4.5 Stars from me
This book manages to somehow be as cute as a button, yet also sharp as a tack as it follows the daily life of Miv as she navigates home, school and friendship to the backdrop of news articles about the prevalence of the Yorkshire Ripper.
Miv becomes obsessed with catching him and, along with her best friend Sharon, sets out to solve the mystery seemingly convinced they can succeed where the police had so far failed.
Yet the book is so much more than this, it touches on the emergence of the national front and casual racism, it prys into families and relationships and reveals that no one knows what goes on behind closed doors.
Mostly it is a celebration of love and friendship but there is a darker side too and there are several parts of the book that take a sinister path.
Overall, this was a bittersweet read and I really enjoyed it.
Blurb: Yorkshire, 1979
Maggie Thatcher is prime minister, drainpipe jeans are in, and Miv is convinced that her dad wants to move their family Down South.
Because of the murders.
Leaving Yorkshire and her best friend Sharon simply isn’t an option, no matter the dangers lurking round their way; or the strangeness at home that started the day Miv’s mum stopped talking.
Perhaps if she could solve the case of the disappearing women, they could stay after all?
So, Miv and Sharon decide to make a list: a list of all the suspicious people and things down their street. People they know. People they don’t.
But their search for the truth reveals more secrets in their neighbourhood, within their families – and between each other – than they ever thought possible.
What if the real mystery Miv needs to solve is the one that lies much closer to home?
Read and Rated 