Reviews

C. J. Sansom - Winter In Madrid

‘…I found this book difficult to put down.’

Synopsis:
This book is set in Spain in 1940, after the end of the Civil War. It is a country still dominated by the aftermath of that struggle, and by the implications of the neutrality of Spain in the World War raging around them. Into this delicate and disturbing situation comes Harry Brett. He is an ex-public schoolboy who has been shell-shocked and injured in the retreat from Dunkirk.

Harry has been reluctantly persuaded to contribute to the war effort by spying on an old school friend, now turned businessman, with an eye to the main chance in Madrid. He becomes involved with the Spanish. Struggling with the rigours of life, as well as meeting up with old acquaintances. The various strands finally come together in an exciting finale.

Review:
This is a very different book to the previous two books by this author, which were set in Tudor times. However C.J.Sansom has again got under the skin of the times and portrays the attitudes and values of the characters realistically and convincingly. I particularly liked the way that the ethos of the pre war English public school was conveyed as essentially good hearted but doomed to change.

The characters are believable and the plot moves along at a cracking pace. The details of Madrid both physical and politically at that time contributed to the interest of the story and the descriptions are vivid.
All in all, I found this book difficult to put down.

Reviewed By S. D.

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Jan Costin Wagner - Ice Moon

‘…a well-plotted and interesting thriller.’

Synopsis:
Kimmo Joentaa, a young detective in the Finnish town of Turku has lost his wife, Sanna. Convulsed with grief, he returns to work to investigate the murder of a woman in her own home. She appears to have known her attacker, but clues are difficult to find until the murderer strikes again. This time killing a young Swedish tourist. As Joentaa struggles to convince his superiors that there is a serial killer at large, he finds himself having to question whether he is becoming too involved in the case.

Review:
There is a wealth of Scandinavian detective fiction being published at the
moment and most of it is of a consistent high quality. This book is no
exception. It is a well-plotted and interesting thriller. The Finnish
detective is well written and his portrayal of a man at turns bewildered
and angry at his young wife’s death is very convincing.

The plot is well crafted, which is particularly important as the reader is
always aware of the identity of the murderer. However, the book is
primarily about the hunt for a killer and it maintains suspense by taking
the reader into the mind of the murderer until Joentaa is as much his
redeemer as his hunter.

Reviewed by: S.W.

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Lisa Gardner - Gone

‘Gardner is onto another winner.’

Synopsis:
When someone you love vanishes without a trace, how far would you go to get him or her back? For ex-FBI profiler Pierce Quincy, it's the beginning of his worst nightmare. A car abandoned on a desolate stretch of Oregon highway, engine running, purse on the driver's seat. And his estranged wife, Rainie Conner, gone, leaving no clue to her fate.

Did one of the ghosts from her troubled past finally catch up with Rainie? Or could her disappearance be the result of one of the cases they'd been working—a particularly vicious double homicide or the possible abuse of a deeply disturbed child Rainie took too close to heart? Together with his daughter, FBI agent Kimberly Quincy, Pierce is battling the local authorities, racing against time and frantically searching for answers to all the questions he's been afraid to ask. One man knows what happened that night. Adopting the moniker from an eighty-year old murder, he has already contacted the press. His terms are clear: he wants money, he wants power, and he wants celebrity. And if he doesn't get what he wants, Rainie will be gone for good.

As the clock winds down on a terrifying deadline, Pierce plunges headlong into the most desperate hunt of his life, into the shattering search for a killer, a lethal truth, and for the love of his life who may forever be…gone.

Review:
Gardner’s latest novel continues with the main characters, Rainie Connor, Pierce Quincy and his daughter Kimberly. This time, instead of solving a crime they are in the centre of the investigation.

References are made to a particular murder that had been investigated by Connor and Pierce but no mention has been made of this in previous books, which I found made the connections to the current investigation and the previous one somewhat tenuous.

Although slower in parts than usual, this book loses none of the twists and turns the reader has come to expect from Garner and you will not be disappointed.

Gardner is onto another winner with the continually developing characters who remain both imperfect yet likeable.

Reviewed by: H. A.

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Barbara Nadel - Dance With Death

‘The plot was gripping and not easy to second guess.’

Synopsis:
Cetin Ikmen, a middle aged Istanbul Police Inspector, becomes embroiled in an investigation of a twenty year old corpse discovered in the remote and strangely picturesque district of Cappadocia. He knows the area because of family connections and a long remembered romance with an English girl who subsequently disappeared. He is persuaded to help with the enquiries because he fears this corpse might be the same girl. Nothing, however, is that simple, and there are many twists and turns in the plot which occur before everything becomes clear.

