Are ghosts making their way back into our zeitgeist? Certainly, this is not the first novel I have read this year with ghosts playing a character, but it is the first I have read that combines their presence with solving a crime. That is not to say that the ghosts in this book have a significant impact on this plot-driven thriller, but they are there, and they count.

Dr Gabriel Beaufort is found dead close to the Ghost Walk, a place where previous deaths have occurred. His secret lover, Ruby Rose, is in hospital that night suffering from an infection brought on by her lung replacement due to cystic fibrosis. Ruby Rose is the narrator of the story and she knows this is murder. Despite being immunocompromised, she’s determined to trace Gabriel’s movements before the police do. After all, she knows him better than anyone else; they had been intimate friends for years.

This novel does some heavy work: it exposes the hierarchy in medical research; it illustrates the constant compromising demanded by our modern world if you have a disability and the effect it has on your family; and it gifts you a classic page-turning crime story. Who wanted Gabriel Beaufort dead, and why? The answers lie in the clues dotted throughout the novel. It is a quirky tale, designed to entertain and educate.

There is much to admire in this novel, Karen Herbert’s fourth, and readers of classic crime will be pleased. For me, the power of this novel lies with the descriptions of Ruby Rose’s life now and in her rebellious early adult years. What decisions do you make if you know you are going to die early? The Ghost Walk offers insight into this question, and along the way gives you the ultimate armchair detective experience.