Blue Monday marks a turning point for Nicci French; the first book in a new series starring Frieda Klein and a movement away from the first-person narrative to a broader narrative, allowing for a much larger cast of characters.

The attention-grabbing opening sets the tone for the rest of the novel: carefree Rosie Vine skips home from school with her little sister in tow and struggling to keep up. Rosie stops in the corner shop to buy some sweets and waits impatiently for Joanna to arrive so that she can pay, but as the seconds draw into minutes and the door doesn’t open, panic sets in. She runs home, hoping that her sister has made her way back without her, but it is too late: Joanna has vanished without a trace.

22 years later 5-year-old Matthew Faraday disappears under similar circumstances. Psychotherapist Freida Klein is struck by the similarities between Matthew and a boy one of her patients has been describing from his dreams, a boy he desires to be his son. She breaks this patient’s trust – not for the first time – and approaches the police with her suspicions, but when she is ignored she resolves to investigate the situation further – with or without the support of the police. As the links become clearer – and stranger – Detective Chief Inspector Karlsson is forced to pay attention to Frieda and recruits her as consulting psychologist on the case.

Set in a smokey, sprawling London full of shadows, Blue Monday explores the darkest parts of the human desires, producing a thrilling story that is engaging, fast-paced and enjoyable. The supporting cast is diverse, though occasionally shallow: Sandy, Frieda’s short-term boyfriend, is departing for America too quickly to be anything but a caricature, while Chloë plays to the stereotypes of a troubled 16-year-old. However, despite his improbable entrance, Josef gives some much-needed light relief and is endearing through his faults, and Reuben is insightful without being particularly likable. It is the professional relationship between Karlsson and Frieda that forms the centre point of the novel though, and it is one fraught with tension as the case is slowed by the bureaucracy of the police force, as Karlsson insists that forms must be completed when Frieda only wants to find the missing boy. To some extent this clash helps drive the story along, and the two characters bring the best out of each other as the story works to an exciting, and perhaps unexpected, climax.

The book is a great start to this new series, and Freida Klein is a believable character, a sympathetic ‘heroine’ presented as very human, likable regardless of her impulsive nature. Well-paced and enjoyable, it is an intelligent thriller and highly recommended to fans of the genre.

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