‘Die With Me’ by Elena Forbes

Published by Quercus July 2007.

ISBN978-1-84724-156-6

This, Forbes’ debut novel, opens in a neglected and dismal London churchyard where the inscription on one of the tombstones reads: ‘How short is life, how soon comes death’. And in this atmospheric setting, it comes very quickly indeed. A young woman falls from the balcony of the church but she wasn’t there alone. She was lured there by a man who convinced her to join him in a suicide pact – except, when it came down to it, only one of them went over the edge.

Detective Inspector Mark Tartaglia and his team’s investigation into the bizarre circumstances of the fourteen year old’s death soon uncovers two other victims, formerly classed as suicides, and one other suspicious death. It is evident that they are dealing with a clever and charismatic psychopath. But can they find out his true identity before he kills again?

The premise is clever, the prose crisp, and the plot fast-paced whilst red herrings and twists keep the story fresh. Insights into the psychology of lonely and depressed women who are willing to believe the empty promises of a conman add much to the sinister feel of this book. To say I enjoyed it makes me sound a bit sick; but I did, in an unsettling sort of way.
---------

Ruth Wade