WONDERFUL/A GREAT FIND ! - Super, 13 Jan 2002

'In a dry season' is probably the most involving novel I have read since 'Black Dog' by Stephen Booth. The characterisation totally enchanting and the plot just sucks you in, but at all times there is this subtle menace, just shimmering on the surface, like the petroleum rainbow on a greasy puddle.

This is my first Inspector Alan Banks novel, and will not be my last, as I have just picked up 'COLD IS THE GRAVE' and then I must read 'AFTERMATH', so please forgive me if some of the back-story on Banks is somewhat fuzzy. Alan Banks is a wonderful character, middle aged angst and cynicism, and just enough lack of respect for authority that makes a great series character. Separated, starting a new life with a real tosspot of a boss ACC Jimmy Riddle, Alan Banks is given a blind-alley of a case, the investigation of a skeleton found in a drained reservoir. The skeleton dates from WW2, and an involving case (partially told in first person by one of the protagonists).

From here the story is woven like a fabric carpet, between Banks's life and the investigation vis-a-vis the story of the Skeleton from the past.

Wonderful, Wonderful and totally bewitching, with an ending that just zaps you totally. I read this book slowly firstly as I was/am still suffering from this head-cold, but also to savour Robinson's mastery of the English language. I had figured all the possible endings, and was not surprised at the close, but more amazed at how he pulled it off so deftly.

The real mystery is how I had not discovered Inspector Banks before !

Well done Mr Robinson...

I can not recommend this book highly enough, world-class and extremely moving with something to say about the human condition and relationships.

ALBERTO

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In A Simmering Summ er, 13 Mar 2005

By	pris "pris" (New EnglandUSA) - See all my reviews

Years ago a village, Hobb's End, lay under the present Thornfield Reservoir. The reservoir had gone dry in this summer season and bones had been found. Thus starts a mystery that will take all of Banks skill and persistence. This story is presented in a seamless weaving of the past and present. Characters that lived in that small town come alive. And, the present is quite a story in itself. Banks meets Detective Sergeant Annie Cabbot who is part of the investigative team. They are attracted and the inevitable happens. Both of them have histories that cause them to be wary, but there is a strong bond and besides lovers they become friends.

The mystery deepens as the characters come forth from the past. Gloria, the beautiful blond bombshell, either loved or hated by most in town and married to Michael who has the best chance of making something of himself. Gwen, Michael's sister and Michael Stanhope the artist and painter. Young American servicemen who come and go. The skeleton turns out to be the remains of Gloria. She was murdered and now the hunt for the murderer goes on. Banks and Cabbot use all of their cunning to move from clue to clue and to provide the suspense and mystery in this novel. This is a multi-layered mystery that explores all human behavior and the human psyche.

Peter Robinson has written a superb mystery. It encompasses detail in the characters, present and past. DCI Banks must find a killer who has escaped detection for fifty years.
Can he reach this daunting challenge? One of the better written mystery novelists that leave us guessing until the last minute. Now onto the rest of the series. Highly recommended. prisrob

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Morse Beware, 3 Feb 2003

By	Pulp Reader "Tom" (Lincoln) - See all my reviews

To be fair to the author, I did not require an in-depth knowledge of his main character to enjoy reading this book. It is so well contructed that it is merely about him, rather than reliant on him. This is due in no small part to the fact that the book neatly splits itself in three, so that we follow seperate threads towards a common enlightenment. I have to admit that this was done with a delightfully light touch. I dread having an author show me how clever they are being with their linking of past stories to the present. With this case it is necessary to learn about the past, but if we learnt all about it in one go it would spoil the suspense in the present, so it is drip fed to us throughout the book, almost as an aside, despite the fact that it is integral.

I thoroughly recommend this to fans of Colin Dexter as there are a lot of similarities in their style of writing. The lead character is sufficiently colourful to keep you interested in the more mundane passages, but ultimately this is a good old fashioned murder mystery. I liken it to "The Wench Is Dead" but found it didn't get as tied to the past as Mr Dexter did. There is also the added bonus that the lead character actually has a sex life, and a Son in a rock band.

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