I need to talk about Maeve Kerrigan - includes The Secret Room[SPOILERS] *Title edited by MNHQ*

[Zitouna]

Following recommendations from on here I’ve just read the whole Maeve Kerrigan series by Jane Casey over the Christmas holidays, and need to talk about my latest obsession!

has anyone else read them all? Happy to try and discuss without spoilers if people haven’t. They are basically brilliant police procedurals with a lot of character-driven background stuff - there are 10 main books, plus a few shorter spin offs set in the same world. The next one is out in March and I’d like to fill the gap with chat if possible!

Thoughts/predictions from me: Hoping beyond hope that the relationship stuff is resolved at least a bit in the next one, but predict more angst before it is. It might sort of ‘end’ the series - but then Casey could continue a series of the spin offs instead.

I had a question on chronology if anyone has read them all- wondering whether The Outsider (Rob spin off) is supposed to come before or after The Close? I think it matters for the relationship arc, and I can’t decide!

Just finished The Outsider after the rec here, thought it was excellent. I wouldn't have bothered if not for this thread.

For some reason I always picture Josh as Mark Pougatch 😭

Warning possible spoilers

I've been obsessing over what might happen to Kerrwent in book 12 and went down a rabbit hole on Google.. I found these 2 interviews with Jane Casey from a few years ago - https://www.theirishworld.com/jane-casey/ and https://her.ie/books/jane-casey-on-the-draw-of-crime-fiction-and-the-inspiration-behind-her-maeve-kerrigan-series-487886

In one interview from 2020 Casey says "There is one character I really want to kill, but it’s not going to happen for another few books" and in the other interview she says "I try not to write to the readers’ expectations, because I think sometimes when you get what you want as a reader, it’s a bit disappointing." I also read another interview where she says she'd like to write a romance novel but would inevitably kill one of the leads. 😢

I don't think my heart can take it if Maeve and Josh don't end up together with a happy ever after.

Just ordered the first one, thanks for the recommendation. Since leaving my book club I am often at a loss as to what to read next.

So, I also had read the bit about not giving readers what they want and had the same fears… BUT in the Read and Buried podcast she also says that she has no plans to finish the series any time soon - and I just think the books collapse if there is no Josh. So I think more likely that 12 is about overcoming adversity/near death and maybe almost being together by the end. And then we will have more of them being in a relationship and the challenges of that.

Basically, if the books finish then it’s either curtains for Josh or happily ever after and we don’t see the domestic reality. But if they continue then I think there’s good material in how the relationship works/doesn’t - Maeve is such a commitmentphobe and Josh clearly isn’t when it comes to her, and he would obviously drive her bananas with protectiveness that borders on controlling.

I also liked the bit in the acknowledgements where she thanked readers for trusting her with characters they have come to care about. Surely she can’t then kill one of them off?

that’s intriguing!
there’s one thing that isn’t very clear - we know Chris Swain was caught and he must be in prison for abducting and planning to kill Maeve and for causing Mal’s death but his actual sentence has never been mentioned. He can’t possibly be out in book 12 though, the timeframe would be much too short. But maybe people are working on his behalf?

Absolutely desperate to read the ‘Lost Time’ short story! It’s nowhere to be found though 😭

Bloody hell - I found it!

Hope this works:

https://web.archive.org/web/20230214094946/harpercollins.co.uk/pages/lost-time-by-jane-casey

I'll be back once I've dried my eyes 😳😍😢

Omg I am dying

@Atlantic252 OMG (wipes eyes) thanks for this.

Finally got my copy of the new book today. It's killing me holding off until a finish work to start it

@Atlantic252 you are an absolute star! Thank you 💐

Awww @Atlantic252 thanks for that!

Thank you so much for this!! A tiny hit of Maeve and Josh 😀

Thank you so much for sharing this. 😍

I couldn't actually believe I found it, but I'd never have even known about it without this thread so it was a team effort 💪.

It's SO lovely and sweet - Josh is almost jarring being so romantic and slushy 😳- it's such a contrast to how he engages with Maeve (when she's awake). @Zitouna I think you are really onto something with how the relationship could develop, especially if the narrative is that he's been secretly in love with her for years but she's catching up so slowly.

Can anyone work out if that crime scene he's talking about was in the books? I suspect it might be and now I wish I had real books/ebooks instead of audio.

I do think there's always a risk that Josh might get killed off - especially as some readers don't ever want them together - but I really don't think that's in Book 12 now. I think the vast majority of readers do 'ship' them, but also it would be so cruel to Maeve right now, especially after all the awfulness with Rob and Seth. I thought it was shocking when Mal Upton was killed and he was a relatively minor character. It's interesting too about whether anything related to Chris Swain will ever come up again. Jane can bump off Pete Belcott if she wants 😜.

Thank you for the info on the podcast - again I'd never have known about it and it was brilliant. As well as confirming there's no end in sight for the series, I love that she's open to the idea of a Josh perspective one day.

I hope you're right 🤞🏻 I hope they end up together... And don't think Casey will lose any readers just because the will-they won't-they is resolved.

The scene is from The Reckoning when they’re at the first crime scene

Highlighted here:

OMG @Bollingerknickers that's brilliant detective work!! The first crime in the Reckoning 😯 - so from the very start 🥹.

It's well worth following Jane Casey on Twitter and Instagram. She hinted there might be a pre-order short story for Book 12 that will cover what Josh said on the conference call in ASITF 😍

I have tye burning on kindle and the scene isn't there, very annoying.

Am i the only one who didn't love the latest book (or The Close)? Previously they had been primarily the crime story with a bit of Maeve's disastrous love life. This felt the other way round, the crime was squeezed in around mental emoteing. I hoped it was just a blip in The Close as it was so far from realistic (undercover officers are specially trained, as shown brilliantly in The Outsider,) and the set up was ridiculous. But even without the forced proximity the romance took over. I was so disappointed- I'd preordered when I couldn't really afford to and for me it just wasn't up to scratch.

Amazing! Thank you.

I prefer primarily the crime story as well but then I was also quite happy for her to be with Rob.

I don't object to a life and romance element, I just felt that the balance was off and it was too prominent in the last couple.

I have just finished the most recent book (book 11) and I’m disappointed 😢 I have loved Maeve since the first one. She has always been a feisty, strong, clever woman. In A Stranger In the Family, she has been turned into a slightly pathetic, simpering girly 🤬 I found the criminal case to be really well written as expected, but Maeve was forever experiencing butterflies, tingling, feeling faint even over Josh. FFS Casey. We can all feel loved-up without all the simpering!

I should add, the tingling was just knowing he was in the room 🙄

You have articulated it far better than I did.