Family secrets come tumbling down alongside the bodies in The Fall, the fourth installment in the DCI Jansen series by Rachael Blok. This is my first introduction to this author, and I found it to be an enjoyable read even without having read any of the previous books in this series.

DCI Jansen must determine if the body that fell from St. Albans Cathedral was the result of suicide or something more sinister. A witness to the fall, Willow Eliot is at St. Albans for an exhibit and the wedding of her sister when secrets, hidden letters, stories of an old psychiatric hospital, and family grudges begin to reveal themselves.

The quality of writing and the pace set by Blok keeps the story moving along at an exciting pace.

The ending was wonderfully satisfying, and I will enjoy going back to read the previous books in this series while awaiting the next DCI Jansen book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Head of Zeus for a DRC for an independent review.

The novel is written from a number of viewpoints, including one whose significance to the plot isn't immediately apparent but who nevertheless has a compelling story to tell. I enjoy how the novel is split into three sections . You will not be disappointed with this book. Thank you NetGalley and Head of Zeus for this advanced copy. On April 14th do yourself a favor and purchase this book.

Unexpectedly mysterious.

That is how I'd describe The Fall.

A clever plot with a twists and turns to keep you guessing.

Unexplained deaths, missing family members and memories that span past and present provide a story that is well plotted and fast paced.

I was kept guessing until the end. I'll admit after a while, there were certain parts that I figured out but not enough to stop the story from being engaging.

A brilliant crime novel.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Head of Zeus for an advance copy of The Fall, the fourth novel to feature DCI Maarten Jansen of the St Albans Police.

Willow Eliot has arrived in St Albans to set up an exhibition and later attend her twin sister Fliss’s wedding, but her arrival is shocking when she sees a man fall from the cathedral’s tower. Maarten Jansen is happy to accept it as suicide, but a conversation with Willow leads to a deeper investigation and an exhumation of a past some would rather keep buried.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Fall, which is not surprising as Ms Blok is fast becoming one of my favourite authors. She always produces a page turning read with several twists and this is no different.

The novel is told from various points of view, including one whose relevance to the plot is not immediately obvious but who still have a compelling tale to tell. I like the way the novel is third police procedural, a third other involved characters and a third the not immediately obvious voice. It gives the novel a broader perspective with the reader able to compare and contrast the same events from different characters’ points of view and still have time to ponder the third character. I found it absorbing.

If all this seeing from all sides were not enough the author has put together a fast moving plot with all sorts of unexpected events and developments. Even the reveals come with a catch, because some of them are pure misdirection that keep the reader’s imagination fired up and working feverishly. I must admit that I found the conclusion the least convincing part of the novel, but with such an absorbing journey to get there it’s not a dealbreaker.

The Fall is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.

The Fall - Rachael Blok

‘The world was all before them.’

Just wow! This was such a fantastic book!

This book opens with someone falling from the tower of St. Albans Cathedral, it is shocking, gripping and totally captured my attention.
The fall is witnessed by Willow who has come to the town to put on an exhibition in the cathedral, about Hill Barnes an old psychiatric hospital, an institution where people were put away years ago.
DCI Maarten Jansen attends, and Willow as a witness prompts a deeper investigation into a long-buried past. Willow's own family history entwines with the case and Jansen starts to wonder how everything is connected, was this death a suicide or something more?

‘The women. The men. Chunks of their lives, dispensed into wards, boxes. Stolen away. When people talk of the good old days….’

I loved this book, having visited the cathedral I could visualise where this was happening which definitely enhanced the experience for me. There’s quite a bit going on and the story is told from multiple POV’s but I actually found this helped rather than hindered the narrative. You can get inside the mind of the characters and get to know them quickly.

Slowly as old secrets are unravelled we learn of the connections between these characters, tensions rise, we are given little snippets of what is to come.
I felt on edge and found myself taking little sharp intakes of breath as I read, my heart rate rising as the suspense winds and winds and tension bubbles under the surface.
It’s a spellbinding read and I couldn’t put it down, dark, atmospheric and unexpected with a really spine jangling ending this is one book really worth reading!

✩✩✩✩

The Fall is a slow-burning mystery and although at times I felt a little lost with the variety of characters that make up the plot, the book is still well written and interesting.

