The Burning is the second novel by Jane Cassey. It is a thriller set in London. A serial killer is on the lose,  called The Burning Man due to his habit of beating young women to death and then setting fire to them in secluded parks. Four women have been killed and now a fifth body has been found.

Maeve Kerrigan is the detective constable who is investigating this murder. She is ambitious but has to work twice as hard as she is a woman in a mans world.  The victim is a girl called Rebecca Haworth. Rebecca was a golden girl, enjoying a fast paced lifestyle which seems to have fallen apart due to a drug habit she could no longer afford. Her friends are strange, Louise North who is very cold and self-possessed but appears jealous of other friends of Rebecca. An ex-boyfriend, Gil Maddick, handsome brooded and dangerous. Maeve speaks to her family and friends she becomes more sure that Rebecca may b e the victim of a copy cat killer.

The book is well written and emjoyable. It is writen from the perspective of various people involved so at one point we may be seeing the story from Maeves viewpoint and the next moment from Rebecca’s frend Lousie’s view.  This could have been confusing but it worked well and pulled the story together. I liked the way investigation started as a hunt for a serial killer and then diverged into a hunt for two killers.  The book keeps you gripped till the end and you need to keep reading to find out what the ending is going to be.  It is fast paced and you are never left bored. I really liked the character of Maeve and would like to see her in other novels.