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Bright Spark ( British crime debut of Lincoln DS Len Harkness )
 
 

Bright Spark ( British crime debut of Lincoln DS Len Harkness ) [Kindle Edition]

Gavin Smith
3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)

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Product Description

Product Description

‘The killing got easier once the clotted screams had subsided, once he’d embraced what he was, what he was always meant to be; the man his father had made out of the boy, hard brick from soft clay.’

Harkness is a newly promoted detective sergeant with some old-school habits and a secret and lethal past.

A suburban family is burned alive in their beds, rekindling Harkness’ obsessive pursuit of the serial arsonist he failed to put away.

Yet as the body count mounts and his enquiry spins out of control, he discovers that others carry fatal secrets too.

Only when Harkness’ partner is almost beaten to death, when the prime suspect burns himself alive, when he betrays and bullies and seduces to get answers that could all end his career – only then does he start to realise that the murderous blaze is just getting going.

Confronting a prison drug-smuggling racket and a very ordinary evil stalking the hedgerows of suburbia, Harkness has yet more lives to smash to atone for his own sins.

Bright Spark is a full-length contemporary crime novel of 130,000 words.

Product details

  • Format: Kindle Edition
  • File Size: 674 KB
  • Print Length: 456 pages
  • Sold by: Amazon Media EU S.à r.l.
  • Language: English
  • ASIN: B008RCN6EU
  • Text-to-Speech: Enabled
  • X-Ray: Not Enabled
  • Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #62,351 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Cleverly written page turner 14 Nov 2012
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
As more of a fan of your average easy reading crime thriller or chick lit, "Bright Spark" was more of a challenge. I did find I needed a dictionary nearby to follow some of the detailed descriptions but nonetheless I was very quickly drawn into the story and didn't easily put it down. I am looking forward to reading more of Smith's work.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Smarter than your average crime novel 19 Dec 2012
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
I would recommend this for anyone who loves crime fiction. Although there are some classic crime novel props (including the obligatory maverick-cop-on-the-edge) the style, location and characterisation offer a refreshing angle on this popular genre.

Although the author obviously has detailed knowledge of police procedure, he uses it with a lightness of touch that adds to rather than detracts from the pace of the plot.

The main character is that perfect mix of obnoxious, likeable, damaged and noble. I was certainly left wanting to know more about his story and look forward to a sequel.
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1.0 out of 5 stars Tough Going 19 Jun 2013
By Mildie
Format:Kindle Edition
Found this really hard going. Unusually for me gave up after sticking with it for quarter way through thinking it might get better; sadly it did not
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5.0 out of 5 stars Extraordinary little gem of a thriller 13 April 2013
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
It's not every day that you read something you cannot put down. A friend verbally recommended Bright Spark to me and I was a little hesitant, but downloaded a sample. I'd purchased the real thing well before finishing the sample as there was no way to leave it unread!
It enchanted me; the writing style encompasses many long lost uses of the English language and the descriptive writing allows the reader to almost feel, taste and smell the surroundings.
The plot addresses human nature to a tee and very cleverly describes the lower echelons of society and how very basically and crudely some live their lives.
I enjoyed the twists and turns of the plot and the characters were entirely believable.
I'm really looking forward to reading more from this author!
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3.0 out of 5 stars hard read 5 April 2013
By neil
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
this is a book i found difficult to "get in to " seemed very disjointed maybe just not right for me, gave up on it after five tries
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5.0 out of 5 stars A good read. 25 Feb 2013
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
Took me a while to get into the book. Set in familiar territory, so facinating. Author has a very good writing style - has a good chance of a following. Look forward to future books.
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2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Mordant and authentic 23 Oct 2012
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
Smith knows the genre inside out and therefore can appear to offer a narrative that conforms to it, whilst offering a critique of police procedures - with a voice that strikes one has having something of the first-hand about it. It also cleverly critiques the genre itself by sometimes adapting the tough, testosterone syntax of the classics in this field, and then surprising the reader with moments of melancholy lyricism or mordant wit, which lift this book way beyond your average crime novel in the local library. Set not in the East End, or Chicago, or the slums of Eastasia, but in the rather unregarded, out-of-the-way cathedral City of Lincoln, Gavin Smith shows that, like a build-up of heat in a haystack, violence can combust and flare where all seems placid. Smith is a stylist and his narrative will begin to control you.
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3 of 5 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars A worthy read. 14 Oct 2012
By yokel
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
This well crafted book took a little getting into but once my brain was organised it was well worth it. Gavin Smith knows his stuff and his descriptive writing was a joy. I look forward to another book by this author either in this type of setting or any other.
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