Book Review: The Incredulity of Father Brown by G.K. Chesterton

Despite owning all the Father Brown stories, I'm taking my time reading them because I enjoy them so much. You can find my reviews of Innocence and Wisdom here and here but Incredulity is the third collection and feels as though it goes in a slightly different direction.

Location plays a big part in these stories with Father Brown encountering different cultures and, significantly, several of them are set in America. I like these explorations and it's amusing how Father Brown is never a fish out of water - he blends into the background of any community.

I enjoyed all the stories in this collection. However, some are more enjoyable than others, of course. 'The Resurrection of Father Brown' is the first story and begins with the cleric's death. It's a charming little story, made all the more enjoyable by his irritation at becoming a celebrity. 'The Arrow of Heaven' deals with the murder of a millionaire, a circumstance that 'is, for some reason, treated as a sort of calamity'. Chesterton, naturally, then proceeds to include three dead millionaires in his story. In 'The Oracle of the Dog' I was tickled by the resolution and the peculiar murder of Warren Wynd in 'The Miracle of Moon Crescent' had me completely perplexed for a time. While I enjoyed the sensory details and depictions in 'The Curse of the Golden Cross', that might've been the weakest story in terms of progression, for me anyway. 'The Dagger with Wings' is one of the more atmospheric pieces, although I was slightly disappointed with the ending, probably on grounds of personal preference.

The final two stories in the collection are my favourites. 'The Doom of the Darnaways' takes the old trope of a decaying British manor with a foreign heir and creates a memorable story revolving around a photograph. In that story, the last lines are typical of Father Brown and, perhaps, that's why I enjoyed it so much. Lastly, 'The Ghost of Gideon Wise' really kept me on my toes with an atmospheric look at the murders of another three millionaires. That Chesterton still has the ability to startle me after three volumes of Father Brown stories is delightful.

These are gentle mysteries that visit the hard edges of humanity. If that sounds like a contradiction then that's probably because you're unfamiliar with the central character. There are lengthy dialogue digressions which won't appeal to all but I like being made to think as well as follow a mystery to its conclusion. I'll ration myself again before I read the fourth collection, The Secret of Father Brown.

Television Review: River

It's been a long time since I published a television review on the blog. In fact, checking back through the list, the last one was Happy Valley in June last year. I suppose it's only right that my review this time should be the outstanding hit of 2015, while Happy Valley was undoubtedly the 2014 equivalent.

River begins as a typical crime drama. There are two officers in a car, vastly different in personality but very at ease with each other. It turns into a chase with a suspect that results in the young man jumping from a balcony. Then, ten minutes in, the twist emerges and you realise this isn't your typical crime drama with a love story thrown in for good measure: it's so much better than that.

The twist is that DI River (Stellan Skarsgård) is talking to a manifestation of his dead partner DS 'Stevie' Stevenson (Nicola Walker) as he attempts to find the person who brutally gunned her down in the middle of the street. From childhood, River has struggled with these manifestations, a recurrent one being the nineteenth-century poisoner Thomas Cream (Eddie Marsan). River is quick to point out to his therapist Rosa Fallows (Georgina Rich) that these aren't ghosts he sees and this is evident in the narrative - Stevie never gives River fresh information that aids the case but we see her reacting to the secrets he uncovers about her life in a way that says more about him than her. It's exquisitely clever and, from the pen of Abi Morgan who also wrote The Hour, I expected nothing less. 

At the heart of River is an eccentric man trying desperately to solve the murder of one of the few people in the world who he ever allowed himself to be close to (though not close enough). It's a love story about closing the chapter with Stevie but it's also about him opening up to other people in his life such as Rosa, DCI Chrissie Read (Lesley Manville) and DS Ira King (Adeel Akhtar). While the twists and turns of the actual murder investigation held my interest, the focus on River himself was far more riveting and the entire cast is phenomenal.

Ultimately, while River startled and unsettled me at times, it also made me smile. The final minutes of the first and last episodes are stunning and I'm not ashamed to say I ended this one in tears. It was one heck of a rollercoaster ride over six weeks and I loved it. 

Book Review: Murder on a Summer's Day by Frances Brody

Murder on a Summer's Day is the fifth book in the Kate Shackleton mystery series that I so adore (the previous four have all been reviewed on this blog). Set in the 1920s in Yorkshire, this series follows a private investigator and, in this novel, Brody brings a touch of India to the Yorkshire countryside.

