Rating: 
Summary: A murder mystery with a difference.
Review: "Past Reason Hated," by Peter Robinson, differs from the run-of-the-mill murder mystery. Inspector Banks, who is the sleuth in this series, is always fascinating. He is a chain smoker who enjoys drinking. He loves classical music, although he is not overly intellectual. Banks truly shines in his ability to communicate with suspects in a murder investigation. Banks is the best interviewer in the business. He has unerring intuition when it comes to spotting lies and evasions, and he has a way of getting people to reveal a great deal of themselves. Most of all, he cares about seeing justice done, no matter how long it takes and no matter whom it may hurt. In this novel, a young amateur actress named Caroline Hartley is found brutally murdered. She has had a tumultuous life, and any number of people might have had reason to kill her. Banks interviews those who knew Caroline years ago, as well as those who were closely involved with her shortly before her death. "Past Reason Hated" deals with such themes as struggling to come to terms with one's sexuality, the fears that cause people to commit irrational acts and the complicated and inexplicable nature of human relationships. "Past Reason Hated" is an engrossing and satisfying psychological mystery.
Rating: 
Summary: Plodding through the slush
Review: "Past Reason Hated," by Peter Robinson, differs from the run-of-the-mill murder mystery. Inspector Banks, who is the sleuth in this series, is always fascinating. He is a chain smoker who enjoys drinking. He loves classical music, although he is not overly intellectual. Banks truly shines in his ability to communicate with suspects in a murder investigation. Banks is the best interviewer in the business. He has unerring intuition when it comes to spotting lies and evasions, and he has a way of getting people to reveal a great deal of themselves. Most of all, he cares about seeing justice done, no matter how long it takes and no matter whom it may hurt. In this novel, a young amateur actress named Caroline Hartley is found brutally murdered. She has had a tumultuous life, and any number of people might have had reason to kill her. Banks interviews those who knew Caroline years ago, as well as those who were closely involved with her shortly before her death. "Past Reason Hated" deals with such themes as struggling to come to terms with one's sexuality, the fears that cause people to commit irrational acts and the complicated and inexplicable nature of human relationships. "Past Reason Hated" is an engrossing and satisfying psychological mystery.
Rating:
Summary: A murder mystery with a difference.
Review: "Past Reason Hated," by Peter Robinson, differs from the run-of-the-mill murder mystery. Inspector Banks, who is the sleuth in this series, is always fascinating. He is a chain smoker who enjoys drinking. He loves classical music, although he is not overly intellectual. Banks truly shines in his ability to communicate with suspects in a murder investigation. Banks is the best interviewer in the business. He has unerring intuition when it comes to spotting lies and evasions, and he has a way of getting people to reveal a great deal of themselves. Most of all, he cares about seeing justice done, no matter how long it takes and no matter whom it may hurt. In this novel, a young amateur actress named Caroline Hartley is found brutally murdered. She has had a tumultuous life, and any number of people might have had reason to kill her. Banks interviews those who knew Caroline years ago, as well as those who were closely involved with her shortly before her death. "Past Reason Hated" deals with such themes as struggling to come to terms with one's sexuality, the fears that cause people to commit irrational acts and the complicated and inexplicable nature of human relationships. "Past Reason Hated" is an engrossing and satisfying psychological mystery.
Rating: 
Summary: Lesbians and Thespians
Review: Caroline Hartley is found stabbed to death at their home by her lover Veronica a couple of days before Christmas. The cops are called and get digging. They dig into Veronica's family, her still somewhat embittered composer ex-husband and his new lover who both were seen calling soon before the crime. They dig into Caroline's past as a prostitute in London and her childhood with her strange, damaged younger brother Gary now living in a hopelessly neglected house in Harrogate with their dying father. And they dig more locally into the amateur dramatic society Caroline had joined, hard at work putting the finishing touches on a production of `Twelfth Night'.
Highly readable, fun stuff. Slightly disappointing. Robinson here is perhaps a bit weak on the vivid sense of place that is the hallmark of much of the best crime writing: Morse's Oxford, Rebus's Edinburgh: this, though set in the North Yorkshire Dales could really be anywhere, or at least anywhere in Britain. The characterization too could be a little stronger. And the solution is a bit too easy to see coming, mainly moreover, for literary reasons visible only to readers and not to the participating cast of characters. But I'm carping a bit. It's pretty good fun. I'll be reading the next one.
Rating:
Summary: Plodding through the slush
Review: Chilling portrayal of Yorkshire winter weather. I shivered throughout, from the meteorological descriptions, not the plot. This is an OK British dullsville police procedural of the Greeneland lite school, with a who-cares plot and at least 100 pages of padding. The one who dun it stood out like a sore thumb at first introduction. I give it three instead of two stars because it is literate and the dialogue works. Some interesting asides on twentieth century classical music. I find it difficult to believe that British police can get away with so much drinking on the job. But maybe they can. Maybe that's why it takes them those extra 100 pages to see what's in front of their nose.
Rating:
Summary: The best Yet
Review: I'm happy that I discovered, serendipitously, P. Robinson. He's my favorite mystery writer right now; since I discovered him about 3 months ago, I've read all of his novels. If you like Brit Police procedurals, he's the best--by far. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Satisfying, solid mystery
Review: Peter Robinson always produces a solid, interesting mystery. His main character, Alan Banks, is a complex, compassionate police inspector with problems of his own. A thoughtful man with a love of classical music, Banks does not have the literary knowledge of Shakespeare or contemporary myster writers of his author. (I thought it amusing that one of the characters makes a flip comment comparing Banks to a P.D. James detective which goes completely over Banks' head.)Robinson cleverly weaves elements of Shakespeare, classical liturgical music, and sexual identity into a complex psychological mystery. As always, Robinson portrays Yorkshire in a convincing, vivid way. A satisfying read, this book is not quite up to the standards of his later works. That doesn't take anything away from this book, but simply reflects how much Robinson grew as an author in later books. "In a Dry Season" is my favorite of his works, and one of the best recreations of 1940s and contemporary Yorkshire in print.
Rating:
Summary: Intense and complex.
Review: The Inspector Banks mysteries just get better over time and this one is particularly good. An intense, character-driven mystery it is also laced with danger. The complex realtionships between the suspects, the police, and the victim make for gripping reading.
Rating:
Summary: Intense and complex.
Review: The Inspector Banks mysteries just get better over time and this one is particularly good. An intense, character-driven mystery it is also laced with danger. The complex realtionships between the suspects, the police, and the victim make for gripping reading.
Rating:
Summary: Nicely plotted police procedural
Review: This is the first of the Alan Banks books I've read, but it won't be the last. Solid plot with a nicely paced unraveling of information about the victim. Alan Banks comes across as a real person. Susan Gay, his Detective Constable, was pretty stupid in the climax but good before that. The ending is not a big surprise, but it was still a good read.
|
