Review: One Last Breath

One Last Breath once again brings together Detective Constable Ben Cooper and Detective Sergeant Diane Fry that readers met in the earlier Stephen Booth books. The dedication in the front of the book reads, “Dedicated to the men and women who explore the scariest place there is – the world beneath our feet”. The book opens with Ben Cooper being brought up from a cave where he had volunteered to work with a volunteer group the Derbyshire Cave Rescue wherein he had agreed to pretend to die in the cave and the rescue group would go in and bring out his dead body. Before the group actually got him out of the cave he did think he was going to die. This particular cave in the Peak District is quite a tourist attraction and readers of One Last Breath will find out much about the cave and the legends that have come down over the years with reference to the cave.

Mansell Quinn, formerly of Castleton, Derbyshire, is being released from prison after serving out his sentence for the murder of Carol Proctor, wife of his friend Ray Proctor and a woman Mansell had been having an affair with. Carol Proctor was found stabbed to death in Mansell Quinn’s home when the police arrived. The arresting officer turned out to be Detective Constable Ben Cooper’s father. Mansell claimed he had an alibi since he was drinking with his friend Ray Proctor and William Proctor but his friends did not support his story and he eventually changed his plea to guilty and was sentenenced to prison. He later tried to state that his plea was wrong and he was not guilty but nothing came out of these claims.

Shortly after his release from prison his former wife Rebecca Quinn now Lowe was found murdered in her kitchen and so began the search for Mansell Quinn. Diane and Ben were lead back to the old murder of Carol Proctor and once again interviewed people that were familiar with the crime and the family. As they proceed with the investigation a very different story slowly unfolds and Ben in particular has doubts as to whether or not Mansell really was guilty or innocent.

I enjoyed the book but the vivid descriptions of the interior of the cave convinced me completely that I would not want to visit that cave or any other.

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Pat Reid - RAM

Book Review: One Last Breath