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The Detective's Daughter #7
The Playground Murders
Forty years ago, in the dark of the playground, two children's lives were changed forever.
Stella Darnell is a cleaner. But when she isn't tackling dust and dirt and restoring order to chaos, Stella solves murders. Her latest case concerns a man convicted of killing his mistress. His daughter thinks he's innocent, and needs Stella to prove it.
As Stella sifts through piles of evidence and interview suspects, she discovers a link between the recent murder and a famous case from forty years ago: the shocking death of six-year-old Sarah Ferris, killed in the shadows of an empty playground.
Stella knows that dredging up the past can be dangerous. But as she pieces together the tragedy of what happened to Sarah, she is drawn into a story of jealousy, betrayal and the end of innocence. A story that has not yet reached its end...
'One of the most original characters in British crime fiction' SUNDAY TIMES.
'Thomson creates a rich and sinister world that is utterly unique ... Gloriously well-written' WILLIAM SHAW.
388 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 4, 2019
240 people are currently reading
310 people want to read
About the author
Lesley Thomson
30 books174 followersLesley Thomson was born in 1958 and grew up in London. She went to Holland Park Comprehensive and the Universities of Brighton and Sussex. Her novel A Kind of Vanishing won The People's Book Prize in 2010. Lesley combines writing with teaching creative writing. She lives in Lewes with her partner.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 60 reviews
March 27, 2019
This is the 7th in Lesley Thomson's The Detective's Daughter, set in London with an unusual protagonist, 53 year old Stella Darnell, who is an expert cleaner with her own firm, Clean Slate. Stella got drawn into becoming a crime investigator when her father, Frank, died and she looked into his death. She works on her cases with Jack Harmon, underground train driver with intuitive abilities that complement Stella's more logical and rational approach. Stella and Jack are finally in a relationship with each other, Jack is the father of young twins, Millie and Justin, with his artist ex-girlfriend Bella. Stella and her crew are engaged in a crime scene clean up at a manor in Winchcombe, the scene of the murder of Rachel Cator, who was having an affair with her wealthy married antiquarian boss, Christopher Philips. Philips was convicted and imprisoned for Rachel's murder. His daughter, Carrie Philips, an accomplished lawyer, wants to hire Stella to prove her father's innocence.
In a story that goes back forth in time, 40 years ago in 1980 the drama of a group of children unfolds, this includes Lee, Nicola, Robbie, Sarah and Kevin, who congregate around the playground. The leader is unquestionably the 10 year old Danielle Hindell, a bright, cheeky, charismatic girl who is rather fond of getting her own way. Tragedy hits when Robbie is found dead at the playground, assumed to be an accident. However, this is followed by the discovery of 6 year old Sarah's body, and she has clearly been murdered. Leading the murder hunt is Stella's father, Frank, and there is nothing worse or more traumatising than hunting for a child killer. This proves to be true for Frank in one of his most challenging and disturbing cases that is to follow him to the grave. In the present, Stella has acquired a new PA, a remarkable efficient and effective Trudy whilst Bev concentrates on the detective agency. As Stella and Jack follow the leads on Rachel's murder, they find themselves making connections with the long ago child murders, connections that threaten to bring desperate danger to Stella and to all those that she loves.
I love this series so much, and this is a particularly brilliant and twisted addition, complex and complicated, dwelling on the most unpalatable of murders, that of children. This is brought home with the sharp contrast provided by the delight that is Jack's children, Millie and Justin, as they begin to form a strong bond with a Stella, who cannot resist them as she gets to know them. This is a story of betrayal, deceit, jealousy, murder, and mental health issues. There is something so poignant as Stella learns more and more about her father, more than she was ever aware of when he was alive. This is dark and unsettling crime fiction with characters that have become familiar to me and who have grown on me, I adore the chalk and cheese Stella and Jack and how despite everything, some how they work. Highly recommended. Many thanks to Head of Zeus for an ARC.
In a story that goes back forth in time, 40 years ago in 1980 the drama of a group of children unfolds, this includes Lee, Nicola, Robbie, Sarah and Kevin, who congregate around the playground. The leader is unquestionably the 10 year old Danielle Hindell, a bright, cheeky, charismatic girl who is rather fond of getting her own way. Tragedy hits when Robbie is found dead at the playground, assumed to be an accident. However, this is followed by the discovery of 6 year old Sarah's body, and she has clearly been murdered. Leading the murder hunt is Stella's father, Frank, and there is nothing worse or more traumatising than hunting for a child killer. This proves to be true for Frank in one of his most challenging and disturbing cases that is to follow him to the grave. In the present, Stella has acquired a new PA, a remarkable efficient and effective Trudy whilst Bev concentrates on the detective agency. As Stella and Jack follow the leads on Rachel's murder, they find themselves making connections with the long ago child murders, connections that threaten to bring desperate danger to Stella and to all those that she loves.
I love this series so much, and this is a particularly brilliant and twisted addition, complex and complicated, dwelling on the most unpalatable of murders, that of children. This is brought home with the sharp contrast provided by the delight that is Jack's children, Millie and Justin, as they begin to form a strong bond with a Stella, who cannot resist them as she gets to know them. This is a story of betrayal, deceit, jealousy, murder, and mental health issues. There is something so poignant as Stella learns more and more about her father, more than she was ever aware of when he was alive. This is dark and unsettling crime fiction with characters that have become familiar to me and who have grown on me, I adore the chalk and cheese Stella and Jack and how despite everything, some how they work. Highly recommended. Many thanks to Head of Zeus for an ARC.
June 14, 2019
To this day there is a fascination about child murders that makes them compelling (albeit possibly uncomfortably so) as subject matter for a crime novel. Switching back and forth in time from the present day to 1980 (always clearly signposted), the reader is soon immersed in the uncanny connections between people, places and events. The connections are especially personal for Stella because of her links to those involved in investigating the original murder at a pivotal moment in her childhood.
Cleaner, Stella, and underground train driver, Jack, make an interesting partnership both as detectives engaged in solving cold cases and in their out of office hours activities. Stella has the eye for detail of a cleaner and the strong stomach needed at a crime scene. Jack is blessed with a photographic memory and a ‘sixth sense’ when it comes to spotting murderers and psychopaths (whom he refers to as ‘True Hosts’ and to whom he ascribes particular psychological traits and powers). As Stella admits, ‘Jack saw what others missed, what she missed.’ I’ll confess this ‘paranormal’ element took me slightly by surprise in what is otherwise a conventional crime mystery.
Coming new to the series, I did miss having witnessed the development of Jack’s and Stella’s relationship over previous books. In fact, The Playground Murders sees them at a particularly fractious point in their relationship with past liaisons resulting in mistrust, misunderstandings and big decisions about their future. I was soon rooting for them to work things out however. There are references to events in earlier books but not so much that it would deter me from reading previous books in the series. Equally, The Playground Murders works perfectly well as a standalone novel.
As Stella’s and Jack’s investigation progresses, things get very close to home for both of them. There are multiple suspects, possible scenarios and motives. Because of the number of characters, some of whom are known by different names at various points in the book, some concentration is required from the reader. Well, at least it was from this one. I did have suspicions about one particular character early on although I certainly didn’t predict how events would unfold as the tension builds to a dramatic climax.
Having read The Playground Murders, I can appreciate why ‘The Detective’s Daughter’ series has attracted so many fans amongst crime fiction lovers. They may be reassured by the fact that there still seem to be some unopened case files belonging to her father in Stella’s attic.
