Tag Archives: crime fiction

#BookReview ‘Heartstone’ by CJ Sansom #Tudor #detective

The Matthew Shardlake series by CJ Sansom continues to get better. Heartstone, the penultimate book of the six, involves a puzzle which kept me guessing until the reveal. Despite Shardlake vowing to take a back seat from Royal intrigues, the Tudor lawyer/detective is pulled into a case at the behest of Queen Catherine Parr. This is a great series to lose yourself in. A tutor, son of one of the Queen’s staff, has alleged an injustice done against a former pupil, Hugh Curteys, by the Hobbey family who adopted Hugh and his sister Emma after the death of their parents. This complaint takes Shardlake before the Court of Wards, not Shardlake’s natural territory, where the lives and rights of orphaned minors are protected. In truth, it is rife with fraud and abuse and the case brings Shardlake face-to-face with old and new enemies.
A journey into Hampshire at the time King Henry VIII is mobilising his army and navy south to oppose the expected invasion by the French, is ill-advised. Normal life is suspended as Henry distributes new coinage, devalued to pay for his war, and men are conscripted in the fields and the streets. But Shardlake, as ever driven by the desire to correct injustice, becomes the scourge of the Hobbey family at Hoyland Priory, north of Portsmouth. Despite the misgivings of his clerk, Jack Barack, Shardlake also takes the opportunity to research another mystery; Ellen Fettiplace, a patient at Bedlam who featured in earlier novels, was born in a Sussex village and Shardlake takes the opportunity to research the events which led to her madness and imprisonment.
This is a clever series with legal cases providing the puzzles and Tudor politics – and this time, war – providing the scheming, manipulative characters. With the story climaxing on board the Mary Rose as it sets sail against the French, we all know the history but cannot know Shardlake’s part in it. This is a long book, encompassing the Curteys and Fettiplace mysteries and the preparations for war as Shardlake and Barak travel south with a company of archers destined to fight on one of the great warships. Stuffed with history and fascinating detail.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ABOUT THIS BOOK AT AMAZON

And here are my reviews of other novels by CJ Sansom:-
DOMINION
DISSOLUTION #1SHARDLAKE
DARK FIRE #2SHARDLAKE
SOVEREIGN #3SHARDLAKE
REVELATION #4SHARDLAKE
LAMENTATION #6SHARDLAKE

If you like this, try:-
‘Orphans of the Carnival’ by Carol Birch
‘The Surfacing’ by Cormac James
‘Dark Aemilia’ by Sally O’Reilly

And if you’d like to tweet a link to THIS post, here’s my suggested tweet:
#BookReview HEARTSTONE by CJ Sansom #Tudor #detective https://wp.me/p5gEM4-4CM via @SandraDanby

#BookReview ‘Revelation’ by CJ Sansom #Tudor #detective

8 Replies

I’m sorry if I’m beginning to sound like a cracked record, but I continue to love the Matthew Shardlake Tudor detective series by CJ Sansom. Fourth in the series, Revelation, is a roller-coaster ride of killings motivated by the Book of Revelation’s fire and damnation. Shardlake and his assistant Barak race around London struggling to second-guess the murderer’s motivations and identify his next likely target. Sansom achieves a difficult feat for a historical novelist, he balances world-building – the Tudor toxic politics and Tudor gossip-mongering – will Lady Catherine Parr say yes to the King’s proposal – with Shardlake’s legal world and the fascinating detail and colour which brings London in Spring 1543 to life. Once again we see Shardlake’s vulnerability – when an old friend is murdered in mystifying and frightening circumstances – and his moral strength as he faces the dangers of investigation. These dangers do not threaten only his life but of those around him; they also threaten his position and future, as he is drawn unwillingly again into the circle of the Tudor court where queens, and courtiers, often last only a short time. These are the only historical novels I have read which are truly page-turners in its meaning of ‘one more chapter before I turn out the light’.
Set at a time of radical religious reform, when saying the wrong thing may find you shamed, hanged or burned, Matthew is working on the case of a teenage boy sent to Bedlam hospital. Is he mad, or possessed by the devil? Is he safer in Bedlam or with his parents where he might escape and be burned as a heretic. When Matthew’s friend is found dead in bizarre circumstances he is charged with solving the crime by Archbishop Cranmer. Guy of Malton, former apothecary monk from Dissolution, the first book in the series, is now a doctor and has a theory that excludes God and religion. Could a serial killer be at loose?
If you want to lose yourself in book, to travel to another world and time, then try this series. I am already anticipating the loss when I have read the last book. But the Shardlake books have so much detail and depth with recurring characters who become familiar, I know I will be re-reading them soon.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ABOUT THIS BOOK AT AMAZON

