Still Waters (Thorndike Large Print Cloak and Dagger Series)

Rating:
Summary: Fine for fans, possibly confusing for others
Review: There are inherent perils in writing a series of novels based on the same set of characters. Is the author simply rehashing the same theme over and over again? Are the characters becoming too predictable? Will readers new to the series understand what is going on, or will they feel excluded from the author's world for not begining at the first novel? Is there any reason left to warrant delving into the characters' lives yet again?

These are pitfalls common to almost all authors. The 'Burke' stories of Andrew Vachss are now constantly fighting self-parody. Douglas Adams' HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE series arguably had no reason to continue after the third installment. Joseph Heller destroyed his beloved CATCH-22 characters with the near-wretched CLOSING TIME. And Tom Clancy's 'Jack Ryan' stories have become far less about Ryan, and more about Clancy's political views.

John Harvey's 'Charlie Resnick' series of British police procedurals are also fighting these traps. While Harvey has consistently written taut, elegant meditations on the evils that society can fall victim to (see EASY MEAT), there remains the danger that he may alienate new readers who are not intimately familiar with Resnick's ways. STILL WATERS is a finely written story, but newcomers to Resnick's universe may find themselves confused.

STILL WATERS finds Resnick, the resourceful British police officer, in a situation immediately identifiable to all. He is rather anxious over his burgeoning relationship with English teacher Hannah, and also has job security issues over an ignored promotion possibility. But while his overall routine may to similar to many, Harvey manages to inject new life into the familiar with Resnick's personal indentification with the seedier aspects of humanity. But while Resnick may attempt to keep his professional and personal lives seperate, the murder of one of Hannah's friends brings his worlds together.

Harvey's novels have, as their main focus, the view that evil is just around the corner in all our lives. In STILL WATERS, it is spousal abuse that receives the brunt of Harvey's attention. Seemingly happy couples are revealed to exist in relationships of pain and suffering.

Harvey deals with this theme quite effectively, from many viewpoints. He also refuses to serve as judge to his characters, presenting them as flawed examples of humanity, not incarnations of evil. Harvey also never rules out the concept of redemption, however rare that commodity may be.

But as STILL WATERS is one novel of many, Harvey has other issues to deal with as well. There is Lynn Kellogg, a fellow officer who would rather transfer out than deal with her past relationship with Resnick. There is Mark Divine, a police officer who was raped in a previous novel, and has become increasingly violent. There is Carl Vincent, a homosexual officer in a profession not known for tolerance. Harvey manages to touch on all of their lives, but some of it seems unnecessary. A new reader may be confused by characters who seem to be integral elements of the plot, yet never appear again. At times, STILL WATERS resembles a novel between novels, an opportunity to catch up on the lives of the characters, but not an especially interesting story in and of itself.

Possibly because of this, STILL WATERS is not an altogether successful novel. Perhaps Harvey should have centred solely on the murder of Hannah's friend, and its immediate effects on Resnick's life. Harvey gives too much information on other areas to advance this plot. There is also a subplot involving art theft that never adequately fits into the whole, with a resolution that feels rushed and unfinished.

But Harvey is still a fine writer. His individual scenes of Resnick's personal life with Hannah are touching and realistic, and his scenes involving the spousal abuse are chilling. And Resnick is a terrific literary character, a flawed and deeply troubled man who can always be counted on to find the appropriate jazz analogy. STILL WATERS is worth reading, but it is more effective for the already-initiated than the reader who is discovering Harvey for the first time.

Rating:
Summary: Solid Ninth Entry in Series
Review: Very solid ninth entry effectively mixes Charlie Resnick's ever-deepening relationship with schoolteacher Hannah and the dissapearance of her friend Jane. This is against a backdrop of the formation of a new Serious Crimes Unit headed by an ambitious high-flying female which threatens to take over Charlie's turf. Less effective is the subplot tying together a few formerly seen characters and an art forgery ring.

Rating:
Summary: Another excellent work by a sterling British writer
Review: When the battered corpse of a mid-twenties woman is found floating in a canal, the police conclude that a serial killer is one the loose because of a nebulous link to other canal murders. However, a second body is soon found. This time the victim is Jane Peterson, a close friend of Detective Inspector Charlie Resnick's lover, Hannah. The police think that Jane is the latest victim of the serial killer. Neither case falls under the jurisdiction of Charlie since serial killer investigations are worked on by the Serious Crime Unit.

However, Hannah is convinced that Jane's death was caused by her physically abusive spouse, Alex. Hannah convinces Charlie to look into her girl friend's death. Meanwhile, other things swirl around Charlie. A junior officer, Lynn Kellogg has applied for a transfer and is pushing Charlie to make it happen. Other crime, such as an art theft, requires Charlie's investigative talent. With all this going on, Charlie is going to find it difficult to properly investigate what happened to Jane.

The Charlie Resnick series are some of the best British police procedurals on the market today. The current entry, STILL WATER, is a well written detective novel that showcase John Harvey's tremendous talent. Though the story line is quite good, it is not at the upper echelon of the previous novels because too much is left open (perhaps for the next book). Still, that leaves the tale better than 99.9% of the police procedural in book stores on sale today. Several of the Resnick novels are about to go paperback and are worth buying by fans of the sub-genre.

Harriet Klausner