Five years ago a killer stalked prostitutes in South Yorkshire and a man was convicted. However now one of the victims' bags has been found and, as a body was never found, the case reopened. For Talib, the Finder, this is another case taking him to a city he does not know. As The Finder explores the dirty heart of the sex trade he looks for the women, the real victims.
I really love the Finder series of short novels which offer such a contrast to Mason's other series of books set in Oxford. These shorter novellas are dark and written in a very dispassionate tone which really suits the subject matter. Here the story is one of a woman who rights wrongs despite her own troubles and it is incredibly sad. The links to the novel that Talib is reading seem odd but then make complete sense as the plot unfolds. A wonderfully gentle read despite the subject material

Simon Mason has some interesting characters in the books he writes and The Finder series continues this theme.

In this series we have a police consultant who specialises in finding lost people for the police. Little pieces of his back story are offered, but the reader does not need to enquire too deeply as the details don’t impact on the main thread of the tale.

Mr Mason weaves a solid tale which the reader will happily follow, reaching the first conclusion, only to find that a second perpetrator is offered. Okay, thinks the reader, this one makes sense, for a third to then spring the fire.

Excellent story craft, entertaining and engrossing.

Talib known as the Finder is called into help the local police in Sheffield to investigate the disappearance of Ella Bailey in March 2020 after a few women have been killed in the city. Five years later, after a woman is found dead, Ella's bag is discovered hanging nearby. The finder goes on a journey through the red light areas and talks with people as he tries to discover the mystery of Ella! All the sub plots come together to an unforgettable conclusion.

In early 2020, a series of murders targeting Black sex workers in northern England shocked the nation.

Among the victims was Ella Bailey, a bright and promising young woman last seen speaking to a client in a Sheffield alley. Though her body was never found, a man named Michael Godley confessed to all three murders, including Ella’s, and the case was closed.

Five years later, another sex worker is murdered in the same area, and a new clue reignites interest in Ella’s fate: the bag she was carrying on the night she disappeared reappears mysteriously, hanging on the doors of a café.

A local homeless man claims to have seen Ella alive, sitting in a churchyard. In response, South Yorkshire Police enlist the help of the Finder, a methodical investigator with a talent for uncovering the truth through quiet persistence and deep listening.

As he retraces the steps of Ella’s life, the Finder revisits the tense early days of the pandemic and interviews the people closest to her — including her controlling boyfriend Caine, her girlfriend Loz, and her bewildered foster parents.

The story slowly unravels how Ella, a clever, high-achieving student and former athletics champion, came to vanish without a trace. The investigation delves into themes of race, class, systemic failure, and how society often fails its most vulnerable. The Finder must navigate danger and deceit to uncover the truth, all while the city is gripped by fear and suspicion.

This is a slow-burning, atmospheric mystery driven by character and emotion, with a strong social conscience at its core.

Read more at The Secret Book Review.

This is the third book in the Finder series and I enjoyed it. The Finder is engaged by the police to find missing people, and he does it by talking to everyone, and picking up the crucial bits of information that everyone else has missed. The writing is lovely.
In this case, he is looking for Ella, a prostitute believed murdered years before, who has suddenly reappeared in Sheffield. The story is really interesting, especially revisiting the earlier investigation and finding new interpretations of the evidence.
Very good.

Very much in keeping with the first 2 Finder Novellas, this is another gently paced mystery as the Finder again attempts to unravel a mystery from the past.

This time around though that past isn't to far back as it's set at the outset of the COVID Pandemic.

Extremely compelling, this a good addition to the Finder series, but any fans of Simon Mason's Oxford set series should be prepared for a style very different from those.

Intelligent.thought-provoking and well crafted Noir. It's a fine series so far.

Coming to the Finder series, after enjoying Simon Mason’s Oxford detective series, was a little bit of a let down for me. I didn’t find his characters had enough substance to lift them off the page. I would have liked to have had a bit more character development. This story is told without the usual array of drama and thrills common to many crime writers and so may not appeal to readers looking for a bit of adrenaline in their crime fiction. That being said, there is a good, well plotted crime story here, and Finder’s intelligence, determination and perseverance are to be admired. I'd give it 3 1/2 stars.

My thanks to Quercus and Netgalley for an advance review copy.

Although I have read and enjoyed Simon Mason's crime novels set in Oxford, this is the first in his Finder series that I have read.

A slow burner of a mystery novel set in Sheffield's red light district and with descriptive, believable characters. As a bonus you get a potted version of Jane Austen's 'Persuasion', which the Finder reads during the course of this book.

Be nice to have chapters! Maybe the ARC ebook version lacks these.

A slow paced but excellently written novel, The Woman Who Laughed is another gripping instalment in the Finder mysteries.

I loved the unreliable characters/witnesses and The Finder - Talib - is as relentless and dedicated as always in getting answers.

I also enjoy how The Finder always carries a book which he somehow weaves into the ongoing narrative. This adds depth and nuance to the story.

Highly recommended.