And here are my reviews of other novels by CJ Sansom:-
DOMINION
DISSOLUTION #1SHARDLAKE
DARK FIRE #2SHARDLAKE
SOVEREIGN #3SHARDLAKE
HEARTSTONE #5SHARDLAKE
LAMENTATION #6SHARDLAKE

If you like this, try:-
‘Orphans of the Carnival’ by Carol Birch
‘The Lady of the Rivers’ by Philippa Gregory
‘The Cursed Wife’ by Pamela Hartshorne

And if you’d like to tweet a link to THIS post, here’s my suggested tweet:
#BookReview REVELATION by CJ Sansom #Tudor #detective https://wp.me/p5gEM4-4fU via @SandraDanby

#BookReview ‘The Last Protector’ by @AndrewJRTaylor #Historical

7 Replies

Fourth in the 17^th century crime series by Andrew Taylor, The Last Protector sees the return to London of Richard, Oliver Cromwell’s son, and last Protector of England before the restoration of the king in 1660. And it also heralds the central plot return of Cat Lovett. Ever since the first book in the series, I have waited for Cat to have a key role in the plot again. The story begins as James Marwood, clerk to the Under secretary of State to Lord Arlington, is sent to secretly observe a duel between two lords. Meanwhile Cat, now Mistress Hakesby and married to a frail elderly architect, meets a childhood acquaintance in the street. This is Elizabeth Cromwell, daughter of Richard. Remembering their friendship as a fleeting thing, Cat is confused by Elizabeth’s eagerness to rekindle their relationship. Until, visiting Elizabeth at her godmother’s house, she is introduced to a fellow guest John Cranmore. But a peculiar habit of tapping a finger on the table brings back memories for Cat, to the time when she and her father moved in elevated political circles, and she realizes Cranmore is a false name. Elizabeth, it becomes clear, is seeking a precious object hidden by her grandmother. The object is hidden in the Whitehall sewers beneath The Cockpit, site of the cockfighting pit, theatre and jumble of additional buildings. The Hakesbys have the architectural drawings and Elizabeth needs Cat’s help to instigate her search.
In the bigger picture, Easter holiday riots attacking brothels seem to be politically motivated. Holidays are notorious times for brawls by apprentices, but these riots by the Levellers seem encouraged by bawdy newssheets of questionable origin. The Levellers shout ‘we have been servants, but we will be masters now’. Marwood is attacked and chased around the back alleys of the City while Cat, helping Elizabeth retrieve the mysterious package, is chased and escapes with the help of Ferrus, a mazer scourer, the lowest of the low who clears blockages in the sewers.
Marwood and Cat share little page time but their separate stories and chases become entwined as the troublesome history of Cat’s dissenter father puts her in grave danger. And affecting everything are the political machinations and arguments between crown and government.
An excellent page-turner.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ABOUT THIS BOOK AT AMAZON

Read my reviews of the other books in this series:
THE ASHES OF LONDON #FIREOFLONDON1… and try the first paragraph of THE ASHES OF LONDON.
THE FIRE COURT #FIREOFLONDON2
THE KING’S EVIL #FIREOFLONDON3
THE ROYAL SECRET #FIREOFLONDON5
THE SHADOWS OF LONDON #FIREOFLONDON6

And a World War Two novel by the same author:-
THE SECOND MIDNIGHT

If you like this, try:-
‘The Wicked Cometh’ by Laura Carlin
‘The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock’ by Imogen Hermes Gowar
‘The Winter Garden’ by Nicola Cornick

