Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“Her worst nightmare just returned. But this time she’s ready.”

Excuse ME, how does a book have the right to be THIS damn good?! I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – 2025 is going to be the BEST year yet for new releases. This is my third 5 star read of the year, and we’re STILL in January! I loved everything about this one. It’s a dark psychological suspense/police procedural just dripping with atmosphere and tension. Truly brilliant. I’m so thrilled to be sharing my review of The Dark Hours!

About the book

1994: When Gardaí Julia Harte and Adrian Clancy are called out to a sleepy housing estate in Cork to investigate a noise complaint, they are entirely unprepared for what they find. What happens next will haunt Julia for the rest of her days, leaving her plagued with nightmares and terrified of the dark. There is a serial killer at work in Cork, one as clever as he is deadly. Julia may not be a detective yet, but after the harrowing events of that night, she is determined to be the one to catch him…

2024: Julia Harte has chosen just the right place to disappear. Now a retired detective with an illustrious career behind her, she has moved to a tiny cottage in a remote part of Ireland where she hopes to find peace. But then she receives a phone call from her old Superintendent – two women have been murdered, their bodies marked and staged, just like in ’94.

It’s happening again. Only this time, the stakes are even higher. Julia must return to Cork to face down a vicious killer and the memories that haunt her still. Yet Julia is no longer a naïve junior officer but a seasoned, tough professional who proves more than a match for any murderer…

The beginning

Hang on, can you all just wait a second while I catch my breath and pick up my jaw after that INCREDIBLE opening?! Jesus Christ! If you want to know how to write an opening to a book that hooks readers instantly, then this is the one. Straight away, we’re plunged into Julia Harte’s life in two different timelines. In 2024, she’s a sixty-year-old retired Detective, living her life in a secluded cottage, hoping for a peaceful life after a whirlwind career. In 1994, she’s a Garda out on a call with her partner, Adrian, investigating a noise complaint. A complaint which would soon scar her for life and leave her scared of the dark. As this incident unfolds, I was frozen in horror. It was dark, unnerving, creepy. Of course I loved it! More and more information about this night comes to light over different chapters, and we start to learn more about a serial killer who leaves his mark at his bloody crime scenes. When Julia is called out of retirement to assist in a new murder case just like the night of 1994, she fears the worst. She was going to relive her nightmare. The night that changed her.

“Fear was a cold hand at her throat – she was not safe in this house.”

It was so incredibly easy to get lost in the author’s words, each chapter as gripping and intriguing as the last. The dual timelines were perfectly written, and I loved how we really get inside Julia’s head. We share her anxieties, her fears, every emotion comes across so strongly. I especially loved her little dog, Mutt, who keeps her grounded. Who is her best mate. Who is everything she needs in her secluded lifestyle. (I just love dogs in a book!) Everything Julia had experienced in the past had shaped her into someone completely different from the confident Garda she’d been back then, before the horrors of that night unfolded. After that traumatic night, Julia feels pushed away from the case because of her rank. They thought a Garda couldn’t possibly be of any assistance to such a huge case, even though she was the one who was there, she was the one who lived through it. It seemed ironic that now a new murder had happened all these years later, her old colleagues are desperate for her to come back, desperate for her input and expertise. I was so excited to get stuck into this new case with Julia!

The middle

The research that has gone into this book is so, so clear. The postmortem examinations of Elena and Hannah (the two girls who were murdered), discussions about the investigation, briefings with Detectives and Gardí, all of it was so thorough and truly fascinating. I’ll say it before and I’ll say it again. I would love to be a Detective in another life! I was so desperate to be a part of this investigation with Julia. I loved finding out why and how the murders in this potential copycat killing could have happened. There was a tough time ahead, for all of them. Julia’s relationships with old colleagues and new were brilliantly written. Most of them respect her, especially because of what she’d been through thirty years ago. But there was one new face at the station, DS Armstrong who seemed hot headed, who didn’t take too kindly to retired Detectives interfering in his investigation. Aside from this, there are hints that Julia herself personally suffered at the hands of the killer, James Cox, in the past. I was so keen to learn more about him and everything he did. And even though we don’t meet him here, he absolutely terrified me.

