Book info

• Title Carnival Blues
• Author Damien Boyd
• Year 2022
• Genre Thriller

Detective Chief Inspector Nick Dixon arrives late for Bridgwater’s winter carnival. He’s come to see the squibbing, the traditional firework display that brings the town’s November festivities to a dramatic close. But when the squib of Avalon Carnival Club president Richard Webb is lit, it explodes, engulfing him in flames. Dixon knows he’s just witnessed a killer making a very public statement. And he can’t help feeling it’s only the beginning. After his suspicions are confirmed at the Burnham-on-Sea carnival forty-eight hours later, the race is on to find the killer before the next event in a nearby town. Can Dixon stop the killings before any more lives are lost? And can he do it with police Professional Standards investigators breathing down his neck?

Thoughts

I really enjoyed this Nick Dixon pageturner, this time focusing on an attempted murder at a carnival. There are layers upon layers though, with the carnival being the first, then squabbling estate agents, spurned lovers, and at the back of it all, Dixon being arrested for previous activities! It felt like the stakes were really high, all the way through, and not just because of the active case, and that made it a really quick and fulfilling read. On to the next!

Rating: 5 / 5