And if you’d like to tweet a link to THIS post, here’s my suggested tweet:
#BookReview THE LAST PROTECTOR by @AndrewJRTaylor https://wp.me/p5gEM4-4tI via @SandraDanby

#BookReview ‘The Benefit of Hindsight’ by @susanhillwriter #crime

11 Replies

The Benefit of Hindsight is the tenth book in the Simon Serrailler series by Susan Hill and she covers a lot of ground. At the book’s heart, as with its predecessors, is the town of Lafferton and the Serrailler family. Crime, when it happens, affects so many people and Hill shows this effectively as more and more people are drawn into the aftermath. The themes of this book are post-traumatic-stress-disorder, pre-natal premonition and post-natal depression, art robbery and private v public healthcare. Written in a list it can seem clinical, but Hill is expert at winding together the personal lives of ordinary people so that you care about them. The continuity of the Serrailler family throughout the series adds the familiarity of real family issues that are not crime-related, just ordinary family stuff. Simon is struggling with the aftermath of his injury, not physically, but with panic attacks. His sister Cat has settled into her job with private GP service Concierge and it is Cat who meets two people central to the story; pregnant mum Carrie who unshakingly believes her baby will be born damaged; and Cindy, wife of businessman and charity supporter, Declan McDermid.
When a lonely house is burgled in a professionally assessed and organised operation, Simon’s team consults art and antique experts. A second burglary goes wrong, with far-reaching consequences for Simon. The meaning of the novel’s title is key to the plot affecting brother and sister, as Cat’s patient Carrie remains convinced the doctors are unable to diagnose the hidden disease of her newborn baby. As Carrie’s sense of despair deepens, her introverted husband Colin – who she fears would rather spend his time staring at his computer screen trading money, than talking to her – paces around the room ‘like a zoo animal’. The meaning of the book’s title is an indication that Hill is interested as much in the aftermath of a crime, as in the modus operandi of the crime itself. One of the reasons I enjoy this character-led series is the lack of gratuitous violence, I don’t need to skip paragraphs of gory description or violence. That is not to say the books are not thrilling, but they are deeper explorations of the motives, fears and reactions of everyone affected by crime. Importantly, Simon Serrailler is not a perfect policeman, a perfect man; occasionally he allows his own life and emotions to affect his decision-making and must face the consequences.
Susan Hill delivers yet another Serrailler book that does what it says on the tin. Well-written and plotted, familiar but with an unexpected twist, with Simon being strong and mysterious yet vulnerable.

Read my reviews of the other novels in the series:-
THE VARIOUS HAUNTS OF MEN #1SIMONSERRAILLER
THE PURE IN HEART #2SIMONSERRAILLER
THE RISK OF DARKNESS #3SIMONSERRAILLER
THE VOWS OF SILENCE #4SIMONSERRAILLER
THE SHADOWS IN THE STREET #5SIMONSERRAILLER
THE BETRAYAL OF TRUST #6SIMONSERRAILLER
A QUESTION OF IDENTITY #7SIMONSERRAILLER
THE SOUL OF DISCRETION #8SIMONSERRAILLER
THE COMFORTS OF HOME #9SIMONSERRAILLER
A CHANGE OF CIRCUMSTANCE #11SIMONSERRAILLER

And also by Susan Hill, HOWARD’S END IS ON THE LANDING

If you like this, try:-
‘A Rising Man’ by Abir Mukherjee #1WYNDHAM&BANERJEE
‘Elizabeth is Missing’ by Emma Healey
‘The Mystery of Three Quarters’ by Sophie Hannah #3POIROT

And if you’d like to tweet a link to THIS post, here’s my suggested tweet:
#BookReview THE BENEFIT OF HINDSIGHT by @susanhillwriter https://wp.me/p5gEM4-46A via @SandraDanby