Cleaner, Stella, and underground train driver, Jack, make an interesting partnership both as detectives engaged in solving cold cases and in their out of office hours activities. Stella has the eye for detail of a cleaner and the strong stomach needed at a crime scene. Jack is blessed with a photographic memory and a ‘sixth sense’ when it comes to spotting murderers and psychopaths (whom he refers to as ‘True Hosts’ and to whom he ascribes particular psychological traits and powers). As Stella admits, ‘Jack saw what others missed, what she missed.’ I’ll confess this ‘paranormal’ element took me slightly by surprise in what is otherwise a conventional crime mystery.
Coming new to the series, I did miss having witnessed the development of Jack’s and Stella’s relationship over previous books. In fact, The Playground Murders sees them at a particularly fractious point in their relationship with past liaisons resulting in mistrust, misunderstandings and big decisions about their future. I was soon rooting for them to work things out however. There are references to events in earlier books but not so much that it would deter me from reading previous books in the series. Equally, The Playground Murders works perfectly well as a standalone novel.
As Stella’s and Jack’s investigation progresses, things get very close to home for both of them. There are multiple suspects, possible scenarios and motives. Because of the number of characters, some of whom are known by different names at various points in the book, some concentration is required from the reader. Well, at least it was from this one. I did have suspicions about one particular character early on although I certainly didn’t predict how events would unfold as the tension builds to a dramatic climax.
Having read The Playground Murders, I can appreciate why ‘The Detective’s Daughter’ series has attracted so many fans amongst crime fiction lovers. They may be reassured by the fact that there still seem to be some unopened case files belonging to her father in Stella’s attic.
May 25, 2024
As with the previous novel “The Death Chamber”, much of this one is set in the small Cotswolds town of Winchcombe. Stella Darnell and her partner Jack Harmon are initially hired to clean a crime and trauma scene where, the previous year, secretary Rachel Cater was murdered – stabbed fifteen times in the back. Eventually her boss and lover, auctioneer Christopher Phillips is arrested for the murder. However, before Stella and her team can begin the cleaning, they are accosted by Phillips’ daughter Carrie who is convinced her father is innocent and the real killer is her mother Penelope.
This narrative is interspersed with chapters from December 1980 concerning the murder of two children, Robbie Walsh and Sarah Ferris in a Hammersmith playground. A case which Stella’s late father Terry and his assistant Martin Cashman investigated. However, it isn’t until we’re almost halfway through the book that the connection between these two cases is revealed.
As their investigation progresses, Stella and Jack find themselves drawn into a dangerous mire of betrayals, unreliable memories and false identities leading up to a thrilling finale in the playground where the whole sorry mess started.
Hard to believe that I was unaware of this series a year ago. Now I’m well and truly addicted.
This narrative is interspersed with chapters from December 1980 concerning the murder of two children, Robbie Walsh and Sarah Ferris in a Hammersmith playground. A case which Stella’s late father Terry and his assistant Martin Cashman investigated. However, it isn’t until we’re almost halfway through the book that the connection between these two cases is revealed.
As their investigation progresses, Stella and Jack find themselves drawn into a dangerous mire of betrayals, unreliable memories and false identities leading up to a thrilling finale in the playground where the whole sorry mess started.
Hard to believe that I was unaware of this series a year ago. Now I’m well and truly addicted.
June 4, 2019
Book reviews on www.snazzybooks.com
The Playground Murders is a slow burning, excellently crafted crime/mystery novel which no doubt follows the same high standard of the first 6 in the series (none of which I’ve read, though I’ve always wanted to). The fact that I haven’t delved into this series before didn’t affect my reading of The Playground Murders as far as I could tell. There’s quite a lot of tension within this novel, with two timeframes presented: the 1980s (mostly), following the tragic deaths of not one but two schoolchildren in a West London playground, and forward to the present day as Stella and Jack look into a case that increasingly looks likely to be linked.
Lesley Thomson’s writing enveloped me into Stella’s world and I loved the slow but steady build-up of the plot, with characters who felt interesting and well-rounded. I didn’t feel like any of them were overly dramatized or caricatured. I really like Stella, despite some of her faults, and Jack too. At times I got a little confused over who was who, as there were a lot of characters between the past and present-day narratives, especially with their families and spouses thrown into the mix too, but it wasn’t too big of an issue (and again, this might be something that would be easier if you’d read previous novels, because then at least some of the characters would be familiar, so I’m aware this is my fault, not the book’s. It didn’t cause much of a problem though).
The plot also felt quite believable and convincing to me, and I didn’t end the novel feeling like it was a completely ridiculous solution (though I still could never have guessed the outcome). It moves along at just the right pace to keep the reader interested without feeling too rushed or packed full of unnecessary action. I hugely enjoyed The Playground Murders and will now be catching up on previous novels!
The Playground Murders is a slow burning, excellently crafted crime/mystery novel which no doubt follows the same high standard of the first 6 in the series (none of which I’ve read, though I’ve always wanted to). The fact that I haven’t delved into this series before didn’t affect my reading of The Playground Murders as far as I could tell. There’s quite a lot of tension within this novel, with two timeframes presented: the 1980s (mostly), following the tragic deaths of not one but two schoolchildren in a West London playground, and forward to the present day as Stella and Jack look into a case that increasingly looks likely to be linked.
Lesley Thomson’s writing enveloped me into Stella’s world and I loved the slow but steady build-up of the plot, with characters who felt interesting and well-rounded. I didn’t feel like any of them were overly dramatized or caricatured. I really like Stella, despite some of her faults, and Jack too. At times I got a little confused over who was who, as there were a lot of characters between the past and present-day narratives, especially with their families and spouses thrown into the mix too, but it wasn’t too big of an issue (and again, this might be something that would be easier if you’d read previous novels, because then at least some of the characters would be familiar, so I’m aware this is my fault, not the book’s. It didn’t cause much of a problem though).
The plot also felt quite believable and convincing to me, and I didn’t end the novel feeling like it was a completely ridiculous solution (though I still could never have guessed the outcome). It moves along at just the right pace to keep the reader interested without feeling too rushed or packed full of unnecessary action. I hugely enjoyed The Playground Murders and will now be catching up on previous novels!
April 4, 2019
The Playground Murders is the seventh book in The Detective's Daughter series which following protagonist Stella Darnell, an amateur investigator who was drawn into the crime world after looking into her father's death at an earlier point in time. This is definitely more of a slow-burn mystery than anything fast or frenetic and it feels very atmospheric, almost like the works of Ms Christie. This particular instalment is twisted and complex, not to mention dark and disturbing and the contrast between the children's murders and the happy-go-lucky time Stella spends with boyfriend Jack Harmon's young twins, Millie and Justin, goes to show that life deals bad hands to some and winning hands to others.
Many thanks to Head of Zeus for an ARC.
Many thanks to Head of Zeus for an ARC.
October 16, 2019
I picked up this book at random so I didn't realise it was several books into a series. That explains why I found the recurring characters hard to follow. However, there was another layer of characters on top of them, and too many of the names were too similar. No wonder the author drew up a couple of lists of suspects and victims and family members! At one point there was a clear mistake where one character's name was printed instead of the correct one so I guess even the author got confused at times. (Also, the addition I read had some glaring printing errors.)
This book's most annoying feature (and I assume it's just the author's standard style) is the way bits of backstory, characters' thoughts and feelings, random descriptions, etc. are piled on higgledy-piggledy so that the narrative thread gets smothered. Conversations are hard to follow and I had to keep retracing my steps to figure out what was going on, who said what, and even what time period we were in once or twice. This comes about in part because of the author's disregard for simple grammatical rules. Sure, rules are made for breaking but not to the point where the meaning is muddied.
