Friend of the Devil
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Whatever the profession (from medicine to cuisine), it's always good to sit back and relax, knowing that you're in the hands of a consummate professional. So it is with crime fiction, and Peter Robinson is one of the most reliable names around. He has written 17 books in his much-acclaimed Inspector Bank series (Friend of the Devil is the 17th), and his writing has the confidence that is commensurate with the best in the field.
DI Annie Cabbot is on loan to another area (and is not working with her colleague, Chief Inspector Alan Banks), and finds herself saddled with a difficult case. A woman’s body is found in a wheelchair by the sea. Her throat has been ripped open. At the same time, a teenage girl has been raped and murdered after an alcohol-fuelled night out. DCI Banks is dealing with another case. The two detectives experience very dissimilar results: Banks is faced with a multiplicity of suspects, while Annie Cabbot makes absolutely no progress in her case. Those familiar with detective fiction won't be surprised to learn that the various cases turn out to be interrelated, and when the duo begin to make considerable inroads into the mysteries, they find that aspects of their own pasts are coming back to haunt them. And a burning question becomes ever more pertinent: just how many killers are involved in these cases?
We may be used to relationships between male and female detectives that alternate between the fractious and the reluctantly affectionate, but Peter Robinson has always been able to steer a very confident route down this particular avenue, always firmly keeping cliché at bay. But (as always with this author), the plot’s the thing to catch the attention of the reader, and Friend of the Devil works out a labyrinthine narrative with a particularly pleasing attention to detail. --Barry Forshaw
Review
Watch for those twists theyll get you every time
(Ian Rankin )Praise for Piece of My Heart
(: )'Brilliantly evokes the time of British psychedelia ... as well as being a terrific contemporary crime novel.'
(Independent on Sunday )'Peter Robinson has for too long, and unfairly, been in the shadow of Ian Rankin; perhaps PIECE OF MY HEART, the latest in the Chief Inspector Banks series, will give him the status he deserves, near, perhaps even at the top of, the British crime writers' league . . . PIECE OF MY HEART brilliantly interweaves past and present, providing two strands of tension for the price of one, and further enhancing Alan Banks's reputation as one of crime fiction's most appealing cops.'
(Marcel Berlins, The Times )'Two riveting, equally interesting crime novels in one'
(Telegraph )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
4.5 Stars: Murders and Memory, a British detective suspense novel,
By
This review is from: Friend of the Devil (Inspector Alan Banks) (Hardcover)
Best enjoyed in the context of his earlier work AFTERMATH, Peter Robinson's FRIEND OF THE DEVIL is a stunning addition to his British police detective series. Not only does the reader glimpse more of the unfolding dynamics between the main characters, but also, the case hearkens back to the past as new murders challenge both the detectives and the reader to look at the past through a different perspective.
Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks and Detective Inspector Annie Cabbot investigate a series of chilling murders. Cabbot investigates a brutal and chilling murder of a parapalegic woman in a wheelchair while Banks investigates the brutal murder and rape of a woman found in The Maze. Although these crimes seem unrelated, the murders provoke both Banks and Cabbot to look into their own histories to past crimes that have touched their lives. The eerie murder of the mysterious woman in the wheelchair haunts the imagination as the detectives ponder the thoughts a woman unable to defend herself or even voice a protest in her last moments. The first layer of clues unraveled is only one layer to this finely constructed suspenseful mystery. When Banks' investigation solves the mystery of one crime detail of the rape and murder, more mysteries emerge. Will the security cameras around the Maze aid or complicate this investigation? Each clue, each new development twists and turns the investigation, keeping the reader in suspense until the final dramatic scene. FRIEND OF THE DEVIL explores the ambiguity in the relationship between Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks and Detective Inspector Annie Cabbot. Peter Robinson's unflinching and realistic look into the conflicts in their personal lives add a depth to the characterization as their past chafes and recalls earlier moments and the character's personal weaknesses. In FRIEND OF THE DEVIL, relationships aren't easy or simplistic and, to the reader's delight, neither is the path to catching the perpetrators of these crimes. Precise, sometimes stark descriptive details heighten the terror of these crimes all the way to the shocking climatic end. Chilling, eerie and full of surprises, Peter Robinson's FRIEND OF THE DEVIL gradually builds up a fascinating look into memory, interweaving it into the very thematic structure. Memory underpins this mystery, interwoven within the very core as reminiscences from a former case haunt Banks. Past events present obstacles to personal relationships. Even in the murders themselves, Banks and Cabbot must delve into the memories of witnesses. Quite simply, Peter Robinson's kaleidoscope into memory makes FRIEND OF THE DEVIL a good choice for readers who might crave a little extra to ponder in addition to riveting suspense.
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Chief Inspector Banks Mystery,
By
This review is from: Friend of the Devil (Hardcover)
Peter Robinson grew up in Yorkshire, and is the author of thirteen previous novels featuring Inspector Banks. He is the winner of numerous awards in the United States, Britain and Canada, and in 2002 he won the CWA Dagger in the Library. As I also come from Leeds the background to his stories is something that I have experienced first hand and because of this I have a special affection for his books. However they would be first class crime fiction wherever they were based. This book is the latest in the Chief Inspector Banks novels.
On a cliff overlooking the North Sea, a woman in a wheelchair stares with unseeing eyes out at the waves. looking at something she will never see again because she is dead. She has been murdered. Miles away in a storeroom in Eastvale, Yorkshire, a young woman lies still on a heap of scraps of leather. She has also been murdered. The bodies of the two women are discovered at about the same time that DI Annie Cabbot, on secondment to the Eastern Area force, wakes up with a severe hangover in the bed of a young man she barely recognizes . . . Peter Robinson weaves another intricate plot, as only he can. If I am not mistaken this is number 17 in the Chief Inspector Banks series and they have all been excellent reading. The author's writing style makes for easy reading and his characters, particularly his lead character are well established and almost seem like old friends.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another strong novel in the Banks series,
By
This review is from: Friend of the Devil (Paperback)
That this, the 17th novel in the Inspector Banks series, feels fresh and the characters are still developing, is testament to Peter Robinson's considerable skill as a writer. His plots are dark and often harrowing, as is the case here, with two seemingly disparate cases; Banks is focussed on the rape and murder of a young student in a secluded alleyway in Eastvale, while DI Cabbot is seconded to Eastern Division and is investigating the violent death of a quadriplegic. Inevitably, both cases dovetail, but convincingly so, and there's an interesting tie-in with Robinson's standalone book 'Caedmon's Song' - one piece of advice, if you haven't read 'Caedmon's Song', do so before reading this. It'll make your experience of this novel much richer.
As the cases come together, they get more harrowing and the violence continues, leading up to a bloody, enthralling climax. The principal characters, Banks and Cabbot, are as interesting as ever; seemingly having drifted apart somewhat, they both have personal adventures of their own, but cannot cut themselves off from each other completely. There are also many other great characters, and Robinson's dialogue, scene setting and understanding of common prejudices and cultural habits make for a great read. Highly recommended.
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