I have read all of Thomas Harris’ previous books and adored them. He has written terrifying characters and mastered suspense like no one else. However, this one is just ok. The main bad guy isn’t that scary, there isn’t a huge amount of suspense, I don’t think my heart rate was raised at any point. Still ok as far as thrillers go but for a Thomas Harris book, this just doesn’t compare to his others.

My thanks to Random House U.K. Cornerhouse/Arrow for a digital edition via NetGalley of ‘Cari Mora’ by Thomas Harris. This was published in May 2019 with its paperback edition out on 30 April 2020.

Set mainly in Miami the title character, Cari Mora, was conscripted at gun point to become a child soldier in Columbia. She eventually escaped the violence of her native country and now at twenty-five is living in Miami on Temporary Protected Status; though she is always aware it could be revoked. She cleans houses and is a care assistant though hopes to study to become a veterinarian if she can sort out her status.

One of her current jobs is serving as a caretaker for an abandoned Miami Beach multi-million dollar mansion formerly owned by the notorious cartel boss, Pablo Escobar, gunned down years before in Columbia. There has always been rumours that he had stashed between 25-30 million in cartel gold at the mansion.

Now a group of men, led by the insatiably violent Hans-Peter Schneider, have taken over the mansion posing as a film crew. They are aggressively looking for the gold. In addition, Schneider has his eye on Cari and is making a sinister plan to traffick her.

This was Harris’ first novel in thirteen years and the first since 1975 not to feature Hannibal Lecter. Many seemed unhappy with its modest length and felt that it didn’t meet their expectations. I would agree that it is not up to the brilliance of ‘Red Dragon’ and ‘The Silence of the Lambs’ yet I didn’t feel that it was anywhere near as terrible as some reviews were indicating.

It is a dark and violent tale though what elevated it beyond other crime thrillers for me was Cari Mora. She is such a fierce and resourceful woman. The villain of the piece is no sophisticated anti-hero like Hannibal Lecter but a violent inhuman thug. There are plenty of bodies, confrontations and double crosses. I found its ending satisfying.

As a former resident of Miami it was also good to see the city portrayed so vividly. Details of the bird sanctuary at Pelican Harbour where Cari volunteers was also welcome. It appears that Harris is himself involved in this organisation.

Overall, it proved a fast, engaging read though with some quite gruesome scenes.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.