I’ve often wondered how the use of DNA to link an individual to an historic crime affects the lives of those involved. There must be so many individuals walking around leading ordinary and successful lives as spouse, parent, business partner etc, knowing there’s a potential time bomb if advances in DNA technology ever catch up with them and link them to events from decades earlier.

Susan Lewis has absolutely nailed this nightmare scenario in The List Hours. It’s packed with suspense, every character is carefully detailed and even the investigating police officer has a back story to explore. The people seem so real; on the surface they have it all but little by little this carefully crafted veneer is peeled away and the rift lines are exposed. The plotting is incredible. Intricate and with so many surprises it’s literally breathtaking. I felt emotionally entangled fairly early on in this twisted tale, which is unusual but shows the strength of the writing. I haven’t read anything by this author, so I’ll be looking for more.

My thanks to the publisher for a review copy via Netgalley.

The latest Susan Lewis is a little different, in that it has all the usual family drama, but with the added element of a police procedural. The Crace family live down in the south west of the country on the moors in Devon and come across as a very privileged family. The land they own encompasses three houses, two lots of stables, a farm, a ménage and a shooting school. The family businesses allow eldest brother David and his wife Annabelle to send their children to private school, holiday abroad every year and be the envy of the locals. David and his brother Henry grew up in the main house, and were the basis of a local social group ‘The Moorauders’. Good looking and well off, this pair were the catch of the county. It raised eyebrows, and tempers, when David married an outsider, Annabelle- known as Annie. However, she is now part of the furniture and an irreplaceable part of the family’s business empire looking after the admin for the shooting school, farm and Julia’s horse and donkey sanctuary. Julia is Henry’s second wife and is probably Annie’s best friend, often popping across for coffee or to ‘cocktail me up’ at the end of a hard day. From a distance this family has it all, but is everything as perfect as it seems? When David and Annie’s daughter Sienna is picked up by the police for shoplifting a teddy bear, an ugly truth at the centre of the Crayce family come to the fore.

Twenty years before, when David was engaged to Annie, the two brothers and their father went on an alcohol fuelled bender that ended in a party at the farmhouse. A few weeks later, local teenager Karen Lomax is found dead in an old railway carriage. A precocious teenager, who displayed a wild streak, died of a blow to the head and her murderer has never been found. Now that police have Sienna’s DNA sample, they are shocked to find a link to this old, unsolved case. One of the Crayce men left a trace of themselves behind, a sample of semen from Karen’s clothing shows a familial match to the Crayce’s. This puts David, Henry, and their father Dickie in the spotlight as suspects. Until their DNA is compared to the sample, the family will have to wait and in those two weeks, secrets and lies are revealed.

I found the novel a little slow at first, and having little patience with the champagne and pearls set, I found it hard to warm to the characters or their situation. So it really is down to the skill of this writer that I started to warm to Annie. I felt like she had gone through an awful lot with David, especially in the early years before the children. There were hints of psychological issues linked to this military service, which would have been around the time of the Balkan War. Annie describes sudden mood changes, a tendency to drink too much, nightmares and rages. While he had never physically hit her, she did worry about being in the wrong place when he had a nightmare. She had also struggled with his behaviour when drunk and there were even hints of his infidelity on these occasions. At the time of the farmhouse party they were very close to getting married, and there was a consensus in both families that if he messed up again she would call off the wedding. I felt like Annie was very used to listening to others, and making sure their needs were met, from the children and family to friends. Even her relationship with sister-in-law Julia is based very much on her arriving to have a drink and have her problems with Henry listened to. I kept waiting for her to have an epiphany and recognise her own needs in this nightmare, especially when the police’s focus starts to narrow.

My main focus was on the voice that felt absent from the tale and I think that was a deliberate choice on the part of the author. Murder victims don’t get to have a voice anymore and that’s what Lewis was trying to portray. The one person who had all the answers, couldn’t give them and had to rely on doctors and forensic experts to let us know what happened and at whose hands. However, we will never have her account or thought process and I really felt that absence, especially when old wine bar customers are saying she dressed provocatively or had fantasies that weren’t appropriate. Yet there isn’t the same disapproval of the much older men who recognised and took advantage of her open nature and strong sex drive. There’s a deeply sad moment when her father says that they still loved her anyway, despite her wild side. I wanted to take him aside and say ‘of course you did and you shouldn’t have to apologise for that’. There was some comparison between Annie and David’s daughter who was a similar age to Karen when she made her shoplifting mistake. The local police allowed her to apologise to the shopkeeper and make financial recompense. Her family connections seemed to let her off lightly. Would Karen have been offered the same way out, if she had made a similar mistake? Karen paid for her teenage mistakes with her life. I think Lewis was pointing out the gender differences and the class differences in these areas. David and Henry, and to some extent their father, were living a teenage life full of parties, alcohol and risky sex, but they weren’t censured by those around them. Their women tended to forgive them and they didn’t lose their social or financial standing locally. It isn’t just a question of gender, but highlights the difference between land and property owners, and those who live in the suburbs or the council estates.

