See Them Run by Marion Todd

See Them Run by Marion Todd
Publisher: Canelo Crime
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

In a famous Scottish town, someone is bent on murder – but why?
On the night of a wedding celebration, one guest meets a grisly end when he’s killed in a hit-and-run. A card bearing the number ‘5’ has been placed on the victim’s chest. DI Clare Mackay, who recently moved from Glasgow to join the St Andrews force, leads the investigation. The following night another victim is struck down and a number ‘4’ card is at the scene. Clare and her team realise they’re against the clock to find a killer stalking the streets of the picturesque Scottish town and bent on carrying out three more murders.

To prevent further deaths, the police have to uncover the link between the victims. But those involved have a lot more at stake than first meets the eye. If Clare wants to solve the case she must face her own past and discover the deepest secrets of the victims – and the killer.

After leaving the armed response police unit under a cloud, DI Clare Mackay is slowly settling into her new position in the St Andrews Force. With a far smaller team and a much smaller township to protect, Clare is beginning to find her feet when a guest at a local wedding meets a grisly end in a suspected hit and run. When days later yet another man is hit in a clear hit and run Clare and her team rush to uncover what could possibly link these two men – because Clare knows there will soon be more victims if they can’t stop this killer.

This is a brand new (to me) author that I found and picked up on a whim. While I admit the story started a little slowly to me after the first 20-30 pages I found myself really getting into the story and before I’d reached the half way mark I’d already ordered the second book in the series. I found this to be a well plotted and decently paced small town Scottish police procedural style of story. Readers looking for something more action-orientated or a more busy city style of action/mystery might not find this really hits the spot for them.

I was of two minds that Clare’s past/history took a while to unfurl throughout this story. For quite a bit of the book (maybe as much as half of the story) aspects of the reason behind why she left behind Glasgow was left mysterious. I felt that a little odd how long it drew out, particularly since this was the incident that caused her to so drastically alter her entire life. While I could believe this plotline might follow DI Clare Mackay into the next book or two there was certainly a good amount of resolution and conclusion to this event and I am intrigued how Clare will rebuild her life and move on.

Readers who enjoy police procedural mysteries and are looking for something a little different should definitely give this a try. I thoroughly enjoyed the Scottish dialogue, accents and setting and really enjoyed the slightly different lens this gave the book as a whole. I’m eagerly looking forward to the next in the series.