The Past Never Lies by Oliver Mack

Genre: Fiction

Star Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)

Introduction

On the verge of becoming an insignificant nobody, local policeman Robert Douglas must crack the murder of local legend John Tooley. But when his family are suspects, and the key to the truth are their hidden secrets, he has to discover what is most important, the woman he loves or the killer among them.

Review

Small towns guard their secrets like family heirlooms, passing them down through whispers, glances, and silence. In Oliver Mack’s The Past Never Lies, those secrets rise to the surface with the discovery of a body on a windswept golf course in 1989. What follows is less a straightforward murder mystery and more a study of loyalty, betrayal, and the shadows cast by family ties.

We follow Robert, a policeman tied to the victim by marriage, who finds himself balancing the duties of the badge with the demands of his own conscience. From the opening call in the dead of night, Mack grounds us in the damp chill of English coastal life — the hedgerows, the pubs, the murmurs in corner shops. The setting isn’t just backdrop; it’s part of the tension, closing in on Robert as the case deepens.

What works beautifully is the intimacy of Mack’s writing. The book isn’t in a rush. Instead, it lingers on conversations, on silences that reveal more than words, on the weight of history between brothers and sisters. This isn’t a flashy thriller. It’s a slow burn, one that draws its strength from atmosphere and character. Robert’s relationship with Shelly, his partner caught in the crossfire of family suspicion, is written with a tenderness that makes the stakes deeply personal.

If there’s a stumble, it’s in the density - Mack gives us long stretches of dialogue and reflection that sometimes test patience. But the payoff is worth it. The novel captures the claustrophobia of a town where everyone knows each other and no one is ever fully innocent.

Buy this book if you like your mysteries layered with humanity, if you enjoy the moral ambiguity of Ian Rankin or the brooding tension of Tana French. The Past Never Lies isn’t just about who swung the fatal blow - it’s about the truth we bury and the lies we tell ourselves to survive.