto a real winner.

For that reason I won’t say much more about it. You don’t need details to my mind what you need is to know that this is a genuinely top notch, cleverly and beautifully written crime novel with a huge heart. So obviously I’m going to say Highly Recommended.

[Gabrielė|Kartu su knyga · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perskaitytas dar vienas puikus detektyvas 🤓 Su Steve Mosby esu susipažinusi jau kiek anksčiau. Skaičiau jo knygą “50/50 žudikas”,kuri man patiko. Tad ir iš šios nemažai tikėjausi. Ji manęs nenuvylė.
Visų pirma,tai buvo gana neįprastas detektyvas. Nes nuo pirmųjų knygos skyrių buvo žinoma kas gi yra tas žudikas. Bet tai neatėmė malonumo skaitant šią knygą. Ji buvo labai įtaigiai parašyta,atpasakojamas policijos darbas bei veiksmai,kurių buvo imtasi,norint sučiupti nedorėlį. Skaitant šią knygą buvo toks jausmas,jog ir pati dalyvaučiau tyrime. Man labai patiko 👏🏻

[John McDermott · Rating 4 out of 5]

You Can Run definitely falls into the "If you like Mo Hayder, you'll love this " territory . Very well written, this novel is certainly a cut above the norm for the genre. Serial killer thrillers are a crowded market but Steve Mosby certainly stands out from the crowd, offering something fresh,original and exciting. I really liked his central protaganist Will Turner, again, a character whom is not your stereotypical cop : thoughtful and introspective. I certainly hope we get to read more of him in the future.
This is a dark,intense thriller with a couple of good twists and I highly recommend it.

[Ellis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well dang, Steve Mosby, okay, okay. I wasn't very into continuing this after starting it one night because while I know that the odds aren't exactly good that I might someday be going for a run and get jumped and wake up in a someone's garage trapped in a pillory made out of a dining room table being tortured and so forth, it's not 100% not a possibility and lately, the gruesome details in certain crime thrillers just aren't my preferred form of escapism. It's funny that in this book, DI Will Turner shares much of the same thoughts regarding his partner's love of crime thrillers as I have lately been having - "I'd meant what I'd said, though. In much the same way the newspapers amped up the gory details to sell copies, their books were filled with violence as entertainment, and it all felt the same. Dead women shifting units." This was a bit much of what I've kind of lost my taste for, is what I'm saying, but I figured I'd started it so I might as well finish and then I got sort of caught up in how exactly Turner and Beck were going to catch the bad guy and before I knew it, I was done and it was a better time than I'd expected. Mosby has a good track record of not forgetting the women behind the murders that shift units - if I am going to read about abduction/homemade pillory/torture/etc., it had damn well better not be totally reductionist, explicit lady slaughter for the sake of advancing the plot - and he continues that here, even going so far as to call out his main character for making the investigation about him instead of the victims, which I truly appreciate. Now if he'd just write another book about Zoe Dolan, I could write a review that doesn't highlight and expose my anxiety nearly as much as this one does.

[Laura/Mystery in Minutes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Please visit https://www.mysteryinminutes.com/revi... to read the complete MINM review.
An altogether satisfying British police procedural, You Can Run is suspenseful, tense, poignant, and very cleverly plotted. Steve Mosby has, once again, shown himself to be a terrific storyteller. If you are not yet familiar with Mr. Mosby's crime fiction writing, You Can Run would be a great place to start.

[Eglė Eglė · Rating 4 out of 5]

Šio detektyvo išskirtinumas tas, kad vos ne iš karto atskleidžiamas žudikas. Belieka tik jį sugauti. O kad būtų viskas taip paprasta! Tai, kad žinojau kaltininką, nei kiek nesumažino susidomėjimo knyga. Be to, reikėjo dar išsiaiskinti laiškų ir kirmino kilmę. Vilio personažas man patiko, tačiau jo porininkė liko lyg ir užribyje, man norėjosi, kad ir jai būtų skirta daugiau dėmesio.

[Carol Bailey · Rating 3 out of 5]

It takes a car crashing into a garage for the police to find bodies of young women that have been abducted and murdered. The twists and turns were gut wrenching, but at times, I felt that the author didn't fully expand on some of the story lines. I will probably read some more of his work to see how it is written.

[Justina Meiduvienė · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/40
STEVE MOSBY " GALI BĖGTI"
Bet kur tu pabėgsi nuo praeities

Tai 3-ioji šio autoriau knygą kurią skaičiau.
Ilgai gulėjo lentynoje ir laukė savo eilės.

