Fifteen years ago, Detective Constable Kate Marshall caught a serial killer dubbed the Nine Elms Cannibal and put him away forever. One would normally consider that a rare coup for an up-and-coming young officer, but for DC Marshall, it was a disaster. In fact, it ended her police career. Now, after all these years of trying to put her life back together, lecturing at a university and living in a cottage by the shore, her carefully constructed peace is abruptly shattered.

A call from a London coroner takes her back to the morgue, where a young woman lies dead on his slab, with bite marks eerily similar to those suffered by the victims of the Nine Elms Cannibal. And this is only his first victim. More bodies are found in the ensuing days. Whether the police want to admit it or not, London has another serial killer on the loose.

"Along with superb characters, the plotline is a rollercoaster ride that will keep your stomach churning and your head spinning. NINE ELMS, quite frankly, will terrify readers."

No longer a detective constable, Kate is, nonetheless, the best person equipped to understand this copycat killer. As much as she would like to leave all the unpleasantness of the past behind her, she simply can’t. If there’s a killer out there preying on young women as a tribute to the Nine Elms Cannibal, he must be stopped, and Kate has to try to do just that. Fortunately, her university research assistant, Tristan Harper, is eager to help, and he has a good head for investigation. So, as a team, they follow leads that the Metropolitan police are unable or unwilling to tackle. But they will need to keep in mind the danger they face. This murderer is cunning, and he has something to prove.

Capturing the Nine Elms Cannibal nearly cost Kate her life a decade and a half ago. He intended Kate to be his fifth victim, and he almost succeeded. It now appears as though the copycat wants to fulfill the Cannibal’s original plan. Kate has a lot to lose, not only physically but also the hard-won progress she’s gained since unmasking the killer. Mentally and emotionally, her recovery has been more than difficult. Every step has been a major struggle. She carries a lot of guilt, and working this case is made somewhat trickier by family ties. And by police who don’t especially welcome outside help.

NINE ELMS is the first Kate Marshall thriller, and I know it won’t be a one-off. The main character has lots of baggage --- baggage of the type that readers want to see worked out because they can relate to her. Kate is tough but infinitely human. She has learned to check her emotions at the door when on a case, but in her private moments, she is as vulnerable as any of us. And Tristan undoubtedly will bud into a brilliant investigator beside her.

Along with superb characters, the plotline is a rollercoaster ride that will keep your stomach churning and your head spinning. NINE ELMS, quite frankly, will terrify readers.