Win #HarlanCoben #Win

By Harlan Coben https://www.harlancoben.com/

Published by Arrow Books (an imprint of Penguin) https://www.penguin.co.uk/company/publishers/cornerstone/arrow.html

433 pages ISBN 9781787462991

Publication date 5 August 2021

I was provided with a review copy from the publisher, many thanks to Sarah at Harwood PR for organising this.

From the blurb

On New York’s Upper West Side, a recluse is found murdered in his apartment.  Beside him is a stolen masterpiece by Vermeer and a leather suitcase bearing the initials WHL3.

Windsor Horne Lockwood III – or Win as he is known – is called to the crime scene, and immediately recognises both the painting and the suitcase as his own.  How did both items end up in the dead man’s apartment?  And is there a connection to the abduction, years previously, of Win’s cousin Patricia?

The crime has long baffled the FBI.  But now Win is on the case – and he has three things the FBI has not.  A personal connection to the crime, a large personal fortune, and his own unique brand of justice…

Synopsis

Win is called by the FBI when a murder victim is found in his apartment with one of the Lockwood family art works which was stolen years ago, along with a monogrammed suitcase belonging to him.  This seemingly inexplicable situation only gets more complex when the dead man is identified as one of the ‘Jane Street Six’ a group of student activists come domestic terrorists who were briefly active in the 1970’s and then disappeared.  They carried out a firebombing which caused a bus to crash killing some occupants including a close relative of a mafia boss.

PT a mentor of Win’s from his FBI days asks Win to do some investigation work ‘off the books’.  It transpires that one of the ‘Six’ murdered his partner during his escape for which he blames himself.

The murdered man by having his suitcase is implicated in the kidnap of cousin Patrica because in a fact unbeknown to the FBI she and Win had swapped gifts when they were young and it was she who used the case which had been missing since her kidnap.

Is there a connection between the fire-bombing, the art theft and the murder of Uncle Aldrich when Patricia was kidnapped?  Who is responsible for the many assaults and ultimate murders of the young women held at the ‘Hut of Horror’ which Patricia escaped from?

My thoughts

I read several Harlan Coben’s novels some years ago and enjoyed them. Looking at the ‘also by’ at the front of the book I can see he has been very busy, and I’ve got some serious catching up to do! 

This I believe is the first solo outing for Windsor Horne Lockwood III the best friend of his mainstay character Myron Bolitar and it is a curious time to let him loose.  Win is the epitome of white privilege being inordinately wealthy and coming from an old money family (at least in terms of USA), the very thing that has become vogue to protest over.  His attitude to women, although partly explained, would make 007 James Bond blush and whilst not exactly #MeToo its hardly the image for a modern leading man.  So, this is either a very brave author or one attuned to what his readers want in escapism thriller fiction.  Looking at his sales figures I suspect that it’s the latter but credit for swimming against the stream.  Perhaps we want to read about the super-rich when times are tight and about poverty in boom time, or maybe I’m over thinking it.

So as heroes go Win is very much in the anti-hero camp.  He’s a man who enjoys his wealth, is not ashamed to flaunt it and all the privileges it brings.  Special access, private invites, exclusive locations, private limousines, private jets, and helicopters, he enjoys them all because he can.  He has worked with the FBI in the past and this along with his great wealth and family reputation manages to open doors to law enforcement and intelligence agencies, which in this case proves to be helpful.  He’s fit and good looking and he knows it, though these days he prefers hook ups for sex using an app which is only available to a select few.

Win is not averse to a bit of violence and is skilled at martial arts and combat techniques to back up his normally developed physical exterior; underestimate him at your peril.  He also has an individualised view on justice and morality.  He is quite willing to dish out his own brand of justice if required and if this causes problems with the authorities then he can rely on his wealth and family reputation to straighten out the wrinkles.

There are three separate strands to the story, the art theft, the murder/kidnap and the Jane Street Six which are skilfully intertwined to produce a single cogent plot.  It may be stretched a little in parts but nothing that you wouldn’t expect in such a thriller written by such a slick experienced author.

It’s not all action thriller stuff though, Mr Coben still finds time to demonstrate his wit, including a lovely take down of the ‘hipster’ way of life which made me chuckle.

There was one aspect that did grate with me a little, the regular referencing of Myron.  Like when going on a first date, if your date mentions an Ex it can be overlooked, two or three mentions may cause irritation but when it gets to twenty you are thinking just go to them or in this case include Myron in a cameo role!