Somewhere underneath all the words was an intriguing story so I continued to read even when the denouement looked to be more outlandish as the chapters rolled around. When it did arrive, one character appeared to have four hands but that fitted nicely with a scene which felt as if it was written with the TV adaptation in mind.
Bottom line is, while I might be tempted to pick up the first in the series, I won't think I;ve missed out on anything if I don't read it.
This book's most annoying feature (and I assume it's just the author's standard style) is the way bits of backstory, characters' thoughts and feelings, random descriptions, etc. are piled on higgledy-piggledy so that the narrative thread gets smothered. Conversations are hard to follow and I had to keep retracing my steps to figure out what was going on, who said what, and even what time period we were in once or twice. This comes about in part because of the author's disregard for simple grammatical rules. Sure, rules are made for breaking but not to the point where the meaning is muddied.
Somewhere underneath all the words was an intriguing story so I continued to read even when the denouement looked to be more outlandish as the chapters rolled around. When it did arrive, one character appeared to have four hands but that fitted nicely with a scene which felt as if it was written with the TV adaptation in mind.
Bottom line is, while I might be tempted to pick up the first in the series, I won't think I;ve missed out on anything if I don't read it.
May 22, 2019
4* Thriller set in WEST LONDON and THE COTSWOLDS
The Playground Murders by Lesley Thomson – thriller set in West London and the Cotswolds
The Playground Murders is the seventh book in Lesley Thomson’s The Detective’s Daughter series. It features the same key characters as the previous six – Stella who runs a cleaning company (Clean Slate) and is a part time private detective, and her partner – Jack – also a part time private detective, but who earns his living as a tube train driver. They are one of the more unlikely, but utterly likeable, partnerships in crime detection.
The book is a time shift one. First it is 1980. Two children were killed in a playground in West London – one at least of them was certainly murdered, the other death was presented as an accident. The investigations at the time were carried out by now-dead Terry, Stella’s father and a detective in the Metropolitan Police. One of the children’s playmates, Danielle, was arrested and found guilty of the crime – sentenced to spend a great deal of the rest of her life in institutions. It was an event that shocked and traumatised the community.
Then it is 2018. The lover of an antiques shop owner in the Cotswolds, who lives in the village of Winchcombe, is brutally murdered in the owner’s house. Suspicion falls on his wife (who has an alibi…) and his daughter – both of whom has reason to want to see her dead. Stella is called is (as Clean Slate) to deep clean the crime scene – but soon, with Jack, becomes involved in trying to solve the mystery.
They find connections between the 1980 crime and the 2018 one. No more for fear of a spoiler!
The Playground Murders is to an extent formulaic, but none the worse for that. Stella and Jack make for comfortable reading. My only criticism is that the denouement is unforeseen and, to my mind, unlikely and contrived. I prefer a thriller where, with luck, you can work out ‘whodunnit’ as you go along. I don’t think this is possible with The Playground Murders. Not that this makes the ending any less exciting… it is personal preference.
In TripFiction location terms the book works well. Both the area around Wormwood Scrubs in West London, and the area around Winchcombe in the Cotswolds come through strongly.
The Playground Murders by Lesley Thomson – thriller set in West London and the Cotswolds
The Playground Murders is the seventh book in Lesley Thomson’s The Detective’s Daughter series. It features the same key characters as the previous six – Stella who runs a cleaning company (Clean Slate) and is a part time private detective, and her partner – Jack – also a part time private detective, but who earns his living as a tube train driver. They are one of the more unlikely, but utterly likeable, partnerships in crime detection.
The book is a time shift one. First it is 1980. Two children were killed in a playground in West London – one at least of them was certainly murdered, the other death was presented as an accident. The investigations at the time were carried out by now-dead Terry, Stella’s father and a detective in the Metropolitan Police. One of the children’s playmates, Danielle, was arrested and found guilty of the crime – sentenced to spend a great deal of the rest of her life in institutions. It was an event that shocked and traumatised the community.
Then it is 2018. The lover of an antiques shop owner in the Cotswolds, who lives in the village of Winchcombe, is brutally murdered in the owner’s house. Suspicion falls on his wife (who has an alibi…) and his daughter – both of whom has reason to want to see her dead. Stella is called is (as Clean Slate) to deep clean the crime scene – but soon, with Jack, becomes involved in trying to solve the mystery.
They find connections between the 1980 crime and the 2018 one. No more for fear of a spoiler!
The Playground Murders is to an extent formulaic, but none the worse for that. Stella and Jack make for comfortable reading. My only criticism is that the denouement is unforeseen and, to my mind, unlikely and contrived. I prefer a thriller where, with luck, you can work out ‘whodunnit’ as you go along. I don’t think this is possible with The Playground Murders. Not that this makes the ending any less exciting… it is personal preference.
In TripFiction location terms the book works well. Both the area around Wormwood Scrubs in West London, and the area around Winchcombe in the Cotswolds come through strongly.
September 28, 2019
I'm a huge fan of Stella and her crew. LT has created entirely original characters and each book sees some development of the characters. I found this to be the darkest story so far. As with previous titles the story occilates between the present and the past as Stella strives to solve and resolve a case history from her late father's files. I found the first couple of chapters set in 1980 a difficult entry into the story. So difficult that I thought about either giving up or only reading the present time storyline. I'm glad I persevered as once again it was a story well worth the reader's effort. The story began in darkness and it ended there. LT has given us a group of strong female characters and I'm sure if the series is ever dramatised there'll be a queue of actors eager to bring them to life beyond the page.
May 29, 2021
I am usually methodical about reading a series, start from the beginning and work my way through, but, alas, I couldn’t control myself with Lesley Thomson’s Detective’s Daughter series. I read the first one and immediately fell in love with Stella and Jack, and I really wanted to read the books in order, but then Lesley’s latest The Distant Dead arrived, and I had last year’s The Playground Murders sitting in my short stack, too, so I caved. I opened The Playground Murders and could not stop reading. Of course, I will go back and fill in after I've read The Playground Murders and The Distant Dead, but for now I’m now reviewing #7 in the series instead of #2. And, oh what a thrilling book The Playground Murders is. As I was reading it, I was thinking that it is exactly the kind of book that keeps me reviewing, because I just have to share my excitement about it.
Stella Darnell, now 53, started her cleaning business called Clean Slate as just that, a cleaning business. She and her crew clean homes, buildings, and whatever else needs cleaning that people don’t want to or can’t do themselves. Her business soon expanded to crime scene cleaning and detective work, which isn’t too surprising, as her father Terry Darnell had been a much-respected detective in the Metropolitan Police of London. After his death, Stella found a cold case of his she investigated and solved with the help of Jack Harmon. Although her parents’ divorce when she was seven-years-old and Terry’s devotion to his job put distance between the two, she recognized his skill and has his same eye for detail and penchant for completing a job. So, at present Stella has both a cleaning business and a detective agency, and it’s not a stretch to say they complement one another. The staff, including Stella’s mother, around her are highly competent and efficient. And, then there’s Jack. One of the reasons to read at least the first book in this series before any others is the introduction to Jack Harmon, an eccentric, deep thinking individual who is an underground train driver, but works with Stella, too. Jack and Stella have a working and personal relationship that is best left discovered by the reader. It’s complicated definitely applies.