“All that matters is finding whoever killed Elena and Hannah before he takes another life. Ultimately, it cost her everything back then. The only difference now is that she has nothing left to lose.”

Back in 1994, we learn how a second encounter with James Cox physically and mentally affects Julia, and the impact it has on her husband, Philip. The injuries she sustained back then were horrific; she’d been marked, just like the girls he murdered. And those injuries still twinge in the present, still remind her of everything that happened. As the hunt for the copycat killer heats up, pieces of the puzzle slowly begin to slot satisfyingly into place. They have names of people to question, places to visit and to search. It was intense and so, so thorough. I really felt like I was involved, like I was a part of the action. And when a delivery arrives at the place she’s staying in Cork, with a note reading “Welcome back”, it’s clear she’s being watched. Someone else knows she’s here, revisiting her past, getting involved again. Fear and dread settled within me; this is where things get wild. With a new missing girl and so many similarities to the old murders, it was only a matter of time before they had another murder on their hands. They had to move quickly. It couldn’t happen again.

The end

Because of the two different timelines, it felt like we were getting two different endings in a way which felt so, SO good! The first twist about James Cox in 1994 was superb – I would never have guessed it! We also finally learn about what happened to Philip, something that was hinted about along the way, the ending to Julia’s relationship with him so different to what I’d had in my head all this time. The emotion in the author’s words was strong and real, and despite being in the middle of a huge murder investigation, the author takes us away from the pressure of it all for just a moment to make us see the impact it has on the lives of those working on it. Beautifully written! There were so many surprises as everything started to tie together, and as this copycat killer goes to extreme lengths to replicate the Cox killings, there were certain clues, a trail, that led the team in the right direction. I loved the pacing of it all here. It was fast, unnerving and consistently exciting. But it wasn’t over just yet. There was more to figure out before Julia put this whole thing to bed.

“I’ll see you again. I’ll find you in the dark.”

The truth is another glorious, unpredictable reveal that intertwined with every other piece of the puzzle so flawlessly. I could not have guessed any of it; you never know who may come back to haunt you. And you certainly can’t trust everyone you meet… I just loved how brilliantly tense and suspenseful the book felt right until those last moments, and even within all that, there is emotion and sadness that slaps you in the face. And that ending?! I may or may not have shed a sneaky tear. It was perfect. I rooted for Julia completely throughout the entirety of this book, and the final page gave me hope she’d find her way again now the case had been closed, the mystery solved. I genuinely felt sad this book had ended, but my god, I’m so thrilled to have experienced the horrors, the nightmares of being involved in such a case, all written in such a beautifully researched and exciting way. If you love a police procedural, this will be right up your street. A perfect read in every way!

Overall thoughts

The Dark Hours has everything you could possibly want in a psychological suspense/police procedural! It’s atmospheric, so addictive and is so tightly plotted from start to finish. The dual timelines worked so seamlessly in piecing together Julia Harte’s life, her work, and how it all spirals out of control. All the characters we meet are so perfectly developed, with Julia definitely being one you’ll never forget. There were so many tense scenes where my heart was in my mouth, the description so vivid, every thought and feeling shared. It’s really cleverly written and I will not hesitate to pick up anything Amy writes after this! So tense, so dark, so brilliant. An unforgettable read.

Huge thanks to the author, Amy Jordan, and the fabulous team at HQ Stories for my copy! You can grab your own copy of The Dark Hours on 30th Jan – but you can pre-order it right now on Amazon or wherever you buy your books. Pre-orders help so much! Make sure you’re following the author over on Instagram, Bluesky and X/Twitter for more updates!

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