Strange
Affair
DCI
Alan Banks Mystery, No. 15
By
Peter Robinson
Since
fire had consumed his home and possessions four months ago, Detective
Inspector Allan Banks has become withdrawn and taciturn. He has
been suffering from depression: his home destroyed, his relationship
with Detective Inspector Annie Cabot has cooled, his work has been
boring. He has sworn off his favorite Scotch and smoking. He has
been brooding about his life. When he receives a disturbing phone
call from his brother, Roy, and is unable to reach him, he decides
to leave Eastvale in Yorkshire and go to London to find him. Roy
is Bank's younger brother who Banks suspects of dubious business
dealings. When he arrives at Roy's apartment he finds the door unlocked,
Roy's computer missing and his mobile phone, which he was never
without, left behind. When Banks receives on Roy's mobile phone
a picture of Roy slumped over a chair, he expects the worst. During
his investigations into Roy's affairs he finds all is not as he
thought and has to revise his opinions about Roy and his activities.
The trails lead to international arms deals and misdeals in women's
health clinics.
Meanwhile
in Yorkshire Detective Inspector Annie Cabot, colleague and former
lover of Banks, probes the shooting death of Jennifer Clewes, a
heath planning center administrator from London, who was found on
a deserted road with Banks’ old address in her jeans. Banks
is nowhere to be found so Cabot cannot determine the relationship.
She tries to learn if there is a connection between this shooting
and that of several other women attacked on lonely roads in Yorkshire.
This
is another of Robinson's excellent mysteries. It is tension packed
and suspenseful. The characters are complex, allowing the reader
to get into their lives. There is additional information about Banks’
earlier years which gives an understanding about his present life.
The relationship between him and his parents and brother is well
developed. The author evokes the sounds and sights and colors of
London and Yorkshire. This is a well-written and well-plotted mystery,
which is another reason to continue following the life and career
of Alan Banks.
Reviews
of other titles in this series
Cold
is the Grave #11
Aftermath
#12
Close
to Home #13
Playing
Fire #14
Strange Affair #15 [audio]
[book]
Piece
of My Heart #16
Friend
of the Devil #17
All the Colors of Darkness #18
In The Dark Places #22 [review
1] [review
2]
When The Music's Over #23 [review
1] [review
2]
|
The
Book |
William
Morrow/Harper Collins |
Feb
15, 2005 |
Hardcover |
0060544333 |
Mystery
/ British Police Procedural |
The
Reviewer |
Barbara Buhrer |
Reviewed
2005 |
|