Booker Prize Shortlist 2022 and in my opinion a 'must read'.
“Goddamnit, I hate murder more than just about anything,” said Sheriff Red Jetty. “It can Booker Prize Shortlist 2022 and in my opinion a 'must read'.
“Goddamnit, I hate murder more than just about anything,” said Sheriff Red Jetty. “It can just ruin a day.”
"Oh Lordy, Lordy" that was a superbly written and darkly humorous novel. It is a satirical study of the drawn out genocide of people of colour in the US and uses the murder of Emmett Till as its anchor. This is the first novel in which I have been deeply disturbed one moment and laughing out loud the next. Make no mistake this is a hard hitting novel that looks at racial discrimination and violence towards people of colour. We get to know the small minded and backward thinking community of Money, Mississippi, as they grapple with the horrific murders of two of its white community members. The murder scenes are gruesome and spark fears of an upcoming race war. This is an absolutely brilliant, relevant and insightful novel and I thoroughly recommend the incredibly entertaining and well read audiobook....more
There is no doubt that this is good. Like really good. Incredible characters, great writing, and an excellent level of tension that was maintained thrThere is no doubt that this is good. Like really good. Incredible characters, great writing, and an excellent level of tension that was maintained throughout the whole novel. But I really struggled with the nature of the crimes. They were the brutal murders of young children. The crime scene descriptions were stomach churningly grizzly and I had actual chest pains thinking about the children's final moments and the horrors perpetrated upon them after they were killed. I had to force myself to keep reading because I was compelled to see justice served. In hindsight I should have bailed in chapter one as I am not sure the balance between the crimes themselves and the investigations was quite right. I did really enjoy the characters tasked with finding the killer so that made it all somewhat more tolerable.
CW: brutal murders of children with detailed descriptions of bodies and causes of injuries and death....more
An anonymous witness delivers some convenient evidence used to convict a supposed killer but DS Zoe Mayer's instincts lead her to believe that the casAn anonymous witness delivers some convenient evidence used to convict a supposed killer but DS Zoe Mayer's instincts lead her to believe that the case is too clean and too cut and dried. A deeper delve into other similar cases has her wondering if she is dealing with serial killer. A good story line with characters I could get behind. An enjoyable murder mystery. ...more
A quick and compelling police procedural that has a man with a twisted mind gouging eyes out of his victims heads. I really enjoyed how short3.5 Stars
A quick and compelling police procedural that has a man with a twisted mind gouging eyes out of his victims heads. I really enjoyed how short this was as it was all action and no fillers to plump up the story i.e. drag it out. The plot is very simple and it isn't subtle. There are no clever revelations and the cast are your straight forward 'damaged villain whose mother was awful' and 'damaged female cop struggling to move on from a tragedy and balance motherhood and work.' Nothing fresh or original but pretty entertaining nonetheless. A good start to a series that I will look to continue reading.
A good follow up to book one. This one had me scratching my head wondering how everything was going to come together. I enjoyed this second outing witA good follow up to book one. This one had me scratching my head wondering how everything was going to come together. I enjoyed this second outing with Detective Sergeant Norman Norman and Detective Inspector Sarah Southwell as they fight to get some respect and credibility in the face of harsh criticism from their peers in other precincts. I'm not sure if there will be any more in this series but I think I will part ways as I have a number of police procedural series on the go....more
A nice twisty thriller with plenty of suspects that all seem to alibi out. Being the holidays I had the luxury of listening to this in one sitting. I A nice twisty thriller with plenty of suspects that all seem to alibi out. Being the holidays I had the luxury of listening to this in one sitting. I have to say the audiobook was hugely entertaining because my mind was constantly darting back to sitting with my then 4 year old son and 3 year old daughter as they sat watching the exploits of naughty Norman as he got himself into one pickle after another in Pontypandy. The narrator sounds exactly like any number of the characters from Fireman Sam (UK version). So I was constantly grinning even though the detectives were seriously examining bodies and crime scenes. I loved the mix of old and new guard in this police station rumoured to be where all the 'useless' cops are shipped off to. Detective Sergeant Norman Norman (not a typo) and Detective Inspector Sarah Southwell were engaging main characters and I can see some of the side characters have potential to have really interesting storylines in the future. I will definitely be following through this series as I love a good redemption story....more
Another good police procedural from this author. My only gripe is that the criminals are a bit dumb. I like my criminal masterminds considerably smartAnother good police procedural from this author. My only gripe is that the criminals are a bit dumb. I like my criminal masterminds considerably smarter and a darn sight more cunning. It meant that there was less 'detecting' and more following the bread crumbs...or a better description was that Craigie and company were following slices of bread cut into arrow shapes leading to Laurel and Hardy. That aside, an entertaining read.
That was a good one guys! Things tie in a bit too conveniently at times in this series, but it is such a fun ride and something I have been waiting foThat was a good one guys! Things tie in a bit too conveniently at times in this series, but it is such a fun ride and something I have been waiting for finally happened! ❤...more
UPDATE 08/08/23 - Such a comforting series with characters I love even on reread!
I KNEW IT!!
Sorry, I just shouted that out when a certain twist was rUPDATE 08/08/23 - Such a comforting series with characters I love even on reread!
I KNEW IT!!
Sorry, I just shouted that out when a certain twist was revealed.
Another tense one with the Monkeewrench crew and police rallying together when a frightening plot is unveiled. I have to say that I am ready for some relationships to progress. Just saying....more
UPDATE 01/08/2023 - Pretty chilling storyline...see what I did there? Enjoyable reread.
Bodies hidden inside snowmen? That's next level.
Another great bUPDATE 01/08/2023 - Pretty chilling storyline...see what I did there? Enjoyable reread.
Bodies hidden inside snowmen? That's next level.
Another great book in this series. I love the Monkeewrench crew and sadly they didn't feature as heavily in this one. What I do love about this series is they introduce so many new characters who also get to take centre stage for large parts of the story. You see different types of police officers, detectives, sheriffs etc from different parts of the country so everything always feel fresh and interesting. On to book 5!
This is a great police procedural thriller that sees DS Max Craigie at war with a well known local crime family. After being relati3.5 rounded up to 4
This is a great police procedural thriller that sees DS Max Craigie at war with a well known local crime family. After being relatively new to this genre and having read a lot of police procedurals lately I am starting to notice what works and doesn't work for me. I prefer when the main characters have a bit of depth and potential for development or growth, as opposed to the cookie cutter donut eating police detective who behaves the same way but has a new bad person to put behind bars each book. I also like the actual police type investigation stuff to happen on-page such as crime scene descriptions and investigations etc. Actual detective work where the Reader gets to see the clues/evidence unfold and not just be told about it after the fact. This book hits both of these preferences. However, where it falls a little bit short (but does not affect my overall enjoyment) is on the character development of the criminals. It was like Laurel and Hardy were the heads of the crime family. While reading this I was reminded of an American police story that made it to NZ newspaper reports about 20 years ago. The US police were casually pursuing a criminal on the run in a stolen vehicle. They were fairly casual in their pursuit because the buffoon was indicating 3 seconds in advance before changing lanes or making turns thereby making him easy to follow. I prefer intelligent, polished, charismatic, calculating criminals with vicious under tones. Not the obvious big beefcake bruiser types. I still really enjoyed this and will continue on with the series. I am thoroughly enjoying getting to read beyond YA fiction but also think a lot of these crime novels would be enjoyed by senior high school students too, but they need to read the content warnings.
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