Praeitis negailestingai jį sučiupo, bet jis įsitykines, kad policija jo nesučiups...

Bėgdamas vagis nuo policijos nesuvaldo automobilio ir atsitrenkią į namo sieną. Paaiškėją, kad tame name yra laikoma pagrobta moteris. Dar vėliau paaiškėja, kad namas priklauso Raudonosios upės žudikui.

Toks lengvas trileris manau😊 lengvai skaitėsi. Buvo išlaikyta intriga iki pat galo. Tačiau kažkiek erzino detektyvo Vilio Ternerio personažas. Taip pat truko to detektyvinio veiksmo. 🙈
@leidyklasofoklis
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

#leidyklasofoklis #galibėgti #stevemosby #perskaičiau #vasaris #bookstagram #žiema

[Cassandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

You Can Run is a serial killer investigation novel with a bit of a twist. The last victim has been found in a unique way and now DI Will Turner and his partner, Emma must track down the Red River Killer. They know the identity of the Red River Killer, but has he had help all along? DI Turner has an intimate connection with the case which not even his partner knows of. I enjoyed the sixth sense Turner seems to have throughout the book. Emma did not always believe what Turner was suspecting, but she always stood by him. I started to get a bit annoyed with the numerous references to the fact Turner did not care who solved the case as long as it was solved. But they did stop about half way throughout the book. The ending was unique in the way it gave a very person touch to the victims, very touching. I appreciated that Mr. Mosey I really enjoyed the book over all and while it was not a one sitting read, it did keep me interested and I would love to see this become a DI Turner series. I give this a 3.5 rounded to 4.

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the psychological emphasis found in this novel and considered it a nice departure from the many serial killer / murder novels I've read. It's difficult to be specific without jeopardizing revealing key plot elements, but suffice it to say that the bad actors, along with our protagonist, DI Will Turner, present a clever, complex and unusual story that moves right along. I found some parts confusing, mostly due to the method of writing employed by Mosby and the time-frame shifts that seem ever so popular in many of the books I've read recently. Nevertheless, it all becomes clear, and despite a few spots where things seemed tied up a little too neatly (perhaps the author felt we readers needed a bit of hand-holding), I thought the overall story and conclusion to be well done.
My first time with the author, but would likely give him another read on a future mystery.

[mnemosineirknygos · Rating 3 out of 5]

" Pabaisa visada išoriškai mandagus. Kai esi toks pavojingas, gali sau tai leisti. "

Ar likau sužavėta? Ne, bet negaliu pasakyt, kad nepatiko. Pasakojimas man pasirodė keistas iš savęs, gal dėl rašymo manieros, bet kartais atrodydavo tai per sudėtingas, tai per daug išpūstas. Detektyvas su stebuklinga nuojauta, hm.. Na gerai. Kam tie įrodymai, kai yra nuojauta. Truputį per daug.
Bet skiriu
🔮3.5🔮


Noriu papasakoti istoriją apie moterį, vardu...

[Suzanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the idea of this book. It moved along at a pretty good pace, but the last quarter seemed to get a bit jumbled and hurried. It was a slight let-down at the end with all the characters and the sudden end to the things they'd been working through for most of the book. I might read something else by this author, with caution, haha. Overall, I liked the plot and storyline, but ... it could've been a little sharper and cleaner in my opinion.

[John Bastin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an incredibly intense story about a series of kidnap/killings on young women in the prime of their lives. Besides what happens to the victims, though, even seemingly more intense is the effect created among family and friends. Once I picked up this book, it was really hard to put down until I was finished.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

For the most part Steve Mosby's "You Can Run" works well. The change in voice between Will Turner's first person narrative and the third person narrative of everyone else is done particularly well. The interactions between Turner and his partner Emma Beck is a bit underwhelming but do ring true throughout the book. She is a career climber and he is and wants to remain a detective. They also live together in a platonic relationship. 5 major characters reside in this thriller. The 2 detectives, the serial killer, the husband of one of the victims, and a voyeur of sorts to the killers actions. There is some flesh on the bones on all the major characters. They plot doesn't necessarily have twists but it certainly has unanticipated interactions.

