The Last Bear by Hannah Gold

Good Girl by Mel Sherratt, Avon, £7.99

When April accompanies her dad to Bear Island, a wild scrap of Arctic land where he is undertaking research, she is assured polar bears no longer exist there. April believes this to be true – until she stumbles across Bear, who is starving, lost and in dire need of help. She cannot watch him suffer and vows to save him, sparking an unlikely bond and a great adventure between the little girl and big bear. Hannah Gold’s debut is beautiful and moving, telling an important tale about climate change with tact and hope. The illustrations enhance this vital and powerful story, making it a charming and impactful read for children and adults like.

9/10

Mel Sherratt’s authorial skill is on full display in her latest crime thriller Good Girl.

When 16-year-old Erin Ellis is stabbed to death just minutes away from her family home, DS Grace Allendale is determined to solve the murder case and bring her killer to justice.

Her heartbroken best friend Molly, who has known Erin since they were four years old, witnessed the stabbing and is traumatised by the event. However, Grace has a feeling that the teenager is not telling the whole truth.

In what is a truly topical novel, the two seemingly innocent teenage girls are revealed to have become embroiled in a seedy secret. DS Allendale is not only forced to investigate the darker side of the local town, but she must confront her own past as her personal life draws uncomfortably close to the investigation, as links emerge suggesting the involvement of her notorious half-siblings, making her investigation all the more complicated.

The protagonist, Grace, is a well-developed character and I was grateful that the author managed to delve deeper and present the reader with another side to her apart from her role as a police officer.

We are given an insight into her background, her trauma involving her dangerous family and how they are interwoven into the main narrative.

The novel is written in a dual narrative, flicking back and forth to before and after Erin’s murder, which allows the reader to get to know the victim before she is tragically stabbed. Rather than remain a silent victim, Erin’s voice is given importance in what is a tragic tale of abuse and coercion – she could be anybody’s teenage daughter.

Sherratt avoids anything sordid but still manages to expertly capture the reality of child grooming and sex abuse.

The tone of the novel is perfectly balanced between police objectivity and emotional turmoil, as the case personally affects each character within the novel, and each arc is tied neatly together by a jaw-clenchingly tense conclusion.

While the narrative is a little slow to begin with, it soon gathers momentum and by the final chapters I was reluctant to put this book down.

Although occasionally making for uncomfortable reading, Mel Sherratt has written a brilliant thriller with a cleverly constructed plot and some truly memorable characters.

NOne year ago

icola Sturgeon has backed The Courier’s First Aid Kids campaign after leaders from across the political divide joined our call to create an army of lifesavers. The first minister said she supported the goal of introducing regular first aid lessons for all ages in Scottish schools.

“I am very happy to support the principles of The Courier’s First Aid Kids campaign. We don’t have a mandatory curriculum in Scotland, but it’s really important that we encourage schools to make young people aware of the importance of first aid and equip young people with the skills they need.”