The Mercy Chair by M. W. Craven

Are you sitting comfortably? Then I’ll begin . . .

Washington Poe has a story to tell.

And he needs you to listen.

You’ll hear how it started with the robber birds. Crows. Dozens of them. Enough for a murder…

He’ll tell you about a man who was tied to a tree and stoned to death, a man who had tattooed himself with a code so obscure, even the gifted analyst Tilly Bradshaw struggled to break it. He’ll tell you how the man’s murder was connected to a tragedy that happened fifteen years earlier when a young girl massacred her entire family.

And finally, he’ll tell you about the mercy chair. And why people would rather kill themselves than talk about it…

Poe hopes you’ve been paying attention. Because in this story, nothing is as it seems…

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If I’m completely honest about it, I don’t always love a series.  They start out well – even brilliantly – but keeping them fresh can be a challenge, and there sometimes comes a point where I just lose interest or, perhaps more realistically, they stop being able to compete with all the shiny new books that I want.  I’m not sure how Craven does it, but that doesn’t look set to happen with this series anytime soon.  Each novel still feels as original as The Puppet Show did, and I can’t wait to see where the seventh book in the series, The Final Vow, takes things, particularly as The Mercy Chair indicates that there might be some changes to come… 

One aspect to this sixth instalment in the series that sets it apart from the previous novels is that we’re not following a live investigation as it happens.  Instead, the reader gets to sit in on Washington Poe’s counselling sessions with a trauma therapist.  His reason for being there slowly emerges over the course of the novel as he recounts a recent case that has left him with nightmares and insomnia.  The reader soon begins to understand why that might be the case, as the tale he relates over the course of the novel is a particularly dark one.  None of these novels can be described as cosy, but I think that this on goes a little further into the dark places than others have done, and I am here for it.  

In starting the novel, I was immediately on high alert, simply due to the fact that Poe had agreed to attend counselling sessions at all.  He’s as stoic as they come, and not someone who talks about their feelings.  Ever.  The explanation is that he’s there under the recommendation of his employer, but to be honest – I couldn’t see DI Stephanie Flynn forcing him through it, either – it’s just not how they work.  This was immediately intriguing for me.  I suspected that something else was going on, but couldn’t see what that might be.  And as you’d expect, Poe has developed throughout the series, and so maybe I was just looking for something that wasn’t there.  I had no choice but to sit back and enjoy the ride, and I obviously won’t tell you if I was right to be suspicious! 😋

Because of the set-up, there’s a little less Tilly Bradshaw in this novel than I’ve become used to, and I missed her!  She adds a touch of humour and lightness that contrast brilliantly with the cases that they’re faced with, just through being so utterly unique and unashamedly herself.  We do get to see her usual brilliance (as well as the occasional social faux pas!) even as this novel presents a puzzle that even she struggles to solve but I did think that she was a little less present than usual.  She’s such an original character and, like Poe, it’s been wonderful to see her develop as the series has progressed. 

The Mercy Chair presents the reader with an extremely complex but fascinating case, and I think that the themes it touches upon highlight Craven’s development as a writer.  Given the ending to this novel, I’m both excited and intrigued and maybe a little nervous as to where The Final Vow will take us when it’s published in August. 

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Book 2 of 15 Books of Summer. 😬