Beneath the Bleeding
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It seems hard to believe now, but there was a day when Val McDermid was just another crime writer. True, her Kate Brannigan novels were highly accomplished and well-honed pieces of work, and if McDermid had written nothing else, they would have assured her a solid place in the history of the genre. But Beneath the Bleeding (as with most of the other work the author has done more recently) is a much more ambitious and considerable novel, written on a grander scale, tackling pertinent social issues and (most importantly) developing two highly memorable characters: forensic profiler Tony Hill and his police ally DCI Carol Jordan.
The new book, as disturbing as it is compulsively readable, continues to add new levels to the psychological thriller -- something that McDermid seems able to do in every new book. A star footballer has been murdered in the city of Bradfield. Shortly after, an explosion rocks the town's football stadium, wreaking mass carnage. In the current climate of fear regarding home-grown terrorism, it is inevitable that suspicion falls in this direction – but is money -- or something else -- involved here? Such as a bloody working out of some kind of revenge scenario against the football team? Needless to say, this is quite a different case from those that Tony Hill and Carol Jordan have previously been involved with, and the customary relationship (swinging between confrontation and admiration) is worked out with all the rigour that we expect from McDermid. Of course, this is an author who always has more fish to fry than the simple exigencies of the crime novel, and astringent commentaries on many aspects of British society are provocatively incorporated here (always, though, inter alia -- never at the expense of a forward-moving narrative). If you're a fan of the Wire in the Blood TV series, you should do yourself a favour and investigate the original novels – such as Beneath the Bleeding. They offer a considerably more involving experience. --Barry Forshaw --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
‘McDermid is at the peak of her murderous craft’ Mirror
'The Queen of serial killers in this country keeps her end up…. few can scoop Val on throat-clutching narrative… Marvellous' Daily Mail
‘All the craft, panache and pace that we have come to expect from this outstanding writer… Vintage stuff: unplug the phone, lock the door and prepare to read in a sitting’ Guardian
‘Peerless … One of the world’s finest crime writers, McDermid is currently at the top of her game’ Glasgow Herald
‘McDermid’s writing gets better and better’ Spectator
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I can't believe some people thought this wasn't Val at her best - why? Tony and Carol are satisfyingly and convincingly at loggerheads here, and Tony's confinement to a hospital add tension to the plot because he can't move (it's a bit like Hitchcock's 'Rear Window' - the sense of paralysis adds to the suspense). Great double-stranded plot, as readable as all Val's books. I didn't find Tony's icy mother entirely credible as a character, but still - few people can write thrillers as well as Val McD, and this one had a less guessable ending than 'The Torment of Others', in which I guessed early on who the psycho-killer was. Brilliant moment too, in this one, where one line of dialogue changes everything - can't say any more without giving away something crucial. Read it - it's fab!
36 of 38 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Val McDermid has written some wonderful crime fiction tales in her time but she is probably best known for the series involving psychological profiler Dr Tony Hill and DCI Carol Jordan, based in the fictional Yorkshire city of Bradfield. Expectations are bound to be high for this, the fifth in the 'Hill-Jordan' collection of novels so far, following hot on the heels of the fifth in the associated Wire in the Blood TV dramatisations. In effect there are two stories running in parallel with each other, one the hunt for a serial killer and the other the search for a mass murderer, each person displaying very different methods but sharing an obsession for careful planning and forward thinking.
Knowing that the author herself recently went through considerable pain and discomfort as a result of major knee surgery, I cannot help but regard her decision to place Tony Hill in a hospital bed recovering from - guess what - major knee surgery for very nearly the entirety of this story's time span as something of an indulgence on her part, possibly a gesture of thanks to those who treated and cared for her, I don't know, but I got the impression that this strand of the plot was slightly at odds with everything else that was going on. It did however enable the author to introduce Tony Hill's mother in a thread that promised interesting developments but ultimately faded into insignificance. On the other hand it did offer an insight into the complicated personality of Dr Hill, and in that respect the mission was successful. Of course, anyone who has seen the Wire in the Blood series on TV will visualise actor Robson Green as Tony Hill in this book, personally I did not find this a distraction at all as the actor plays the part very convincingly.
The modus operandi of the serial killer is compared to a hypothetical character in an Agatha Christie novel, something of a cop-out in my opinion, so as to confess to such an analogy before the reader can make such an accusation. But the thoughts, emotions and objectives of the bomber are by comparison absolutely contemporary, relevant and described with chilling effect. It is almost uncomfortable to read at times as it feels like a peep into the mind-set of individuals responsible for suicide bombings (successful or otherwise) which is of course very much a happening-right-now issue in the world we live in.
Beneath the Bleeding is described on the back cover as `The new Tony Hill thriller' but I consider that almost unfair, as in this, just as in the previous four in the series, Carol Jordan plays an equally important and leading role. At the end we are hardly any the wiser as to the status of their personal relationship, one which was rather strangely tested to the limit in this latest outing. I felt that Carol's animosity towards Tony for the majority of this story, in response to his efforts to solve the two murder hunts, lacked any real foundation. Carol and her team, despite their best efforts, continually made no progress at all while Tony was putting forward suggestions that Carol should have taken more seriously, based on their long-running professional respect for one another.
Hand on heart this is not quite up to the brilliant standard of THE MERMAIDS SINGING (the first in the Tony - Carol series, published in 1995) but no fan of Val's will be disappointed, she continues to demonstrate a highly professional approach to story-telling and she will surely gain many new admirers for her writing skills, especially in the crucial area of characterisation.
Knowing that the author herself recently went through considerable pain and discomfort as a result of major knee surgery, I cannot help but regard her decision to place Tony Hill in a hospital bed recovering from - guess what - major knee surgery for very nearly the entirety of this story's time span as something of an indulgence on her part, possibly a gesture of thanks to those who treated and cared for her, I don't know, but I got the impression that this strand of the plot was slightly at odds with everything else that was going on. It did however enable the author to introduce Tony Hill's mother in a thread that promised interesting developments but ultimately faded into insignificance. On the other hand it did offer an insight into the complicated personality of Dr Hill, and in that respect the mission was successful. Of course, anyone who has seen the Wire in the Blood series on TV will visualise actor Robson Green as Tony Hill in this book, personally I did not find this a distraction at all as the actor plays the part very convincingly.
The modus operandi of the serial killer is compared to a hypothetical character in an Agatha Christie novel, something of a cop-out in my opinion, so as to confess to such an analogy before the reader can make such an accusation. But the thoughts, emotions and objectives of the bomber are by comparison absolutely contemporary, relevant and described with chilling effect. It is almost uncomfortable to read at times as it feels like a peep into the mind-set of individuals responsible for suicide bombings (successful or otherwise) which is of course very much a happening-right-now issue in the world we live in.
Beneath the Bleeding is described on the back cover as `The new Tony Hill thriller' but I consider that almost unfair, as in this, just as in the previous four in the series, Carol Jordan plays an equally important and leading role. At the end we are hardly any the wiser as to the status of their personal relationship, one which was rather strangely tested to the limit in this latest outing. I felt that Carol's animosity towards Tony for the majority of this story, in response to his efforts to solve the two murder hunts, lacked any real foundation. Carol and her team, despite their best efforts, continually made no progress at all while Tony was putting forward suggestions that Carol should have taken more seriously, based on their long-running professional respect for one another.
Hand on heart this is not quite up to the brilliant standard of THE MERMAIDS SINGING (the first in the Tony - Carol series, published in 1995) but no fan of Val's will be disappointed, she continues to demonstrate a highly professional approach to story-telling and she will surely gain many new admirers for her writing skills, especially in the crucial area of characterisation.
17 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I looked forward to reading this book having read all four previous books in the Carol/Tony series. It is an excellent top quality crime thriller yet it somehow felt that it was missing something compared to the previous books.
The story centres around an unexplained murder. Another serious crime takes place midway through the book, however the suspense is somewhat spoiled because the blurb on the cover tells you what this crime is and therefore you know it is going to happen and not be foiled. The story is paced well but is not quite as suspenseful as some of McDermid's previous books, perhaps because it doesn't have quite the same sense of immediate danger that 'The Last Temptation' and 'The Torment Of Others' had.
Throughout most of the book Tony is in hospital following an assualt at work. It was interesting to see how Tony coped with this but I was expecting something more to come out of the events at the very beginning of the book and the storyline featuring Tony's mother. As it stands it felt like the very first part of the book was simply a plot device to get Tony into hospital since there is very little reflection/repercussions from this event.
Carol's team from 'The Torment of Others' are back and it's great to see their characters being developed and the occasional reference to events from previous books. Carol has a slightly worrying habit which I thought would come to be important but again nothing happened about it.
Overall it was a good book with a satisfying ending. With any other author I would have given it five stars, however it's just not quite on a par with McDermid's superb earlier novels.
The story centres around an unexplained murder. Another serious crime takes place midway through the book, however the suspense is somewhat spoiled because the blurb on the cover tells you what this crime is and therefore you know it is going to happen and not be foiled. The story is paced well but is not quite as suspenseful as some of McDermid's previous books, perhaps because it doesn't have quite the same sense of immediate danger that 'The Last Temptation' and 'The Torment Of Others' had.
Throughout most of the book Tony is in hospital following an assualt at work. It was interesting to see how Tony coped with this but I was expecting something more to come out of the events at the very beginning of the book and the storyline featuring Tony's mother. As it stands it felt like the very first part of the book was simply a plot device to get Tony into hospital since there is very little reflection/repercussions from this event.
Carol's team from 'The Torment of Others' are back and it's great to see their characters being developed and the occasional reference to events from previous books. Carol has a slightly worrying habit which I thought would come to be important but again nothing happened about it.
Overall it was a good book with a satisfying ending. With any other author I would have given it five stars, however it's just not quite on a par with McDermid's superb earlier novels.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
AMAZING
Don't interrupt, still reading the 3 by this same author that I ordered.
Need to relax, have a coffee and continue
Thank you heaps
Need to relax, have a coffee and continue
Thank you heaps
Published 3 months ago by jules
Off Target For Me
I've read a fair few of Val's books and normally love them - but this one missed the target for me. The main problem I had was that I felt that she was out of her depth with the... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Galning
The healer's art
The title of this Tony Hill/Carol Jordan novel is as multi-layered as the plot: flawed characters whose human weaknesses are interwoven to become strengths in an enthralling and... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Millsy
Very good, pacy crime novel
It's been quite some time since I read The Torment of Others, the last entry in McDermid's series featuring Tony Hill and DCI Carol Jordan. Read more
Published 9 months ago by M. V. Clarke
Well-plotted and entertaining
A famous local footballer is poisoned, and DCI Carol Jordan's team, with the help of a hospitalised Tony Hill, uncover a previous unnoted poisoning case - is there a serial... Read more
Published 21 months ago by Roman Clodia
not brilliant but still good
I really enjoyed this book and was hooked from the very beginning. There are 2 plots in this book- a star footballer is poisoned and the bombing of a football stadium. Read more
Published 22 months ago by Sian
Another great book
Val McDermid has now become my favourite writer. The Tony Hill series (of which this is the last) has been very readable, and very exciting. What a great writer.
Published on 31 Dec 2009 by Mrs. M. Begley
Beneath the bleeding
Val McDermid produces another taut thriller with her anti hero Tony Hill . Gripping read, hard to put down with really good character detail. Loved it.
Published on 30 Sep 2009 by K. Warden
Insanely good...
Finding a "Wire in the Blood" series book that I hadn't read was a real treat, and this one didn't disappoint, from start to finish it had me gripped. Read more
Published on 19 April 2009 by Ms. E. J. White
Top Notch Police Procedural
As a fan of Val McDermid, and having read all her books, I can say that this one is one of her best. Read more
Published on 29 Dec 2008 by Wendy Jones
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