The Last days of Kira Mullan

 By: Nicci French   

Location: FIC FRE

Genre: Mystery

From international bestselling master of suspense Nicci French comes a chilling new psychological thriller about a woman determined to get justice for a murder no one else believes happened.

Nancy North is ready to put her life back together. After suffering a psychotic break that ruined friendships, stalled her fledgling restaurant, and forced her to move out of her comfortable flat, she’ll do anything to get back to normal. She and her partner Felix—who has been a saint through her recent troubles—move into a new flat for a fresh start.

Nancy is taking her pills, seeing her therapist, and avoiding unnecessary stress. She’s doing absolutely everything right, but something is still very, very wrong. On the first day in the new flat, she hears them again; the mysterious voices that triggered her first episode. It could just be the unfamiliar sounds of water in the pipes, or the screaming baby across the hall, but deep down she knows something more sinister is going on. Her fears are confirmed when the young woman in the downstairs flat, Kira, is found dead. Felix, her neighbors, and even the police insist it’s a tragic suicide, but the pieces aren’t adding up for Nancy. Can she trust her own instincts, or is it all in her head?

Meanwhile, Detective Inspector Maud O’Connor has misgivings about her colleagues’ investigation of Kira’s death. The boys club at the top seems intent on closing the case as quickly as possible, especially since the only person who thinks it could be anything other than suicide is known to be unreliable. But Maud knows what it’s like to be dismissed as an overemotional woman and isn’t so quick to discount Nancy’s claims. As tensions reach an explosive breaking point, the line between fact and delusion becomes dangerously blurred, but Maud will stop at nothing to ensure that the truth comes to light.

Overall: This is one of the most tense readings I've had lately. The mental health awareness is perfectly represented. The gaslighting, paranoia, and abuse are sensitive subjects that the author perfectly approached as well. I couldn't put it down even though it truly made me nervous. I truly loved Maud O'Connor and her straightforward approach to interrogation, her sharpened senses, her ability to see the details and piece together puzzles. I'm definitely looking forward to reading more of her adventures if one of my favorite writer duos gives life to them.- Nilufer

Wow wow wow. Nicci French has hit this right out of the park. From the very first page, its go go go!
Maud returns from the first book, this time she sort of inherits a colleague's case and has to fish out which of the occupants in an apartment building is the killer when a woman is found hanging in her flat. What was thought to be a suicide is starting to look very suspect.
The only person who seems to think it was murder has a history of a mental break down and her concerns are being dismissed. The other residents seem to be convinced she is losing her mind! Boyfriend isn't helping matters eithers. Taju