A little bland
I had previously read and liked Dervla McTiernan's book The Ruin, which is the first in her police procedural series of Cormac Reilly so I was excited to pick up her new standalone thriller - The Murder Rule. In this book we follow Hannah who joins The Innocence Project for a very unique reason - to keep a man in jail.
I must admit I wasn't particularly enthralled with this story - it's a solid enough read and kept me engaged but I didn't really feel motivated enough to write a review on it straight away and just a few weeks after finishing it I've found myself forgetting the details about it. The story is mainly told through the perspective of Hannah who isn't particularly likeable, makes some odd decisions and is able to get away with some actions that you have to suspend your disbelief about on a number of occasions. We also get diary entries from Hannah's mother Laura back before Hannah was born about a previous relationship which goes sour.
The book progresses well but the ending twist actually throws up a lot of plot-holes with hindsight which was a bit of a shame. There are some very convenient aspects of the plot as well - I doubt a professor would send a few students, one of whom he only met a few days prior out to interrogate an essential witness, for example.
Overall, I'm afraid The Murder Rule was a bit bland and forgettable for me with some very far-fetched ideas in its plot. Thank you to NetGalley & Harper Collins UK - Harper Fiction for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