Overall, an enjoyable summer-blockbuster-thriller that you would expect from a Premier League author.  I hope he follows it up with another Win tale as there’s great scope to expand him as a character and show us all what we can’t afford.  We all need a bit of escapism from time to time.

The Dublin Railway Murder

By Thomas Morris

Published by Harvill Secker (an imprint of Penguin Random House) https://www.penguin.co.uk/company/publishers/vintage/harvill-secker.html

384 pages ISBN  9781787302396

Publication date 11 November 2021

I received a review copy via Vintage Huddle.  Thanks to them and the publisher and author for providing it.

From the blurb

Dublin, November 1856: George Little, the chief cashier of the Broadstone railway terminus, is found dead, lying in a pool of blood beneath his desk.

He has been savagely beaten, his head almost severed; there is no sign of a murder weapon, and the office door is locked, apparently from the inside. Thousands of pounds in gold and silver are left untouched at the scene of the crime.

Augustus Guy, Ireland’s most experienced detective, teams up with Dublin’s leading lawyer to investigate the murder. But the mystery defies all explanation, and two celebrated sleuths sent by Scotland Yard soon return to London, baffled.

Five suspects are arrested then released, with every step of the salacious case followed by the press, clamouring for answers. But then a local woman comes forward, claiming to know the murderer…

Synopsis

The blurb sums up the book perfectly!

My thoughts

True Crime stories remain popular, after all turn on the TV and many programmes to choose from on terrestrial and especially on satellite TV.  I must confess to watching some of these even though some can appear a little tasteless and insensitive.  Reading about them is another matter though, as I have read very few and it has the be admitted that a couple of shelves of them would have a first-time visitor wondering about the workings of your mind.  Is this man a serial killer?  Historical true crime is another matter though and judging by the volume of books on Jack the Ripper there is the reader appetite out in the market.  There must be a vast number of historical crime stories waiting to be told.

In The Dublin Railway Murder the author has put together and comprehensive and readable account of a murder and its aftermath.  It is clearly well researched, largely from Nationally Archived papers, but has been written in the style of a third-party narration as is becoming more popular, rather than as an academic tome.  At the back of the book is a two-page explanation of the sources instead of a great many footnotes and I think it can be assumed a certain extent of author’s licence with some of the dialogue and descriptions.

There is a whodunnit element to the book, but it is structured more as a Victorian version of Law and Order with a sizable epilogue added. 

Part one covers the murder and describes the setting of it, an office in a busy railway station.  My initial thoughts are it was going to be a ‘locked room mystery’, but of course this is real life, and it becomes clear the murderer has locked the office and taken the key with him to delay the discovery of the corpse.

Part two covers the investigation by the police and prosecuting authorities and it is here were the author gets into his stride.  Investigating crime in Victorian times was practically impossible unless the criminal was literally caught in the act.  In 1865 there was little in the way of forensic or chemical analysis and no protocols for its collection or methodology for examining crime scenes.  Photography was in its infancy and even fingerprint analysis was years away.  In this case the reader is left with no doubt how much the scene was compromised from the start.  Most of the investigation centres on the questioning of witnesses and those people close to the site.  Key is their reliability and credibility as eyewitnesses.  The station itself is searched numerous times and the murder weapon is finally found after a stretch of canal is drained.  Suspects are few, but after a supposed breakthrough, a prime suspect is settled on.

The third part of the book goes on to describe the prime suspect in some detail.  One of the books strengths lies with its ability to set out how miserable the day-to-day struggle was for the average working many.  Here there was no safety net of a welfare state, where a simple mistake, where losing one’s job can lead rapidly to destitution, the poor house, a miserable existence in a workhouse and ultimately an early grave.  Its impossible not to feel some sympathy for some of these criminals often driven by desperate need and facing astonishingly severe penalties if caught compared to modern times. 

The trial itself is the fourth part and again totally different to the modern legal system.  In these days it was the case that the defendant was not cross examined and his wife practically being his possession could not give evidence against her husband.  Whilst every defendant was entitled to a defence, it seems if you couldn’t afford one you basically got none.  Be thankful for the legal aid system.  In these days it was the case that the defendant was not cross examined and his wife practically being his possession could not give evidence against her husband. 

The book is completed by details following the trial which are interesting and revolve around how difficult it was trying to earn a living when your reputation is besmirched. This is perhaps the weakest part of the book when details become a little sketchy.