Our other ‘outsider’ is DS Natalie Rundle, new to the area and having to hit the ground running with this unexpected cold case, suddenly becoming red hot. She isn’t local so she doesn’t have the same preconceptions or the same loyalties. Without her, this case might never be solved, because she asks the difficult questions and never rules anyone out. In fact I didn’t expect the outcome, so the author was able to surprise me. Though when I thought about the themes I’d pulled out of the narrative, such as class, difference and wanting to belong, it did seem to fit. I found this novel successful because it was the usual ‘Aga saga’ we expect from Lewis, but with some edge. It questions whether these perfect lifestyles can ever be that perfect behind the scenes. It shows that where there is an ‘in’ crowd, there are those longing to join or feeling they just don’t make the cut. She also identifies an exploitation of young women from outside the posh clique. I think this is why the chapters beyond the murderer being unmasked are so important. They’re about different elements in this community coming together, creating equality and for a teenager like Sienna to remember and honour a young girl who went before her. Yes, these conversations are uncomfortable, but there’s an element of owning past behaviour and trying to make amends. Forcing themselves to be uncomfortable is the only way change will happen. This element of justice having to be served in the community as well as court, was an interesting one and really gave this novel the edge for me.

Annie Crayce, the main narrator lives in a privileged world with her husband and children, part of a tight knit loving family. When her teenage daughter gets arrested for a prank and has to give DNA, her whole world stops. This DNA links one of the male members of their family to a historic unsolved murder of a young girl. One of them had sex with her but who was the killer? No one can remember the night of excess clearly. Are they covering for each other? A tense wait to find out who had sex with Karen Lomax was tough enough but the final reveal is shocking and unexpected. Themes of family loyalty, friendship, entitlement, post traumatic stress syndrome and jealousy abound. We see both sides as the detectives also try to tease the truth which in the end we find was never hidden. A gripping read.

The Lost Hours is a family drama with elements of psychological suspense and police procedural. The close-knit Crayce family live on Exmoor and run a successful business. Sienna, Annie and David's daughter's arrest for stealing means a routine DNA sample taken. It reveals a familial connection with DNA found on the body of a dead girl killed twenty years previously.

Increasingly strained family relationships follow David's subsequent arrest, but he is not the only suspect. The story progresses with a police investigation into the cold case and Annie's personal investigation to prove David's innocence.

Gradually revealed secrets in both investigations build the suspense and intensify the tensions within the family. This is twisty psychological suspense and a poignant revealing family drama that draws the reader into the characters' world, making it a compelling read.

I received a copy of this book from Harper Fiction via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Anna and David are seemingly living the perfect life. A loving relationship, great children and a successful family business. When their daughter has her dna taken after being involved with a group of trouble makers, a link to an old murder is thrown into the midst of their bliss.
It proves a link to one of the male members of the family and trust and love is sorely tested over the course of the investigation. Trusting your husband , means that it must be your father in law or your brother in law. But is your husband hiding a terrible crime?
What an awful situation to be in for everyone. Are they covering up for each other? Is one of them guilty or did they plan this together.
You are gripped by the investigation , wondering whether Anna's trust is misplaced. Has his past caused him psychological problems that led to murder? I couldn't put this book down.

Well Susan Lewis has done it again another fantastic page turning read
This story revolves around one family the Grayke ‘s Dickie, the dad David eldest son and Henry youngest son also Julia who acts like their adopted sister
They all run a hunting/ shooting /safari lodge apart from Julia who has stables and rescue donkeys
Also Annie who is David’s wife helps out they also have 3 children, Henry is also married to Julia and various other relatives live nearby so one big happy family
Then one day David’s daughter is caught shoplifting a teddy bear and dna swabs taken at police station the following day all charges are dropped
Then the police armed response team are banging the door down flying in with a warrant for David’s arrest why? They have found familial dna on a cold case murder from 20 years ago
David says nothing can’t remember anything refuses to talk
Karen Lomax was found in a railway cart apparently dumped after she had had sex with David
But where? When? And who picked her up who dumped her ?
A real page turner keeps you guessing

David and Annie seem to have a perfect marriage and then a bombshell hits when forensic DNA suggests a family member may have been party to a murder some 20 years previous. Their cosy world is about to shatter unearthing misspent youthful exuberance , unrequited love and revengeful actions.