Most of the first person narrative of Will Turner is played out in his head. He is an intuitive detective which has garnered him a reputation with his partner, as well as the precinct, of being weird. He sees aspects of the investigation that others dismiss or put off as Turner being Turner. One aspect of Turners internal dialog that I got somewhat annoyed with is he frequently tells us that Emma is on the case to further her career while his motivation is a personal interest in one of the victims. I certainly understand the difference in motivation but the frequent reminders of those differences just comes across as unnecessarily repetitive. That being said it does bring some additional tension into an already tense case. I don't know if there are previous books with Will Turner that might have allowed him to become a more fully realized character. He and Emma deserve more of their history being given to the reader.

The third person narrative moves us between Will and Emma's investigation and the moves of the remaining major characters. There is a complex relationship within the balance of the major characters.

The plot quickly opens up when a car slams into a garage and a still living victim and the remains of 13 others are found by police. We know who the killer is and what he has done. Steve Mosby doesn't allow the plot or the characters to slow done, even when the action takes place in Turner's head.

I would wholeheartedly recommend "You Can Run" to anyone who likes police procedurals.

I wish to thank Pegasus Books, the author, and NetGalley for my copy of "You Can Run" in exchange for my honest opinion and review.

[Gretos knygos · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dar vienas trileris. Ir vis stebiuosi, kaip aš tiek daug metų jų neimdavau į rankas. Gal nejutau skirtumo tarp trilerio ir detektyvo, kurie man mintyse buvo asimiliavęsi? Nežinau, ko gero. Nes detektyvai iki šiol nėra mano mėgstamas žanras, nors visokių CSI seniau nevengdavau. Ko gero, skonis su laiku keičiasi, nieko keisto.

Detektyvas Vilis terneris su įdomia partnere atsiduria įvykių centre – lemtingo sutapimo dėka atrandama daugiau nei dešimt „užkonservuotų“ moterų palaikų, o netrukus paaiškėja, kad jos visos, ko gero, Raudonosios upės žudiko aukos. Paskutinė maniako auka išgyvena, tačiau sužalojimai ir išsekimas tokio lygio, kad tyrimui pagalbos nesulaukę, Vilis su partnere imasi tyrimo patys: kiekvienas dėl savų priežasčių, Vilis, kankinamas praeities šešėlių, kurie jį itin stipriai sieja su šia byla, o kolegė tai mato kaip gerą karjeros galimybę.

Pakankamai standartinis trileris, bet buvo keli dalykai, kurie man buvo įdomūs ir patiko – pasakojimas iš skirtingų perspektyvų, o ypač, iš žudiko-organizatoriaus, tyrėjų. Patiko, kad Vilis vadovavosi tuo „šeštuoju jausmu“ tirdamas bylas – tiesiog jautė, kuria kryptimi judėti. Toks nestandartinis tyrėjas, kuris ne reglamentais ir protokolais vadovaujasi, o jausmais ir nuojautomis. Kažkaip man šie dalykai netrukdė, nes nebuvo tokių situacijų, kur neįtikino. O gal ta nuojauta pačios gyvenime dažnai pasitvirtina, dėl to ir lengva patikėti?

Dar patiko pati esmė, idėja, žudymo motyvai ir visas to organizavimas. Žinau, skambu kaip sociopatė, bet tai knygą darė tik įdomesne: smulkmenos prie smulkmenų ir visai gyva mozaika susidėliojo. Reikalaujantis atidumo žudikas, ir tai, kad mes visą laiką žinome kas jis, ir net pakankamai greit sužinome ir motyvus. Viskas taip išversta į kitą pusę. Beeeet, manęs neįtikino atskleidimas, pati kulminacija. Kai minėjau detales, tai pati pagrindinė detalė mane ir suglumino – kaip? Ką? Kodėl?

Poilsiui tinkamas trileris, net ir tų kūnų aprašymų ar žudymo metodų čia nedaug ir kraupių detalių nerasite. Knyga visomis prasmėmis panaši į „Mergina rūke“ ir man ana pasirodė stipresnė.

Susitikime instagrame:
www.instagram.com/gretabrigita.lt

Visas apžvalgas rasite čia:
www.gretabrigita.lt

Leidyklos dovana.

[Robin Price · Rating 5 out of 5]

Steve Mosby's tenth & sadly final novel. How sad it is that four years ago Steve decided this would be his final novel. He was in my opinion the most exciting talent in British crime writing.
As always Steve injects a hint of the supernatural into this novel. Two young school friends stand on a bridge. One of them thinks he sees a man with a sad face standing behind his friend. Could it be a ghost? A case of pareidolia? Or something even more sinister?
Written to very high standards this is a novel that is highly innovative & deeply disturbing. It's evocative & full of empathy & leaves memories that will linger long after the book is finished.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thrilling ride from start to finish, 'You Can Run' plunges readers into a web of secrets and lies that keeps you guessing until the very end!"