This is a fascinating book more from a historical point of view rather than the actual crime itself.  Mr Morris has skilfully brought the past to life to remind us how lucky we are to live in current times even with all its attendant problems rather than 150 years ago, an ugly reality of a life not a sanitised version for Sunday evening TV.  In the end the reader has a good idea of the likely murderer to in this it can be regarded as ‘solved’.  I suspect part of the enduring fascination of Jack the Ripper is that the case is still open in the sense of there being many suspects but no real proof. 

A great book for readers interested in social history and crime detection in the nineteenth century but perhaps not the consumer of serial killer true crime works.

The Devil’s Choir

By Martin Michaud https://www.michaudmartin.com/homepage-english

Published by Dundurn Press https://www.dundurn.com/

448 pages ISBN 9781459742703

Publication date 23 November 2021

I was allowed access to a pdf review copy on Net Galley.  Thanks to the author and publisher for organising this.

From the blurb

When a young Montreal family dies in an orgy of bloody violence, all signs point to a rampage by the father. But Victor Lessard isn’t convinced. The brilliant, brooding detective suspects that others were involved in the killings. But who? And why? As Lessard struggles to solve the puzzle, the discovery of a nightmarish chamber of horrors seems to confirm that the murders are part of a wider pattern. With a ghost from his past making him doubt his own sanity, Lessard must evade the lethal operatives of a powerful, highly secretive organization as he races to untangle the mystery before a diabolical killer can strike again.

Synopsis

Victor Lessard is a troubled detective.  His adult son has moved in with him and their relationship is strained as it also is with his ex-wife.  His current relationship with girlfriend Veronique appears doomed and he spends his nights sleeping in a Layzboy chair.  He cannot even find solace in his favourite coffee due to his recurring reflux.

He gets called to an apparent murder/suicide incident where the husband has murdered his wife and 3 children with an axe before cutting out his own tongue and then ending his life.  The murder site is horrific and made worse by masses of flies in the air and a thick carpet of dead ones which need to be cleared before the techs can work.  A seemingly ‘open and shut’ case bothers Victor and he feels the need to investigate further despite warnings by his superior Tanguay.

Victor is clearly disturbed by this case, his colleagues notice this but they are unaware of his past.  Victor’s own father murdered his family and committed suicide as well, Victor being the only survivor as he was late home that day.  This torments him and begins to see vivid images of his brother Raymond such that they can seemingly communicate with each other.  Eventually Tanguay stands him down for his own good.

Suspension isn’t going to stand in Victor’s way though and he surreptitiously contacts his partner Fernandez to continue investigating.  They turn up a similar case of murder suicide some years earlier outside Montreal which is the break he is looking for.  He gets access to the case files and after demonstrating that there are matters unexplained the original investigating officer agrees to get involved thereby helping to legitimise Victor’s efforts.  In doing so a sexual abuse and imprisonment is unearthed and a paedophile ring exposed.

Victor is convinced that the sinister forces are work are being controlled by a priest or a group of them.  Is a satanic sex cult at the centre of it all?  The answers are eventually revealed on home ground back in Montreal.

My thoughts

There’s certainly a lot crammed in here.  The plot when distilled down is the hunt for a serial killer.  However, there is so much complexity added in, layers of confusion and red herrings that play out, such that the reader is never certain where the story is going or who is controlling the killer, if indeed anyone is. 

Most of the story is told in third person but parts are in first person which initially confused me a little until I realised those passages were reserved for past recollections or when Felix was writing in his diary.  The writing style is un-fussy, and it comes as no surprise that the author has written extensively for television.  Indeed, this novel reads like it would adapt perfectly for a multi episode series.

I’ve not read much fiction based in Canada other than Kathy Reich’s Temperance Brennan books so it’s always nice to cover a new setting.  Here we see mainly the seedier side of Montreal away from the big city glare and the French/Canadian duality adds a nice twist to the narrative.  However, much of the novel covers the major city problems of drugs, HIV infection prostitution and homelessness could be set anywhere.  These are problems that many care to ignore but are all around us.  Here they add an air of authenticity and grimy reality to a far-reaching plot.  What violence there is muted and gory bits kept to a minimum.

Essentially this is an incident driven story but the characterisation of Lessard is extensive, and his back story is complex.  We learn about how he becomes orphaned, his time in foster care and on the street, his past dealings with Monsieur Antoine’s outreach and his final mentoring phase with the gay policemen.  All covered with a nice level of sensitivity.

