You think you know who to trust? You think you know the difference between good and evil?

You’re wrong …

A LESSON YOU WILL NEVER FORGET

The body of the head teacher of an exclusive Devon school is found hanging from the rafters in the assembly hall.

Hours earlier he’d received a package, and only he could understand the silent message it conveyed. It meant the end.

As Exeter suffers a rising count of gruesome deaths, troubled DS Imogen Grey and DS Adrian Miles must solve the case and make their city safe again.

But as they’re drawn into a network of corruption, lies and exploitation, every step brings them closer to grim secrets hidden at the heart of their community.

And once they learn what’s motivating this killer, will they truly want to stop him?

SMART. GRIPPING. GRUESOME.

This is a psychological crime thriller in a class of its own.

WARNING: Most definitely *not* for the faint-hearted!

My thanks to Helena at Avon for my review copy and the chance to join the blog tour.

When I first heard about The Teacher it was presented as a very dark crime story, it would be graphic, often horrific, and absolutely not suitable for everyone. As I read the description all I could think was “this is exactly the kind of story I enjoy.”  Anticipation was high.

The opening chapter had me hooked. A mysterious delivery which leads a man to take his own life, teasing hints of transgressions in the past and the suggestion that the death you read about is just the first of many.  Little did I know just how many characters would fail to make it to the end of the book!

The Teacher is a fast paced serial killer story. The death count is significantly higher than I was expecting and the depictions of the murders certainly justify the warning that comes with the book that The Teacher is ‘not for the faint-hearted.’ The killer is on a revenge mission and is keen to ensure the victims that have been targeted suffer horrifically before they are eventually allowed to die.

Running alongside the story of the killer (and victims) is that of Abbey.  She is a shy, awkward girl working in a local museum tasked with restoring stuffed animals from the displays to a better state of repair. As the story unfolds we learn why Abbey is happy to be hiding herself out of the limelight in the dark corners of the museum working with dusty exhibits. Abbey provided a great side plot from the more visceral events which were unfolding, however, her story also made for some uncomfortable reading and she was the character I found myself wanting to come out of the story with a happy ending.

On the hunt for the killer are local police officers Adrian Miles and Imogen Grey. They have just been partnered together for the first time – two rogue officers who appear to have been put together as punishment for their role in events prior to the story. If Katerina Diamond wants to bring Miles and Grey back for a second outing I would be delighted as these two were great fun to read about.

So I liked the cops, I found a character to root for and the serial killer was wonderfully dark and highly inventive.  All good and I have to say that I really enjoyed The Teacher. One final observation…it was presented as a crime novel but read like a horror story.

The book does carry a warning along these lines so the readers can make that choice for themselves. However, there seemed greater emphasis on the murders than on the investigation element which I felt was somewhat sidelined. As an avid reader of both crime and horror fiction this did not concern me – I was loving the story.

Definitely a book I will recommend and I really hope Grey and Miles will return.

The Teacher is published by Avon and is available in paperback and digital format now:  http://www.amazon.co.uk/Teacher-Katerina-Diamond/dp/0008168156/ref=sr_1_1_twi_pap_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1459158346&sr=8-1&keywords=the+teacher