All the Reviews

At the end of MIDNIGHT IN PEKING, French writes "I first read of Pamela Werner in a biography of the American journalist Edgar Snow, whose best selling Red Star Over China introduced the world to Mao Tse-tung in the late 1930s. A footnote made reference to Edgar's wife Helen feeling nervous after Pamela's mutilated body was found not far from the Snows' house in Peking....". I'm guessing it's not everyone who would turn such a footnote into an indepth investigation and analysis of a case, although this is a particularly fascinating case.

MIDNIGHT IN PEKING is a ... Read review

Dougal is an ordinary cat, living an ordinary life as a household pet. His diary tells the story of his life, beginning as a newborn kitten and ending as a happy household cat. Along the way he has several visits to the pound and shares adventures with fellow adoptee Shadow. You discover what Dougal thinks of all the things that happen to him and exactly how he sees the people and other creatures he interacts with.

I think this is a very good book. I love how the cats don’t play when human are around, and then play for hours when they are gone. It’s interesting to read ... Read review

Dougal’s Diary is about a kitten that tries to be a good cat for his humans but his little sister Shadow doesn’t make it easy.

I loved the book from the start and it was very humorous. I would also like to read it again. I, for one, would recommend other children my age to read this book and hope they would like it just as much as I did. Dougal’s Diary kept me interested the whole time. It was also very hard to put it down because I liked it so much.

The purpose of the story is to definitely entertain people and also see a cat’s point of view.  On every ... Read review

The reader of my reviews will know I've become a bit of a fan of the Rowland Sinclair series (which is quite surprising for somebody who normally prefers to lurk deep on the dark side), so PAVING THE NEW ROAD was a welcome arrival. Basing the story in 1933, sending Sinclair and his companions to Germany all sounded rather interesting. Although I will confess that one of my pet peeves - the inclusion of high profile real-life figures in fiction - made me somewhat nervous. Having said that, if you're going to include a real-life figure, then why not somebody famous for being around ... Read review

Being a bit of a fan of thriller's, I was very intrigued by PD Martin's HELL'S FURY. Not just because it has a central female protagonist, and there simply aren't enough good, strong female characters in thriller fiction (particularly spy or military style thrillers), but also because there's a very current story thread at the central core - a CIA operative captured by the Taliban, disowned by the CIA, saved with a price to pay for that rescue.

I was possibly less intrigued by the concept of "The Committee", being somewhat twitchy about mercenary, outside the law, ... Read review

True Crime is probably best known for it's analysis or concentration on the investigation, the difficulties with identifying a perpetrator, the perpetrator's possible motives or psychology - basically the crimes themselves. In THE FRANKSTON SERIAL KILLER, Vikki Petraitis has covered those expected aspects, but she's also written a compelling story of the victims. The impact that their deaths have had on their families and friends, drawing out the poignancy of the deaths of three young women.

The nature of the loss of these women is probably even more stark given the sheer ... Read review

The Emmanuel Cooper books by Malla Nunn, set in 1950's South Africa, are another excellent series in what is luckily now becoming a bigger range of crime fiction set in various parts of Africa. SILENT VALLEY (aka BLESSED ARE THE DEAD) is the third book now, centred around Detective Sergeant Emmanuel Cooper, a policeman with plenty of demons from his past. Knowing that his past is closely intertwined with a society based on Apartheid will help the reader understand some of the difficulties that Cooper faces, just as understanding the intrinsic brutality of that system will give his ... Read review

I think it would be fair to say that PROMISE by Tony Cavanaugh has been talked up in these parts.  Having read the book now, you can see many of the reasons for the general feeling of enthusiasm, although to be fair, the central storyline of this book is going to be problematic for some readers.

In Darian Richards, Cavanaugh has created a very interesting central character. Retired head of Victoria's Homicide Squad, shooting victim, not everything is immediately as it seems with Richards. A hard working cop with the victims and their families at the forefront of his mind ... Read review

When SAY YOU'RE SORRY was announced I promised myself that this time - straight to the top of the pile. After all, what's not to look forward to - a solid police procedural with a psychological aspect, written by an Australian, set in the United Kingdom. One of the tricks of this series is that Robotham is switching the main viewpoint around between a couple of central protagonists - ex-cop Vincent Ruiz and clinical psychologist, Joe O'Loughlin. Now at a pinch I'd have to say that Ruiz is my favourite of these two characters, but that's not to say that O'Loughlin isn't also a strong ... Read review