Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for an honest review.

Detective Inspector Lorraine Fisher is off on holiday to visit her sister, whose husband has just left her. Lorraine is used to helping her sister through things like this, but she is hardly prepared for everything waiting for her when she arrives in Radcote. The village saw a spate of youth suicides just two years ago, and there are fears it may be starting again as another young man has died in an apparent suicide. On top of that, Lorraine's nephew, Freddie, has been acting strangely and his mother is concerned about him. And when a second suicide is reported not long after Lorraine's arrival, she can't help but try to get to the bottom of what's going on in the village.

I'd never read a book by Samantha Hayes before this, but something tells me this won't be the last one. I found myself lost in the world of Radcote, quickly invested in the characters' lives, and trying to figure out the truth. And some of the twists here, I did not see coming at all. Once revealed, they made perfect sense, but I wasn't on the right track for a few of them. And to me, that's the mark of a well-written mystery. I give this a solid recommendation for fans of mystery, but also for fans of literary fiction in general.

There are some heart-wrenching moments and there's obviously some scenes of violence and discussions of bullying and suicide--just as a bit of a warning. But there's nothing particularly gratuitous or too graphic, at least by my personal standards. ( )

What You Left Behind by Samantha Hayes is an intriguing whodunit that fans of British police procedurals are going to LOVE. Unexpected twists and turns, a large suspect pool and lack of a clear motive make it virtually impossible to guess the perpetrator's identity. Although it is the second installment of the DCI Lorraine Fisher series, the novel can be read as a standalone.

Detective Chief Inspector Lorraine Fisher's vacation is anything but relaxing when she finds herself embroiled in a perplexing mystery while visiting her sister Jo. Immediately upon arrival, she learns distressing news about Jo's marriage but most shocking are the changes in her nephew Freddie. He is withdrawn, moody and refuses to accompany the rest of the family on excursions. It is soon clear that something is deeply troubling him, but he refuses to reveal what that something is. Jo is deeply concerned about her son because eighteen months earlier, a cluster of teen suicides rocked their small village and the recent death of a homeless youth, Dean Watts, was also ruled a suicide. Her fears are compounded when another young man takes his own life and Jo grows increasingly alarmed about Freddie's state of mind.

Although Lorraine is also worried about Freddie, she is enjoying her visit with Jo until she receives a disturbing picture that leads her to look a little deeper in Dean's death. While she is at the local police station, the death of another young man is reported and she goes with the lead detective, DCI Burnley, to the crime scene. She quickly sees evidence that foul play might be involved and knowing that Burnley is known to cut corners, she cannot resist investigating on her own. Lorraine's husband Adam joins her and just as they are beginning to sort through the clues, Freddie vanishes and they are pulled in two different directions as they continue trying to make sense of the prior deaths while at the same time searching for Freddie.

Freddie's story arc is as fascinating as it is frustrating. For reasons that are never quite clear, he absolutely refuses to discuss what is causing his extreme distress and he continues to spiral deeper into hopelessness and despair. Things become even more complicated for Freddie when he tries to help a friend and he unwittingly puts himself in danger.

While the pacing of What You Left Behind is a little slow, it is an overall compelling novel. The storyline is quite suspenseful and Samantha Hayes' clever plot twists and red herrings keep readers guessing how this terrific mystery will end. A jaw dropping revelation ties up all of the loose ends and brings the mystery to a stunning conclusion. It is an excellent addition to the DCI Lorraine Fisher series that old and new fans do not want to miss. ( )

I found this very hard to read at first. It felt a bit fractured and kept mentioning things that had happened in the past which made me think I should have read a previous book first (not the case) but eventually the story found its rhythm and the pace picked up. I figured out 'who done it' about half way through but totally missed the final twist. Excellent ending. ( )

Book review for ‘Before you Die’ by Samantha Hayes

I hadn’t read the first in this series ‘Until your Mine’ but apart from the odd reference to Lorraine’s eldest daughter, who I understand featured prominently in the first book, I don’t think it matters. The story stands alone and the synopsis sounded very interesting. A town, still recovering from a spate of teenage suicides, is thrown back into confusion when two more teenage boys commit suicide. So far so good and overall for me it was a good read.
However there were a couple of issues. I love multiple viewpoint novels I find them gripping and intriguing as a reader trying to work out who is the reliable narrator and who is lying to me. I don’t therefore understand why you’d write a multiple viewpoint novel and have the majority of it in the third person. Yes we were given Gil’s first person sections and an epilogue and prologue in first person but for me the novel would have been much better written like this in its entirety.
My other niggle (and it is just a niggle, I’m being picky) is the killer’s motive for their first murder (trying not to give spoilers here). Taking everything into account would they really have committed cold blooded murder? I can’t really say anymore without ruining the book for those who haven’t read it but I found the motive a bit unrealistic but maybe that’s just me.
Overall I found it a good, fast read. It was a good idea and created enough confusion that the reader couldn’t work out the plot until pretty near the end (well I couldn’t anyway). I may well go back and check out the first in the series.

( )

I had a lot of trouble. keeping the characters apart. Maybe it's because none of them I found to be like able. Other than his talent for drawing, I didn't see Gil as Autistic. He just seemed mentally slow.

Synopsis: Two years after a terrifying rash of teenage suicides, the remote village of Radcote has just begun to heal. Then a young man is killed in a tragic motorcycle accident and a suicide note is found among his belongings. When a second boy is found dead shortly thereafter, the nightmare of repeat suicides once again threatens the community.

Desperately needing a vacation, Detective Inspector Lorraine Fisher has just come to Radcote for a stay with her sister, Jo, but the atmosphere of the country house is unusually tense. Freddie, Jo’s son, seems troubled and uncommunicative, and Jo is struggling to reach out to him. Meanwhile, Lorraine becomes involved in the investigation into the boys deaths as she feels there is mire to it than suicide. ( )