James Craig (5)

This is an ok Police novel set in London.
Inspector John Carlyle with the help of his new Sargent Umar Sligo have a few crimes they need to solve.
A man was shot in a childs play park
A body without a head is found
An old man is tied up outside the Police station.
A hunt for a young missing Japanese woman
None of these cases are linked.
Plus Carlyle's Mum has just died.
Carlyle manages to solve the crimes he does want to do a bit extra he wants to make sure the girl whose Dad was shot is taken care of by her Grandparents as it was the Girls Mum who arranged the murder.
ok book… (más)

Volle Punktzahl für einen Cop, der weder Alk- noch andere Drogenprobleme hat, kein Kindheitstrauma aufarbeiten muß, eine ganz normale Ehe führt statt alles flachzulegen, was sich Journalistin/Kollegin/whateverin nennt und auch ansonsten keine Leichen im Psychokeller hat, dafür aber seinen Job mit aller gebotenen Ernsthaftigkeit angeht. Und das ist knackig geschrieben, hält die Spannung durchgehend auf hohem Level und läßt mich bereits nach den anderen Stories mit Inspector Carlyle schielen. Ist ja selten genug, solche glaubwürdigen Normalos in aktuellen Krimis überhaupt noch zu finden...… (más)

I have never read any of the Inspector Carlyle series by this author, but I picked up this novella a few years ago due to its setting in summer 1984 during the miners' strike, a seminal political experience during my young adult life as it was for many others of my generation. Carlyle is at this early point in his career a young constable sent up to Yorkshire, the heart of the dispute, with many others, to face the flying pickets and allow strikebreakers to get to work. This was a highly politicised time and this strike was very controversial and bitter, much more so than any recent industrial disputes have been. The plot revolves around the murder of Beatrice Slater, a politically active 78 year old lady, in a very clear echo of the real life Hilda Murrell case. No spoilers here, but the plot involves a lot of casual violence and simmering conflict and ends up with a tragic case of injustice. This said, I was only starting to warm slightly to Carlyle by the end, and didn't care for the other characters, so I don't feel particularly tempted to try any of the others.… (más)