It’s 2019 and Stella’s cleaning company is on site doing a job for a client whose father has been convicted of murdering his mistress in his home. Part of Carrie Philips' parents’ home has been a crime scene, but it is now released, and she has hired Stella’s company to clean the crime scene area. Carrie has a particular reason she hired Stella’s company, as becomes apparent when she shows up to the house during the cleaning and proclaims her father’s innocence and her desire to hire Stella’s detective agency to find evidence to clear him. With Christopher Philips, a well-to-do antiquarian, having admitted to finding his mistress’ body and hiding it, not having planned to ever report finding the body, his guilt seemed straight forward to the police and the courts. He didn’t admit to the murder, but connecting the dots led squarely to him. However, Carrie is adamant that her father is not guilty and thinks her mother did it. As the reader learns more about the mother, Penny Philips, there’s plenty of reason Penny could have. The problem with Carrie's theory is that her mother has an air-tight alibi of shopping in London, clearly caught on a street’s CCTV camera. The house and crime scene is located in Winchcombe, a village in the Costwolds, so time constraints support the alibi. The most important thing to Carrie is that Stella can prove Chris didn’t kill Rachel Cater, and so Stella and Jack get to work to see if anything can exonerate the man.
It’s 1980 and Detective Terry Darnell has caught a case no one wants to catch. A six-year-old girl has been found murdered in Little Wormwood Scrubs Park, her throat crushed. Supposedly, Sarah was alone in the playground area after dark, looking for her lost charm bracelet. The other kids who usually played with her had gone home. After interviewing the other children, Terry Darnell has a suspect, a homeless man who admits he saw Sarah, but that she was already dead. One child is particularly helpful in giving information about the vagrant. Ten-year-old Danielle Hindle fancies herself a detective and is more than willing to talk about the tramp named Derek Parsley and the death of little Sarah Ferris. When Parsley is later picked up by the police in blood-soaked clothes and admits to seeing the little girl dead, Terry feels that they have solved the case. But have they? Sarah wasn’t the first child found dead on the playground recently. Five-year-old Robbie Walsh had died only a couple of months earlier from what was ruled an accidental fall from the tall slide. He had supposedly been alone, too.
How do these cases 40 years apart connect? Because they do connect. Readers get to follow the gripping twists and turns showing how. Who killed Sarah Ferris? Who killed Rachel Cater? Stella and Jack must go back to that tragic playground murder to find the answers to the present day murder, answers that will force Stella to re-examine her relationship with her father. Seeing Terry Darnell at work 40 years prior was one of the best parts of the book. Gaining more of an understanding into what went wrong in his and Susie’s marriage that made their living together impossible. The turning point in Terry’s and Stella’s relationship is revealed, when she went from adoring daughter to feeling abandoned by him. And, reading about the heartbreaking misunderstandings and missed opportunities for Terry and Stella gives the reader a compassionate feeling for both parties.
I enjoyed the alternating timelines of 2019 and 1980. I can honestly say that I was as riveted to one timeline as the other. There’s no confusion to which time period the reader is in, as each chapter is marked at the beginning as either 1980 or 2019. Lesley Thomson has created an amazing story in which the two timelines rely on one another. It’s brilliantly plotted and paced. The characters are richly complex, and there’s much understanding gained in this particular book about the relationships that affect Stella. There are lovely nuggets of gold in character twists, too. My biggest challenge in reading The Playground Murders was finding a place I could stop and go to sleep or do anything other than read on. The Playground Murders checks all my boxes for a favorite read, and I can’t recommend it highly enough.
Stella Darnell, now 53, started her cleaning business called Clean Slate as just that, a cleaning business. She and her crew clean homes, buildings, and whatever else needs cleaning that people don’t want to or can’t do themselves. Her business soon expanded to crime scene cleaning and detective work, which isn’t too surprising, as her father Terry Darnell had been a much-respected detective in the Metropolitan Police of London. After his death, Stella found a cold case of his she investigated and solved with the help of Jack Harmon. Although her parents’ divorce when she was seven-years-old and Terry’s devotion to his job put distance between the two, she recognized his skill and has his same eye for detail and penchant for completing a job. So, at present Stella has both a cleaning business and a detective agency, and it’s not a stretch to say they complement one another. The staff, including Stella’s mother, around her are highly competent and efficient. And, then there’s Jack. One of the reasons to read at least the first book in this series before any others is the introduction to Jack Harmon, an eccentric, deep thinking individual who is an underground train driver, but works with Stella, too. Jack and Stella have a working and personal relationship that is best left discovered by the reader. It’s complicated definitely applies.
It’s 2019 and Stella’s cleaning company is on site doing a job for a client whose father has been convicted of murdering his mistress in his home. Part of Carrie Philips' parents’ home has been a crime scene, but it is now released, and she has hired Stella’s company to clean the crime scene area. Carrie has a particular reason she hired Stella’s company, as becomes apparent when she shows up to the house during the cleaning and proclaims her father’s innocence and her desire to hire Stella’s detective agency to find evidence to clear him. With Christopher Philips, a well-to-do antiquarian, having admitted to finding his mistress’ body and hiding it, not having planned to ever report finding the body, his guilt seemed straight forward to the police and the courts. He didn’t admit to the murder, but connecting the dots led squarely to him. However, Carrie is adamant that her father is not guilty and thinks her mother did it. As the reader learns more about the mother, Penny Philips, there’s plenty of reason Penny could have. The problem with Carrie's theory is that her mother has an air-tight alibi of shopping in London, clearly caught on a street’s CCTV camera. The house and crime scene is located in Winchcombe, a village in the Costwolds, so time constraints support the alibi. The most important thing to Carrie is that Stella can prove Chris didn’t kill Rachel Cater, and so Stella and Jack get to work to see if anything can exonerate the man.
It’s 1980 and Detective Terry Darnell has caught a case no one wants to catch. A six-year-old girl has been found murdered in Little Wormwood Scrubs Park, her throat crushed. Supposedly, Sarah was alone in the playground area after dark, looking for her lost charm bracelet. The other kids who usually played with her had gone home. After interviewing the other children, Terry Darnell has a suspect, a homeless man who admits he saw Sarah, but that she was already dead. One child is particularly helpful in giving information about the vagrant. Ten-year-old Danielle Hindle fancies herself a detective and is more than willing to talk about the tramp named Derek Parsley and the death of little Sarah Ferris. When Parsley is later picked up by the police in blood-soaked clothes and admits to seeing the little girl dead, Terry feels that they have solved the case. But have they? Sarah wasn’t the first child found dead on the playground recently. Five-year-old Robbie Walsh had died only a couple of months earlier from what was ruled an accidental fall from the tall slide. He had supposedly been alone, too.
How do these cases 40 years apart connect? Because they do connect. Readers get to follow the gripping twists and turns showing how. Who killed Sarah Ferris? Who killed Rachel Cater? Stella and Jack must go back to that tragic playground murder to find the answers to the present day murder, answers that will force Stella to re-examine her relationship with her father. Seeing Terry Darnell at work 40 years prior was one of the best parts of the book. Gaining more of an understanding into what went wrong in his and Susie’s marriage that made their living together impossible. The turning point in Terry’s and Stella’s relationship is revealed, when she went from adoring daughter to feeling abandoned by him. And, reading about the heartbreaking misunderstandings and missed opportunities for Terry and Stella gives the reader a compassionate feeling for both parties.
I enjoyed the alternating timelines of 2019 and 1980. I can honestly say that I was as riveted to one timeline as the other. There’s no confusion to which time period the reader is in, as each chapter is marked at the beginning as either 1980 or 2019. Lesley Thomson has created an amazing story in which the two timelines rely on one another. It’s brilliantly plotted and paced. The characters are richly complex, and there’s much understanding gained in this particular book about the relationships that affect Stella. There are lovely nuggets of gold in character twists, too. My biggest challenge in reading The Playground Murders was finding a place I could stop and go to sleep or do anything other than read on. The Playground Murders checks all my boxes for a favorite read, and I can’t recommend it highly enough.