#BookReview ‘The Art of the Imperfect’ by Kate Evans #Yorkshire #crime

6 Replies

The Art of the Imperfect by Kate Evans starts with a murder but this mystery set in a Yorkshire seaside town is not a thriller, it is not a police procedural, it is not cosy crime; it a story about the psychology of the people concerned and the after-effects of the event. Evans is a counsellor, like her protagonist Hannah Poole, and this allows her to bring an emotional depth and understanding to her characters. This is the first in the Scarborough Mysteries series and was longlisted for the Crime Writers Association Debut Dagger award in 2015. Like Emma Woodhouse, Hannah is a serial not-finisher. She has failed to finish training to be an accountant, a plumber and, twice, to be a counsellor. This is the third time she’s tried the counselling thing, and now she discovers a dead body. Her boss. A large number of characters are introduced in the first few pages, and names are littered around which I found dislocating. But I love the drawing of the Yorkshire setting, the town of Scarborough– my home town, so I am biased – the train journey to York, all done with a light hand. For example, ‘The sea is below them. Its solid air-force blue cracked open only occasionally by a filament of white. It has retreated away from the brown sand and weedy rocks and is quiet, with only a whisper coming in on its frosty exhale.’
Dr Themis Greene, a romanticised version of her ordinary-sounding real name, is psychology lecturer at the Centre for Therapy Excellence. Hannah, back in Scarborough and lodging with her parents, is studying at the Centre but longs for the action of the city. She misses London, her lodgings with landlord Lawrence, and her friends. As part of her qualification Hannah must see a counsellor herself and this is where her deeply-hidden fears emerge, the trauma of finding the body, other things she has tried to forget.
The post-murder story is told by three people – Hannah, Detective Sergeant Theo Akande and lawyer Aurora, new mother and Hannah’s neighbour. In passages of intense description, Evans describes the post-natal depression suffered by Aurora as her dreams turn to delusion. She alternates between suspecting her husband Max of violence, to fearing Mad and their son have been abducted and replaced by wolf man and wolf baby. Some of these passages are a little wild for my taste and I admit to skipping paragraphs.
Therapy is an unusual element of this character-led mystery, unusual also for its portfolio of characters without one key protagonist. Theo and Hannah are not a double-act solving murder in the tradition of crime fiction, but this is not a traditional crime series.

If you like this, try:-
‘Reservoir 13’ by Jon McGregor
‘The Silent Twin’ by Caroline Mitchell
‘The Killing of Polly Carter’ by Robert Thorogood

And if you’d like to tweet a link to THIS post, here’s my suggested tweet:
#BookReview THE ART OF THE IMPERFECT by Kate Evans https://wp.me/p5gEM4-3Uz via @SandraDanby

#BookReview ‘Sovereign’ by CJ Sansom #Tudor #detective

7 Replies

Sovereign by CJ Sansom is third in the Matthew Shardlake series and the best so far. Taking true events –Henry VIII’s Royal Progress to York in 1541, the northern rebellion against the crown and the rumours of Queen Catherine’s infidelity – Sansom writes a complex story of rebels, betrayal, bastards and inheritance that keeps one more page turning. Lawyer Shardlake is in York at the bequest of Archbishop Cranmer ostensibly to present legal petitions to the King, but he also has a secret task. To watch over the welfare of a Yorkist prisoner, ensuring the man is kept alive and able to be interrogated in London. Shardlake agrees reluctantly, aware he will be keeping alive a man destined for torture and the rack. But a series of odd events make him question his role in York and whether his life is in danger. This is a densely plotted novel with many clues and dead ends as Shardlake tries to find answers – to the murder of a local glazier removing glass from church windows, to an old legend about royal succession, to the connivings and hidden intentions of some of the ladies employed by the Queen, and why an old enemy is rousing dissent against Shardlake. As always, he is determined to stay on the side of what is right; which lands him in trouble. At his side, Barak defends his master and cautions him to stop annoying powerful people by asking difficult questions and failing to fall into line. But this is the reason Shardlake is so popular with readers; when his hunched back is ridiculed by the king, no less, it made me want to shout out aloud.
The mid-sixteenth century is a dark point in history with an arrogant and obsessive king, an obsequious court, and corruption everywhere. Set mostly in York, this novel has a different feel to the previous two. The politics of the time saw Yorkshire punished for its support of the House of York and its opposition to the Tudors, there was much poverty, starvation and injustice. So, fertile ground for Sansom to use as the basis for Sovereign, writing period detail with the tension of a modern thriller as Shardlake questions his own beliefs and values. Uncomfortable reading in places, doing the right thing is sometimes easy to talk about but not always easy to do.
Very good.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ABOUT THIS BOOK AT AMAZON