The tale of troubled cop who is suspended but continues to investigate is one that is very familiar to readers and viewers alike.  However, when told with a bit of panache can still be very entertaining as this one is.  The main character remains engaging and one I would stick with to see how his future plays out and his troubles are resolved if they are at all.  A crime thriller that is a little different and I would certainly be looking to read the next novel in the series.

A Dark Matter

By Doug Johnstone https://dougjohnstone.com/

Published by Orenda Books https://orendabooks.co.uk/

336 pages ISBN 9781912374991

Publication date 23 November 2019

I purchased an electronic copy from Kobo Books.

From the blurb

Meet the Skelfs: well-known Edinburgh family, proprietors of a long-established funeral-home business, and private investigators…

Synopsis

When patriarch Jim dies it is up to the women of the Skelf family to step up and run the two family businesses.  They have some experience of work in the funeral directors but none as working as private investigators.  They are, however, three generations of strong and resourceful women: Grandmother Dorothy, Mother Jenny and her Daughter Hannah.

When Dorothy examines the finances of the funeral directors, she uncovers a mysterious monthly payment which has been going on for years.  Her investigation makes her question what she really knew about her husband and ultimately uncovers a dark, uncomfortable secret. 

Hannah’s university friend Mel disappears but with her being an adult the police are not interested in investigating without evidence of foul play.  Keen to be an investigator Hannah decides that she must follow up the scant leads and in doing so discovers that she never really knew Mel that well.

Jenny is approached at a funeral service by one of the mourners to look into the life of her husband who ‘works late’ which she believes is a cover for adulterous behaviour.  Jenny soon discovers all may not be how things first appear, but that human spirit can prevail.

Not forgetting Archie, the Skelf’s loyal employee who has a condition where he feels he is dead and can relate better to dead people.  Now on medication he works away diligently and keeps the funeral directors running like clockwork, but can he continue to do it now that Jim has gone, and changes are being made?

The women must deal with their grief whilst confronting things they would rather not.

My thoughts

I’ve had this book for a while now and somehow not got around to it, perhaps because I haven’t got around to getting a Kobo reader yet and so would have to read it on my phone.  Seeing so many good things about it and the fact that book 3 is imminent I resolved to get stuck in and I had barely got started when Val McDermid was praising it.  Would I like it though?

It has a quirky opening with Jim’s funeral which immediately put me in mind of The Crow Road by Iain Banks, the opening paragraph of which for me is the best in modern literature.  Perhaps it was a homage to the much-missed author; it certainly sets out that the book is going to be a little bit different.

The narrative is in the third person but each chapter from the perspective of one of the three women.  Some may think it a little jerky but with the multistrand plot and each of them concentrating on different mysteries I think it works well.  It takes a little while to set up the different strands and to include the set up for the series but once the jigsaw pieces start to come together they somehow fit into a cleverly constructed plot.

Looking at the cover I was expecting the style to follow one of two tones, either lots of irreverent dark humour that you come to expect where people fulfil unpleasant tasks or very dark and serious.  How wrong I was!  There was some dark humour but its subtle and thoughtfully introduced, certainly nothing outrageous or offensive even when a night-time visit to a cemetery is involved. ^#  The subject matter is dark, but the author manages to keep the tone bright and upbeat but all the time respectful.  I loved the introduction of a tiny spade motif as the occasional break within chapters.

The inclusion of three strong women who are three generations of the same family, the youngest of whom is a lesbian whose girlfriend works for them is inspired.  It provides a broad canvas to explore their relationships within the family dynamic and their intergenerational differences, which Doug Johnstone makes full use of.  Not only do they have to deal with their grief over the loss of Jim but also their own individual problems which must be faced up to if they are to be resolved.  Dorothy questions Jim’s past and whether he had some second secret life as well as part of her yearning for her youth back in America.  Jenny must face up to losing her job meaning the failure of her writing career as well as her marriage and moving back into the family home.  Hannah is trying to balance her relationships with her divorced parents and her father having a new wife and child.  All the time though, the women’s personal flaws are evident.

Most of all this is a novel about the resilience of human spirit over adversity.  It doesn’t shy away from difficult topics including grief, loneliness, homelessness, and jealousy but instead deals them in an uplifting way that is not preachy. Above all else there is a warmth to the storytelling which should win over the reader. 

No, I wasn’t disappointed, I should have read it long ago and certainly I won’t be waiting as long to read books 2 and 3.

#  If you are looking for outrageous hilarity in a cemetery after dark then I recommend ‘Vinyl Detective: The Run Out Groove’ by Andrew Cartmel, the second book in another great series.