Cold Grave (Dr. Anya Crichton, #6) in Aussie Readers

Jun 04, 2012 Shelleyrae at Book'd Out rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: arc-are, aussie-author

Cold Grave is the 6th book by Kathryn Fox featuring forensic physician, Dr Anya Crichton, and after the first few pages I was barely able to tear myself away.

Cleverly plotted with multiple threads that provide intriguing mystery and thrilling action, Cold Grave is a fantastic read. Inspired in part by the death of Australian Dianne Brimble, a mother of three who was drugged, raped and left to die by a group of men during a cruise in 2002, Fox creates a compelling story exploring the seedier sid Cold Grave is the 6th book by Kathryn Fox featuring forensic physician, Dr Anya Crichton, and after the first few pages I was barely able to tear myself away.

Cleverly plotted with multiple threads that provide intriguing mystery and thrilling action, Cold Grave is a fantastic read. Inspired in part by the death of Australian Dianne Brimble, a mother of three who was drugged, raped and left to die by a group of men during a cruise in 2002, Fox creates a compelling story exploring the seedier side of cruising that happy holiday makers are rarely aware of. In Cold Grave the victim is Lily, a naive teenager and talented musician, whose death seems to be little more than an inconvenience to the crew of the luxury liner. The discovery of bruising on her inner thighs and GBH in her system during the post mortem leads Anya to suspect she was drugged and abused before being left to die in a towel cupboard on deck. A group of aggressive men on board seem to be likely suspects but proving their culpability will be difficult, especially since the crew seem reluctant to cooperate.
As Anya pushes for an investigation into the circumstances of Lily's death, an anonymous note alerts her to more deadly secrets aboard the ship. Violence, espionage, missing persons, illegal practices and cover-ups put Anya, and her family, at risk with no where to go. Wary of the security agent who shadows her every move Anya is nevertheless determined to do what she does best, speak for the victims.

As always it is Anya's compassion and desire for justice that drives her to become involved in the crime. While Anya can sometimes seem cold and self righteous she is, I think, more emotionally vulnerable in Cold Grave than in previous books, specifically in terms of her relationship with her ex husband and I appreciated the opportunity to gain more insight into her character. I also enjoyed seeing Martin in another light and liked him far more than I expected.

I have to admit I am no longer as keen to one day cruise upon a luxury liner but Cold Grave is a compelling crime novel with a setting that lends itself well to suspense and intrigue. The Dr Anya Crichton series remains a firm favourite of mine and I am happy to recommend it to readers who are fans of writers such as Kathy Reichs and Patricia Cornwall.

Stop by Book'd out to listen to my chat with Kathryn Fox about Cold Grave, writing and more!

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Feb 12, 2012 Brenda rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: own-read, aussie-authors, 2012-release

Another wonderful thriller by Aussie author Kathryn Fox! Dr Anya Crichton had just completed a case and received a trip on the luxury cruise ship, Paradisio, all expenses paid, with her six year old son, Ben. Also along on the cruise is Anya’s ex-husband, Martin, who cares for Ben full time.

Anya and Ben are sharing a cabin, while Martin is below decks in a small, very noisy cabin…The morning after their departure from Fiji, the three of them went to the pool deck for a swim, well before breakfas Another wonderful thriller by Aussie author Kathryn Fox! Dr Anya Crichton had just completed a case and received a trip on the luxury cruise ship, Paradisio, all expenses paid, with her six year old son, Ben. Also along on the cruise is Anya’s ex-husband, Martin, who cares for Ben full time.

Anya and Ben are sharing a cabin, while Martin is below decks in a small, very noisy cabin…The morning after their departure from Fiji, the three of them went to the pool deck for a swim, well before breakfast. When Martin decided to go for a run, he discovered something he hadn’t counted on…Shouting for Anya to help, they commenced CPR on a young girl, who had been lying, soaking wet, and partially clad in a towel cupboard on deck.

With Anya being a forensic physician, and Martin a trained ICU nurse, their help was invaluable, but it was to no avail. The young girl was dead, and when the date-rape drug GSD was found in her system, along with alcohol, their suspicions were aroused. When Martin told of the furore in the corridor outside his cabin the night before, with loud, drunk men, and seemingly drunk young women, it seemed there was evidence of drug use, sexual assaults and more.

When head of security, David FitzHarris, seemed to be reluctant to pursue the investigation, Anya’s suspicions were aroused. It seemed she could trust no-one. And when suddenly there was a shooting, and another person went missing, the dangerous secrets that were becoming evident threatened to put Anya and her family’s lives at great risk.

With a killer on board, this wasn’t the holiday Anya was anticipating. Could she find the murderer, and solve the mysteries before anyone else got hurt?

This novel is loosely based on the Dianne Brimble case, where she died on a cruise ship ten years ago. Kathryn Fox’s amazing talent for turning her own career as a medical practitioner, and her interest in forensic medicine, into the compelling thrillers she writes continue to captivate. I found this hard to put down from the very first pages until the very last page!

Highly recommended.
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Nov 19, 2016 Kathryn rated it really liked it

Shelves: added-because-part-of-series, reading-list-2016, australian-authors, 4-5-stars, fiction

4.5★ Another fantastic Anya Crichton. I started this the day I boarded a Princess cruise ship - and I was hoping that Princess Cruises was very different from whichever line the Paradisio - the ship that Anya was sailing on in this book - was a part of! Certainly behaviour onboard a Princess ship when I was on her last was very different from that on the Paradisio, and it seemed different this time as well - thankfully! I still enjoyed some of the insights into the cruising industry and things I ...more

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Feb 21, 2015 Catsalive rated it really liked it

Shelves: aww, 2015

blurb:
It feels like the safest place on earth. A family-friendly, floating palace. But, as Anya Crichton soon discovers, cruise ships aren't all that they seem...Statistics tell us that a woman is twice as likely to be sexually assaulted on a cruise ship than on dry land. Customers aren't screened, so the ships are a haven for sex offenders and paedophiles. With no policing, and floating in international waters, sexual assaults and passengers 'disappearing' are uncommonly frequent...

So when a te ...more

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