Thursday, December 9, 2021

Swansong by Damien Boyd

 

When Detective Inspector Nick Dixon was sixteen, his girlfriend, Fran, disappeared from St. Dunstan's, the private boarding school they both attended. She was never found. It's what made Dixon eventually decide to join the police force. Now, seventeen years later, Isobel Swan, another young girl has been murdered at Brunel's, a nearby boarding school. Her death reminds Dixon of Fran's disappearance. So when he's sent to Brunel as an undercover teacher trainee to investigate Isobel's murder, he thinks he just might find the answer to Fran's long ago disappearance, too. 


Cath @ Read-warbler recommended this mystery this past July, and I'm so glad she did. I loved this one! DI Nick Dixon is such an interesting character; I liked both him and his girlfriend, Detective Constable Jane Winter. Dixon's personal connection to this case made their investigation that much more compelling. This is a very well-written and well-paced mystery. And it was fun seeing Dixon go undercover at Brunel. That private boarding school setting is a favorite of mine, and Dixon certainly knew it well. Now if only I can get my library to buy the rest of the books in this series because I definitely want to read them all.

Happy Reading!

39 comments:

  1. So chuffed that you liked this one, Lark. I thought it was nicely convoluted and twisty. Also I live in the area and know the private school it might've been based on, so I could easily picture it. I hope you can get the rest somehow.

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    1. This was such a good read! Thanks for recommending it. And how fun that you know which real private school it was based on. :)

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  2. This series is new to me, so right away, another gem to add to my TBR, but the thing that interests me is the boarding school angle — the setting of a boarding school was very popular in YA a couple of years ago (probs still is!) but I couldn’t finish any books set there. I like this bc Nick seems like such. Cool character to follow inthis world, and in some ways he’s as new to this world as i am.

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    1. Nick's a great character! And this book reads much better than those disappointing YA ones you tried. :)

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  3. The boarding school seems to be a popular setting for many British mysteries. It would be interesting to explore just why that is.

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    1. I wonder if it's because so many people in England attend a boarding school, unlike here in America. Whatever reason, I like that so many storied are set in one. :)

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  4. like Dorothy, i wonder about the boarding school thing... i like British mysteries pretty well and this seems like a good one: i'll look for the author at tomorrow's book sale...

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    1. This was a really good mystery. I'd like to read Boyd's other books now. Enjoy the book sale! I hope you find lots of good books to buy. :D

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  5. There's something about boarding schools, isn't it? They definitely make a good setting no matter whatever the genre is. :)

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    1. It seems like boarding school settings are popular with everyone. I know I've always enjoyed reading about them. :)

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  6. I love stories that take place at private boarding schools! I'm not sure why that is, but they always seem more interesting. :)

    Lindsi @ Do You Dog-ear? 💬

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    1. Boarding school settings are great! I really love them, too. Thanks for commenting. :)

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  7. Boarding schools are always such great places for mysteries. This book sounds really good. I'll have to check my library for it. :)

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    1. I love books set in boarding schools! Here's hoping your library has this one.

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  8. I hadn't heard of this one before now but it sure sounds good.

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    1. I only know about this one because of Cath, but it's a really good read. :)

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  9. Is your library pretty good about buying requested books for the system? I've had mixed results with mine, but they do surprise me every once in a while by automatically buying the entire series rather than just the first book I asked for.

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    1. My library used to be really picky about what they would or wouldn't buy, but lately they've been pretty much buying whatever I request. And they've been good about buying all the books in a series, too. I don't know what changed, but I'm not complaining! :)

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  10. Oh, I like the sound of this one! Must check my library. Hopefully they have it.

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  11. How did I miss this one on Cath's blog? It sounds like a novel I would enjoy as well. I'll have to check it out.

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    1. Hope you can get a copy...and that you like it! :)

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  12. What an interesting story! Glad you enjoyed it Lark

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    1. That's what made me want to read this one. :)

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  14. I haven been wanting to broaden my reading into the mystery genre. I might have to pick this one up. When I first saw the title, I thought of Emma Swan from Once Upon a Time. Ha!

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    1. I just looked this up on Goodreads, and it is the 4th book in a series. Is it okay to read this one out of order, or should I start with #1?

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    2. I read this one out of order, and it was fine. I didn't feel at all lost in the story, or with the characters. And that's funny that you thought of Emma Swan when you saw the title! :D

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  15. Thanks for bringing this series to my attention!

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    1. I thought this was a great read; I'm looking forward to checking out the other books in this series myself. :)

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  16. This sounds good and I haven't read a good mystery in a while

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    1. This is a very good mystery if you're ever in the mood for one that takes place in England. :)

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