July 21, 2019
Excellent.The last one was a one star for me so I'm very glad she's back on form.
May 28, 2019
This is book seven in The Detectives Daughter series. I did something I don’t like doing and I jumped right into this book without reading the previous books. The blurb sounded so good I just had to read it. Having said that I don’t feel as if I lost out reading this as a standalone.
Stella’s dad investigated the murder of a six year old girl forty years ago. When Stella finds a link between the murders and a recent murder she’s about to open a can of worms.
I liked the story of Stella and Jack, with Jacks twins Millie and Justin.
I found this to be a slow starter but a good read also. I’m hoping to read the previous books in this series as soon as I can.
Stella’s dad investigated the murder of a six year old girl forty years ago. When Stella finds a link between the murders and a recent murder she’s about to open a can of worms.
I liked the story of Stella and Jack, with Jacks twins Millie and Justin.
I found this to be a slow starter but a good read also. I’m hoping to read the previous books in this series as soon as I can.
September 26, 2019
In the present day storyline, private investigator (and cleaner) Stella Darnell is asked to reinvestigate a murder case by a daughter who is convinced her imprisoned father is innocent of the charges. Her story is full of inconsistencies and I wasn't entirely sure I believed her. An unreliable character always makes a book more interesting for me though, so it made for an intriguing start. Interspersed with the present day is the story a group of children in the 1980s. Two of them die within a short space of time in the playground where they play. Was this an accident or murder? The murder of a child is always traumatic for all involved, and with the suggestion that one of the children may be responsible this makes for a particularly unsettling read.
At first it was not clear what the connection between the cases was except that Stella's father was the investigating officer on the earlier case assisted by a young officer who Stella would later have a relationship with, a relationship which is over in the current part of the story.
In the early part of the book, I found this a steady paced book as the author introduced her characters and set the scene. However, when the two stories begin to connect, it became a really tense read. With so many suspects in the frame for the murder, I genuinely had no idea who could be responsible and the book read like a modern day take on a 'whodunnit' in an Agatha Christie type style.
The closing chapters were gripping and rather unsettling, as the guilty party became obvious - and it became obvious that several characters were in real danger! I really enjoyed getting to know Stella Darnell again and getting a bit more insight into her father Terry and his investigations. The Detective's Daughter series continues to be both a cleverly written and compelling crime series.
At first it was not clear what the connection between the cases was except that Stella's father was the investigating officer on the earlier case assisted by a young officer who Stella would later have a relationship with, a relationship which is over in the current part of the story.
In the early part of the book, I found this a steady paced book as the author introduced her characters and set the scene. However, when the two stories begin to connect, it became a really tense read. With so many suspects in the frame for the murder, I genuinely had no idea who could be responsible and the book read like a modern day take on a 'whodunnit' in an Agatha Christie type style.
The closing chapters were gripping and rather unsettling, as the guilty party became obvious - and it became obvious that several characters were in real danger! I really enjoyed getting to know Stella Darnell again and getting a bit more insight into her father Terry and his investigations. The Detective's Daughter series continues to be both a cleverly written and compelling crime series.
December 21, 2020
Thrilling
May 8, 2019
I requested this book THE PLAYGROUND MURDERS not aware that it was part of a series, namely The Detective's Daughter. However, it can be read as a standalone in my opinion as it reads quite well as one, and I didn't feel I was missing anything by not starting from the beginning.
Of course it was the storyline of the original murders forty years prior and the mystery that surrounded them that grabbed me from the off. The fact that it had dual timelines was a mega plus for me, as that is my favourite style. I always love how the story flips between the past and present with the mystery unfolding between the two.
So the story begins forty years ago, in 1980, with the murder of not one but two children. It is no mystery from the beginning who killed the children, and even before the first tragic death, the reader is given a dark and twisted perspective of one of their own. It is more than obvious that something is definitely not normal with this child. No remorse, no conscience, no real emotion. It is clear that has this child been an adult, they would be diagnosed as a psychopath. But the dark and twisted tale of this group of children and the self-imposed glue that held them together was something extraordinary that kept us turning the pages.
At the time of THE PLAYGROUND MURDERS, Stella Darnell had been 14 and living with her mum Susie. Her father DCI Terry Darnell was tasked with investigating the murder of one of the children, 6 year old Sarah Ferris, who soon found himself armed with the help of self-imposed detective Danielle Hindle, the 10 year old daughter of career criminal Eddie Hindle. And everyone knew to steer clear of getting on the wrong side of the Hindles. Terry didn't see much of his daughter during this time as being a teenager Stella was wrapped up in her own world of hormones.
Now it's 2019 - Stella is 53 and her father Terry has been dead 8 years. When a young highly strung young woman waltzes into Stella's detective agency claiming her father was innocent of the murder of his mistress in their house, Stella gathers her team to hear Carrie Phillips' story. The woman is emphatic that her father was innocent and yet he was sitting in a prison cell awaiting trial for his mistress' murder. But who does Carrie think killed Rachel Cater? Her answer will surprise you and even moreso, the true identity of that person!
As Stella sifts through the evidence and interviews suspects, she discovers a link between Rachel's murder and that of little Sarah Ferris 40 years ago - a case which her father Terry had investigated and solved. Stella feels uneasy digging up the past of an already solved case, but in doing so she begins to feel a connection to her father once again and with it comes the regrets of not having seen him before he died.
Terry's DC at the time of the 40 year old investigation, Martin Cashman, has risen in the ranks to Chief Superintendant and is an old flame of Stella's - a fact which continually riles her business partner and love interest Jack Harman. I have to admit, the constant appearance of the green-eyed monster in Jack over Martin drove me crazy. Did he really not trust Stella? Was he that insecure in his relationship with her? I found it annoying and a constant bone of contention throughout the book. As we discover, Jack comes with his own baggage. Having not read the previous books in the series I am unable to comment on the growth of their relationship, but I am not a fan of mixing romance with mystery thrillers. For me, I think it gets a little messy, as it appears to with Jack's jealousy over Martin Cashman and Stella. It is that, I feel, that lets it down. Just investigate crimes. No need to jump into bed with each other!
As Stella pieces together the past with the tragic death of Sarah, she begins to make connections that threaten to bring danger to all Stella holds dear. And it isn't long before she is drawn into tale of jealousy and the end of innocence. As we get to know the killer, we can see the consequences the past can have of all who are involved.
THE PLAYGROUND MURDERS takes off slowly as the story shifts between the past and present, building to a twisted, complex, dark and disturbing tale. With a little twist at the end. It is not a fast-paced thriller but has more of an atmospheric feel to it. Tension is definitely rife throughout.
An enjoyable read as a standalone or in the context of the series. As I've not read the series, I thought it rated well enough to be a standalone.
I would like to thank #LesleyThomson, #NetGalley and #HeadOfZeus for an ARC of #ThePlaygroundMurders in exchange for an honest review.
This review appears on my blog at https://stinathebookaholic.blogspot.com/.
Of course it was the storyline of the original murders forty years prior and the mystery that surrounded them that grabbed me from the off. The fact that it had dual timelines was a mega plus for me, as that is my favourite style. I always love how the story flips between the past and present with the mystery unfolding between the two.
So the story begins forty years ago, in 1980, with the murder of not one but two children. It is no mystery from the beginning who killed the children, and even before the first tragic death, the reader is given a dark and twisted perspective of one of their own. It is more than obvious that something is definitely not normal with this child. No remorse, no conscience, no real emotion. It is clear that has this child been an adult, they would be diagnosed as a psychopath. But the dark and twisted tale of this group of children and the self-imposed glue that held them together was something extraordinary that kept us turning the pages.
