A meaty crime fiction which transports you back in time, Those Who Know by Alis Hawkins is the perfect read to get stuck into.

The plot:

On the campaign trail to secure his hold on the coronership, Harry Probert-Lloyd finds himself uneasily embroiled in politics. So, when the death of a pioneering local teacher is reported, Harry is torn – should his focus be election or inquest?

A compromise proves damaging to both causes and Harry finds himself disastrously badly prepared for the inquest. New information comes to light during the hearing and the outcome threatens to see an innocent hanged.

As Harry struggles to put Rowland’s death aside and win the election, his assistant John Davis, travels to London to follow up a new lead. Will the startling evidence he finds there save the accused, or has Harry left it too late?

Is well worth losing yourself in for days

Those Who Know is the third book in the Teifi Valley Coroner series – I haven’t read books 1 and 2 (although I do have them on my shelf and are being bumped up my list!) – and this definitely reads as a standalone. I don’t feel like I missed anything, but the other two sound just as fantastic.

This crime fiction is set in the 1850s, so there are clear differences in language and how things were done, which I found completely fascinating. The language took quite a while to get used to, but enjoyable, especially when you get a sense of a small welsh town during these times.

I loved how there were two threads to this story – you had the political side and the death of the teacher, which threw up some horrifying surprises (there is one I googled which was actually a real thing).

Chapters are split between two characters, Harry and John, which I don’t usually like, but these had clear and distinct voices and added a whole other picture to the story unfolding. I really enjoyed these characters, and especially how the women were depicted in the book.

It’s definitely not your quick ‘whodunnit’ crime fiction, and an incredible story to get enveloped in. You can tell Hawkins has done lots of research with the historical aspect, and is well worth losing yourself in for days.

A fantastic 4-star crime fiction with a surprising ending, which makes me not want to wait for the previous two books, as well as any more to come.

Those Who Know, Alis Hawkins, RRP £8.99 (paperback); Book Depository 

Pages: 444

Publisher: Dome Press

Genre: Crime Fiction