DCI Bill Slider is featured in the twenty-fourth book in the latest police procedural story of the Bill Slider series by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles. Felicity Holland is reported missing, last seen by her novelist husband as she went to her pottery-making class. This well-off woman in a posh area of London had friends and kept occupied, but had no apparent reason to vanish. Slider has to fear the worst and needs to find her. BEFORE I SLEEP is quite a traditional story in many ways, no gruesome serial killer, no drug gang wars. Maybe this just reflects on the locality, a part of London which stays stable.

Henry Holland, the historical novelist, is desperate to get his wife back safely and approaches the police commissioner, a personal friend of his, who shunts the work down the line to reliable Slider.  With his able second, DS Atherton, the trusty DCI starts the missing person hunt, knowing that an adult is entitled to go missing and Felicity may not want to be found.

Slider’s lovely wife, Joanna, is busy with her music work in this story as well as caring for their children, a small child and Slider’s two teens from his earlier marriage. A past relationship of Felicity’s was with a jazz player, which gives a reason to involve music research in the casework. But much of the time is spent proving that London’s citizens are the most-watched people on the planet, as one after another a vast series of CCTV camera discs are found and studied. If someone drove or walked past a shop or bank machine, or into a Tube station, they are on camera. Even private homes place cameras for security reasons, and Slider has to hope someone recorded something useful, especially when a handbag turns up in nearby woods.  

The conversations in the station are often funny but do feel forced at times, with Cynthia Harrod-Eagles liberally sprinkling the trademark puns and malapropisms. Still, it feels better than people joking while working on a murder case. Because, after all, Felicity could just be missing. Part of me was really hoping she would walk in the door. But the longer the search continues, the less likely that becomes.

BEFORE I SLEEP certainly got me thinking and kept my interest. I did guess a story strand long before the truth was revealed, but that led to even more serious revelations. I’ve visited some of the places mentioned, such as Covent Garden, so it was lovely to revisit in my mind’s eye as I read. Enjoy London, enjoy BEFORE I SLEEP. I look forward to the next case for Bill Slider.