I've given this four stars rather than 5 because of the slow start. If I hadn't known the author and that her books are always good, I may have given up. The characters seemed too twee and upper middle class for my liking, with their boarding schools and shooting schools. However once you got to know them there was substance, and when the story unravelled with the links to the disappearance of Karen Lomax which was the prologue, I really became engrossed. Some shoddy police work when Karen's murder was discovered, it was as if the Detective couldn't be bothered - he didn't want it to be one of the country set so he didn't pursue important leads. A sad story, but ultimately the killer was unveiled. A lesson that we don't realise the effects of our actions on other people. Feelings created by unthinking acts, of someone wanting to be part of the crowd, or unrequited feelings, can have life changing repercussions. #netgalley #thelosthours

Twisted, intriguing and a page turner story, that’s how I would sum up this book.

There’s no such thing as a perfect marriage because you can never know what happens behind closed doors or in one’s past. What might sound or look perfect for one person, it could totally trigger something else in another.

This book was really interesting and great. I loved how the author combines the happy family facade with a not so great past and how the perception of what’s to show and act in front of others is so damaging inside.

Facing a murder trial from a reopening of a cold case , twenty years later, this story kept me on the edge throughout the pages and I really wanted to know if he was the culprit or not. I had my doubts of what actually happened then but I haven’t seen that ending coming my way at all!

A great twist to end a great story.

Annie and her husband live on the moors with their family running a shooting lodge, when their daughter Sienna gets into trouble with the police her DNA brings up a familial match to a long unsolved murder, with her father, Grandfather or Uncle killed the poor 17 year old girl.

A great story of a family in turmoil with some fantastic twists.

This is the first Susan Lewis novel I've read for a few years and unfortunately it wasn't for me. I found the writing awkward and was very aware of victim shaming in the first chapter. If you are already a fan of Susan Lewis this may be for you but I'm afraid I can't recommend it.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC.

David and Annie Crayce have an enviable lifestyle, running a successful family business and with three healthy and happy children their lives seem nothing short of perfect. However, after a twenty year old cold case investigation has been reopened due to new and damning DNA evidence, David Crayce is arrested on suspicion of murder.

The story starts beautifully as we are drawn into the life of an affluent family, a life which is seemingly filled with love and laughter. There's a lovely slow build up to David's arrest which gives us chance to really get to know the Crayces, and their extended family, and whilst some characters are more likeable than others, by the time tension cranks up I think that we have already decided whose side we are on, and when things start to go wrong for the Crayces, they unravel at frightening speed.

As the story progresses it becomes difficult to put the book down and I found myself reading The Lost Hours when I really should have been doing something else. The tension is palpable, especially when other family members, particularly male members get drawn into the investigation, and the relevance of familial DNA links cannot be underestimated. I think that's what this author does so very well, in that she creates relatable characters who you begin to like and trust, and then she shocks you into disbelief when events take that character in an altogether unexpected direction. The whodunit element of the story becomes increasingly exciting as you begin to wonder just what will be exposed when the crucial lost hours of this murder mystery are finally revealed.

Full of twists and turns, The Lost Hours is a gripping family drama which has all the trademarks of this author's fine writing, a tense story line, wonderfully imagined characters and a supporting cast of people, who in their own right are pivotal to the plot. Taut, tight and tense, I quite literally couldn't put the story down, and finished The Lost Hours with that satisfactory sense of having read a good story well told

Another brilliant read by Susan Lewis! This is the 3rd book of hers that I've had the pleasure of reading and it was so gripping I read it in around 2 days (which as the mum of a 5 year old boy is rarely possible!)

I found the introduction to Annie's family and their seemingly perfect life went on a little too long, but it did give a great understanding of the main characters which underpins the rest of the story.

