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Reviewed by Alyson Baker
On her first day back from maternity leave, Detective Sam Shephard is thrown straight into a cold-case investigation – the unsolved murder of a highly respected Anglican Priest in Dunedin.
The case has been a thorn in the side of the Police hierarchy, and for her boss it' s personal. With all the witness testimony painting a picture of a dedicated church and family man, what possible motive could there have been for his murder?
But when Sam starts digging deeper into the case, it becomes apparent someone wants the sins of the past to remain hidden. And when a new potential witness to the crime is found brutally murdered, there is pressure from all quarters to solve the case before anyone else falls prey. But is it already too late... ?
Detective Sam Shephard is back at work after six months maternity leave, now mum to baby Amelia. She is immediately given a cold case from 25 years ago: an “attack against a man of God on the steps of a cathedral on an ungodly winter’s night”. Sam doesn’t know whether her nemesis The Boss, DI Johns, has given her the case because he thinks she can solve it, or as part of his ongoing game of “Slam-a-Sam”. All she does know is everyone she talks to about the crime is “being economic with the truth”.
Sam must work out whether the original investigation in 1999 missed anything, and/or whether those still alive know anything about the case that they would finally like to share. What makes her job more than tricky is that The Boss was not only on the original investigation team, but he is now married to the daughter of the victim, who was 15 years old at the time of the killing.
What Sam uncovers is a morass of mis-directions about events surrounding the death. The scene of the crime is very triggering for her – and she becomes aware that the church can be as sexist and suspicious of anyone not regarded as ‘normal’ as many in the police force: “humans with dicks and balls seemed to have special privileges as far as The Boss was concerned.”
Two people who were originally seen as suspicious by both church members and police were Mel Smythe, who “pushed boundaries on what was proper”, and Aaron Cox, an ex-gang member who was friends with the victim. Sam sees through these prejudices and gives everyone the benefit of the doubt and a fair hearing. She does start to wonder if she’s lost the knack of making people open up to her when stories start to sound a bit off, not quite fitting together. However, that could be due to her having to manage poopy nappies, breast pumps, sleepless nights, daycare drop offs and pickups, as well as the cold case. A cold case that suddenly has the addition of a new murder.
Fortunately, Sam has her mate and Amelia’s dad, Paul, to help, and her friend Maggie as moral support. And she needs sounding boards when her suspicions veer from abuse in care, to blackmail, to mistaken identity. As always with Symon’s Sam Shepard mysteries, the book goes to some very raw places, and Sam has some confronting conversations, leading to affecting moments.
The characterisations in Prey are complex and interesting – genuinely good people behave appallingly, and some who behave appallingly do so to protect others. Sam is heartbroken that acts intended to safeguard victims, hurt them even more, and that people have slunk away rather than stepping forward to help when they have had the opportunity.
Symon has again crafted a well-structured, intriguing mystery. The addition of Amelia to Sam’s world, and her stable loving relationship with Paul, makes her aware that she needs to address some of the trauma of her own youth – adding further texture to this great #YeahNoir character.
Alyson Baker is a crime-loving former librarian in Nelson. This review first appeared on her blog, which you can check out here.
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