The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths

Written by Harry Bingham

Narrated by Siriol Jenkins

Fiona Griffiths's toughest case yet: alone, undercover, scared

A woman starved to death in a remote Welsh cottage. A computer guy left to bleed to death, his hands brutally hacked off at the wrist.

When DC Fiona Griffiths and her colleagues realise they're staring at one of the world's most audacious robberies, she's asked to take on the challenge: will she go undercover to penetrate this criminal gang from within?

When Fiona says yes, she has to give up her old life entirely. She becomes Fiona Grey, a homeless woman struggling to get her life back together again. When the criminal gang adopt her as one of their own, she's totally alone, vulnerable - and dangerous as hell.

This international smash hit murder mystery series is ideal for fans of Stieg Larsson, Tana French ... and anyone else who loves strong female protagonists.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio
• Release date: Jul 23, 2019
• ISBN: 9781978648739

Harry Bingham

Harry Bingham is an ex-City trader who has worked for major British, American and Japanese firms but who now writes full time. He lives near Oxford with his wife and their three dogs.

Reviews for The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths

[bil · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Wonderful book. Well worth diving into the series. Fantastically written heroine:

[MLJS-piano · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The exquisite complexity of our heroine Fiona G continues to be the real mystery driving this series! Deeply understood and held with such compassion and care by her author, she reveals herself -- to the reader, and to herself, articulating layer by layer -- while barreling through a hair-raising and fascinating undercover operation of exponential danger. The narration is top notch, the Welsh pride of place delightful, the plot is perfectly crafted, and the writing (& insider knowledge of the UK's police protocol) never fails to engage. This series is truly genre-bending on many subtle levels --Highly recommended!

[usuallee · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Solid thriller, though the least in the series thus far. Split personality was handled well. Decent read, kept my interest albeit fell a bit short of truly compelling.

[ffortsa · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Another winner! Wow, what an engrossing story, in which Fiona, of course, gets herself into trouble for all the right reasons and all but loses herself in the process. Excellent details, characters, and plot, and from my knowledge of the IT world, entirely possible. Why didn't I think of that?

[deltaqueen50 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths is the 4th entry in Harry Bingham’s police procedural series featuring Detective Fiona Griffiths. In this outing Fiona goes undercover trying to expose a high level computer scam that is in the process of siphoning off millions from various companies and is also leaving behind a number of dead bodies.It’s the excellently developed characters that make this story special and unique. In particular it is Fiona herself who holds the reader’s attention and although the story is told from her perspective, we don’t always perceive or understand her mindset. Fiona is still suffering the after-effects of a mental illness called Cotard’s Syndrome and she has difficulty understanding the nuances and complexities of human conversation and interactions. Developing a new personality for her undercover work is particularly dangerous for her as she begins to have trouble separating her new self from her old and this escalates to an even higher level when a third identity is needed. This brave and feisty character is fascinating and ever changing. The other character that stood out for me was Vic, who at times is threatening and scary while at others shows a caring humanity. The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths is an excellent addition to this series, the intricate plot is clever and explained in easily understood ways, the writing helps to set the rapid fire pace and although Fiona throws herself into dangerous situations without fully thinking about consequences, the author keeps the story plausible and leaves the reader eager for more.

[rosalita_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The third book in a police procedural series featuring one of the most unusual detectives I've come cross: Fiona Griffiths was stricken in adolescence with Cotard's Syndrome, a belief that she was already dead or did not exist. She's somewhat recovered but still struggles to make connections with her own feelings and with the "regular humans" who surround her. In some ways, her illness makes her an ideal candidate for undercover police work, infiltrating a white-collar fraud that is larger than anyone suspects. It's jarring but evocative when as the first-person narrator, Fiona casually refers to herself as "we" while undercover, blurring the line between Fiona Griffiths and her alter-ego, Fiona Grey, who in many ways is a more comfortable persona for her. Beyond the interest of the characters, the plot here is also first-rate and kept me turning pages to see how it would all end up. Ongoing storylines involving Fiona's father and her boyfriend also get a jolt.

[berly_4 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is not really a review, more of a directive: read this series!! If you like murder mysteries and detectives who are a bit off the beaten path, then this is the book for you. Fiona, a quirky individual, goes undercover in this, the third in the series. Fi has some of her own identity issues, so having to navigate who she is and who she is supposed to be and remembering the difference was fascinating. Several of the regular characters have smallish parts, but it didn't dampen my love for this book. I don't want to say much more or give anything away. Just know that this is my favorite one so far!

[jkdavies · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Fiona Griffiths goes undercover and becomes Fiona Grey, a payroll clerk. The writing of the way she handles multiple personas is excellent and the story intriguing... there is a little more unravelling of her own story in the mix. The big selling point for me is the observational detail about daily tasks and motivations... steps in belonging to Planet Normal...

