Path of Needles - Alison Littlewood

This book had an interesting premise - a killer posing his victims to represent the girls from fairy tales, but these are the old versions, "red in tooth and claw". No happy endings here!

 

A young policewoman eager for her first big case tracks down a local expert (how convenient!) who can point out the tiny discrepancies in the staging, which may or may not be deliberate clues.

 

Some of the characters were well written, but sadly most of the interesting stuff happens to people on the periphery. The motive for the killings is a bit woolly but then the killer isn't exactly sane so we'll let that one slide.

 

The real problem is the climactic scene, though. It's a bit... dull.

 

Not a bad read, but don't expect to be enchanted!