Why a Booktrail?
2000s: Stratford is not the quiet place you imagine….well not for one student abducted when walking home..
Before It’s Too Late
What you need to know before your trail
Chinese student Min Li is abducted from the pretty streets of Stratford-upon-Avon. Trapped in a dark pit, she is at the mercy of her captor with only the sound of her own breath for company.
Detective Inspector Will Jackman is put in charge with solving the case but his search for answers discovers that the truth is buried deep and a lot deeper than he ever expected. Then, another student vanishes and so time is really running out now for Min is still missing. Is she still alive?
Told in the voices of the police and Min Li herself, this makes for a thriller which drags you into the spaces and minds of the characters.
Travel Guide
The plot takes you from Stratford, Northampton, Leamington and Birmingham but the sites in Stratford show you a side to the city that’s worth a look.
Stratford
Originally from Beijing, Min Li has come to England to study Not with her parents approval however as they value their culture and traditions more it would seem. Having a daughter move to the other side of the world to study is not what they had planned for her, but Min Li is determined to go and overcoming the initial culture shock and beliefs of her parents, she settles in nicely.
Stratford is a nice place to be –
“The sweet scent of grass mingled with wild honeysuckle wafted in to the car. The smells were always stronger in the dark hours, especially that gap between 2 and 5 am when the roads were quiet and the people of Stratford rested in their slumber.”
But contrast this to the hell Min Li now finds herself in, a dark pit, alone and afraid. Her voice is one of isolation and fear as she tries to survive in the best way she can, trying to make her hell that little bit comfortable if she can, while she holds on in the hope that someone will come for her.
Quite a setting to be immersed in, and the first person narrative draws you in tight. It’s a claustrophobic and frightening world to be in.
“I concentrated hard, desperately listening for something familiar, the sound of life.
I heard nothing.
Just my own breaths and the wind, whistling through branches above… The thought made me shiver.
I am buried alive.”
At the same time, Detective Inspector Will Jackman who was investigating the disappearance and murder of 22 year old Ellen Readman is placed on this latest and high profile case. With the connections to China and the international implications of all that it entails, Superintendent Alison Janus believes this new case will have serious implications on more than one level.
Meanwhile, a frightened Chinese girl is hidden somewhere in Stratford, waiting for a way out.
Booktrail Boarding Pass Information: Before It’s Too Late
Twitter: @janeisaacauthor Facebook: Jane-Isaac Web: janeisaac.co.uk
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