The Crime Writers’ Association’s (CWA) Golden Dragon Award was won this year by Abigail Dean’s The Death of Us. Generally, crime fiction is about detectives investigating difficult cases; it is not often that an in-depth psychological study of the survivor of a rape is presented—nightmarishly disturbing, yet also full of hope—through the experiences of Isabel Nolan and her husband Edward Hennessy.

The South London Invader

The malevolent presence throughout the book is that of the man labelled as the 'South London Invader', who, over several years, leaves a trail of devastation by targeting happy and successful couples—with brutal sexual attacks on the women and humiliation of the husbands. Later, he takes to killing couples in the most horrific manner. He is a careful planner and leaves no traces; still, diligent cops manage to get some DNA, but without a match they cannot do anything. Which leaves a city cowering in terror over who the monster will target next.

Isabel and Edward are a loving couple—their exuberant romance forms part of the book—and have settled into a gorgeous home. He is a successful lawyer; she is a management consultant and aspiring writer. The Invader breaks into their home, forces Edward to tie up Isabel with the laces of his own boots, then forces him into another room with a warning that if he moves, he will kill Isabel. Edward lies in the next room listening to his wife’s cries and unable to do anything. This makes him a coward in his own eyes, because society expects........

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