- Hardcover: 1184 pages
- Publisher: Random House USA Inc; large type edition edition (1 July 2001)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0375431136
- ISBN-13: 978-0375431135
- Product Dimensions: 24.8 x 16.5 x 5 cm
- Average Customer Review: 2.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,665,486 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
A Traitor to Memory (Inspector Lynley Mysteries 11)
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
In A Traitor to Memory, Elizabeth George proves that she belongs firmly in the upper echelons of crime writers. Her 10 previous novels of psychological suspense have carefully consolidated the character of her aristocratic detective Thomas Lynley, and with this book she creates for him a narrative more tangled and (seemingly) impenetrable than ever before.
Gideon Davies is a classical violinist who has lost his ability to play. In the middle of a Beethoven trio, his mind has been wiped clear of everything related to music. But what he can remember is the weeping of a woman and a single name: Sonia. Davies is soon involved with the death of a young woman called Eugenie, who is run down by a car in the streets of London. On the track of her killer, Lynley and his associates Barbara Ramiz and Winston Nkata become aware of a connection with the violinist and a mysterious group of people somehow linked with a crime and its consequences that took place over 20 years ago.
As always, George is faithful to the demands of the classical detective narrative, and the reader is challenged by the slowly unfolding revelations just as much as her struggling protagonists. But, unlike so many of her contemporaries, George never forgets that the sense of place is quite as intrinsic to a mystery story as any whodunit elements, and the panoply of England unfolded before us here is richly and vividly realised. In earlier books, Lynley has seemed almost preternaturally gifted, but here his desperate attempts to penetrate the dark secret have much more of the quality of a struggle - and perhaps this is why A Traitor to Memory is possibly the most satisfying outing for George's detective yet. --Barry Forshaw --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
'Absorbing . . . the pleasure of the book is the slow, surprising and often shocking unravelling of the various links between the main characters' (Marcel Berlins, The Times )
'A long and absorbing read that will please lovers of the traditional crime novel' (Scotland on Sunday )
'Elizabeth George orchestrates the family-secrets theme like a maestro . . . worthy of a standing ovation.' (Amazon.com )
'keeps the reader on the knife's edge of suspense, thanks to George's skill at weaving together intriguing characters, disturbing action, police procedure, psychological insight, and mordant wit. First-rate suspense with a stunner of an ending.' (Booklist )
'A very accomplished crime writer who is able to keep the reader's suspense right up to the last page.' (Woman's Way, Dublin )
'Thoroughly enjoyable.' (Bookseller )
'A Traitor to Memory is more PD James than Ruth Rendell . . . very convincing . . . the book makes a serious and valid point about what is left of the personality of a musical prodigy if the music is taken away.' (Classical Music )
'Plots of dazzling inventiveness are the hallmark of George's first-rate murder mysteries. A story to keep you engrossed al the way to Inverness and back.' (Livewire ) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
'A long and absorbing read that will please lovers of the traditional crime novel' (Scotland on Sunday )
'Elizabeth George orchestrates the family-secrets theme like a maestro . . . worthy of a standing ovation.' (Amazon.com )
'keeps the reader on the knife's edge of suspense, thanks to George's skill at weaving together intriguing characters, disturbing action, police procedure, psychological insight, and mordant wit. First-rate suspense with a stunner of an ending.' (Booklist )
'A very accomplished crime writer who is able to keep the reader's suspense right up to the last page.' (Woman's Way, Dublin )
'Thoroughly enjoyable.' (Bookseller )
'A Traitor to Memory is more PD James than Ruth Rendell . . . very convincing . . . the book makes a serious and valid point about what is left of the personality of a musical prodigy if the music is taken away.' (Classical Music )
'Plots of dazzling inventiveness are the hallmark of George's first-rate murder mysteries. A story to keep you engrossed al the way to Inverness and back.' (Livewire ) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Being a great fan of crime and mystery novels, I was pleased to see a book by one of my favourite authors of the genre on 700 pages. There's nothing like days and days of continuous suspense! I wasn't let down, quite the contrary - I've enjoyed The Traitor to Memory best of all George's novels. The plot is wonderfully complicated and finely balanced, the characters fully formed and convincing. It was the best possible break between two 'proper' novels.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Having been a long time fan of Elizabeth George, I was disappointed with this book. It returns to the diary format of 'Playing for the Ashes' but lacks it's gripping story line. The plot of A Traitor to Memory is tangled and to me, far-fetched and it took a while for the diary entries to fit into the story, which made it hard going. Usually, I find it's hard to put down a new Elizabeth George, but with this story, I struggled to continue. Quite apart from the almost boring 'diary entries'and the seeming lack of a convincing plot, a major dissappointment is the side-lining of the usual characters. In the last book, it seemed that Barbara Havers was developing a relationship with her neighbour, but there was no mention of him or his daughter this time. Deborah and St James barely featured at all and even the relationship between Lynley and Helen is only briefly incorporated into the story.
