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Willow King #6
The Drowning Pool
When forty-four-year-old civil servant and romance writer Willow King finds herself experiencing motherhood for the first time, to prove that she is not stuck at home, she begins investigating the murder of her obstetrician, only to become the killer's next target.
233 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 1997
2 people are currently reading
32 people want to read
About the author
Natasha Cooper
62 books17 followersaka N.J. Cooper, Kate Hatfield, Clare Layton, Daphne Wright.
Natasha Cooper was Chairman of the Crime Writers' Association in 2000/2001. She reviews books in THE TIMES, THE TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT and the NEW LAW JOURNAL. She is the author of, among others, FAULT LINES and PREY TO ALL.
Natasha Cooper was Chairman of the Crime Writers' Association in 2000/2001. She reviews books in THE TIMES, THE TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT and the NEW LAW JOURNAL. She is the author of, among others, FAULT LINES and PREY TO ALL.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
June 29, 2020
Third time's the charm, I guess. It took me 3 tries to actually get through this one. I felt it to drag on so much in the first half that I often found myself setting it down and dreading to pick it up again.
I like Willow's character for her tenacity in solving the case but her lack of self-confidence and constant doubt of her relationship with her husband after giving birth had me questioning how they made it this long together. I wish she had the same self-assurance in her sleuthing skills as she did her marriage and veer husband's love for her.
It could be that there's more to the story though as I've not read previous installments in this series. Perhaps there's something that happened prior to this point that I'm missing and it's making it hard for me to wrap my head around.
I like Willow's character for her tenacity in solving the case but her lack of self-confidence and constant doubt of her relationship with her husband after giving birth had me questioning how they made it this long together. I wish she had the same self-assurance in her sleuthing skills as she did her marriage and veer husband's love for her.
It could be that there's more to the story though as I've not read previous installments in this series. Perhaps there's something that happened prior to this point that I'm missing and it's making it hard for me to wrap my head around.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 23, 2016
MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS.
I've read most of the Trish Maguire mysteries - this was my first Cooper book fr. an earlier series that features police officer wife Willow King as the lead character.
"Drowning Pool" has Cooper's usual subtle plot lines. There's an outright murder (ghastly - ob-gyn drowns in a hospital birthing pool)but the culprit turns out be someone who's practically a minor character ... at least until the book's final pages.
As usual, as well, Cooper's characters are very satisfying -- in that the good ones still have foibles, the bad ones have some endearing/desirable qualities. And even the murder victim -- a handsome, widely beloved male doctor -- turns out to have had a ambitious, dark, bullying side.
I think -- based on some book jacket dates -- that the King novels ended about when the Maguire novels started. I believe I can see why. Plots are somewhat limited if the officer's wife has to come across all the mysteries.
Character-wise. Trish M., the lawyer (I can never remember if in British terms she's a solicitor, barrister or advocate) has the independence and feminist orientation of Willow King, but cango further than Willow in her autonomy because Trish has a power job and has not married, even tho she's in love and committed to George(another lawyer, who is her longtime romantic partner).
I've read most of the Trish Maguire mysteries - this was my first Cooper book fr. an earlier series that features police officer wife Willow King as the lead character.
"Drowning Pool" has Cooper's usual subtle plot lines. There's an outright murder (ghastly - ob-gyn drowns in a hospital birthing pool)but the culprit turns out be someone who's practically a minor character ... at least until the book's final pages.
As usual, as well, Cooper's characters are very satisfying -- in that the good ones still have foibles, the bad ones have some endearing/desirable qualities. And even the murder victim -- a handsome, widely beloved male doctor -- turns out to have had a ambitious, dark, bullying side.
I think -- based on some book jacket dates -- that the King novels ended about when the Maguire novels started. I believe I can see why. Plots are somewhat limited if the officer's wife has to come across all the mysteries.
Character-wise. Trish M., the lawyer (I can never remember if in British terms she's a solicitor, barrister or advocate) has the independence and feminist orientation of Willow King, but cango further than Willow in her autonomy because Trish has a power job and has not married, even tho she's in love and committed to George(another lawyer, who is her longtime romantic partner).
February 21, 2015
This is the second book in the series that I have read. I did enjoy it and found the twists in the plot entertaining and fun. However the topic, based on a maternity unit, was a little too close to home for me and I found it a little scary and worrying. I will read other books in the series by this one wasn't my favorite.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews