Review: THREE STATIONS by Martin Cruz Smith, published by Simon & Schuster
I have always had a soft spot for Martin Cruz Smith’s book, ever since I first read GORKY PARK, the book that introduced Arkady Renko, the disillusioned cop of Moscow’s police force. There are several books in the series, and I find each of them utterly captivating. Yes, they are page-turners, and they have great … Continue reading
Review: MIDNIGHT IN PEKING by Paul French, published by Penguin
I’ve spent quite some times reviewing crime books recently, and here’s another – except this one isn’t fiction. In the early morning in January 1937 the body of a late-teenaged British girl, Pamela, daughter of the city’s former consul, ETC Werner. She had been appallingly mutilated, and even her breast had been opened and her … Continue reading
Review: ALL THE LONELY PEOPLE by Martin Edwards, published by New English Library
I have written already about a Martin Edwards book, THE DEVIL IN DISGUISE. This was the second book of his, which was irritatingly a book earlier in his Harry Devlin series, but which was superbly well written. Martin’s books had a bit of a choppy beginning, I think. This was originally published by Judy Piatkus … Continue reading
Review: THE DEVIL IN DISGUISE, by Martin Edwards, first published 1998 by Hodder & Stoughton
Martin Edwards is probably best known for his Liverpool-based stories starring the lawyer Harry Devlin, a series that shows the grimy, gritty (and often pungent) back streets of the city as well as the more salubrious neighbourhoods. There is a lot more to Liverpool than the Liver building and the Beatles, after all. A lawyer … Continue reading
Review: THE DIPLOMAT’S WIFE by Michael Ridpath
Well, recently I reviewed the first of Michael Ridpath’s books, and it’s only natural that I should follow it up with the latest of his books: THE DIPLOMAT’S WIFE. Disclosure – I know Michael quite well, and have enjoyed several glasses of wine with him at crime writer gatherings over the years. In fact, that … Continue reading
Review: FREE TO TRADE by Michael Ridpath
First published by William Heinemann, 1995 This was Michael Ridpath’s first novel, and I still rate it very highly. Recently I was sent a copy of Ridpath’s THE DIPLOMAT’S WIFE, and it gripped me as Ridpath’s books always do. I read it, and will supply a review shortly, but before I do that, I was … Continue reading
Review: LAST DAYS IN CLEAVER SQUARE
A new book by Patrick McGrath is, I am assured, one of those writers who can pull apart our darkest fears and expose them to us without making us flee them, to paraphrase New Statesman. I can see why his work is popular. In this story, an old man, Francis McNulty, is coming to terms … Continue reading
Review: THE DROWNED CITY, by K.J. Maitland
Published by Headline Review in hardback, paperback, ebook and audio. Hardback published 1st April 2021, £16.99 A book by KJ Maitland is always something to savour. She has an enviable reputation both as a crime writer and expert in the beliefs and daily lives of our ancestors. In previous books she has delved into the … Continue reading
Managed Isolation Quarantine
The UK is operating a hotel-based isolation system for arrivals to the UK from certain countries and I thought it might be useful to give my own impressions of living in quarantine. Last year we had bad news. One week after cycling all around Lake Taupo, a total of over 150 km, our brother Alan, … Continue reading
Review: THE LAST BERSERKER by Angus Donald, Canelo
ISBN e-book: 978 1 80032 186 1 £3.99 Paperback: 978 1 80032 187 8 £8.99 I am not big on Vikings. I read a lot about them in the 1980s, but there was not a lot in their history that grabbed my attention. I was always more drawn to the first kings … Continue reading
Flickr Photos
-
-
writerlywitterings 