Houses of Deception (The Madeline Dawkins Mystery Series Book 6) by Cynthia Hamilton – Review by Jennifer Gordon

Houses of Deception by Cynthia Hamilton
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Having read and enjoyed the previous five books in this series I was looking forward to Hamilton’s latest novel and was definitely not disappointed. ‘Houses of Deception’ is the sixth instalment in the Madeline Dawkins series and it was great to be back with our heroine Madeline and her now husband Mike. The pair make a great private investigating team and in this story they have their hands full juggling two cases with three missing people involved. The first case sees the couple teaming up with Russell Barnett their former nemesis, but they agree to work together as the missing person is Dylan Latham, the son of Burt who lost his life saving Madeline’s. Not only is Dylan missing but also his girlfriend Paige and they appear to have disappeared without a trace. Then when a women is kidnapped and a ransom is asked for, her husband reaches out to the MDPI team. As the team start investigating knowing they have no time to waste they uncover secrets, lies and shameful pasts whilst having to navigate ransom drops, stolen art, and extortion schemes. Soon they start to wonder if the missing people are actually innocent victims after all.

As usual I was drawn into Madeline and Mike’s world and was hooked from page one. The exciting and complex storyline had me gripped and the plot twists kept me guessing until the last page. Madeline and Mike continue to be a great team who I feel I am working alongside to solve the cases with them as the author makes them come alive. I enjoy the banter between them which makes them seem like a realistic couple and also makes them feel very relatable. Although it can be read as a standalone story the characters and storylines do crossover and I would recommend reading the rest of the series as each book is better than the last.

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