The Cold Nowhere by Brian Freeman

Nothing binds people quite like a large portion of guilt and Stride certainly has that when it comes to Cat. Cat on the other hand is a mixture of personalities, now and again a child, often survival expert and sometimes a Lolita.

Cat turns out to be the daughter of someone Stride used to know, despite a load of warning signals he decides to help her out. Yes she has a wee knife fetish and walks around in her sleep, but hey there could be worse scenarios, right?

The focus of this story is on the emotional burden Stride carries around with him. He messed up his relationship with Serena, he has difficulty connecting with Maggie and he is still bound to a woman from his past. He yearns for the temptation of the unfulfilled love and burns with an inner anger because he blames himself for her death.

It seems as if the Lolita has gotten herself tied up in corruption and the deviant behaviour of others. It is fair to say that Maggie not only doesn’t trust Cat, she also doesn’t like her much. I think she resents the girl being allowed into the inner sanctum of Stride, a place Maggie no longer has access to.

On a side note, who thinks the cold wind often chews on their face like maggots? I had to read that sentence twice and it still made me shiver with disgust. Thank you Mr Freeman for forever linking together in my mind, cold winds and maggots that like to chew on faces.

It is a crime story with emphasis on the past, heavy on the emotions and lighter on the action.

I received a copy of this book via NetGalley.