Direct Hit by Mike Hollow

★★★★★

On the first night of the Blitz, a body is discovered in a van in the back streets of West Ham. DI John Jago is called to the scene and recognizes the body as local Justice of the Peace and businessman Charles Villiers. Shortly afterwards a blast destroys the scene. Jago quickly establishes that Villiers’ wife and adult son Edward both have possible motives, and that there was a rift between Villiers and his brother Arthur. But as he begins the investigation, Jago is annoyed when his boss tells him to help an American journalist who’s writing about public morale – even more so when he finds it’s a woman, Dorothy Appleton. As Jago and Appleton follow leads, they realize that the dead man held many secrets, some of which reach back to World War I. Rather a lot of people wished Villiers dead – and an air raid is a good time to bury bad news.

I love reading books set anywhere in the time period of World War II, so needless to say, I really enjoyed Mike Hollow’s compelling novel, Direct Hit. With fascinating characters entrenched in gripping mystery amidst historical details of the Blitz, this novel had me turning page after page from start to finish. A great overall read with a steady pace, Direct Hit offers a fantastic choice for fans of historical mystery and I would certainly recommend it to interested readers.

Thanks to Kregel Publications, I received a copy of Direct Hit and the opportunity to provide an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own.