Necessary as Blood

Another Deborah Crombie novel from the library. This one is set in the East End around Spitalfields, which makes a terrific background. A young woman with everything to live for vanishes, last seen at the Columbia Road market. The police aren't very interested until her husband also disappears. Gemma James gets involved almost by accident and then feels very protective towards the couple's three year old daughter. It's off his patch but Gemma's partner Duncan Kincaid gets the case and as ever their private and personal lives are mixed up. In vibrant, ever-changing, multi-cultural east London there are secrets as horrifying as any from the past. The chase to find the murderer and protect little Charlotte is gripping but as before I'm far less interested in Gemma's and Duncan's problems. A shame, because it means this can never be a favourite series, although I'm enjoying the books.

The blog Spitalfields Life has some wonderful photos of the settings for this book.


photo from Wikipedia