This is a whodunit told from a personal perspective when Annie's husband of 20 years is accused of murdering a teenager just before they were married. We see and feel Annie's difficulty in wanting to implicitly trust her husband, yet finding herself doubting him as the police carry out their investigation. As the family struggle to talk about what's happening and what happened so long ago, we are carried along with their feelings and doubts, trying to work out who is really guilty, and Lewis keeps you guessing right to the end. I can't wait for her next one!

Thanks to Net Galley and Harper Collins UK for an ARC of this book in exchange for a review.
Susan Lewis is a favourite author of mine and this new book is yet another page turner. A slow burn teasing read, who murdered Karen Lomax?
An unsolved cold case, 20 years ago is reopened as familial DNA is matched TO A male member of the Crayce family.
A family who seem to have a perfect life, have their world blown apart, as the DNA found belongs to o e of the three Crayce men. David, his brother Henry or their father Dickie.
The police investigation moves quickly and David is arrested and remanded in custody, leaving his wife Annie and 3 children devastated. Annie wants to believe and trust David but she knows he is not telling her everything.
The family circle become suspicious of one another, memories from two decades again are dragged up, everyone is questioned.
David is released as they don’t have enough evidence against him but the tension rises as his memories are probed further. Everyone is under suspicion
A twist teasing tale with a cleverly disguised and plotted ending.
Once again Susan Lewis captures her readers from the beginning right through to THE END.

I loved this! I think Susan Lewis gets better and better as an author. This is a suspenseful and realistic story I could not put down about an unsolved murder being investigated twenty years after the event. Really enjoyable.,

A familial DNA match leads to David Crayce under suspicion of a murder commited years ago. He has no memory of that night but can't have commited the murder can he. HIs father and brother are also possible suspects until a further DNA test proves who left their DNA on the body but what really happened that night and can any family get through the trauma,

Well what an emotional rollercoaster ride this was. Its not particularly creepy but it does have you gripped and dreading the results. Its a slow start but once it gets going I was turning the pages needing to know more. Its a thrill ride from who the DNA match might be to then the final truth of the killer's identity. The big reveal was very clever and did take me by surprise but I liked the way it turned out. This story is told from the Police, the family of the accused and it also touches on the family of the victim too giving a wider spectrum to the story. I really enjoyed this and am a fan of the author.

Great suspenseful thriller set in an idyllic location where the perfect family are held up to sever scrutiny when the daughter of the house is arrested for a minor crime that leads to familial dna being detected and the reopening of a cold case of a teenage girl raped and murdered 20
years ago.

The author spins a fabulous take here of the perfect family who are left suspecting each other in a modern who dunnit mystery. The reader is kept in suspense until the very end and the culprit is unmasked.

I felt that the ending was not as strong as the rest of the book and that the parents of the murdered girl we’re too understanding of the outcome and that this didn’t ring true with me. However this plot is well constructed and the characters are believable and easy to like and or hate.

Not the best that I have read by this author but a good page turner.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

First of all, if you don't like game shooting, then this is probably not for you. Fans of Susan Lewis' Kesterley books will like this tale.
When teenage Sienna goes along with a teenage prank to shop lift a teddy and is arrested, she sets off a series of events. A DNA swab taken turns up familial DNA relating to an unsolved murder 20 years previously of teenager Karen Lomax. Which family member? The trouble is they were all at a party very drunk and no-one can remember.

Review:

I was fascinated by the premise of The Lost Hours and I felt it was executed really well. The novel switches between the lives of the Crace family and the police officers undertaking the investigation into Karen Lomax’s death. I loved the way this enabled us to see both sides of the investigation and built tension as Lewis gave us ideas of what was happening.

The Crace family is a large family and this gives lots of scope for some interesting characters. I didn’t particularly like any of them, but I loved the way they were developed and I could imagine them really clearly. It was really easy to see the dynamics between the family and this helped me to see the layers of each character. I have read one of Lewis’ previous books and was pleased to see the return of Andee Lawrence. It was interesting to see her in a different capacity.

Lewis’ writing is very slick and she is incredibly adept at making the reader want to know what happens next. Several of the chapters end on cliffhangers and this meant that I just had to read past my bedtime! There are lots of twists as we go along and I really enjoyed this aspect of the novel.

The Lost Hours is the first novel I’ve read that makes reference to the pandemic. It is set towards the end of 2019, before the full extent of the virus was known. I felt that Lewis did a great job of using the virus to provide context without focusing on it in a gratuitous way.

A gripping read that I could hardly put down! Made all the more appealing being set on Exmoor where I live!
The story line kept me guessing right up to the end before all was revealed. A good 4 stars.