[Vitalija · Rating 4 out of 5]

Iš pradžių knyga pasirodė šiek tiek keistoka, sunkiai sekėsi suprasti kas ir su kuo susijęs, tačiau kaip sakoma viskas savo laiku. Knyga tikrai nenuvylė. Siužetas yra susuktas, ilgai išlaikytas žudikas ir kiti veikėjai, kurie prisidėjo prie, galėčiau sakyti, tikrai painios istorijos apie Raudonąjį krioklio žudiką. Knyga detektyvinė, tad tikrai detektyvas joje jaučiasi. Skaitant tikrai bandžiau irgi kartu su detektyvais narplioti istoriją, dėlioti detales ir suprasti kas ir kodėl šioje istorijoje nutiko. Lengvai per porą dienų „susiskaitė“, rekomendacija detektyvų mėgėjams.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Compelling, sinister and dark crime thriller.

[Ashleigh Staunton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read a couple of reviews to this book before I started and boy do I regret it. Up until 75% through I was anxiously awaiting a great dip in suspense or creative flair or linguistic ability BUT IT NEVER CAME. So, at 76% I decided to ignore the not so great reviews and love this book and oh, how I do LOVE THIS BOOK!

Steve Mosby is a genius. You Can Run is single handedly the best book I have read this year. Maybe best of all if I allowed myself to admit it. The book isn't necessarily a long book but it is wordy and descriptive and it has many chatacters introduced quickly and, at times, quite randomly.

Personally, I think the way Mosby balanced the more intense thrill, fear and hunt with the softer emotions: sadness, death and personal loss, was remarkable. Emotionally this book was a rollercoaster and made for excited reading. I was making spider-diagrams in my head trying to find connections and guess the ending throughout the whole book. I wanted to be in it and not once was I discouraged or bored with the story or caught trailing off to some other thoughts. This book captivating from the get go!

Will Turner is a brilliant character. A real character who I can imagine existing. I want to know more about his partner and their friendship as I have to say she began to annoy me slightly at one time but I think that was meant to be. I think there was a nice balance within the pair themselves and on reflection, she is very relatable. I like the normality of these characters - not superheroes pretending to be normal. This book reminds me of the TV series Criminal Minds in the way it was well thought out and clearly processed so what you think and what you think should matter in the end, doesn't matter because it's written so brilliantly! (That sentence might not be written so brilliantly but read it and see if you agree that this book stands alone for caring about more than the main target and coming together perfectly.)


The ending of You Can Run ticked every box. I actually think there was three endings but collectively it was the most beautiful ending to this story and shone light on the delicate nature in the book behind the investigation and crime. I thoroughly enjoyed this as a whole but the final chapters will forever stand out from the rest. They were clever and creative and really realistic. So happy I read this book!

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

In You Can Run, Steve Mosby puts a truly clever and unique twist on the serial killer plot device. This police procedural is a fast-paced and engrossing crime drama that is absolutely brilliant.

When a car crashes into the garage of a residential home, police are shocked when they find kidnapping victim Amanda Cassidy barely clinging to life. Detective Inspector Will Turner and his partner DI Emma Beck are assigned to the case and they make a stunning discovery in the basement of the home: four barrels containing the decomposing bodies of women who have been abducted and murdered by the Red River Killer. Their attempts to locate homeowner and now suspected serial killer, John Blythe, result in a massive manhunt. Will is troubled by an unexpected detail after the bodies are removed from the barrels. However, it is his interview of Jeremy Townsend, the husband of victim Melanie West, that really sets his alarm bells ringing. Turner is also convinced that John Blythe might have someone helping him evade capture but will Emma believe his theory once the truth about his personal connection to the case is revealed?

Will is an excellent detective who greatly relies on gut instincts and feelings during his investigations. He easily picks up on nebulous clues that everyone else overlooks but his co-workers consider him to be a little weird. Will does not have the same career aspirations as his partner Emma and he sometimes feels like he is hindering her career. Will is not one to talk much about his personal life, but in the Red River Killer investigation, he is holding back vital information that could have far reaching implications for both of their futures.  After Will has a rash confrontation in full view of his fellow police officers, he jeopardizes both his and Emma's roles in the investigation.

