Want a creepy book? Let me introduce you to The Craftsman

⭑⭑⭑⭑  Sharon Bolton's The Craftsman is one properly dark and sinister novel. Excellent marks for atmosphere as the action that unfolds in Lancashire, in 1969 and 1999, feels heavy with creepy intent and headed down a path few would tread.

In 1969, Florence (Flossie or WPC Lovelady) is just starting her police career when she becomes involved in the investigation of three missing Sabden teens. The first is found interred in a casket with a (dead) man recently buried. If that isn't enough to make your skin crawl, she was alive when buried... but that's only the start. We shadow Flossie during the investigation to see what transpires in an effort to find the missing kids and how Larry Glassbrook became involved. There's plenty of sexist treatment towards Flossie, which accurately reflects the time, but I suspect feminists might take issue with this. I, personally, found her to be an annoying know-it-all and felt just as against her as the blokes. The 1999 version of Flossie was much easier to stomach. I liked her a lot more as a mature adult, with her son Ben, not as a snotty 20-something.

If you want a book to give you the collywobbles, as befits the dark and unforgiving North of England, this is the book to read. Though Lancashire is a beautiful bit of the country there is a hard, harsh coldness beneath the lovely exterior that seeps into your bones unsettling you. This book expresses that perfectly and even goes a step further than I anticipated by adding a surprising dimension to the yarn. I wasn't too keen on it, initially, but the development was a welcome one by the end. Enjoy!