At the time of THE PLAYGROUND MURDERS, Stella Darnell had been 14 and living with her mum Susie. Her father DCI Terry Darnell was tasked with investigating the murder of one of the children, 6 year old Sarah Ferris, who soon found himself armed with the help of self-imposed detective Danielle Hindle, the 10 year old daughter of career criminal Eddie Hindle. And everyone knew to steer clear of getting on the wrong side of the Hindles. Terry didn't see much of his daughter during this time as being a teenager Stella was wrapped up in her own world of hormones.
Now it's 2019 - Stella is 53 and her father Terry has been dead 8 years. When a young highly strung young woman waltzes into Stella's detective agency claiming her father was innocent of the murder of his mistress in their house, Stella gathers her team to hear Carrie Phillips' story. The woman is emphatic that her father was innocent and yet he was sitting in a prison cell awaiting trial for his mistress' murder. But who does Carrie think killed Rachel Cater? Her answer will surprise you and even moreso, the true identity of that person!
As Stella sifts through the evidence and interviews suspects, she discovers a link between Rachel's murder and that of little Sarah Ferris 40 years ago - a case which her father Terry had investigated and solved. Stella feels uneasy digging up the past of an already solved case, but in doing so she begins to feel a connection to her father once again and with it comes the regrets of not having seen him before he died.
Terry's DC at the time of the 40 year old investigation, Martin Cashman, has risen in the ranks to Chief Superintendant and is an old flame of Stella's - a fact which continually riles her business partner and love interest Jack Harman. I have to admit, the constant appearance of the green-eyed monster in Jack over Martin drove me crazy. Did he really not trust Stella? Was he that insecure in his relationship with her? I found it annoying and a constant bone of contention throughout the book. As we discover, Jack comes with his own baggage. Having not read the previous books in the series I am unable to comment on the growth of their relationship, but I am not a fan of mixing romance with mystery thrillers. For me, I think it gets a little messy, as it appears to with Jack's jealousy over Martin Cashman and Stella. It is that, I feel, that lets it down. Just investigate crimes. No need to jump into bed with each other!
As Stella pieces together the past with the tragic death of Sarah, she begins to make connections that threaten to bring danger to all Stella holds dear. And it isn't long before she is drawn into tale of jealousy and the end of innocence. As we get to know the killer, we can see the consequences the past can have of all who are involved.
THE PLAYGROUND MURDERS takes off slowly as the story shifts between the past and present, building to a twisted, complex, dark and disturbing tale. With a little twist at the end. It is not a fast-paced thriller but has more of an atmospheric feel to it. Tension is definitely rife throughout.
An enjoyable read as a standalone or in the context of the series. As I've not read the series, I thought it rated well enough to be a standalone.
I would like to thank #LesleyThomson, #NetGalley and #HeadOfZeus for an ARC of #ThePlaygroundMurders in exchange for an honest review.
This review appears on my blog at https://stinathebookaholic.blogspot.com/.
July 28, 2019
A good read, though I struggled with the two timelines.
November 20, 2019
I had very high hopes for this book and it´s not like I didn´t enjoy it, I just thought it was a confusing mix of being slow while a million things seemed to be happening at once. There were so many threads, so many characters, so many storylines that all (almost) connected at the end but were very confusing to me throughout.
I have to admit that I probably shouldn't have read book #7 without reading the first 6 and that might be partly why the characters were confusing to me. I also listened to it as an audio version, which didn´t help. Jack and Jackie, Terri and Kerry (sorry if I am spelling them wrong, like I said, I only listened to it), very confusing. I might have been better at keeping track if I had been familiar with at least some of the characters. At various points I had to rewind because I wondered if I had missed something. I also didn´t like that Jack sounded much older and much more confused than he should have been (again, this might be because of the narrator, rather than the story) but his jealousy and inability to simply ask Stella whether there was something going on with Cashman (?!), annoyed me. There is also something that I still don´t understand so I will see if another reader can answer that.
I thought the storyline generally was interesting and I also liked the idea that Stella "plays" detective while owning a cleaning company. I think it´s original and I also think the two timelines were executed well. Whether I´d pick up another book in this series, I´m not sure. There are other books I´d rather read I think.
I have to admit that I probably shouldn't have read book #7 without reading the first 6 and that might be partly why the characters were confusing to me. I also listened to it as an audio version, which didn´t help. Jack and Jackie, Terri and Kerry (sorry if I am spelling them wrong, like I said, I only listened to it), very confusing. I might have been better at keeping track if I had been familiar with at least some of the characters. At various points I had to rewind because I wondered if I had missed something. I also didn´t like that Jack sounded much older and much more confused than he should have been (again, this might be because of the narrator, rather than the story) but his jealousy and inability to simply ask Stella whether there was something going on with Cashman (?!), annoyed me. There is also something that I still don´t understand so I will see if another reader can answer that.
I thought the storyline generally was interesting and I also liked the idea that Stella "plays" detective while owning a cleaning company. I think it´s original and I also think the two timelines were executed well. Whether I´d pick up another book in this series, I´m not sure. There are other books I´d rather read I think.
October 9, 2019
Liked the story but for some reason did not enjoy reading the book. Perservered till the end. Maybe it was the past and present back and forthing that did not work for me. Not sure what it was but not and enjoyable read for me.
September 11, 2024
This was probably the most complicated Lesley Thomson I’ve read so far. I didn’t like it as much as the others. It wasn’t until p175 that I finally realized the full premise—but there were so many characters, and it was all about ruthlessly murdered children, that I just didn’t like this book very much.
I read this one in paper. I had to make a chart of the children characters because there were so many. If I had listened to this audio, there’s no way I could have followed who all the different characters were, and across the two time periods.
Phew!
I read this one in paper. I had to make a chart of the children characters because there were so many. If I had listened to this audio, there’s no way I could have followed who all the different characters were, and across the two time periods.
Phew!
June 15, 2020
I read the detective's daughter #1 and didn't find it nearly as fascinating as this one. This was really good. The murders of two children a few weeks apart was hard to solve, especially when the first murder was thought to have been an accident. The only problem I had with the writing was that it was very disjointed, jumping between time periods and between characters without much transition that I found it hard to follow until about the middle of the book. But great story.
February 22, 2024
This was ok, a few good twists but felt like it dragged on for ages and was very hard to keep track of who was who, who did what & such like. Nice descriptive writing & I really got a nice feeling for Stella & Jack.
July 30, 2019
This is the seventh novel in Thomson’s popular The Detective’s Daughter Series. Stella
Darnell runs a cleaning agency, but she also solves murders with the help of her boyfriend
Jack Harmon. Stella is approached by a young woman who asks her to prove her father recently convicted of killing his mistress is innocent. She believes the real killer is her mother
who forty years earlier, at the age of ten, murdered two six-year-olds at a local playground.
Central to the story is impact of the earlier murders on the lives of the of all those
connected with the case, not just the killer’s childhood friends and her family but Stella’s
father, the detective who worked the case. The only person who seems to have survived the
trauma and put the past behind to lead a normal life is the killer herself. Released after a
brief period of child detention, Danielle Hindell was given a new name and a new identity.
She marries Christopher Philips a well-to-do antiquarian running his own business.
This is a time slip novel. Many of the earlier chapters take us back 1980 where we meet the children in the playground. From the very beginning, Danielle’s dominant personality is very much in evidence. She is bright, articulate and very adept at getting her own way not only with children in the playground but manages to charm Terry Darnell leading the investigation into the deaths of first Robbie, presumed an accident and soon after, the murder of Sara. Perhaps young Danielle who is keen to be Terry’s assistant in the investigation, has a bewitching effect on him
because Terry is now separated from wife and estranged from his own daughter Stella who is around the same age.
