I have followed this series since first discovering it soon after becoming a kindle owner back in 2010 and have eagerly awaited each new book ever since. Rachel Abbott creates believable scenarios which touch on the important, and gritty subjects, that we might like to close our eyes to but never forgets that what the reader wants is a cracking good story. Better still her lead detective, the handsome and caring DCI Tom Douglas, creates an attractive backdrop, well, in my mind anyway.
In The Sixth Window Natalie Grey finds something disturbing on her partner’s laptop which throws her into a panic. So much so that she wants to scoop up her daughter Scarlett and take her to a place of safety. But part of her can’t believe that what she’s seen is true. After all she’s known Ed Cooper since she was a teenager, all through her marriage to his best friend Bernie and he was the person she turned to when he was killed in a hit and run accident.
As a temporary measure Natalie finds Scarlett and herself a furnished flat to rent in an old building in Manchester. Scarlett is bored, it is the summer holidays and she is far from her friends but hey she’s got plenty of school-work to be getting on with and the library is close by. Yes, that isn’t what happens at all. As I said Rachel Abbott writes believable stories, not fairy tales! Instead Scarlett mooches around her new home bored and angry with her mother until she hears voices… having discovered that the apartment is built on the site of an old workhouse, Scarlett wonders if she is hearing echoes from the past, needless to say she decides to investigate.
Meanwhile the disturbing suicide of a young girl is keeping our favourite DCI busy and there is a link to Natalie and Scarlett which he can’t ignore and as Bernie’s name keeps coming up in his investigations Tom Douglas has to face the fact that the former policeman may have been hiding a secret that his wife isn’t ready to confront. By this point in the plot I was well and truly hooked and found myself turning the pages ever faster as my brain whirred around trying to cling onto the facts while the suspicions swirled all around. This really is a fast-moving plot with plenty of the intrigue which I love. The characters are well-drawn and even if Natalie is prone to putting her head in the sand over some of the discoveries made, I liked the fact that she was determined to protect her teenage daughter no matter what. This combined with the recent loss of her husband meant that I was able to sympathise with her, which was in direct contrast to some of the other characters I met during The Sixth Window, who were downright creepy, none more so than the janitor of the building, the description Rachel provides of this dear soul is far from flattering, I do hope it wasn’t based on anyone she knows!
As with all my favourite crime fiction novels, The Sixth Window has a number of strands which are deftly pulled together to provide a scary picture which sadly isn’t quite as far from the truth as we may like to believe. I don’t normally mention the endings of books, for obvious reasons, but this one had me literally gasping with disbelief as my jaw dropped. In conclusion this book is the best in the series yet, brilliant plot, contemporary storyline, great characterisation which culminates in what on reflection seemed to be the only ending possible.
I’d like to thank the author Rachel Abbott who kindly gave me a copy of The Sixth Window, not for review purposes, although how could I not review this! For any of you who use NetGalley it is available for request and you will be able to pre-order the kindle copy from Amazon soon. The publication date for this being 21 February 2017.
First Published UK: 21 February 2017
Publisher: Black Dot Publishing
No of Pages: approx 350
Genre: Crime Fiction Series
Discover Rachel Abbott here
Web : http://www.rachel-abbott.com
Blog: rachelabbottwriter.com
Twitter: @RachelAbbott
Facebook: RachelAbbott1Writer
The Rachel Abbott DCI Tom Douglas Books in order:
Only The Innocent
The Back Road
Sleep Tight
Stranger Child
Nowhere Child (Novella)
Kill Me Again
Great review, I’ve been sent this to read- can’t wait to get to it!
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I really do think it’s the best yet! Enjoy 😊
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Great review. This does sound quite interesting. I have never heard of the series before though. Can it be read as a standalone?
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All of these (except Nowhere Child) would work equally well as a standalone read 😊
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I have the rest of this series (as yet unread) so I’ll definitely have to get this and make some time to read them.
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Yes you really should Jill 😊
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Great review! Kill Me Again has been on my Kindle for too long… but I did not know it was part of a series so I might get the other ones to read before. I can’t wait to discover The Sixth Window. Creepy characters and lots of intrigues combined always keep me up late at night to read 🙂
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It is a great series to enjoy Donna but this latest one is outstanding!
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New book for me. Thanks for the review.
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Thank you 🙂
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I think I have all the other books in this series and must begin reading them. Making a note of ONLY THE INNOCENT and will get to it soon. This one sounds quite, quite, quite…LOL! Cleo, your reviews always make me want to drop everything and run to pick up whatever book you are discussing. Love it.
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What a lovey thing to say Kay – I’m glad you find my reviews so enticing and you really should read this series, I’ve enjoyed each and every one.
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It sounds as though the pace of this one, and the tension, are done really well, Cleo. That plot point where people don’t turn out to be what you think they are can add so much to a story, and it sounds as though Abbott does it quite well. Glad you enjoyed it.
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I do like this series mainly because each plot isn’t ‘overshadowed’ by a huge backstory and Rachel Abbott does manage that tension incredibly well.
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Loved this. finished it over the weekend and as always it’s a belter. Great review
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Thank you Jen, it was, as you say a belter – that ending!!
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Your reviews are greatly increasing my TBR pile Cleo!! This sounds so good but I’m wondering if I can tackle another new series. Can I jump in with this book and get enough backstory or is it a must to start at book 1?
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There isn’t a huge backstory so I think reading any of them as a standalone would work
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Great thanks!!
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Ooh, a handsome and caring DCI? You’re tempting me… !
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🙂
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Sounds like a great book. Must check out this series.
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I recommend it Nish
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Gasping and jaw dropping ending!? That has me interested right there. Your review is awesome and makes me want to read this book. I’ll have to check out the other’s in the series as well :).
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They are all well-worth a read Amanda 🙂
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Oh, good! Thank you 🙂
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I must read this one! In fact, why have I not yet read this author?
I also first got my Kindle in 2010, a gift from my daughter who thought that my book stacks (of print versions) were going to fall and bury me. LOL.
I love the sound of that “attractive backdrop”…and jaw dropping sounds like a feeling I enjoy while reading.
Thanks for sharing! Off to check out these books.
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I do recommend this series there’s quite a mix of plots throughout. I had turned my nose up at a kindle claiming I ‘preferred’ real books but the ease I can hide away the huge TBR is a bonus! Mine was a present too, designed to stop me packing loads of books each time I travelled!
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I have been enjoying books with a “creep” factor recently so this sounds like one I would like to read. I haven’t read any of the other books though and given your passion for them am wondering if I should go back to the beginning.
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To be honest there isn’t a big back story to these so any of them can be read as standalones without ruining it if you want to go back – my favourite before this one was Sleep Tight but they are all good reads.
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I’ve got one of her books but haven’t got round to reading it yet. It’s good to hear this can be read as a standalone. Definitely want to read, sounds too good !
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This one was particularly excellent but I have enjoyed them all.
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Reblogged this on PenneyVanderbilt.
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Hi Cleopatra…do you know if The Sixth Window by Rachel Abbott will be available as an audiobook? Thank you very much!
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Hi Brett – I’m not sure as far as I know the kindle version only is out in February
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