Continued my read of all the works of Elly Griffiths with Bleeding Heart Yard. This book is set in London with three focal characters, DI Harbinder Kaur, DS Cassie Fitzherbert and Anna Vance. Harbinder is investigating the murder of an MP which occurred at a school reunion; both Cassie and Anna were friends and classmates of the murder victim. It quickly becomes apparent that there may be a connection to the death of another classmate just when GCSE exams had ended.
Griffiths excels at writing believable, strong, complex women. Harbinder is a recent transfer to London so feeling her way around the team, unsure of how they view her, but determined to do a good job. Cassie is tormented by her belief that she is responsible for the classmate’s death years before, and which leaves Harbinder and the reader wondering how she was involved in the current death. Additional characters (other police and a group of high achieving classmates) are sympathetically rendered. The book raises the issue of how an event can cause unexpected trauma for decades. The decisions of frankly stupid teenagers have consequences even when they are in their forties.
This is book 3 in the Harbinder Kaur series, but the first one I read. It works fine as a stand alone as well. It also reinforced my decision to never attend a high school reunion.
