Good girl, bad girl

‘The pure and simple truth is rarely pure and never simple.’ (Oscar Wilde). When forensic psychologist Cyrus Haven first meets Evie Cormac, the unknown young woman immediately catches his attention with her sharp mind and even sharper tongue. At first, he doesn't connect her with the girl nicknamed Angel Face, whose tragic story captivated Britain in the media a few years earlier. The malnourished girl with wild eyes was found in a secret room of a London house where a bloody crime had been committed. She was given a new identity and, due to her challenging behaviour, eventually ended up in a secure children's home. Cyrus understands her better than anyone – he was once a lost boy himself, whose parents and sisters died a violent death. Little does he know that Evie possesses an extraordinary gift that can also be a curse: she is a human lie detector. Shortly after, he is called in to investigate the shocking murder of a junior figure skating champion, adored by the nation… This psychological thriller, which successfully launched the Cyrus Haven series, won the prestigious CWA Gold Dagger award in 2020. Following on from psychologist Joseph O’Loughlin, the author introduces another unforgettable expert on the human soul, whom you will easily fall in love with, along with the distinctive Evie. ‘Robotham is a master of suspense at the top of his game, and readers will surely hope to see more of his multilayered new characters.’ – Kirkus Reviews ‘Good Girl, Bad Girl is a flawless thriller with a rich plot involving murder, incest, drugs, abuse, torture, sex – you name it, this book has it.’ – New York Journal of Books ‘Robotham expertly builds the tension as the plot rushes towards its devastating climax. Readers will hope this complex hero returns for a sequel.’ – Publisher’s Weekly ‘A great psychological thriller with plenty of twists. The psychology of the individual characters is perfectly dissected.’ – from reader reviews on Databazeknih.cz I know what awaits them now. In the coming days, the media will dissect Jodi's entire life, feasting on the story. A young ‘golden hope’ of figure skating, who dreamt of Olympic triumph, dead in a cold, muddy clearing just a few hundred metres from her home. As a forensic psychologist, I have met murderers, psychopaths, and sociopaths, but I refuse to label people as good or evil. Badness is the absence of something good. It is not written into our DNA, nor is it forced upon us by bad parents, incompetent teachers, or cruel friends. Evil is not a state; it's a ‘quality’, and when someone has too much of that ‘quality’, it can begin to define them. Would it help the Sheehans if I told them this? No. As they lie side by side in bed tonight, staring at the ceiling and wondering what they could have done differently, it would offer them no relief. The hearts of people who have lost a child twist into strange shapes. The loss of a child is beyond all comprehension. It is against nature. It defies the natural order of history and genealogy. It is a departure from common sense. It desecrates the passage of time. It creates a huge, black, bottomless hole in which all hope drowns. – excerpt from the book