And here are my reviews of other novels by CJ Sansom:-
DOMINION
DISSOLUTION #1SHARDLAKE
DARK FIRE #2SHARDLAKE
REVELATION #4SHARDLAKE
HEARTSTONE #5SHARDLAKE
LAMENTATION #6SHARDLAKE

If you like this, try:-
‘Dark Aemilia’ by Sally O’Reilly
‘The Ashes of London’ by Andrew Taylor
‘Lord John and the Private Matter’ by Diana Gabaldon

And if you’d like to tweet a link to THIS post, here’s my suggested tweet:
#BookReview SOVEREIGN by CJ Sansom #Tudor #detective https://wp.me/p5gEM4-3YA via @SandraDanby

My Porridge & Cream read Susanna Beard @SusannaBeard25 #books #Pooh

#BookReview ‘Five Days of Fog’ by Anna Freeman #thriller #crime

3 Replies

Five Days of Fog by Anna Freeman about the queen of a female crime syndicate coming out of prison reminds me of Martina Cole’s books. It is 1952 and as Florrie Palmer waits for her mother Ruby to return home, she must make a decision about the direction of her own life. London remains in the grip of ruins from the war and Florrie is firmly embedded in the family gang, donning disguises to steal, feeling secure in the circle of women who support each other. But she also applies for a job as a telephonist, carefully practising her accent.
The action is framed by five days of fog, both physical and perceived. So dense is visibility that cars crash, chemicals cause lung infections and people are coughing up dirt. The fog offers opportunities for thieves but it also disguises the truth and lies told to each other by the gang as they face a turning point. Old lies are perpetuated, new lies told with a smile, some members are out for their own benefit; others are tired of the secrets and politicking, and just want to get back to what they do best. Freeman’s fog is based on the real Great Smog of 1952 when an anticyclone pushed down all the filth in the air from industry, motor vehicle fumes and smoke from coal fires; it was followed in 1956 by the Clean Air Act.
The Palmer women form the Cutters, a fictional women’s gang named for The New Cut, a London market where the first group of women, tired of poverty and scrubbing floors, started shoplifting. When queen Ruby comes out of jail on early release, she has TB. As jostling begins in anticipation of the crowning of a new queen, there is a potentially bigger problem risking the survival of the Cutters and the male gang, the Goddens [the Palmer girls marry Godden boys, keeping the two gangs linked by DNA]; someone is grassing them up to the police. Trust is fractured, suspicious run rife, knives are carried, somewhere there is a gun. The story is told from multiple viewpoints – Florrie, Ruby, Nell, Ted – possibly too many. Is Florrie the grass? After all, she has dreams of going straight and marrying Nell’s son Ted, her quiet second cousin. If Ruby dies, Florrie will be in line to take over as queen. Or will Ruby’s blustering be-ringed sister Maggie take over? What about Ada, Ruby’s elderly aunt? Or is Harry Godden the queenmaker? Florrie and Ted are drawn into the gang by the family’s tentacles that keep the gang strong, safe and in the family.
I finished this book with mixed feelings. I admire the writing but don’t like any of the women and don’t feel convinced by the world created, though I can’t pin down why. I continued reading through the jumble of family background and names in the first half because I was curious about the identity of the grass. For me, the book took off in the second half as Nell’s story ignites. But the star of this book for me is Freeman’s masterful use of the fog.
If you are a fan of Freeman’s debut, The Fair Fight, be prepared for something completely different.

Read my review of THE FAIR FIGHT, also by Anna Freeman.

