Category: Crime

Die of Shame by Mark Billingham is another one of those ‘closed room’ murder mysteries (a la Agatha Christie) where the focus is on a group of characters one of whom will turn out to be the murderer. One member of a therapy group of recovering addicts is murdered and the plot takes you through the back stories and interactions of all of the group and their therapist (another ex addict) leading up to and after the murder.

There are several blind alleys and some misdirection before you get to the end of the story and a nice twist or two but overall this is rather predictable and somewhat unsatisfying. By some quirk of fate this is the second Mark Billingham novel that I have read in the last few weeks, Rush of Blood was also a ‘closed room’ style novel – neither has been particularly enjoyable.

Mark Billingham’s Tom Thorne series have been great and stood the test of time as they get into their second decade, none of his one off’s have matched the quality of the Thorne series.

2.5/5

In Rush of Blood by Mark Billingham three British couples meet on holiday in Florida and are witnesses to the disappearance of a child from the resort. Rush of Blood is told thorough the back stories of the three couples and their interactions once they have returned home as the investigation unfolds on both sides of the Atlantic. Gradually you realise that one of the 6 was responsible for abducting the child.

Rush of Blood is challenging because all of the characters are unpleasant and yet at the same time you are aware that much of this is misdirection. I read this with a sense of fascination watching a train crash in slow motion and at the same time eager for it to be over. Mark Billingham is usually much better than this, if you have enjoyed his Tom Thorne series you may be disappointed by this stand alone novel

2.5/5

Bloods Echo by Isabel Maldonado is a pacy page turner – I read it in one sitting, could not put it down!

Veranda Cruz is a narcotics detective in the Phoenix PD engaged in a highly personal war with a Mexican drug cartel who threaten her and her family. There is some good misdirection, a side order of romance and a great climax to this first novel plus a slight opening in the ending to pave the way for a follow on novel.

This is good easy reading and would make a great movie, worth trying out.

3.5/5

That’s me in the Middle by Donald Jack is the second in the series of novels about Bartholemew Bandy a Canadian World War 1 pilot. Jack served in the second war and subsequently wrote the Bandy series between 1962 and 2002.

Bandy is a somewhat chaotic upper class character who seems to get buffeted by events as he stumbles through the Great War. ‘That’s me in the Middle’ feels like classic farce with the scenes tenuously threaded together until the end when it almost makes sense. It is light, humorous and very reminiscent of Jeeves and Wooster but in parallel there are chilling observations on the horror and human waste of the war.

I wasn’t enjoying reading “That’s me in the Middle”, I am not a fan of a genre that eulogises the lifestyle of the old British aristocracy or the mad cap escapades of its heroes (although I love modern farce such as the novels of Jonas Jonasson) but by the time I got to the end of it I had changed my mind, it’s not great but it isn’t terrible. If you want something light about war (yes I know what a contradiction in terms that is) this might be worth a read.

3.5/5

Darktown by Thomas Mullen is set in Atlanta in 1948. Atlanta has just appointed its first black police officers to patrol the black ghettos within the city. The murder of a young black woman looks like being ignored and covered up by the all white detectives until two black officers start asking questions.

I loved this, it is charged with racial tension, historic detail and a plot that you don’t want to put down. It’s well written builds to a superb climax and I can’t recommend it enough. If you like hard boiled crime, read this. I’m looking forward to reading more by Mullen

4.5/5 (because nothing is perfect)

Off the Grid by CJ Box is another in his series featuring Joe Pickett and Nate Romanowski. If you haven’t read any of Box’s novels I would recommend going back to the beginning of the series starting with Open Season.

Joe Pickett is a Wyoming game and fish warden, Nate is his somewhat mysterious falconer friend who lives off the grid (hence the title) avoiding federal government who have a long running vendetta against him. This is a page turner which combines stunning descriptions of the wild country of Wyoming with a plot being hatched by a group of middle eastern terrorists (kind of popular baddies at the moment). A good holiday read.

3.5/5