The Curator

By M. W. Craven
Crime 

My Review

⭐A 2022 Top Rated Read⭐

The Curator is the third book in the Washington Poe and Tilly Bradshaw series. This time our intrepid duo are faced with another baffling case — a sadistic serial killer who hacks off his victims' fingers. Gruesome indeed! While some victims have been anaesthetised, others haven't. At each crime scene a cryptic note is found: #BSC6. 

I really do believe author M.W. Craven is one of the finest British crime writers around today. He thinks outside the box and creates exceptionally exciting and original novels. His characters are fully developed and quirky; his plots are twisty and immersive.  

Set in Cumbria, The Curator kept me up at night enthusiastically turning pages. The partnership between Poe and Tilly is unusual and intriguing. Those who consider Tilly a socially awkward oddball are soon put in their place. She's an integral part of Poe's team and he'll defend her to the hilt. 

The fast-paced plot was loaded with red herrings and the camaraderie between Poe and Tilly developed nicely. I was kept guessing until the final few exhilarating chapters. The unpredictability of where the story was leading was fantastic. It was a suspenseful, gripping and thoroughly marvellous read.         

Book Source: Purchased copy
My Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Paperback: 400 pages

Publisher: Constable (10th Dec 2020)

ISBN-13: 978-1472131942

The Blurb

It's Christmas and a serial killer is leaving displayed body parts all over Cumbria. A strange message is left at each scene: #BSC6

Called in to investigate, the National Crime Agency's Washington Poe and Tilly Bradshaw are faced with a case that makes no sense. Why were some victims anaesthetized, while others died in appalling agony? Why is their only suspect denying what they can irrefutably prove but admitting to things they weren't even aware of? And why did the victims all take the same two weeks off work three years earlier?

And when a disgraced FBI agent gets in touch things take an even darker turn. Because she doesn't think Poe is dealing with a serial killer at all; she thinks he's dealing with someone far, far worse - a man who calls himself the Curator.

And nothing will ever be the same again . . .