The Killing Kind – Jane Casey
Ingrid will never forget what John did.
The people he hurt. The way he lied about it so easily. The way she defended him.
Now he’s back.
He says a murderer is after her. He says only he can protect her.
Would you trust him?
The clock is ticking for Ingrid to decide. Because the killer is ready to strike…
I received a review copy of The Killing Kind from the publishers. My thanks to Anne Cater of Random Things Blog Tours for the opportunity to join this tour.
The Killing Kind made me tense as I read. Properly unsettled and uncomfortable. Long before I reached the end of the book I knew I would be looking back on it favorably as The Killing Kind does achieve the tension you look for in a psychological thriller which some books just fail to achieve.
Ingrid is a formidable and confident lawyer. At the start of The Killing Kind we see her shred apart the defence put forward by a woman that claims she is a victim of a dominating and controlling man. Ingrid picks holes in her story and leaves enough doubt for the jury to believe John isn’t a controlling manipulator but she implies the woman is obsessed with him – he is attractive and charming and she has clearly shown feelings for him.
The case ends with success for Ingrid but the police officer that helped arrest John makes her aware he still thinks John is dangerous and tells Ingrid this may have been the best chance to put him in jail.
The timeline of the story does shift through over three years of Ingrid’s life and readers can see how her life pivots from the point she secures John’s freedom. He turns his attention to Ingrid and any feeling of “normal” she may have had is gone.
The Killing Kind shares chapters where Ingrid is experiencing pressure, where she is confronted by her predator, suspects a random incident may he his doing or when she returns home to find the most horrific of discoveries. There are also chapters which are just written logs of harassing telephone calls or a statement taken to support a claim she makes against John. It all becomes increasingly upsetting and you see Ingrid’s confidence whittled away.
I don’t want to dwell too much on events within the book as that takes us too far into spoiler territory. Suffice to say there may be more going on in Ingrid’s life than she realises. You may feel she is making some bad choices and when she talks with John it never seems a good idea. But when you hear his side of some stories you feel he believes there is a twisted logic in his thoughts but you also feel you cannot trust a single word he says. Clever writing and so frustrating when a character doesn’t say or do what you feel is “right”.
The Killing Kind was a terrific read (if uncomfortable at many points). Jane Casey nails the dilemma, terror and absolute vulnerability of Ingrid to make readers understand and sympathise with her predicament and root for her to get her life back on track. But how many will die before that can happen?
The Killing Kind is available in paperback, digital and audiobook format. You can order a copy here: https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-killing-kind/jane-casey/9780008404963