Thanks to Quercus Books | riverrun and NetGalley for the ARC.

Another excellent Finder Mystery. I came across the Finder Mysteries last year and loved them, especially the charcter of the Finder, who gently, but diligently delves into the case to uncover the truth, often from small pieces of information, or inconsistencies.

There's no "crash, bang wallop" in this story either, just the Finder patiently questioning and probing to understand whether Ella was actually murdered five years ago, whether she has reappeared or not, and whether any of the witnesses are reliable - plot spoiler, none of them are, which makes it really hard!

Lots of twists and turns in this mystery, plenty of surprises and, as always, the Finder's backstory is an important component of the novel

Final verdict - an excellent read. Highly recommended.

PS - enjoyed it so much I'm re-reading the first two Finder mysteries, Missing person:Alice and The case of the lonely accountant

Simon Mason has become my new go to mystery and crime writer. All his books are well crafted and put together whether it be the Wilkins Oxford series or the Finder Mysteries. He certainly knows how to write captivate his readers.
In this book the Finder is brought in by the Yorkshire police when a current case and a 5 year old possible murder or disappearance come together.
Ella was presumed murdered in 2020 although her body was never found but when her handbag reappears and there is a possible sighting the Finder is asked to investigate. This coincides with the present day murder of a prostitute and as the Finder gradually pieces together the clues it becomes clear there is a connection.
The Finder is a real loner and this instalment of his story explains why and the sad reason that he has no family or commitments is explored.
I also like the way the author introduces a classic novel in each book in this series-in this instance Jane Austen’s Persuasion, and ties it in with developments in characters and plot.
The Woman Who Laughed is told completely from the point of view of Talib as he gradually reasons out what he should do to solve the mystery and find the missing person.
It is a a gripping and compelling story with several twists before the denouement and end revelations..
I’m definitely looking forward to reading more about the Finder in the future. His factual way of describing what is happening makes for a very interesting style and helps to build up the tension.
Recommended as a five star read and suggest you read some of Simon Mason’s other books as well as thy are all equally as gripping.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for my advance copy.

The Finder, a former police detective called Talib, is hired by the British police authorities when they have difficult missing person cases that they want reviewed. In the process he has become a respected specialist in finding missing people.

In The Woman Who Laughed, the South Yorkshire Police bring in the Finder when an old missing person case and a more recent murder collide.

In the first months of 2020 there was a spate of murders of black sex workers in northern cities. One of them was Ella Bailey, last seen talking to a man in an alley in Sheffield’s city centre, and although no trace of her was ever found, the punter, Michael Godley, soon confessed to all three murders.

Five years later, as another sex worker is murdered in the same district, the bag Ella had been carrying with her when she went missing reappears, hanging on the door handles of a café. A local vagrant also claims to have seen Ella sitting on a bench in a churchyard near the site of the murder. The Finder is given the difficult task of finding out if there is any link. His search takes him back to the strange days of the pandemic, to talk to those who knew Ella best, such as her wayward girlfriend ‘Loz’, abusive boyfriend Caine Poynton-Smith and her respectable foster-parents still struggling to come to terms with Ella’s life choices and death.

Bit by bit, the Finder pieces together what happened to Ella by carefully interviewing those originally involved in her supposed murder. The plot unfolds at a smooth pace and although there is not much action it always holds interest. Mason carefully brings a diverse cast of characters vividly to life through their words and the backdrop of the more unsavoury parts of Sheffield is nicely evoked. We are also given brief glimpses into the Finder’s background and what happened to him

As with all good crime stories, there are the requisite twists and turns, and the ending produces some well-crafted surprises. The narration is in the form of a report by the Finder on what happened and initially seems a little flat, but as the book progresses it becomes more engaging, and the final pages fly along.

I really enjoyed this low key mystery and thoroughly recommend it.

What I love about The Finder Mysteries is the way they weave a classic novel throughout the investigation, and how they make you feel like you are sitting in front of Talib as he tells you his story. The Woman Who Laughed is gripping, with some unexpected segways and a definite one-sitting read.

The Finder mysteries are a sort of "no I inhale them" as they're page turner I can't put down.
This is the best in this series, the most emotionally charged and with a sorrowful undertones as the Finder face his past and the life of street sex-worker
I felt for him and the girls, was eager to know how thinks were, moved by the grief.
A book I loved and I had to end as fast as I could as I wanted to know
A great story I thoroughly enjoyed
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Simon Mason is onto a winner in his Finder series of which this is the third and best.

The format remains the same - The Finder is employed by a local police force to discover the whereabouts of a missing g person and he ranges far and wide to attempt to do so whilst finding parallels between the situation he’s investigating and some of the classic novels.

He is thorough, dedicated and relentless. He has the gift to make witnesses open up and really talk to him as well as giving the analytical powers of deduction to sift the clues and evidence.

This case is set in Sheffield which comes alive in the hands of Ann excellent writer and Mason paints a bleak but accurate picture of the Demi monde and the dangers of life as a sex worker.

There are no winners in this book but it’s a captivating read