Stella’s investigation into the murder of Rachel Cator, Christopher Philips’ mistress in 2019 takes her to those early times and for her it is also an emotional journey as she learns more about the father she never really knew.
This is a dark complex novel with many twists and turns that will keep you turning the page. It has a large cast of characters and it takes a while to get to grips with who is who all of which adds to the air of uncertainty that keep the emotions on edge. It’s a story of jealousy, betrayal and menace where no one remains unscathed.
Darnell runs a cleaning agency, but she also solves murders with the help of her boyfriend
Jack Harmon. Stella is approached by a young woman who asks her to prove her father recently convicted of killing his mistress is innocent. She believes the real killer is her mother
who forty years earlier, at the age of ten, murdered two six-year-olds at a local playground.
Central to the story is impact of the earlier murders on the lives of the of all those
connected with the case, not just the killer’s childhood friends and her family but Stella’s
father, the detective who worked the case. The only person who seems to have survived the
trauma and put the past behind to lead a normal life is the killer herself. Released after a
brief period of child detention, Danielle Hindell was given a new name and a new identity.
She marries Christopher Philips a well-to-do antiquarian running his own business.
This is a time slip novel. Many of the earlier chapters take us back 1980 where we meet the children in the playground. From the very beginning, Danielle’s dominant personality is very much in evidence. She is bright, articulate and very adept at getting her own way not only with children in the playground but manages to charm Terry Darnell leading the investigation into the deaths of first Robbie, presumed an accident and soon after, the murder of Sara. Perhaps young Danielle who is keen to be Terry’s assistant in the investigation, has a bewitching effect on him
because Terry is now separated from wife and estranged from his own daughter Stella who is around the same age.
Stella’s investigation into the murder of Rachel Cator, Christopher Philips’ mistress in 2019 takes her to those early times and for her it is also an emotional journey as she learns more about the father she never really knew.
This is a dark complex novel with many twists and turns that will keep you turning the page. It has a large cast of characters and it takes a while to get to grips with who is who all of which adds to the air of uncertainty that keep the emotions on edge. It’s a story of jealousy, betrayal and menace where no one remains unscathed.
June 11, 2019
I didn’t discover,’The Detective’s Daughter Series, until Book 6 The Death Chamber. That story, and this one, ‘The Playground Murders’, reads well as a standalone. There is sufficient background, especially about Stella’s enigmatic father to let you understand what motivates the main protagonists. However, for the full experience read the older books too.
Original characters and complex cold cases to solve are the hallmarks of this detective series. The characters are quirky and realistic, they all have believable flaws, neuroses and aspiration.
Stella, the detective’s daughter, has two main focuses, cleaning and solving previously unsolved crimes. She runs a cleaning company and a detective agency, with her partner Jack and a cast of unique individuals. They are a family, look out for each other, criticise each other, and share a bond that resists any outside interference.
This story connects a recent murder, with a past child killing, investigated by Terry, Stella’s father. Present day action is complemented by flashback chapters in 1980 when Terry was involved in the child-killing case. The ethos of the historical part of the story is chilling, the contrast of innocence and evil disturbing.
Aside from the detective case, there are snapshots of Stella and Jack’s lives outside work. Stella and her mother Suzie, have the usual mother-daughter issues and Jack a father of twins, has to come to terms with only seeing them periodically, and the spectre of a new father figure in their lives.
This story has a clever, twisty plot, and a menacing undertone. Slow-paced it lets you absorb the action, and atmosphere, as you try to solve the crime. Another exciting chapter in ‘The Detective’s Daughter’, series.
I received a copy of this book from Head of Zeus in return for an honest review.
April 16, 2019
Forty years ago, in the dark of the playground, two children's lives were changed for ever.
Stella Darnell is a cleaner. But when she isn't tackling dust and dirt and restoring order to chaos, Stella solves murders. Her latest case concerns a man convicted of killing his mistress. His daughter thinks he's innocent, and needs Stella to prove it.
As Stella sifts through piles of evidence and interview suspects, she discovers a link between the recent murder and a famous case from forty years ago: the shocking death of six-year-old Sarah Ferris, killed in the shadows of an empty playground.
Stella knows that dredging up the past can be dangerous. But as she pieces together the tragedy of what happened to Sarah, she is drawn into a story of jealousy, betrayal and the end of innocence. A story that has not yet reached its end...
The Playground Murders is the seventh book in The Detective's Daughter series which following protagonist Stella Darnell, an amateur investigator who was drawn into the crime world after looking into her father's death at an earlier point in time.
The book takes off slowly but is interesting enough to keep you going and it definitely has a little twist at the end.
This particular installment is twisted and complex, not to mention dark and disturbing.
The story takes us back to the 1980s and the murder of children, investigated by Stella's dad, Terry.
As we get to know the killer, we also see the repercussions the past can have in the lives of all families involved.
Recommend reading.
Many thanks to Head of Zeus and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
Stella Darnell is a cleaner. But when she isn't tackling dust and dirt and restoring order to chaos, Stella solves murders. Her latest case concerns a man convicted of killing his mistress. His daughter thinks he's innocent, and needs Stella to prove it.
As Stella sifts through piles of evidence and interview suspects, she discovers a link between the recent murder and a famous case from forty years ago: the shocking death of six-year-old Sarah Ferris, killed in the shadows of an empty playground.
Stella knows that dredging up the past can be dangerous. But as she pieces together the tragedy of what happened to Sarah, she is drawn into a story of jealousy, betrayal and the end of innocence. A story that has not yet reached its end...
The Playground Murders is the seventh book in The Detective's Daughter series which following protagonist Stella Darnell, an amateur investigator who was drawn into the crime world after looking into her father's death at an earlier point in time.
The book takes off slowly but is interesting enough to keep you going and it definitely has a little twist at the end.
This particular installment is twisted and complex, not to mention dark and disturbing.
The story takes us back to the 1980s and the murder of children, investigated by Stella's dad, Terry.
As we get to know the killer, we also see the repercussions the past can have in the lives of all families involved.
Recommend reading.
Many thanks to Head of Zeus and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
August 18, 2022
Gripping, evocative, atmospheric, sinister, witty, poignant…everything I’ve come to expect from this series. The people and places come to life so vividly.
Characterisation was on point, as per. Clever how Danielle is painted as a repulsive, but occasionally strangely sympathetic character - brilliantly done. The flashbacks to the 1980s were the most effective parts of the book.
I was hooked throughout, however, I was hoping there might be more twists in the mystery of people’s identities at the climax. In the end, it was pretty straightforward and obvious, which fell a bit flat, because I had other expectations of where the plot might go. Probably my fault.
I like that we get more of Terry in this book — in flashbacks — and how his presence is woven into the present day. Stella and Terry’s difficult relationship really gets me in the feels and has done ever since the first book. So poignant and filled with regret. So much left unsaid…so much that should have been voiced, but wasn’t. It certainly makes you want to check in with your loved ones. No one can read your mind, so speak it.
The writing is quality, but I wish the editing was better — a weakness of this series, along with occasional moments of implausibility and rather melodramatic finales. I’m willing to overlook these things to enjoy the characterisation and atmosphere.
It was nice that Winchcombe featured again and I love Stella and Jack’s relationship. Though it’s a shame we waited all those books for it to finally happen and then the timeline jumps forward and we miss the actual moment they got together.