Kate is asked by her cousin to travel to Bolton Abbey to help find Maharajah Narayan, a distinguished visitor who disappeared while hunting. When she arrives at the scene Kate finds puzzle after puzzle blocking her path and it soon transpires she's involved in yet another murder case. Superstitious locals believe shooting a white doe was the reason Narayan died but there's a missing diamond and an unsuitable local girlfriend waiting in the wings. Kate keeps coming up against brick walls, despite the aid of her partner Jim Sykes and housekeeper Mrs Sudgen and the mystery builds gently as the book progresses.

I thoroughly enjoyed the layering of Indian culture on the Yorkshire setting. It added a new dimension to Brody's books, which are already uniquely enjoyable (for me) because of the three key ingredients of a female detective, period setting and the base in Yorkshire. The mystery itself ties together the English and the Indian aspects of plot with plenty of twists and turns along the way and some completely believable characters. There are a couple of especially memorable scenes, specifically one involving a snake and another involving a fire, both of which have lingered with me since I finished reading.

In fairness, I don't think Frances Brody could write a Kate Shackleton novel that I didn't enjoy but that doesn't mean this one isn't worth reading. Once again, Brody refrains from neat conclusions and, beyond that, I seriously hope the question she posed in the last line of this book is answered in the next. It's a frivolous fangirly question but I still care nonetheless.

This book was read as part of the 'Women' reading challenge, details here.

Book Review: Murder in the Afternoon by Frances Brody

Murder in the Afternoon is the third book in the Kate Shackleton series of mysteries that I've become rather addicted to (see reviews of Dying in the Wool, A Medal for Murder and A Woman Unknown). Set in Yorkshire in the 1920s, this novel blends the personal with the professional for amateur detective Kate. In the middle of the night she is visited by Mary Jane Armstrong who asserts that her two children found the body of their father at the quarry where he works. However, the body has since disappeared and the police aren't taking the matter seriously. Kate's discovery that Mary Jane is her sister leads not only to her taking the case but also visiting the mother who gave her up for adoption as a baby. Once again, Kate is determined to solve the mystery but this time there's more at stake.

Something I've enjoyed in previous books - the intimate descriptions of the Yorkshire locality - jumped to the fore in Murder in the Afternoon. A large proportion of it is set in and around Wakefield and I was thoroughly delighted to be following Kate through areas I know so well, allowing me to catalogue the differences a century can make. There's something about finding a book with locations you recognise that makes you feel closer to the text and it's definitely contributed to my overall love of the series.

As for the mystery itself, the familial tinge makes this novel different to the others. Kate's interactions with her hitherto unknown niece and nephew are particularly interesting, as is the contrast between the life she's had and the one she could've led. To offset this biological family there are more appearances than usual by Kate's adoptive parents in some amusing scenes involving their house being used as bait in a matrimonial trap. All this gives Murder in the Afternoon a distinctive flavour, while there's still a mystery at the heart of it.

Did I guess the killer this time? I suspected, but only because Brody wanted me to I think. I was nowhere near the 'why' and the unravelling at the end of the book was enjoyable in that respect. However, what I ultimate took from this book was a greater sense of Kate Shackleton the character - along with some brilliant depictions of 1920s Wakefield.

Book Review: A Medal for Murder by Frances Brody

A Medal for Murder is the second book in the series of 1920s detective novels centred around the character of Kate Shackleton (of which I've read books one and four already). This one begins with Kate and her partner Jim being hired to investigate a robbery at a pawn-shop which could prove embarrassing for both the owner and his clients. She combines a trip to Harrogate to watch an amateur production of Anna and the Five Towns with delivering the news of the theft to one of the clients, but she finds the house doesn't exist. More pressingly, as she leaves the theatre later that night she stumbles over the dead body of local car salesman Mr Milner. The leading lady of the play has gone missing and a ransom note delivered and Kate soon finds herself tangled in a web of deceit that goes back to the Boer War.

As with the other books in this series, I enjoyed A Medal for Murder. I think what I especially like is the location, unsurprisingly enough. I adore being taken through Yorkshire in the 1920s and Brody is excellent at evoking both the time and place. Kate Shackleton is a very good protagonist to take us on the tour too, with a forward-thinking attitude that captures the essence of the era whilst still appealing to a modern reader.

The murder mystery itself was cleverly constructed and, though I knew the main suspects couldn't be the killer, I couldn't put my finger on who it was until Kate herself did. As with the other two novels, I enjoyed the ride and the amusing asides littered throughout the narrative. Brody's good at developing self-centred characters and there are some crackers in this novel. However, it also asks some powerful questions about guilt and responsibility, ending up ambivalent about punishment in more than one strand of the plot. That's something I noted in Dying in the Wool too and I appreciate the indecision - it makes the series feel very human.

Book Review: Dead To Me by Cath Staincliffe

A prequel novel to the television series Scott & Bailey, Dead To Me follows DC Rachel Bailey as she joins MIT and gets to grips with the case of a young woman found dead in her flat. Rachel clashes with her new team, especially DC Janet Scott who sees her as immature and impulsive but DCI Gill Murray believes she'll be a useful addition to the team. As the investigation wears on, spectres from both Rachel and Janet's pasts unsettle them but they gradually learn to work together.

With a book like this, there was the chance it would turn into a second-rate spin-off novel. However, written by someone with the talent and expertise of Staincliffe and deliberately filling in a gap in the series rather than recounting a tale we already know from the screen, I found it brilliant. Anyone familiar with the series will know that an integral aspect are the relationships between Rachel, Janet and Gill. Dead To Me sets all this up perfectly, showing the rocky start of what would become Rachel and Janet's friendship whilst staying completely true to the characters. It felt like I was watching it in my head and nothing really stuck out as 'wrong'. Even so, I believe even people unfamiliar with the television series would enjoy it - all the main characters are introduced and explored properly but generally - and this is important - in relations to the investigation.

I don't want to give too much of the crime plot away. All I'll say it that I had an inkling but I wasn't sure until the detectives were sure, just as it should be. Also, Staincliffe's immersion into the more prosaic elements of crime detection mimics the series, coming across as completely authentic without being too boring.

All in all, this was an excellent book. I felt like I'd spent time with three of my favourite television characters whilst still enjoying a twisting murder plot. Thoroughly recommended.

This book was read as part of the 'New Author' reading challenge, details here.

2015 Reading Challenges Master List

In a bid to make up for my lacklustre attempts at reading as many books as I'd like to in the last few years, I've signed up for five separate reading challenges for 2015. While I could place books on two lists, I haven't done that. The idea is to read as many books as possible and broaden my horizons a little bit. I'll probably fail miserably but I'm going to have fun trying with this lot.

New Author Challenge

Hosted by Literary Escapism, this challenge does what it says on the tin - you have to read a set amount of new authors in 2015. I'm opting into the lowest rung of fifteen novels which may make me a bit of a wimp but I want to try and complete it after all. I've listed the precise books I intend to read and not just the authors because the rest of the lists will look like this and I'm nothing if not methodical. It's a reasonable mix of modern novels and older stuff. 

1. The Middlesteins by Jami Attenberg
2. After Me Comes the Flood by Sarah Perry
3. The Failed Assassin by Richard Pierce
4. Dead to Me by Cath Staincliffe
5. The Accidental Mother by Rowan Coleman
6. Heresy by S.J. Parris
7. The Bawdy Basket by Edward Marston
8. The Lost Abbot by Susanna Gregory
9. The Heir of Redclyffe by Charlotte Yonge
10. Patricia Brent, Spinster by Herbert George Jenkins
11. The Betrothed by Alessandro Manzoni
12. The Mystery of a Hansom Cab by Fergus Hume
13. King Solomon's Mines by Henry Rider Haggard
14. The Angel of Terror by Edgar Wallace
15. The Bartlett Mystery by Louis Tracy

Women Challenge

Hosted by Peek a booK!, the idea is to get people reading more books by women. While that's probably my default position anyway, it can't hurt to make it official and, besides, it's setting in stone that I need to read some of those classics I've so far neglected. I'm opting for the second level which is six to fifteen books and aiming for the higher end of that category.

1. The Mill on the Floss by George Eliot
2. Brick Mother by S.J. Bradley
3. The Lovels of Arden by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
4. The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters
5. Here Be Dragons by Stella Gibbons
6. Sylvia's Lovers by Elizabeth Gaskell
7. In the Days of My Youth by Amelia Edwards
8. Murder on a Summer's Day by Frances Brody
9. Mathilda by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
10. Camilla by Fanny Burney
11. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
12. Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell
13. Nancy by Rhoda Broughton
14. Miss Marjoribanks by Margaret Oliphant
15. The Story of an African Farm by Olive Schreiner

TBR Challenge

Hosted by Roof Beam Reader, this is the challenge I failed miserably at last year, only getting through five of my choices. As a consequence, several of these books are appearing on the list for the second year running and I'll try to do better this time. As per the rules, all of these books have been waiting to be read for at least a year and there are twelve books on this list. 

1. Author, Author by David Lodge
2. Mutants by Armand Marie Leroi
3. Radclyffe Hall: A Woman Called John by Sally Cline
4. The Lazy Tour of Two Idle Apprentices by Charles Dickens and Wilkie Collins
5. The Secret Diaries of Miss Anne Lister
6. 800 Years of Women's Letters
7. Collected Stories by Dylan Thomas
8. Henry Dunbar by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
9. The New Magdalen by Wilkie Collins
10. Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens
11. The Moon and Sixpence by W. Somerset Maugham
12. Witch Stories by Eliza Lynn Linton

Victorian Bingo Challenge

This one, hosted by Becky's Book Reviews, is rather fun. You have to complete a row, line or diagonal on the bingo board and, again, I'm using this challenge to read books I should've read already. I've gone across the top, mainly because I wanted to avoid some categories that would likely put me off the challenge and there are five books involved in this one.

1. Book Published in the 1840s - Dombey and Son by Charles Dickens
2. Male Author - The Warden by Anthony Trollope
3. Female Author - Charlotte's Inheritance by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
4. Book with a Name as the Title - Felix Holt, the Radical by George Eliot
5. Book Published in Serial Format - The Cloister and the Hearth by Charles Reade

Reading England Challenge

Hosted by Behold the Stars, this challenge is to read books set in different parts of the country. I'm opting for level two which is four to six books and aiming for the higher number again. I've deliberately filled this selection with classics too, probably because I'm a glutton for punishment.

1. Berkshire - Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy
2. Essex - Barnaby Rudge by Charles Dickens
3. Derbyshire - Rookwood by W.H. Ainsworth
4. Nottinghamshire - Sons and Lovers by D.H. Lawrence
5. Somerset - Lorna Doone by R.D. Blackmore
6. Lancashire - Mary Barton by Elizabeth Gaskell

My Favourite Books of 2014

When I look back at 2014, books aren't really the aspect that sticks out, which is a terrible shame. I haven't read that many - at least not as many as I feel I should've - so this list was actually very easy to compile. I think it's certainly eclectic anyway. My complete book review list for 2014 can be found here.

Jill by Amy Dillwyn

This delightful romp was something I picked up in Gay's the Word in London and turned out to be my spontaneous book purchase of the year. This is a funny book that alters tone later on and proves to be memorable for several reasons. My full review can be found here. 

The Siege of Krishnapur by J.G. Farrell

As the last book I read in 2014, this is obviously fresh in my memory but, from the moment I started it, there was no question it would make this list. Funny, grotesque, realistic, haunting: pick almost any word of praise and you can apply it to this novel. My full review can be found here. 

The Orphan Choir by Sophie Hannah

I'm not normally one for scary books but, as Hannah is one of the few authors I make sure to buy, I thought I'd give it a go. I was very impressed with the build-up and the haunting ending that stayed with me for weeks afterwards. I'd revisit it but I'm worried about being unsettled again. My full review can be found here. 

Die a Dry Death by Greta van der Rol

Speaking of unsettling, this one fits that category as well. Based on a true story of a shipwreck, it is both painful to read and utterly riveting. Again, it stayed with me for a while and, though not a book to take lightly, it's certainly one worth reading. My full review can be found here. 

Persuasion by Jane Austen

Although I'll admit that the exposition at the beginning of this one irritated me a little, the rest of the novel more than made up for it. Filled with Austen's witty dialogue and sneaky examinations of life, this is possibly my favourite Austen to date. My full review can be found here. 

Book Review: The Loyal Servant by Eva Hudson

Caroline Barber is a civil servant juggling work and family, a little unsuccessfully. Things get worse when she finds her boss, a senior politician, dead at his desk. The evidence all points to suicide but Caroline has her suspicions. Her covert investigations bring her into contact with newspaper report Angela Tate, herself fighting against the spectre of redundancy at her paper. She needs a good story and she thinks she's found one with the political cover up that seems to be going on around academy building projects. However, there are forces at work which neither expect and which threaten Caroline's family and life.

This is a very well-structured novel. The plot is good and the gradual revelation of all the various secrets was enough to keep me interested. However, I had some personal gripes reading it which, to be fair, are probably more about me than the novel itself. 

I didn't feel that the characters - with the exception of the wonderful Angela - were well-rounded enough. With Caroline, especially, her quest is explained but the forces which govern her family life are left until much later in the novel. I understand why this is from a plot point of view, but it left me struggling to connect with her for a while. She's certainly an 'everywoman' kind of character but I wanted a little more than that a little earlier. Similarly, a convention of chapter endings in books like these seemed to get on my nerves - there was very little respite with dialogue ending nearly every chapter and rushing you on into the next. I wanted more introspection, more thought that was not overtly connected to the main plot but, again, that was probably just me. 

I did enjoy this book, more than the criticisms above suggest. I rushed through it because I was eager to get to the root of the mystery and I found myself inwardly cheering every time Angela Tate crossed the page. The little investigative double-act which emerges out of the initially difficult relationship she and Caroline have is an enjoyable one; for me, that was easily the best relationship in the novel. 

Worth a read if you're more into these kinds of books than I am but also if you like your journalists bitchy and forthright - Angela Tate is fabulous. 

Book Review: The Leavenworth Case by Anna Katharine Green

The Leavenworth Case is told from the point of view of lawyer Mr Raymond as he gets drawn into a mysterious murder inquiry. Mr Leavenworth has been found shot dead in his library by his secretary, Mr Harwell. The house has been locked overnight and the only people inside were Harwell, the servants and Leavenworth's two nieces, Mary and Eleanor. The curious thing about Mary and Eleanor is that, simply by virtue of being prettier, Mary will inherit all her uncle's money. Does that give Eleanor or her sister the motive for murder? And why is one of the servants missing?

I enjoyed the plot of this book. I thought it was clever, though it felt a little static in the middle before Raymond set off on his mission to locate the missing servant. The resolution surprised me, though, and that's always a good thing with a murder mystery. However, about a third of the way into the book, I lost faith with the narrator and I found it difficult to recover from that. It was very difficult for me to accept that Raymond had not considered an alternative to one of his assumptions at all and, after that, I treated him as a guide but nothing more. I didn't see how he could've been so stupid to be honest.

The rest of the book was fairly good. The later scenes with Mrs Belden were very well written and, in truth, I felt more attached to her character than the narrator. Equally, the detective Mr Gryce was an excellent character, humanised by his gout that provides Raymond with an opportunity to follow up the case on his own. The complex relationships between the suspects are gradually drawn out, realistically so, but, again, I feel this hampered the middle section of the novel.

However, The Leavenworth Case works as a piece of detective fiction and is especially interesting as a nineteenth-century example written by a woman.

Book Review: The Innocence of Father Brown by G.K. Chesterton

This first collection of Father Brown stories initially caught my eye after I watched the BBC series involving the character. Although I enjoyed it, I was pleasantly surprised to find that these stories followed an altogether different path. Each of them cover one rather compact mystery and are both interesting and evocative. We might not learn too much about Father Brown during them but his sense and talent for unravelling a mystery shine through, making him one of the best detectives I've come across, and certainly my favourite in short fiction.

This collection contains twelve short stories. The first, 'The Blue Cross', is probably the best known, although this focuses more on the detective Valentin than Father Brown himself. It actually works as an ideal introduction to the character and sets up what's to come perfectly. Valentin himself only appears in one more story but the criminal of 'The Blue Cross', Flambeau, reappears time and again, first as Brown's nemesis and then as his friend. This friendship is perhaps the one constant through the latter stories and works extremely well.

Out of these twelve stories a few lingered with me long after I had turned the page. 'The Secret Garden' is the second story featuring Valentin and comes to a dark and surprising - to me, anyway - conclusion. I also appreciated 'The Invisible Man', a story of warring lovers, because of the simplicity of the conclusion. In fact, most of these stories ended with me marvelling at the ingenuity of the author, wrapping up the obvious in the bizarre. It was a pleasure to merely read and not second-guess the outcome.

Atmospherically, my favourite story has to be 'The Sins of Prince Saradine' which begins with Brown and Flambeau on a small boat in the middle of nowhere. The vivid descriptions that haunt the beginning of this story outweigh what is still a very intelligent plot and make this the story that lingers in my mind.

I also enjoyed the difference of 'The Sign of the Broken Sword' which progressed in a manner not usual for this collection, with Father Brown piecing together the distant past instead of the present. The final story in the collection, 'The Three Tools of Death', was a fitting conclusion and one that made me eager to read the subsequent collections of Father Brown stories.

Book Review: The Maul and the Pear Tree by P.D. James and T.A. Critchley

This book, originally published in 1971, chronicles the real-life case of the Ratcliffe Murders of 1811 where two families were barbarously murdered in London's East End. The bare facts of the case were already familiar to me: seven victims brutally killed, a nationwide panic followed by the arrest of a sailor, John Williams, who later killed himself.  One of the most grisly parts of the famous murder case occurred afterwards, though, as Williams's corpse was paraded through the streets of London along with the murder weapons.

The central hypothesis of this book is that Williams was wrongly accused. To get to that point we're treated to a step-by-step account of the murders and investigation, pieced together as well as it can be by two writers looking at the case after a 160 year gap. The first necessity of this book is to create early nineteenth-century London in the mind of the reader and this is accomplished very well in the opening chapters, though the murders are kept in sight at all times. James and Critchley give enough information for the location to be vivid but without detracting from the case at hand. Their conversational yet analytic style makes this an easy book to read, even though it becomes extremely gruesome in parts. The macabre fascination with the brutality of these killings has lingered on through the decades, making it as compelling a mystery now as it was in 1811.

With the distance of time, however, the case can be looked at objectively. The police investigation is critiqued, along with the actions of individuals, building up as complete a body of evidence as possible for the authors to analyse. This, of course, takes much of the book. I have to admit that I was eager to get to the arguments in favour of Williams's innocence but you have to read the book carefully for the conclusions to make sense. However, they do make sense, with James and Critchley giving a plausible hypothesis for what really happened in 1811.

This is an extremely readable book which steers away from too many passages of dry, contemporary evidence in favour of a prose style which informs the reader of the evidence without boring them. When newspaper reports, letters and Hansard transcripts are used they are valuable to the book as a whole. This prevents it from becoming a stale list of he said/she said and gives James and Critchley more freedom to present the work in an accessible style. A thoroughly compelling, if grisly, account of a fascinating murder investigation.

Book Review: Kind of Cruel by Sophie Hannah

I'm a big fan of Sophie Hannah's novels, as any regular readers of this blog will probably know. Kind of Cruel had one of the oddest premises yet. Amber suffers from severe insomnia after the death of her friend in an arson attack two years earlier which landed her as guardian of her two children. She finally visits a hypnotherapist and the words 'Kind, Cruel, Kind of Cruel' come back to her for no reason she can think of. She accosts a woman she saw writing just before her appointment to ask her if she'd seen the words in her notebook - unfortunately, this woman happens to be police officer Charlie Zailer and Amber suddenly finds herself embroiled in a murder investigation. The words happen to be the only clue that the police have in the investigation of another murder, that of primary school teacher Kat Allen. However, these things aren't the only ones worrying Amber: she periodically wonders why her sister-in-law and her family disappeared on Christmas Day in 2003 before returning the next day without a word.

That explanation is as succinct as it gets, I'm afraid! The plot is so tightly wound that you really need to be awake to follow it but, as I've found with all of Hannah's books, it's a satisfying one. The 'who' gradually becomes clear but the 'why' is still up for grabs right until the final pages. Amber's scenes with hypnotherapist Ginny were intriguing and well-researched, raising some excellent points about memory and lies. Equally, the serial elements of the books were not neglected - the relationship problems between Charlie and Simon Waterhouse are as potent as ever. What I wasn't expecting, though, were the laugh-out-loud scenes involving DI Giles Proust at the beginning of the novel. I don't think I've ever laughed so much at a crime novel of any variety. The character's become something of a legend in these books but this time he really surpassed himself. I get the feeling Hannah likes writing him as much as her readers enjoy the finished result.

All in all, I think Kind of Cruel is close to the top of my list of Hannah's fiction. It had a brilliantly intricate plot combined with forward-movement of serial elements and made me think: what more can you ask for in a book?

Book Review: Lasting Damage by Sophie Hannah

There are only two authors whose books I would rush out to buy on the day of release. Generally, I can starve myself until the paperback comes out but not with Sarah Waters or Sophie Hannah. I got very excited when I saw Hannah's latest was coming out, so much so that I pre-ordered a book for the first time in my life. I wasn't disappointed.

Lasting Damage springboards from this premise: a woman looking at a virtual tour on a property website sees a dead woman on the screen. When her husband comes to look he doesn't see what she saw. There begins a tale that races towards the finishing point described in the short prologue.

The sensation I always get when reading Hannah's books is that I'm running along behind a bus trying desperately to jump on. Like John Truitt in Meet Me In St. Louis, if you don't mind the analogy. Except that each time I get reasonably close to leaping on the bus swerves away. That's what following Hannah's plots feels like. After reading five previous books I feel I should have a good idea of where things are going, or at least be able to decipher probables, but I find it impossible. Hannah is a master at leading you in one direction, only for you to realise later on that she led you that way for a reason, though not the one you thought at the time. Her first-person narration from Connie's perspective certainly helps this effect. Connie Bowskill is another of those characters who you want to trust and like but she's a bit on the unstable side. Hannah takes the unreliable narrator, as she does in all her books, and utilises it to its full potential.

For fans of the series there are plenty of serial elements in the police chapters to interest, which doesn't alienate new readers. Charlie Zailer and Simon Waterhouse are as dysfunctional a couple as ever and, although they begin the novel on their honeymoon, it's almost inevitable that they don't stay there. Further complications are thrown into the mix with the brief return of a face from an earlier book and a subplot involving Charlie's sister, Olivia, which causes all sorts of problems. If I've one complaint it's that this subplot dominates the early portion of the book then peters off. I understand why - at that point the main storyline is so complex that nothing should distract from it - but it was still something I noticed. However, I don't doubt that it'll definitely come up in the next book.

Are there parts of Lasting Damage I didn't like? To be honest, no. Hannah's got such a grip on her police characters (and an amazing knack for portraying unbalanced people) that characterisation wasn't a problem. The resolution to the main storyline leaves you thinking back over the entire book. Now, that's not a bad thing, but it does mean at some point I'm going to have to satisfy my urge to read all six books again! I'm always torn between reading slowly and absorbing everything or galloping ahead in order to reach the conclusion. Re-reading is a good option to add to those.

Again, I would recommend that anyone unfamiliar with Hannah starts at the beginning of her fantastic series, but the book is accessible to those who don't. I started at book four and worked my way backwards and I'm okay!

A previous review of Hurting Distance, the second book in series, can be found here.

I've blogged about reading the series backwards here.

Lasting Damage is available to buy here.

Book Review: The Suspicions of Mr Whicher by Kate Summerscale

I'm currently reading a lot of non-fiction books related to my PhD - cultural guides and the like - but this is the only one I've tried to read in one sitting and have been thoroughly engrossed by. Summerscale knows her subject impeccably. It's tremendous to think of the research she had to put into a three hundred page book, though the meticulous notes and select bibliography help give some indication of the extent of the undertaking.

The Suspicions of Mr Whicher or The Murder at Road Hill House is the most recent analysis of a crime which transfixed the Victorian public in 1860 - the murder of toddler, Francis Saville Kent, who was stolen from his bed before his throat was cut and he was cast down an outside toilet. His half-sister, Constance, was investigated by Detective Inspector Jack Whicher but he failed to find any evidence to connect her to the crime. Five years later she confessed to the murder of her own free-will and served twenty years in prison for it.

Those are the facts of the case. What Summerscale does magnificently, however, is recreate the 'detective fever' that the murder inspired around the country. The story was picked up by every major newspaper and they, along with the police themselves, were inundated with amateur theories. Due to the incompetence of the local police (and the worry concerned with violating the 'private sphere' of the family), Whicher was not brought to the scene until two weeks after the murder occurred. He was later vilified by the press and public for his accusations towards Constance Kent, with the wider world more inclined to believe rumours of a sexual nature involving father, Samuel Kent.

Summerscale's analysis is succinct. She rarely refers to speculation unless it is directly from the mouths of the witnesses, newspapermen or police officers involved. Her analysis of the wider issues of detection and sensation in Victorian England is both necessary and informative. It opens up the book to people who have no prior knowledge of Victorian crime and culture whilst reminding those who do of key concepts and people.

I found the final few chapters about the lives of the main players after Constance's incarceration (and release) especially fascinating. Again, Summerscale refrains from over-zealous speculation, though her theory about the 'truth' of the murder is sound and based on a credible understanding of the family and their history.

In parts this book is a little gruesome, especially in regard to particulars about the corpse of the child. However, Summerscale strives to create a vivid and whole account of the crime, making such descriptions necessary. There is a sense at first that she is wasting too much time introducing the 'characters' as she herself puts it, but her introductory chapters feed into the whole to such an extent that they shouldn't be discounted.

This was recommended as useful reading for my PhD and it has been extremely helpful in that respect. However, the intricacies of the crime and Summerscale's unflinching analysis of it are likely to be the aspects which stick with me for some time to come. I would recommend it to both Victorian scholars and those interested in a good read of the non-fiction variety.

Book Review: Hurting Distance by Sophie Hannah

By now I think anybody glancing at this blog will have gleaned that I'm a Sophie Hannah fan - an unapologetic one, I must add. I love her writing in all forms and the fact that I'm able to enjoy her novels for the first time is one of life's little pleasures.

Hurting Distance is the second in her on-going series about police officers Charlie Zailer and Simon Waterhouse. It was first published in 2007 meaning I'm a little late with my review but you can't be penalised for discovering a fantastic author late surely? It follows the same pattern as the other books in the series - alternating between the police POV and the victim's.

Generally, the plot of this one isn't for the faint-hearted. It's gritty, painful to read at times, and exposes an aspect of humanity I didn't really want to know about. If rape is an issue that makes you squirm this book isn't for you. However, Hannah doesn't shy away from probing deep into the mentalities of the characters involved and she has a delicious habit of setting up events in so subtle a way that even an astute reader would have difficulty keeping up.

