When I was at my IRL book club in January, one of the lovely members recommended the books of Robert Goddard to me – thrillers with a link to history sounded like a great read to me. And one that involves the Suffragettes sounded even better. So on my return from book club, I looked up ‘Past Caring’ by Robert Goddard and thought I would give it a go. Especially as I am trying to read books recommended to me a little more, and a little more timely (rather than waiting for months).
This book was fantastic. Considering (as I have said many times) I do not read the blurb, I was not entirely sure what I was expecting other than the words used when it was recommended to me. This is a historical mystery: why did Cabinet minister Edwin Strafford resign when his career seemed to be on the up? That is what Martin Radford is asked to find out. And it takes him on quite an adventure – and one that becomes a little more dangerous and thrilling than he could ever expect.
Edwin Strafford introduces us to his story through the pages of his memoir; Martin Radford’s job is to find out if Strafford is a reliable narrator or not. This leads Martin into a web of lies formed by the new family of Strafford’s former fiancee’s family – a family that Martin is closer to than he realises. Although there was one secret or twist I worked out as I read the book, this did not spoil the story. In fact, I was so invested in Strafford’s story and how he had been treated that solving that one mystery felt like an achievement (and made me dislike the villain of the piece even more).
This was so well plotted, with so much history entwined with the fiction of the thriller, that I found that I always wanted to know what was going to happen next. Dual timelines enriched the thriller as there were actually multiple mysteries that needed solving. I can see why Robert Goddard is a popular author and I have added yet another author to my must-read-the-backlist list. There are just so many good books and so little time…