While there is absolutely no doubt that John Blythe is the Red River Killer, there are plenty of twists and turns during the manhunt to capture him. There is, of course, a great deal of suspense surrounding Jeremy Townsend which leads to more questions than answers due to his somewhat bizarre behavior. Simon Bunting is also a rather mysterious addition to the cast of characters and it is virtually impossible to figure out exactly how he figures into the unfolding storyline. Will's childhood friend Rob is a mystifying piece in this perplexing puzzle that will keep readers guessing how he fits into the Red Killer investigation.

You Can Run is an intricately plotted and suspense-laden police procedural that has a dazzling array of cunning twists and turns.  Will and Emma are a well-matched investigative team that are more than capable of solving this increasingly complex case. Steve Mosby puts a fresh spin on the serial killer plot device and he keeps the tension high as the novel wends its ways to a jaw-dropping conclusion. I greatly enjoyed and highly recommend this un-put-down-able mystery to fans of the genre.

[Shawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh! I saw a
Couple scathing Goodreads reviews just now!...and...I only gave it three stars. Makes me want to go back and give it another, but three means, “I liked it”. And I did enjoy it. You have to be in the mood to read a crime book.
Pros:
Mosby, the author, is a Brit, so we will be treated to getting something from the boot, staying in hospital, and I forget the rest.
Cons:
Truth is stranger than fiction, so it is kind of gross to make up stories about hurting people, isn’t it? On the other hand, when shit really hits the fan and they may encounter a criminal, they reach for their trusty billies, in case they must subdue a maniac, they may need a billy club! I like that.
I’m thinking of moving to England. I like the policeman narrator and his partner. But it was no Lucas Davenport/& Flowers, or Milo & Dr Delaware in L.A. was it.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first time reading Steve Mosby and I found this an engaging crime/police thriller. Parts of it were very procedural, as they should be, but the author also weaved in several twists - some expected, some not at all. I liked his characterization of Will and Emma, but I felt as if Turner's personal connection to finding the Red River Killer wasn't original or unexpected. John Blythe was a complex and creepy character, to say the least. I found myself both fascinated and disgusted with him, sparking my interest even more as I read.

This novel was smart, methodical, creepy, mysterious - all of the fantastic elements of crime thriller/suspense. It was gripping, engaging, and definitely one of those reads where I scolded anyway that interrupted me. Mosby is an author that I will absolutely read again.

*Thanks to NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

[Emilė · Rating 2 out of 5]

I find it hard to understand why this book was even written.
First of all, it was boring. The reader gets to know who the criminal is right away and then the so-called investigation and search begins. So you might think, ok so the reader probably gets to really see the behind the scenes of police investigation, how it works and all that. But is there an investigation? Not really. The main detective always gets "a feeling" about something and finds all answers this way. In other words, not super exciting to read about. And this is supposed to a thriller? Felt like a waste of time.
Though if you are interested in actually good thrillers by Steve Mosby, I recommend you try I Know Who Did It (it's actually part 2 of a book The 50/50 Killer which I haven't read), I really enjoyed that one and stayed up late reading it.

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

This wasn't quite as good as The Nightmare Place but it was still a fast paced and gripping story, this time following DI Will Turner as he and his team are hunting someone that abducts women and does who knows what to them as their bodies are never found. Until one day someone steals a car, makes off from the police, and crashes into a standard suburban house that is hiding a very big secret, several big secrets in fact. And so a manhunt starts and its all hands on deck to find the man responsible, but things are more complicated than the police realise as the killer isn't the only one hiding something.

[Eclectic Review · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Monsters are made, not born, and the truth is that they can be made anywhere.”

The Monster has never been present when the women have died, so he has no idea how long it takes. He’s done with them by then, so what does it matter?

The Worm is incapable of killing for himself, he’s spent years enjoying the Monster’s actions from a distance.

The Writer is racked with guilt about all the terrible things he’s done to the person he loves.

See my complete review at The Eclectic Review .

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

My biggest problem with this book came from the fact that I could only read one chapter at a time. Every chapter was from a different perspective and introduced characters. I had a hard time keeping up with them especially when names started with the same letter. Once I had more time to read longer sections, it got better.

Unfortunately, this book just ended up being ok though. I finished it a few days ago and had to look at the description to even remember what the book was about. I guess it wasn't that memorable.

[Renny Barcelos · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid thriller by Steve Mosby. I liked this one much better than the last I read from him, specially because this time there were no hired mercenaries (it's getting old and kind of a pet peeve of mine, in all his books...)

The plot itself is a bit...I wouldn't say far fetched, but it demands a lot of suspension of disbelief. However, it's so well written that I could do it. As usual, the detective is a tormented soul too, but convincingly.