Meanwhile, back in Istanbul, Ikmen’s protégé, Inspector Mehmet Suleyman, has his own difficulties with a series of disturbing attacks, culminating in the murder of young men connected in some way with the gay community. The blocking of his investigations causes him to question who exactly is controlling the situation…

Review:
I enjoyed this book. More than the previous Inspector Ikmen novels. The plot was gripping and not easy to second guess. The atmosphere of present day Turkey with modern cosmopolitan Istanbul contrasted with the old country ways of Cappadocia is vividly realised. I liked the description of the tensions between the religious and non-religious. The reality and immediacy was made greater by the inclusion of attitudes to Turkey joining the European Union, and also the terrible bombings of the Jewish synagogues.

The characters are well described and I appreciated the developments in Mehmet’s private life!

Reviewed by: S. D.

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Linda Fairstein - Death Dance

‘Another major hit for Linda Fairstein.’

Synopsis:
Once again Linda Fairstein uses her experience as a leading DA to create a tantalising web of intrigue, betrayal and murder. Teaming up with long time friends and colleagues, Mike Chapman and Mercer Wallace, Alex Cooper investigates the disappearance of a world-famous dancer, who has vanished from the Metropolitan Opera House.

Drawn behind the scenes of New York's theatrical community, the team is haunted by ghosts of the dramatic old theatres - and from their own pasts. At the same time, Alex and Mercer are trying to collar a doctor who's been using his extensive knowledge of and access to drugs to overpower women before assaulting them. A spell-binding thriller combining the unique history of New York with fresh insight into the latest forensic techniques

Review:
The main story, that of the murder of ballerina Galinova, offers a plethora of suspects and motives, together with the usual climatic ending found in Fairstein’s other books.
Mike Chapman is back in the thick of the investigation following the untimely death of his fiancée, and I eagerly await further instalments from Fairstein of the relationship between him and Alex Cooper.

Fairstein is a very knowledgeable author, on both legal and forensic matters, and explains all procedures to the layman reader without the use of excessive detail.

Another major hit for Linda Fairstein.

Reviewed by: H. A.

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Tony Hillerman - Skeleton Man

‘This is a classic Hillerman novel…’

Synopsis:
The daughter of a rich diamond dealer looks for the bones of her missing father, killed in a plane crash in the Grand Canyon, to prove that she is entitled to the family inheritance. Meanwhile, one of the diamonds that disappeared at the time of his death appears following a robbery. Retired Navajo Tribal Police chief, Lieutenant Joe Lephorn and Sergeant Jim Chee find themselves embroiled in the case to help prove the innocence of a colleague’s relative.

Review:
For fans of Tony Hillerman this is a welcome return of his Leaphorn/Chee detective duo. The retired Leaphorn is his usual self, drawn into a fifty-year-old case because of its relevance to recent events on the reservation. However, Jim Chee has more immediate concerns. Particularly his forthcoming marriage to former policewoman, Bernie Manuelito.

This is a classic Hillerman novel and his descriptions of Navajo country are wonderful, as usual. However, I wonder how the character of Jim Chee is going to develop further, when so many of the previous novels have revolved around his failed relationships. Firstly with teacher Mary Landon and then with attorney Janet Pete. A blissfully happy Jim Chee is going to be hard to get used to, despite the excellence of the plot. I am keen to see how the series develops!

Reviewed by: S. W.

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David Hosp - Dark Harbour

‘The story had a mix of legal, political and forensic intrigue…’

Synopsis:
Scott Finn, rising star at a Boston law firm, has worked hard to pull himself out of the Charlestown projects. When the body of his co-worker and old flame, Natalie Caldwell, floats to the surface of Boston Harbour, Finn is grief stricken. Almost immediately, the firm instructs Finn to replace Natalie to defend a high-profile client. As he retraces Natalie's footsteps, Finn begins to unravel the awful mystery of her murder. But police lieutenant Linda Flaherty is also hot on the trail. What neither Finn nor Flaherty realise is what's at stake. If the truth is uncovered: billions of dollars, the careers of the Massachusetts elite, and their own survival are all endangered.

Review:
As with many untried authors, I started the book with no expectations but found this story gripping from the start. The story had a mix of legal, political and forensic intrigue, together with an almost predictable attraction between the two lead characters. However, this relationship ran parallel to the main story, which left the reader guessing until the last page. The characters were well defined, as was the plot, which in turn engendered an explosive thriller.

Dark Harbour is the debut novel from David Hosp, and I will be closely following this author and look forward to reading his next book.

Reviewed by H. A.

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Peter James - Dead Simple

‘…starts off at a cracking pace and simply doesn’t let go.’

