Review: Marie Cassidy’s Body of Truth
Body of Truth by Marie Cassidy. Hachette Ireland, 2023. €15.99, 320 pages.
Body of Truth is Marie Cassidy’s first foray into the world of novel writing after her highly successful biography Beyond the Tape, which was published in 2021. This novel centres around Dr. Terry O’Brien, the new deputy state pathologist in Ireland, fleeing from a toxic work environment and past trauma in Scotland. Soon after she starts, a body is found in the Phoenix Park. The body belongs to Rachel Reece, a true crime podcaster who may have bitten off more than she could chew. As the investigation into the murder proceeds, Terry begins her own line of inquiry. This rapidly leads Dr. O’Brien down a dark path of cold cases involving the unsolved murders of many Irish women. As the story develops, Terry is drawn further into the murders of Rachel Reece and Eileen McCarthy. In the midst of anonymous threats, opposition from the powers that be, and deteriorating relationships, Terry continues to search for the truth. But when another body is discovered and the guards tighten the noose on someone Terry believes to be the wrong man, a clue is discovered during a postmortem that may be the key to the whole case. The real killer is far closer than anyone realises, and the next victim is firmly within their sights.
This book deals with a multitude of different topics. It discusses alcoholism, misogyny, homosexuality, and the stubbornness of the Irish in sticking to our ways. As Terry progresses through the story, we learn more and more about her past in Glasgow and the fact that she was an alcoholic before she came to Ireland for a fresh start. It is difficult to say throughout the book if she still struggles with her alcoholism, as she goes out frequently with her friends and enjoys a drink, albeit without taking it too far. However, it definitely appears as though she's walking along a knife edge between the stresses of being the state pathologist and the problems in her personal life. Dr O'Brien struggles to be understood by the men in her field and the men in the guards who seem to do everything in their power to thwart her attempts at conducting her own investigation, whether that be because of misogyny or purely because they wish to stick to the status quo, and don't want to have their authority challenged by an outsider. Terry has to fight heavy opposition from the higher ups in her chain of command: the DCS of the investigation and her direct supervisor both resent the media attention a young and glamourous state pathologist brings to their investigations, and do everything they can to prevent her from working the case. She is warned to stay in her lane multiple times but thankfully she persists. Terry's best friend Michael, who works alongside her as a forensic scientist, is a gay man who also has trouble moving on. He is trying to move past a previous relationship and is trying to find a balance between his professional relationships and his personal desires for something more. It is always good to see representation in books like these and I think Cassidy does it in a very inclusive way. Michael is not sold as anything more than a brilliant scientist and there doesn’t seem to be any issues raised about his sexuality.
The scientific talk in this book is outstanding; Cassidy gives us a real glimpse into the world of law enforcement and forensic pathology. It is a refreshingly unique angle on the classic whodunnit novel. I can’t remember the last time I put down a book and then spent an hour researching the topics mentioned out of pure curiosity. The book also gives a much more complete picture of a police investigation and what goes on in the background.
On the flip side, the action in the novel could definitely be more engaging. A large portion of the book is spent discussing the ins and outs of forensic pathology, and while it is a very interesting subject, it is not as interesting as a mystery murder. It is a well-known rule of writing that you should write what you know, but you also should not be scared to branch out and take a step into the slightly less believable for the sake of the plot. The only other issue I have with this novel is that the reader has no real chance to figure out the twist for themselves. I am a big fan of mystery novels and I pride myself on figuring out the killer before the main character, but I felt as though the answer was such a blindside that I never had a chance to do the detective work myself. These are all minor issues however, and I really look forward to a sequel so I can see how the characters that were wonderfully introduced develop alongside Cassidy’s writing style.
I would highly recommend this novel to anyone who has an itch for a true crime novel that they just can’t scratch. The perspective in this book is so refreshing that it is truly set apart from the masses of detective books that have been published recently. The story proceeds at a pace that is easy to keep up with, yet very difficult to put down. All in all, I would be more than happy to recommend this book to anyone who asked: some of the descriptions and topics are a bit graphic but if you’re not faint of heart or light of stomach, this book is most definitely worth a read.