It’s 2 am and there’s a man on the roof of St Albans Cathedral struggling not to fall as Willow Elliott arrives to set up an exhibition. Willow hears the fall as he crashes to the ground. The footballer proves to be Joel Braxton, who is in his 80s and a former version of the cathedral.
He is not what he seems and much links back to the Hill Barnes mental health hospital which is the topic of the exhibition Willow is setting up. Coincidentally, Willow is in St Albans for the wedding of her twin Fliss who is to marry Sunny, a police officer. DCI Maarten Jansen investigates the fall which is a much more complex affair than he initially thinks with secrets from the past coming back to haunt several characters.

First of all, I struggle to get into this one as it’s very slow to get going and much of the detail seems inconsequential and a bit of a yawn fest which isn’t helped by some repetition. The different perspectives add to this as they don’t seem cohesive and it also breaks up the flow. It also means don’t get to ‘know’ the characters as there’s quite a lot of them.

Fortunately it does improve but it’s a fair way in before it just so. You begin to appreciate there’s a lot of dysfunction and buried secrets in several families including Willows and there is tension between the twins. There is one perspective which is very good from the past and that is of Alice, a little girl when you first get her story. This one has a lot of tension and emotion in it and it’s a very sad story and is the standout feature of the book. The inclusion of the mental health hospital is also good and demonstrates changing times. The author uses the cathedral and St Albans effectively to create atmosphere and the scenes in the cathedral are definitely the ones where there’s the most tension and suspense. The storylines start to connect but it does feel convoluted and maybe parts are done superficially as a consequence.

Overall it’s a decent enough read, the premise is very good I think it’s the way it’s executed that stops me from enjoying it to the maximum.

With thanks to NetGalley and Head of Zeus/Aries for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

The wind is cold this high up. The man shouts out, but nobody hears. The cathedral roof has caught his fall, but it will not hold him for long. The night is dark. And it is such a long way down…

And so begins The Fall. It’s Good Friday at St. Albans cathedral and Willow is late. It’s dark and the exhibition materials she is bringing to St. Albans are late. It’s dark and while she is walking she could swear she could hear a scream. As she is leaving a man falls from the top of the cathedral.

DCI Jansen thinks it looks like a suicide. But this is an elderly man. How did he even get way up there and why? Digging into the past he finds the man was a verger here for a long time. He also helped out at a local mental hospital where a nurse went missing. And what does it all have to do with a pregnant woman, a child, and over fifty years of secrets and silence?

As Willow’s own family history becomes entangled in this case everyone is beginning to look suspicious.
A morally bankrupt verger has a lot of secrets and untangling them all was wickedly good!

NetGalley/ April 14th, 2022 Head of Zeus an Aries Book

A confusing read and was difficult to get into. A murder mystery which unfortunately for me did not deliver. Saying that I am sure other readers will enjoy it more just not for me.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in return for giving an honest review.

What a woven tale. This book has some twists and turns to try to keep you guessing what the different connections are and who did what.

People always say regarding people and places how small the world can be. With that in mind, your mind may see parts of this story as being serendipitous.

The author hooks you in the beginning by telling you just a fraction of something that the other characters don’t know and it takes a portion of the book to find those answers. There are a lot of underlying items in this book that can put you at war with your inner thoughts: who did it? Why did they do it? Who all was involved? How are they linked? What are they hiding?

This also isn’t just a simple murder mystery. This takes you on a ride that includes historical relationships, familial squabbles, and of course ethics & morality. You think you know a person, but you will never fully know what’s going on inside their head. No one’s story is a straight line.

Without giving any spoilers, this book will make you question if you know the history of your life, family and everyone you believed you could trust. How much can you even believe your own memories?

Thank you to the author Rachael Blok, Head of Zeus and NetGalley for the ARC eBook!

Oh My Gosh this book was good, it was well written with a suspenseful and mysterious storyline and well developed characters that just jumped off of the page. It was twisty and predictable and so full of atmosphere. I couldn;t put it down, nor did I want it to end. Such an enjoyable book.

Unfortunately this didn't really get beyond ok for me.
It had likeable characters and a puzzling storyline,or rather two,that I was constantly trying to fit together.
Yet,I never got caught up in the story,and by the end was feeling as if a lot had been thrown at me to get to the final.

So THE FALL is an utterly engaging read.
I got completely sucked into this thrilling story I post track of time.
The suspense had me reeled in.
Blok did a wonderful job with her characters here.
Even though I didn't quite connect with the MC Maarten, I still enjoyed Willows part in the story!
Overall, A thrilling, fun, tense story. And one I believe most will surely enjoy.
I would definitely recommend this book!

Head of Zeus|Aries Book,
Thank you for this eARC!.