The biggest problem with page turning, un-put-downable books is just that. You simply can't put it down and it ends all too quickly. And that is what's wrong with Margaret Murphy's latest book Darkness Falls.

This is Murphy's fifth novel and continues in the style of the psychological thriller.

The story is set in Chester, which makes a great change for us up here in the North who can read (and there are a lot of us!), to be able to visualise the areas in the book.

The book starts with the abduction of a woman barrister as she takes her daughter to school, and follows the exploits of the police team as they hunt for her abductor. But things are never as simple as they first appear and the body of a woman turns up in the River Dee and Chester's biggest drug baron holds members of the investigating team to ransom.

In her tale of abduction, Murphy toys with her readers, introducing them to the minds of the victim, her family, the police, the murderer and just as it seems everything will work out for the best there is a twist in the story that will keep you guessing for just a bit longer.

If you suffer from nightmares or scare easily I wouldn't choose this book as bedtime reading, the horror of the events that unfold in the book is that it is all completely believable.

The dialogue is clear and authentic and the characters will haunt you long after you've read the final line.

I can promise you this - once you've read Darkness Falls you'll never look at your work colleagues in quite the same way again.

Margaret Murphy has also written: Goodnight, My Angel; Past Reason; Caging the Tiger; and Dying Embers. To view more of her work and to read extracts from her novels, log onto www.margaretmurphy.co.uk

Darkness Falls is available in paperback from Hodder and Stoughton publishers priced £6.99

Jenni Carroll