Review: Waiting For Wednesday by Nicci French

Title: Waiting For Wednesday {Dr Frieda Klein #3}

Author: Nicci French

Published: Michael Joseph: Penguin Australia June 2013

Status: Read from August 05 to 06, 2012 — I own a copy {Courtesy the publisher/Netgalley}

My Thoughts:

Waiting For Wednesday is the third book in the series by husband and wife writing team Nicci French, featuring psychiatrist Dr Frieda Klein. Tuesday’s Gone, the second book, was my introduction to this gritty, British crime fiction series and I was delighted to lay my hands on an ARC of this newest installment.

With her practice on hold while Frieda recovers from the near fatal injuries she sustained during the events of Tuesday’s Gone and her official connection with the police department severed, Frieda should be taking it easy. But with Joseph renovating her bathroom, her sister drinking too much and Dean lurking unseen somewhere nearby, Frieda is on edge. Then her wayward niece demands her aunts help for a friend whose mother was brutally murdered in her own home, a case DCI Karlsson is investigating. Desperate to escape the turmoil and with her control slipping, Frieda allows herself to become distracted by a chance remark, obsessively tracing its origins which leads her to a broken down journalist and into the lair of a serial killer.

The investigation into the death of Ruth Lennox is full of surprising twists and turns. The veneer of the seemingly blameless wife and mother is peeled back to reveal not only her secrets and lies but also those of her husband and children. It’s an emotional case that Frieda is reluctant to become involved in but her niece’s relationship with the woman’s teenage son makes avoiding the case awkward, especially when DCI Karlsson asks her for her help.

I felt I gained a better understanding of Frieda in this installment of the series. Though she remains an enigmatic protagonist, with her self control slipping, she acquires a fragility not really explored before. The taunting presence of Dean, the psychopath she encountered in Tuesday’s Gone, leaves her feeling increasingly vulnerable and the harassment by Dr Hal Bradshaw, combined with her recent failings, causes Frieda to lose confidence in herself.

Frieda’s obsession with a scripted story presented by an emergency patient becomes a way of distracting herself. She can’t let go of the tale despite the convoluted and increasingly dangerous direction it leads her in and on little more than a hunch, she is in danger of destroying her friendship with DCI Karlsson and her professional reputation.

With its carefully crafted, nuanced plot and intriguing characters, Waiting For Wednesday is a gripping psychological thriller. I’m already excitedly anticipating the next book in the series. Though it could be read as a stand alone, I wouldn’t recommend it is the accumulation of story and character detail that contributes to its appeal. Do yourself a favour and start with Blue Monday.

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