The Seventh Girl
By: Andy Maslen
Website: https://andymaslen.com/
Release Date: July 1, 2023
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Series: Detective Kat Ballantyne
Rating:

A new author and a new series for me is always going to be a tense read – not tense in terms of excitement (which this book did have) but tense in “is this worth my time?”

Turns out, Andy Maslen has a new fan. For now anyway.

I enjoyed the complex story that followed Detective Kat Ballantyne, from the pieces of her backstory, to why she became an officer, to hunting down a serial killer that had gone dormant for many years.

Without wanting to give any spoilers here there were characters involved that I wished were a bit more explosive in terms of impact on the story but I wonder if those same characters will be more center stage in the following books.

This book did keep me on my toes in terms of whodunnit, I even wondered for a brief time about a certain character being nefarious instead of just mildly annoying but overall I was pleased with the wrap up and some callbacks to other side characters and information.

I’m hoping for more character development, more high stakes and inner turmoil for DS Ballantyne in future books, not only for my entertainment but to solidify me as a fan of this author. She had some great moments in this first book but if she remains more or less the same in future books I don’t know if her character development, such that it is, will be enough to keep me coming back.

Additionally I really did enjoy that the police in this tale are running the spectrum of how humans can be – good, bad, flawed, arrogant, selfish, assholes, surprisingly kind, etc.

There are currently five books available in this series with the sixth book expected to publish at the end of March 2026. Let’s see if this series sticks with me until then!