Blind Justice - David Mark
Take for example the unfortunate individual at the start of Blind Justice. We don't know exactly what has gone wrong, just that he and a friend were attempting a house robbery, one that should have been a doddle, but he now finds himself lying in mud in the dark, while his friend is screaming in agony. As he feels half his leg being ripped off by a bear trap, the only mercy we have is that the author ends this gruesome prologue before things get worse at the hands of someone mumbling a presumably threatening Latin phrase in his ear.
He's going to be in even worse shape by the time that DS McAvoy of Humberside Police Serious and Organised Unit is called in 25 years later. The victim's body has been discovered ripped in half when it is uncovered after a oak tree is toppled during a storm in the Brantingham Woods near Brough. Even though the man's wallet is found and his identity quickly established along with his disappearance from a student flat in 1996, there is nothing else that is going to be simple about this murder case. There's a ritualistic aspect to the killing, possibly occult, although there's an archaeological angle to be explored with the coins nailed into the eyes that suggest a connection to the Roman origins of the East Yorkshire town.
McAvoy and his boss Trish Pharaoh have a fair idea that the somewhat eccentric family in the land adjacent to the site of the uncovered body are involved, but how this relates to the victim, his known dubious associates and the other strange discoveries in the woods is a more complicated game to unravel. It doesn't help that this time neither Trish nor McAvoy seem to be on top of their game. Hey, it happens to us all, and David Mark is always realistic dealing with characters having real-world concerns - but it's a little more worrying when there is clearly a lot at stake here. McAvoy is still dealing with his son Fin being subjected to the terror of his last case (Past Life), but when his wife Roisin is also threatened here, it's going to be a step too far.
As gruesome as what has come before, we have reason then to expect much worse in Blind Justice. We know that McAvoy is a gentle soul at heart, but with a firm belief in justice and huge devotion to his family. The challenge here is whether he can keep his anger sufficiently in check to deal with some very dangerous individuals in a way that will ensure the safety of innocents. That is a greater concern than his own safety, as we have seen in the past and in the scars that he bears from past cases, and you can be sure that there are likely to be a few more added here. It's never dull in Hull.
There's perhaps not a great deal that is new here, even though the areas delved into - archaeology, historical artefacts, ancient practices - are far removed from common crime writing. A little too far removed maybe, into the realm of off-the-scale bonkers, but Mark's ability to work with his regular cast remains a joy and it's their deep humanity, love and sense of humour that stands out against the horror depicted elsewhere. For regular David Mark readers used to this and the expansion of his range in his other standalone works of fiction and memoir, this DS McAvoy case could feel like it has fewer surprises, but by any other standard the writing and fearless plunge into the extremes of good and evil in Blind Justice remain far above the average crime thriller.
Reading notes: Blind Justice (A DS McAvoy novel Book 10) by David Mark is published by Severn House on the 7th June 2022. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the advance proof preview.
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