The Flood – G.N. Smith

Summary

Still haunted by the historic murder of her parents, police officer Fiona MacLeish has been told by Police Scotland that she must take a break from the demands of a busy force. So she’s returned to her remote childhood home in the Borders, where she grew up with her aunt. A place where nobody even knows she’s in the police force.

But when a terrifying storm cuts the small farming community off, and the bloodied body of one of her aunt’s neighbours is found, she realises the very place she has gone to find peace may be far more dangerous than she could ever have imagined.

And, as the rain hammers down and the flood waters rise, the killer who is moving amongst them is getting braver…

If the killer finds out Fiona is really a police officer, she may be next. Has Fiona got what it takes to discover which of the trusted people in the tiny rural community is a murderer before they strike again?

Review

For anyone that understands the reference, this very much gives ‘Sweet Home’ vibes with the almost locked room mystery and with the group of neighbours getting a bit distressed because of the storm and looking for a plan and someone to follow.

I found the setting and writing nice, but I didn’t really care for any characters that weren’t the Fiona, and her aunt. I felt like the circle of neighbours were underdeveloped so I didn’t care if they caught the killer or not, the thrilling part was Fiona against the clock which you would expect for the setting of a threading storm, but I didn’t feel the thrill of a murder on the loose. Perhaps having everyone made aware of the first murder would have built more tension as everyone would be suspicious of everyone and even start forming alliances à la Walking Dead.