All said, I hope there is still plenty more to come from this series, because I love reading it.
Characterisation was on point, as per. Clever how Danielle is painted as a repulsive, but occasionally strangely sympathetic character - brilliantly done. The flashbacks to the 1980s were the most effective parts of the book.
I was hooked throughout, however, I was hoping there might be more twists in the mystery of people’s identities at the climax. In the end, it was pretty straightforward and obvious, which fell a bit flat, because I had other expectations of where the plot might go. Probably my fault.
I like that we get more of Terry in this book — in flashbacks — and how his presence is woven into the present day. Stella and Terry’s difficult relationship really gets me in the feels and has done ever since the first book. So poignant and filled with regret. So much left unsaid…so much that should have been voiced, but wasn’t. It certainly makes you want to check in with your loved ones. No one can read your mind, so speak it.
The writing is quality, but I wish the editing was better — a weakness of this series, along with occasional moments of implausibility and rather melodramatic finales. I’m willing to overlook these things to enjoy the characterisation and atmosphere.
It was nice that Winchcombe featured again and I love Stella and Jack’s relationship. Though it’s a shame we waited all those books for it to finally happen and then the timeline jumps forward and we miss the actual moment they got together.
All said, I hope there is still plenty more to come from this series, because I love reading it.
June 1, 2019
Great crime read! I only wish I had discovered this author earlier . . .
Stella Darnell runs a cleaning company; she is an expert at deep cleaning crime scenes. As her father was a detective, Stella has an interest in solving crimes and that's exactly what she does - cold cases, to be exact. Along with her 'boyfriend' Jack, she tends to find herself embroiled in working out what happened long ago, and her new case is no different except there seems to be a link to a recent murder. Can Stella and Jack get to the bottom of things?
This is both gripping and suspenseful; the investigation proceeds step-by-step and kept me riveted all the way through. Did I work out who was the murderer? Nope, didn't see that coming! I only wish I had read previous novels as it seemed fairly obvious that I was playing catch up with Stella and Jack's relationship, and had missed some history. However, that didn't spoil my enjoyment of an extremely well-plotted and intense novel which was carefully structured with plenty of clues but keeping the mystery alive until the final pages. An excellent read, well worth a full five stars.
Stella Darnell runs a cleaning company; she is an expert at deep cleaning crime scenes. As her father was a detective, Stella has an interest in solving crimes and that's exactly what she does - cold cases, to be exact. Along with her 'boyfriend' Jack, she tends to find herself embroiled in working out what happened long ago, and her new case is no different except there seems to be a link to a recent murder. Can Stella and Jack get to the bottom of things?
This is both gripping and suspenseful; the investigation proceeds step-by-step and kept me riveted all the way through. Did I work out who was the murderer? Nope, didn't see that coming! I only wish I had read previous novels as it seemed fairly obvious that I was playing catch up with Stella and Jack's relationship, and had missed some history. However, that didn't spoil my enjoyment of an extremely well-plotted and intense novel which was carefully structured with plenty of clues but keeping the mystery alive until the final pages. An excellent read, well worth a full five stars.
June 4, 2019
::..Reviewed for Red's Midnight Readers..::
I was very kindly offered an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review and I have given it 4 stars.
The Playground Murders is the first book I have read by Lesley Thompson and the 7th in The Detective's Daughter series, however I found it easy to follow as a standalone and didn't feel like I had lost any of important details.
The story flips between the past and the present, taking place 40 years apart when the lives of two children are tragically cut short in 1980 and the repercussions in 2019.
So initially I struggled getting into this story, I found it slow to get going and there were so many characters that I couldn't always remember who was who.
However, once it got going I found myself completely absorbed in the story!! It was full of tension and had such a realistic edge to it, that I couldn't put it down. It was a great story and I will definitely be reading more.
I was very kindly offered an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review and I have given it 4 stars.
The Playground Murders is the first book I have read by Lesley Thompson and the 7th in The Detective's Daughter series, however I found it easy to follow as a standalone and didn't feel like I had lost any of important details.
The story flips between the past and the present, taking place 40 years apart when the lives of two children are tragically cut short in 1980 and the repercussions in 2019.
So initially I struggled getting into this story, I found it slow to get going and there were so many characters that I couldn't always remember who was who.
However, once it got going I found myself completely absorbed in the story!! It was full of tension and had such a realistic edge to it, that I couldn't put it down. It was a great story and I will definitely be reading more.
February 18, 2023
Once again, Stella and her team are facing a mystery from the past, which involves a case of Terry, that has repercussions in the present.
When Stella is hailed at a deep cleaning at a crime scene, she has no idea that this will open a big can of worms and put Jack’s kids at risk while discovering an enemy within the team. It’s also when Martin Cashman, Terry’s former mentee and friend shows his true colours to Stella.
I love that series because there’s always a twist or a turn that changes something in my thinking thus making it hard to be totally spot on with the guilty party until nearly the end.
My only annoyance, is that despicable Bella, mother to Jack’s twins, who seems to be a right little madam and I don’t see why she has to return and be such a b**ch towards Stella.
My main recommendation, read that series from the beginning to get all the nuances of Stella and Jack’s relationship.
When Stella is hailed at a deep cleaning at a crime scene, she has no idea that this will open a big can of worms and put Jack’s kids at risk while discovering an enemy within the team. It’s also when Martin Cashman, Terry’s former mentee and friend shows his true colours to Stella.
I love that series because there’s always a twist or a turn that changes something in my thinking thus making it hard to be totally spot on with the guilty party until nearly the end.
My only annoyance, is that despicable Bella, mother to Jack’s twins, who seems to be a right little madam and I don’t see why she has to return and be such a b**ch towards Stella.
My main recommendation, read that series from the beginning to get all the nuances of Stella and Jack’s relationship.
April 14, 2019
This series of books grows on you as you get more familiar with the characters and the quirky way they think and see the world. The atmosphere is an intrinsic part of the book and Lesley Thomson is a master at bringing to life certain parts of London. In this book Stella and Jack once again have to delve into one of the past cases of Stella's father that involved a child killing two other children in a playground. As we get to know the unrepentant killer, we also see the repercussions the past can have in the lives of all families involved. At the same time Jack is beginning to understand what it means to be a father to his precocious three year old twins yet unwillingly he puts them in danger. The book takes off slowly but is interesting enough to keep you going and it definitely has a little twist at the end. A very enjoyable read, but it's best read in context of the whole series.
April 14, 2019
Another excellent tale from Lesley Thomson. Once again we are back with familiar characters and some new intriguing ones. The story takes us back to the 1980s and the murder of children, investigated by Stella's dad, Terry. Moving backwards and forwards in time it is fundamentally, for me, about relationships and trust. It's also an excellent detective story, a tense thriller, and a nail-biting drama. I love being with Stella and Jack et al and it's good watching their relationship(s) develop - I so want to sit both of them down separately and tell them what's what but, hey, that's the drama.
It's a great next stage in the series, satisfying in its own right, and I can't wait for the next one.
It's a great next stage in the series, satisfying in its own right, and I can't wait for the next one.
August 23, 2019
Stella and Jack have moved on quite a bit since their last case, and are now officially in a relationship (about time too!) This case involves a modern murder in Gloucestershire and a case from the 1980s which is from their own patch in West London, with no apparent link. Slowly the connections come to light. The historic case is another of Stella's father's bits of unfinished business (possibly). I didn't spot the (modern) murderer (I did clock one thing which Stella really ought to have noticed too though). I like the period parts of these stories in particular. Would be better read with some knowledge of the back story in my opinion but the plot holds up as a stand-alone if you want to dive in at book 7.
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