Justice Mirror

Simon Hall

Average Rating 8/10 (1 Review)

Justice Mirror was previously published as Shadows of Justice

Justice isn't always fair...

The Justice Mirror... distorted reflections of reprisals and revenge. A vicious cycle of kidnapping, suicide, and murder. A mysterious motive hinted at only by the cryptic signature PP.A double killing in which every suspect has an alibi. A crime-fighting television reporter, with an agenda driven by his own heart, is drawn into the case and faces a battle for his future to solve it. And a race through a lightning storm to trap an unlikely murderer,sworn on seeing justice done in a shocking way that history has long left behind. The Justice Mirror...there is no such thing as a clear-cut vision of vengeance.

Gripping, fast-paced and nail-bitingly tense, this thriller will leave you wanting more. Perfect for fans of Ian Rankin, Angela Marsons, Rachel Abbott and Mel Sherratt.

Review by Chrissi (310517) Rating (8/10)

Review by Chrissi
Book Source: Purchased
Rating 8/10
Dan the reporter is still working with Chief Inspector Adam Breen, still hounded by Lizzie from the newsroom. The book opens with the tension associated with the verdict being announced for a trial. The opening pages are full of evocative language and acute observations which demonstrate the experience of the author as a journalist.

The case that they are awaiting the verdict for is that of a kidnapping of a seventeen year old girl, whose father is a local entrepreneur. There is no physical evidence that people in the dock committed the crime but the case against them was strong enough that the Criminal Prosecution Service went to trial.

In the English justice system there are two verdicts, guilty and not guilty, but in the Scottish System there is a third option, not proven. This means that the opinion of the jury is that the accused is guilty but there is insufficient evidence for a guilty verdict. I am sure that this has been explored in some of the Scottish thriller canon but I am not very familiar with it.

Anyway, as events unfold, the consequences of the actions of the perpetrator on their victims are explored, with devastating effect. The tone of the book is quite dark, the relationship between Dan and Claire is in no-man’s land and the only lightening of the tone is in Dan’s relationship with his dog, Rutherford.

I must admit I spotted the point which broke the case and was waiting for them to catch up, I don’t know if it spoiled the book for me. I found that there was echoes of a plot device from the first novel which immediately preceded this one for me; that said I may not have noticed so much if I had not read any of the other stories in the series before this one. On the whole, an enjoyable and thought provoking story, that opening descriptive passage will really stay with me.
Chrissi (31st May 2017)