Synopsis:
It was all supposed to be a bit of harmless fun. The four friends were just paying Michael back for all the previous pranks he had played on them at one time or another. Michael’s stag night was a fitting event to place Michael in a coffin and bury him. They were only going to leave him there for a couple of hours, then rescue him and continue their night of drinking. However, as they drove away, the van was involved in a horrific accident. Hours later, all four of Michael’s mates are dead. Who is going to rescue him now?

Roy Grace is introduced to the case through a close colleague. The best man, Mark Warren who wasn’t at the party is denying all knowledge of what has happened to Michael. Does he really not know anything about the prank that was set up on the stag night? Surely, being the best ma, he would know? As Grace scrapes deeper below the surface, he finds out that some attached to the wedding party are not all they say they are. It is a race against time to find Michael, before, like the lid of the coffin, his fate is sealed.

Review:
This is a brilliant book. It starts off at a cracking pace and simply doesn’t let go. Mr. James is a well-known screen writer and you can see this book clearly on TV or the big screen. It has all the ingredients you would expect from a fast paced film. Suspense, a plot that twists and turns, a motley crew of characters and that marvellous sense of time rapidly running out…

There are 90 chapters and you race through them wanting to know who is going to do what and who is going to show their hand or turn out not to be who they claimed they were! This is definitely a book you pick up and can’t stop reading until it is finished. It sounds like a cliché, but this is a book you must take with you on holiday, reserve a few free hours on the beach and read about the dirty, low-down goings on in downtown Brighton!

Reviewed by: C. S.

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Paul Doherty - The Cup of Ghosts

‘The end of this book leaves you waiting eagerly for the next instalment.’

Synopsis:
This is the beginning of a series about Mathilde of Westminster, a lady in waiting to Princess Isabella of France, and an accomplished physician trained by her uncle, a member of the persecuted Order of the Templars. At the beginning of the story Mathilde is looking back at her life. She begins in safety with her uncle but as Phillipe of France starts to search and destroy all lands and property of the Templars she is forced to seek sanctuary in a very unlikely place. The household of Princess Isabella of France, soon to become Queen of England.

This first book details the move to France and the power struggle in the English court of King Edward II. Various mysterious deaths, both in France and in England, display the violence of the times and Mathilde is not an innocent in all of the happenings. The end of this book leaves you waiting eagerly for the next instalment. Indeed the last words are, “To the death”.

Review:
This is a well-researched book that throws new light on the story of Edward II and his favourite, Piers Gaveston. The violence and disregard for life are clearly described, interposed with fascinating details of everyday life. I did not know the importance of women as physicians in those days. Mathilde and Isabella are, on the whole, sympathetic characters, although chillingly supplied with a degree of ruthlessness when required.

I enjoyed the pace of the book and found it difficult to put down. My only caveat is that the ending left me slightly unsatisfied. I wanted to know what happens next!

Reviewed by: S. D.

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Dean Koontz - Velocity

‘Velocity is Koontz at his best – and comes highly recommended!’

Synopsis:
Billy Wiles is an easygoing, hardworking guy who leads a quiet, ordinary life. That is about to change. One evening, after his usual eight-hour bartending shift, he finds a typewritten note under the windshield wiper of his car: If you don’t take this note to the police and get them involved, I will kill a lovely blond schoolteacher somewhere in Napa County. If you do take this note to the police, I will instead kill an elderly woman active in charity work. You have six hours to decide. The choice is yours.

It seems like a sick joke and Billy’s friend on the police force, Lanny Olsen thinks so too. His advice to Billy is to go home and forget about it. Less than twenty-four hours later, a young blond schoolteacher is found murdered, and it’s all Billy’s fault… He didn’t convince the police to get involved. Now he’s got another note, another deadline, another ultimatum… and another two lives hang in the balance.

Suddenly Billy’s average, seemingly innocuous life takes on the dimensions and speed of an accelerating nightmare. The notes are coming faster, deadlines are growing tighter and the killer is becoming bolder and more vicious with every communication – until Billy is isolated with the terrifying knowledge that he alone has the power of life and death over a psychopath’s innocent victims. The struggle between good and evil is intensely personal. The most chilling words are: The choice is yours.

Review:
Dean Koontz has an inimitable style and brings his characters to life within the first few lines. Velocity has all the perfect ingredients of an exciting thriller. It has a fast pace, a number of suspects with the added twist of an innocent person being involved in the killings, regardless of his actions.

I was hooked from the first page and was unable to leave this book alone. Psychological thrillers are definitely my first choice, and Koontz crosses over from the supernatural to the psychological with ease.

Velocity is Koontz at his best – and comes highly recommended.

Reviewed by H. A.

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