The serial elements of the novel are explained well enough for new readers to settle right in. I must admit though that I've disliked Simon a little in the other books I've read. This one helped me understand him more; the same with his colleague, Charlie.

Overall, I'd recommend reading the series in order (!). But, if you can't and just want a book to pick up, this is far from a bad choice.

Four Tips To Avoid Bad Writing

This weekend I read (and, miraculously, finished) a very bad book. I won't annoy the author by revealing the title but suffice to say it's not someone I'm going to be hurrying back to.

I persevered because I was determined to get to the end. It's easy to think that I wasted several hours of my life but I learned a few things along the way - how not to write, if you will.

1. Don't overuse the adjectives. The number of unnecessary words in this book, obviously just there to fill space, was perplexing. As amateur writers we're told (not advised, told) to cut these out as if they were infectious diseases. It puzzles me how so many survived into the final draft of this manuscript.

2. Don't swear for the fun of it. If I did a Ctrl+F on this manuscript I dread to think how many times the word 'bitch' would show up. I'm not an innocent babe by any stretch of the imagination but the simple fact is that a word loses significance after repetition. If that's the effect the author was going for then fair play to them but I'm not sure it was.

3. Don't have a twist visible from the off. Now this one could be my own foresight or, again, it could've been a deliberate ploy on the part of the author. Perhaps if we saw it coming and then were wrong-footed only to be right in the first place we wouldn't feel cheated? I don't know, but I wasn't keen on spotting from the very first chapter what the twist was three chapters from the end. Keep your reader guessing is my view. Yes, keep the story rooted in whatever reality you've created but don't bore them with inevitabilities.

4. Don't make your reader invest in a relationship that's going nowhere. Again, this one could've been my own fault. The book was part of a series which had established a strong relationship between two people. However, this particular novel introduced a third dimension, a woman a lot more interesting and absorbing than the dutiful wife. Long-term readers might've been happy to see the affair fail but the fact that so much energy was given over to it (while only an epilogue explained the reconciliation of the main couple) felt very out of place. I would suggest that if a relationship must fail please demonstrate it in more than the epilogue.

Good points about this book? The setting was particularly evocative, some of the minor characters are cleverly sketched with just enough detail, and the climax involves both emotion and action. Those points make it bearable.

However, I do get the feeling that I learned more about how not to write a novel from this author. That does irritate me but I guess we've all read a book like that at some point in the last two years!

Reading A Series Backwards

It's an odd feeling when you buy a book, read it, then belatedly realise it's the latest in a series that's already several books deep.

I'm currently going through this. A few months ago, desperate for a change from Victorian novels, I browsed the crime section of Waterstones and spotted a name I recognised - Sophie Hannah. I'd previously known Hannah for her thought-provoking poetry and psychological short stories. I picked up the book with the most interesting title (The Other Half Lives), read the blurb and promptly bought it.

I loved it. So much so that I was first in line to buy Hannah's latest offering, A Room Swept White. Having realised by now that the police force in the novels is a recurring one I decided to buy the first in the series, Little Face, and see how I liked it.

As a psychological crime novel it was unparalleled. It's easy to see why the series continued successfully after that debut. One thing that stuck out at me as a writer, however, was how much more confident Hannah's characterisation felt after a few books in their skins. The series focuses on two police officers, Charlie Zailer and Simon Waterhouse. Neither are perfect by any means; that's clear from the off. Simon, particularly, fits the profile of the dysfunctional cop with a bit of a hero complex. The focus of each novel is the mysterious crime but the personal lives of Charlie and Simon are crucial on-going elements. It's an oft-repeated mantra in character-development that you only get to know your characters completely by walking every mile in their shoes, knowing how they'd react to particular circumstances. While there's absolutely nothing wrong with the characterisation in Little Face it feels like Hannah has really nailed it in the later books.

So does that mean every writer should write four or five novel-length pieces to get to know their character? God, I hope not! I think the point is just exploration from every angle. It's boring and, again, something of a mantra where writing teachers are concerned, but it works.

I've still got two Sophie Hannah books to read and I almost don't want to. Once I've read them I know I'll be hungry for more. I read with interest that the novels are being adapted for television. That's certainly something I'll be looking forward to. In the meantime, if anyone feels like jumping into Sophie Hannah - or any writer, for that matter - mid-stream I'd recommend it. For me, catching up is the best bit.

For more information on Sophie Hannah visit her website here