Book review: The Last Days of Kira Mullan by Nicci French

The Last Days of Kira Mullan is a suspenseful read but – at times – it’s also a frustrating read, but that’s only because Nicci Gerrard/Sean French have bound readers so tightly to our lead Nancy North that we alternate between being angry, frustrated and worried on her behalf. We quickly learn that Nancy was recently hospitalised following a psychotic breakdown and we’re put in Nancy’s head so firmly that I found myself questioning her (and my) sanity, though at the same time being confident in her/my convictions. And of course, those mental health struggles – and their impact on her life and the way others treat her – feature strongly here, against a backdrop of a young woman’s death.

Nancy North is ready to put her life back together. After suffering a psychotic break that ruined friendships, stalled her fledgling restaurant, and forced her to move out of her comfortable flat, she’ll do anything to get back to normal. She and her partner Felix—who has been a saint through her recent troubles—move into a new flat for a fresh start.

Nancy is taking her pills, seeing her therapist, and avoiding unnecessary stress. She’s doing absolutely everything right, but something is still very, very wrong. On the first day in the new flat, she hears them again; the mysterious voices that triggered her first episode. It could just be the unfamiliar sounds of water in the pipes, or the screaming baby across the hall, but deep down she knows something more sinister is going on. Her fears are confirmed when the young woman in the downstairs flat, Kira, is found dead. Felix, her neighbors, and even the police insist it’s a tragic suicide, but the pieces aren’t adding up for Nancy. Can she trust her own instincts, or is it all in her head?

Meanwhile, Detective Inspector Maud O’Connor has misgivings about her colleagues’ investigation of Kira’s death. The boys club at the top seems intent on closing the case as quickly as possible, especially since the only person who thinks it could be anything other than suicide is known to be unreliable. But Maud knows what it’s like to be dismissed as an overemotional woman and isn’t so quick to discount Nancy’s claims. As tensions reach an explosive breaking point, the line between fact and delusion becomes dangerously blurred, but Maud will stop at nothing to ensure that the truth comes to light.

I must note that I hadn’t realised this was second in a series, but it doesn’t matter that you’ve not read the first, as this works as a standalone.

This book opens as Nancy and partner Felix are moving from East to West London to save money following the closure of Nancy’s restaurant after her breakdown. Their new apartment is one of four in a former grand home and we meet neighbours and all residents, including Kira Mullen before she’s found hanging from the ceiling of her apartment.

Nancy’s still grappling with the stigma from her ‘breakdown’ and it isn’t helped by the fact that Felix seems determined to wrap her in cotton wool, seemingly worried she’ll slip at any stage. And the move probably is a catalyst as Nancy does waver in the days after, and it’s during this episode she briefly crosses paths with Kira who seems distressed or fearful.

Everyone – including the police – accept the fact that Kira suicided but the voices in Nancy’s head won’t allow her to let go of her concerns. Particularly when she finds out Kira was in the throes of a new relationship. It’s at this point that some of her overly-involved neighbours (essentially) gaslight Nancy and I certainly became frustrated and annoyed at their patronising manner, dismissing her observations.

Another stint in hospital gives Nancy the time to clear her head and come up with a plan. The police and her neighbours have all moved on from Kira’s death but when a new tenant moves into the dead woman’s flat it motivates Nancy to revisit the police – this time seeing DI Maud O’Connor who looks into Nancy’s concerns – and suddenly Kira’s death is considered suspicious. Nancy’s neighbours are all now suspects and she realises they all benefitted when her allegations had been ignored due to her medical history.

I felt Gerrard/French did a great job in the way they portraying Nancy’s mental illness. Sympathetically, but realistically. Nancy is not in denial and, though she believes the medication she’s on ‘rubbed away her edges’, she is committed to staying well. So it’s frustrating for her (and us!) when others won’t accept that she’s managing her illness.

I very much enjoyed this book, despite my blood pressure increasing in response to the way Nancy was treated. It was probably a little repetitive at one point when we weren’t getting anywhere and it’s just Nancy trying to learn more about Kira and her movements, but the pace certainly picks up once Maud becomes involved. Gerrard/French give us a number of feasible suspects and I was certainly surprised at the sad / bitter-sweet (though also satisfying) direction this ultimately takes.

The Last Days of Kira Mullan by Nicci French will be published in late January by Simon & Schuster.

I received an electronic copy of this book from the publisher for review purposes.