DEAD JEALOUS by Helen H. Durrant
‘A fresh pair of eyes and a different perspective added to advances in forensics brings to light evidence and possibilities that were overlooked 17 years ago with shocking results. There are many twists and turns along the way as the team untangles a web of lies going back many years. The conclusion is a real shocker that the reader cant see coming.’
Dead Jealous (book 7)
Available from AMAZON
A teenage girl’s body is found in the back of a car on the notorious Hobfield housing estate. No one had reported her missing, but she’s been dead for a week.
Meanwhile, an old jar is brought into the station. It was found carefully wrapped in a blanket, with a child’s pink hairclip. The jar contains ashes and bone fragments.
Seventeen years ago Detective Tom Calladine had been part of a team investigating the disappearance of Jessica Wilkins. Her mother had taken her to Leesdon Park one summer afternoon.
She went to get the child an ice cream and when she returned her daughter was gone. Over the years there were no sightings, no witnesses — nothing.
Will there finally be closure for this unsolved mystery?
And why was the girl found in the car killed and why are her friends not telling her the whole story?
Detectives Tom Calladine and Ruth Bayliss will unravel a web of lies and pain, in this fast-moving and gripping crime mystery.
Full of twists and turns, this is a crime thriller that will keep you turning the pages until the stunning conclusion
If you like Angela Marsons, Rachel Abbott, Mel Sherratt, Ruth Rendell, or Mark Billingham you will enjoy this exciting new crime fiction writer.
DEAD JEALOUS is book seven of a new series of detective thrillers featuring D.S. Ruth Bayliss and D.I. Tom Calladine.
MY REVIEW
Helen Durrant is a fabulous author and I loved this book from the very first page. Forensic pathology is a particular interest of mine so this was an extra bonus. While it is part of a series it does work very well as stand alone. The book does refer to events from the previous book but Helen has, excellently, managed to bring a new reader up to date while at the same time ensuring readers of the previous books are not bored with recaps from previous books.
There are several cases that the team has to juggle. A teenage girl is murdered, a 17 year old cold case is reopened and a viscous moneylender has residents living in fear. Totally different cases and the team is struggling to move forward with any of them.
Team dynamics play a big part in this book as personal feelings and resentments come to the fore. The characters are very realistic and complex. We learn a little about their personal lives within the book as they develop.
A fresh pair of eyes and a different perspective added to advances in forensics brings to light evidence and possibilities that were overlooked 17 years ago with shocking results. There are many twists and turns along the way as the team untangles a web of lies going back many years. The conclusion is a real shocker that the reader cant see coming,
I absolutely loved this book I was hooked from the beginning and just kept reading ‘a little bit more’. I intend to read Helen’s backlist as soon as time allows.
A fantastic read. Thank you to Joffe Books for the advance copy,
THE DETECTIVES
Tom Calladine is a detective inspector who is devoted to his job. His personal life, however, is not so successful. Having been married and divorced before the age of twenty-one has set a pattern that he finds difficult to escape.
Ruth Bayliss is in her mid-thirties, plain-speaking but loyal. She is balancing her professional life with looking after a small child.
THE SETTING
The fictional village of Leesdon on the outskirts of an industrial northern English city. There is little work and a lot of crime. The bane of Calladine’s life is the Hobfield housing estate, breeding ground to all that is wrong with the area that he calls home.
THE DCI GRECO BOOKS
Book 1: DARK MURDER
Book 2: DARK HOUSES
Book 3: DARK TRADE
THE CALLADINE & BAYLISS MYSTERY SERIES
Book 1: DEAD WRONG
Book 2: DEAD SILENT
Book 3: DEAD LIST
Book 4: DEAD LOST
Book 5: DEAD & BURIED
Book 6: DEAD NASTY
Book 7: DEAD JEALOUS

Helen H Durrant
Author Bio
Helen sets her books in the area she has lived in for many years. The towns and villages that sit in the shelter of the Pennine hills. This is an area between two counties, Lancashire and Yorkshire, and between the city and the hills. It offers a rich mix of the industrial and the countryside and all the character therein.
Helen always planned to write crime novels. But until she retired from full-time work in a local further education college, it had to go on the back burner. Once she did retire – there was no excuse. She now writes full-time. Retirement proper will have to wait!
Currently there are nine books in the ‘Calladine & Bayliss’ series available – Dead Wrong, Dead Silent, Dead List, Dead Lost, Dead & Buried, Dead Nasty, Dead Jealous, Dead Bad, and the latest – Dead Guilty. There is also a box set of the first three books.
Also available are four books in the ‘DI Greco’ series – Dark Murder, Dark Houses, Dark Trade, and the latest – Dark Angel.
There are two books in the DI Matt Brindle series – His Third Victim and The Other Victim.
The DCI Rachel King series has two books – Next Victim and Two Victims
LINKS
Twitter – @hhdurrant
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/pg/helenhdurrant/about/?ref=page_internal