Part of the enjoyment of this series has been following the lives of the main characters, to have them all-but-removed is disappointing, but would not have mattered so much had the main story been a good one. Unfortunately, it was not.
Part of the enjoyment of this series has been following the lives of the main characters, to have them all-but-removed is disappointing, but would not have mattered so much had the main story been a good one. Unfortunately, it was not.
47 of 52 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Having been a fan of Elizabeth George's books for a long time now, I was disappointed by the previous Lynley novel and was hoping for a return to old times with this one. After a great start, however, "A traitor to memory" failed to grip this reader. It is longwinded and even though I usually love the psychological approach to crime solving, this time it was too much. Every time I came upon one of the frequent "diary" sections and another description of a nightmare, I just wanted to fast forward.
The biggest failure of the book to me however is the lack of involvement of our favourite characters. The story line with Lynley and Helen is continued briefly, but then forgotten through most part of the book. Barbara, St. James and Deborah rarely appear at all. If this were a film, I doubt they would even be considered for best supporting roles.
I don't know how quickly the next instalment will follow, but I feel that Elizabeth George has left me hanging with too many loose ends. The worst thing is that this time I felt that I had to wade through a whole lot of badly constructed plot (the killer was obvious after the first few chapters) waiting for at least some b-plot to reward me, only never to get it.
I haven't given up on her yet, but unfortunately the wait for the next Elizabeth George is no longer full of excited suspense but more of hoping against hope that things will get better.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Too long for Nothing
Book 11 in the Inspector Lynley series
"A traitor to Memory" is a complex novel, large in scope and one that encompasses the psyches of many of its characters. Read more
"A traitor to Memory" is a complex novel, large in scope and one that encompasses the psyches of many of its characters. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Toni Osborne
Bloated and unsatisfying
George is an uneven writer and here I think she's trying to hit above her weight. So while sticking to a crime mystery format, she also tries to write a psychological portrait of a... Read more
Published on 4 April 2010 by Roman Clodia
Great
The book was received on time, exactly as described. Would for sure recommend the seller
Published on 11 Jan 2010 by M. Saric
An Almost Interminable Back Story Clutters This Novel
Violin virtuoso Gideon Davies (common referred to as Gideon) walks off the stage during a concert. He finds that he's lost the music and cannot play again. Read more
Published on 9 July 2005 by Donald Mitchell
Meaty psychological feast - not for the easily bored
Twenty-eight year old virtuoso violinist Gideon Davies has lost not only his memory of music, but his ability to play the instrument he mastered as a child prodigy. Read more
Published on 15 Feb 2004 by RachelWalker
a traitor to memory
Having read all elizabeth george, linley novels , I too found it quite difficult to get to grips with . Read more
Published on 6 Oct 2003
Long and boring.
Not up to George's usual standards. The diary entries could have been summarised in 1 page each. Who cars about Gideon's neverending psychoblabla. Read more
Published on 20 May 2003
Lacks class
I've never been convinced by Elizabeth George's crime novels. To me they are a depressing indictment of an American's starry-eyed view of British society. Read more
Published on 9 Oct 2002
suprisingly good
This is my first Elizabeth George book aswell. I found her to be a very gifted writer who kept the suspense building up as the layers unfolded. Read more
Published on 8 Oct 2002 by Snoopy Doggy
an enjoyable read
This is the first EG book I have ever picked up. It took me a week to finish it, not bad perhaps considering that some others are still at it after three months. Read more
Published on 7 Aug 2002
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