Two pieces of news await Detective Chief Inspector Anna Travis, as she is barely back from a restful cruise. Her superior informs her she will be spending some time in the USA, for some training at Quantico, but part of this exchange is the arrival in London of Agent Jessie Dewar, whose work has been behind a desk, doing research for her Ph.D. in forensic pathology. The other event is a cold case that is suddenly reopened on the word of a man who is in jail for armed robbery. DCI Travis is assigned the case, but she will have Agent Dewar in tow; the latter has no practical experience but seems nevertheless intent on running the show and disrupting everything.

Oh the joy of reading the perfect British suspense novel! WRONGFUL DEATH is the latest in the Anna Travis Mysteries series and Lynda La Plante outdid herself! Not only is Anna dealing with an agonisingly puzzling case, but she has to work with FBI Agent Jessie Dewar who is exceedingly competent, professional, but who doesn't even attempt to fit in. Jessie is self-assured, rather unpleasant, and she had me rolling my eyes in disbelief, which is exactly how the author intended it: I felt exactly like the members of the London police towards the FBI agent. Agent Dewar is almost unbearable and yet, I hope we get to see her again because she is an extraordinary friend/foe for DCI Travis.

WRONGFUL DEATH had me hooked from page one, literally, first because the dialogues simply wowed me throughout the book for several reasons: they helped define the characters, their positions, the power struggles, and especially to highlight the tension between Dewar and Travis! WRONGFUL DEATH is extremely well-written, fast- paced, and positively riveting. The plot is extremely complex, and so meticulously thought-out that it is still very easy to follow. I love how Ms. La Plante inserts all sorts of details and background information, whether technical of from the human point of view, which make the story even more interesting, without ever being superfluous. There are several unexpected turns of events, a mesmerising villain, and well fleshed-out characters all around. But the icing on the cake was the ending: in typical British fashion: the reader has to wait until the very last pages for WRONGFUL DEATH to reach its true conclusion. A brilliant book!