If you like this, try:-
‘Beginnings’ by Helen Christmas #1SAMEFACEDIFFERENTPLACE
‘Hangover Square’ by Patrick Hamilton
‘Never’ by Ken Follett

And if you’d like to tweet a link to THIS post, here’s my suggested tweet:
#BookReview FIVE DAYS OF FOG by Anna Freeman https://wp.me/p5gEM4-3U7 via @SandraDanby

My Porridge & Cream read… Sue Featherstone @SueF_Writer #books #humour #chicklit

#BookReview ‘The Mystery of Three Quarters’ by Sophie Hannah @sophiehannahCB1 #crime #mystery

7 Replies

I am not a great lover of continuation series, books written by a new author after the death of the much-loved originator. It seems a cynical moneymaking move and I fear it will ruin my love of the original author’s books. I grew up loving Agatha Christie and have not, until now, been tempted to read the new Poirot stories by Sophie Hannah. But about to go on holiday, feeling tired and longing for something familiar but new, I picked up The Mystery of Three Quarters. And what a delight it is. The story starts as Poirot is challenged in turn by four strangers, each accusing him of naming them as a murderer. Affronted that fraudulent letters have been sent in his name, Poirot sets out to investigate. He suspects however that the supposed victim Barnabas Pandy does not exist. But Pandy does exist, or did, for 94-year old Barnabas Pandy is dead, drowned in his bath. Told by Poirot’s police sidekick, Inspector Edward Catchpool, this is a clever and mystifying story of Pandy, his two grand-daughters, and long-buried guilt and shame.
Hannah writes with ease and I slipped seamlessly into loving and believing in her Poirot. As with all good crime fiction, I had suspicions about the identity of the murderer but only during Poirot’s customary reveal did I connect together the unpredictable clues laid so carefully throughout the novel. And as always, it is satisfying to know I had guessed correctly. At 400 printed pages The Mystery of Three Quarters is longer than Christie’s Poirot novels, which come in at under 300 pages, but I flew through it in one day. Just the ticket for a holiday read.

And here are my reviews of other Poirot books by Sophie Hannah:-
THE MONOGRAM MURDERS #1POIROT
THE KILLINGS AT KINGFISHER HILL #4POIROT

If you like this, try:-
‘The Silent Twin’ by Caroline Mitchell
‘An Uncertain Place’ by Fred Vargas #8COMMISSAIREADAMSBERG
‘A Death in the Dales’ by Kate Brody #7KATESHACKLETON

And if you’d like to tweet a link to THIS post, here’s my suggested tweet:
#BookReview THE MYSTERY OF THREE QUARTERS by Sophie Hannah @sophiehannahCB1 https://wp.me/p5gEM4-3yD via @Sandra Danby

	#BookReview ‘The Tus… on #BookReview ‘The Sicilian Secr…
	#BookReview ‘The Tus… on #BookReview ‘The Lost Garden…
	#BookReview ‘The Sic… on #BookReview ‘The Lost Garden…
	#BookReview ‘The Pos… on #BookReview ‘The Sicilian Secr…
	#BookReview ‘The Pos… on #BookReview ‘The Lost Garden…

SANDRA DANBY'S BOOK REVIEWS

Sharing thoughts on the books I read, new authors, favourite authors, classics re-visisted

Tag Archives: crime fiction

#BookReview ‘Heartstone’ by CJ Sansom #Tudor #detective

#BookReview ‘Revelation’ by CJ Sansom #Tudor #detective

#BookReview ‘The Last Protector’ by @AndrewJRTaylor #Historical

#BookReview ‘The Benefit of Hindsight’ by @susanhillwriter #crime

#BookReview ‘The Art of the Imperfect’ by Kate Evans #Yorkshire #crime

#BookReview ‘Sovereign’ by CJ Sansom #Tudor #detective

My Porridge & Cream read Susanna Beard @SusannaBeard25 #books #Pooh

#BookReview ‘Five Days of Fog’ by Anna Freeman #thriller #crime

My Porridge & Cream read… Sue Featherstone @SueF_Writer #books #humour #chicklit

#BookReview ‘The Mystery of Three Quarters’ by Sophie Hannah @sophiehannahCB1 #crime #mystery

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