[mmoj_2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

If you haven't read the first two books don't read this review - go find those books and read them first. You'll need them to understand some of this story. Plus you'll enjoy two more really great reads.Fiona Griffiths is masterfully written, and I don't say that often. Fiona pulls you and drags you into things you really don't want to know, especially what's in her head. But with all that crazy mess Bingham writes a story where you sometimes wonder if YOU, the reader is a bit crazy because you can feel yourself connecting with this very disturbed individual. This time around Fiona has a lot going on in her life; she's going on a holiday, her boyfriend wants to get more serious and she's scheduled to take a course about undercover work. She also is wondering if her dad is still involved in crime and is still hoping to figure out what happened to her when she was two. So when she excels in the uncover course and is assigned for some short-term work she's stretched a bit thin. But as always, Fiona goes above and beyond. I was as frustrated with the ending as Fiona was - but then I realized this could just lead to more stories so I'll wait for more books.

[cainebooks · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

While I enjoyed the previous two Griffiths novels, I didn't care for this one at all, and won't be following the series any more. There was a strong sense that the reader was simply being played with this book, and most of book did not read true to the character established in the first two books.

[cathyskye · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Quite simply put, I love this series. Three books featuring Fiona Griffiths have been published so far. I've read all three, and I've given all three the highest rating possible. I've never done that before, and it will probably be a long time before I do it again.My passion for this series has everything to do with the marvelous character Harry Bingham has created. Fiona Griffiths has Cotard's syndrome, a rare mental illness in which the afflicted person is deluded into thinking that they are dead, either figuratively or literally. This affects everything about her. Her behavior. What she eats. If she eats. The way she views the world. What she thinks of other people. Everything. What Fiona wants most in the world is to be a citizen of the planet Normal, and she has to work hard at it. She has to remember to say the things that her boyfriend expects to hear, for instance. She's a by-the-book supervisor's nightmare. On the Cardiff police force, she's usually given work that's performed alone because she works best that way-- even if she has grown tired of it. If you begin reading the series from the beginning (Talking to the Dead)-- which I recommend you do-- Fiona's going to seem downright weird. But there's something appealing about her. Perhaps it's because she tries so hard to be normal. Before you know it, you realize that Fiona's stopped being weird; you've actually grown to care about her and to want her to succeed.The plot of The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths is guaranteed to tie you into knots. The absolute worst thing a person with Cotard's syndrome can do is to work undercover, but that's exactly what Fiona does-- for months at a time. As I watched her begin to melt into her undercover persona, I actually became worried. This book-- and the entire series-- is something that you can easily lose yourself inside, just like Fiona Griffiths is losing herself in Fiona Grey.The gang she finds herself working for puts her through incredible security measures, and her isolation grows steadily since the only person she has any real contact with is Vic, the extremely violent security specialist for the villains. Fiona's own unpredictability adds to the suspense and to a very real feeling of danger. You never know what she's going to do. Has she just done something incredibly stupid that's ultimately going to get her killed? Or has she just done something brilliant that will convince the bad guys that she's completely under their thumb?Yes... you can read this book as a standalone if you must, but I don't recommend it. If you're looking for an excellent characterization and tightly woven, exciting plots, you deserve to read every single Fiona Griffith book. Fiona deserves it, too. She's brilliant.

[maneekuhi · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

"The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths" (SD) is clearly the best book of an excellent series. I had some concerns when early on it became clear that this was to be about uncover work by Fiona. I had some misgivings because I was never a fan of the TV series "The Wire" and gave up on it after 7 or 8 episodes. But SD worked well for me from the opening pages to the very end. There was tension throughout, obvious to anyone watching me grip the book so tightly as I read. First Fiona takes the police training course; she is one of the few who doesn't drop out midway through and one of the 15% or so who pass. But we all know Fi - she is someone who can slip out of her 'true identity' easily, because she doesn't really understand who she is anyway. Once back at the station she is offered a case, a very dangerous case, given the tortured death of one of its victims. Now the tension really ramps up, and the reader awaits for that small accidental tell which will tip the perpetrators to her mission. She is of course being monitored and watched very closely by a large team of field and staff officers, ready to pull her out at the first sign of imminent danger. But then the gang manages very cleverly to sever all those connections. Fi is missing, totally on her own. The usual and very good cast of supporting characters is there - Dad and family, Buzz; Lev is mentioned but doesn't make an appearance. And the whole series makes a somewhat unexpected turn ( can you spot the hint?) at the end which makes Book 4 all the more intriguing....Don't miss this series and read it from #1.