T. A. Williams

I came to this book knowing nothing about it. I’m leaving it unfinished at 50%, knowing I hate pretty much everything about it…

First of all, it’s rare that I read a novel and can tell after 5% that the author is an old white man. Why, you ask? Well, the hero, a retired police detective, never stops lamenting about his estranged and soon-to-be ex-wife while at the same time never stopping to ogle and lust after other women. Always commenting on their bodies, never on anything else…

»She had short hair and was wearing no make-up but didn’t need any.«

How very generous of him! The hero also keeps assigning “funny” nicknames to everyone around him, e. g. “»Agatha (aka Marge Simpson)« or the housekeeper/valet whom he calls “Dracula”. Of course, he’d never say that to anyone’s face.

Also, our hero is full of entitled self-pity and oh-so-funny remarks…

»This is justifiably reputed to be one of the greatest works of art in the world but all I can say is that it was probably a very cold day when Michelangelo sculpted the part of the statue’s anatomy that was attracting most of the attention.«

Also, this thing is excessively boring. Together with the turd that came before it, it induced the worst reading slump in my life so far.

The entire novel consists primarily of sexism, clichés and stereotypes and is so full of everything I do not like at all, that I can only actively warn against reading this.

To round this up, here’s all you probably want to know about Williams in his own words…

“Firstly, my name isn't T A. It's Trevor. I write under the androgynous name T A Williams because 65% of books are read by women. In my first book, "What Happens in Devon" one of the (female) characters suggests the imbalance is due to the fact that men spend too much time getting drunk and watching football. I couldn't possibly comment. Ask my wife…”

Amusingly, my wife actually read this in parallel (without either of us knowing that!) and gave up at almost exactly the same point and she had exactly the same things to say about - just in a less friendly way than I do here…

One star out of five for this streaming pile of faeces.

Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Mastodon | Instagram | Pinterest | Medium | Matrix | Tumblr

Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam… (más)

Dan Armstrong, retired Chief Inspector of Scotland Yard, now private detective/writer in Tuscany, is prevailed upon by a former colleague to go the Italian Alps to check on the colleague's sister who is involved in a mysterious death this side of the Matterhorn. The crew he is to infiltrate are alien hunters and are trying to pass the death off as a Extra-Terrestrial visitation gone wrong. Dan with his faithful black lab, Oscar, soon learn of the disagreements among the crew.

I found this series about a year ago and fell in love with the mysteries but especially the characters. The descriptions of the areas visited as well as the plot are great!… (más)

Dan Armstrong, a retired UK Scotland Yard inspector turned mystery novelist, is on holiday in Siena with his new girlfriend, Anna, his dog, Oscar, and his friend from the Tuscany police and his wife.

While sightseeing they become acquainted with a group of scientists in Tuscany for a meeting. When one of their number is found dead apparently mulled by a wolf, the police as Dan to be their interpreter with the group. When the medical examination shows that it wasn't a wolf but a man, Dan is needed even more.

This is a great series. The characters are interesting and the writing is great.… (más)