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3.97 AVERAGE
3.97 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Tom needs to solve an apparent suicide in prison - and he's on the clock, as the boy's father is holding hostages, including a police officer...
I don't usually read to many thriller/crime novels but I guess I have been missing out, because I enjoyed this one. Starting a series thats in it's tenth book is not something I would usually do, but I won this book from indigo —and it's the type of series that doesn't really require you to read the first book in order to enjoy this one.
Tom Thorne is a british detective who has been personally called to deal with a hostage situation. A grieving father who was told that his imprisoned son had committed suicide, believes that he was in-fact murdered, and has charged Tom Thorne with the task of figuring out who the killer is, while he holds a bank worker and a police officer hostage in his store.
There were twists and turns that I didn't see coming at all while the mystery unveiled itself — which I appreciated. I always get a little annoyed when the plot is so easy to figure out. Mark Billingham takes you on a journey to find out what really happen to the store owners son, without making it easy to guess your way to the end of the book.
The stories POV changes quite a bit throughout the book, but it was done really well. These types of character changes can get confusing sometimes, but Billingham was good at keeping the story moving.I also found that in this book —dealing with a hostage situation, seeing what was happening from different character POV's was necessary.
Even though there was some terminology that I wasn't exactly familiar with, ( british terms) I really enjoyed reading this book.
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I enjoy all Mark Billingham's book and this was no different. i like the sympathy Billingham shows to his characters, and the build up to the climactic end is terrific.
I like reading Mark Billingham's books but I find quite a lot of the time they all merge into one in my memory and I cannot distinguish between them. This is one of the few that I feel I would definitely recommend as I enjoyed it very much.
I can't say where this one figures in Mark Billingham's Tom Thorne series, for good or bad, as it's one of those I've not really paid much attention to getting or reading in sequence. Not like me at all. As with the previous one I read and the other one I have, I've got them on special offer. And because I thought the covers looked good as a series.
It's a good solid Police story. I hesitate to say 'Thriller' as, for me, it doesn't quite get there, despite the set-up. It is a good, well put together plot, not a real cliff-hanger with twists, but strong with a few surprising angles to it. I did feel, and it's not giving anything much away, that the 'other' hostage cracked a bit too quickly. Might have worked when the plot was on the back of an envelope, but really irritated me in book form. All in all, it really did feel like there was something holding the whole back, something missing maybe. It could have and should have gone up a notch. Turned the tension up, looked a little more at some of the issues raised.
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It's a good solid Police story. I hesitate to say 'Thriller' as, for me, it doesn't quite get there, despite the set-up. It is a good, well put together plot, not a real cliff-hanger with twists, but strong with a few surprising angles to it. I did feel, and it's not giving anything much away, that the 'other' hostage cracked a bit too quickly. Might have worked when the plot was on the back of an envelope, but really irritated me in book form. All in all, it really did feel like there was something holding the whole back, something missing maybe. It could have and should have gone up a notch. Turned the tension up, looked a little more at some of the issues raised.
More world-class reviews on Speesh Reads
I really enjoyed the standalone book Billingham wrote, where we were first introduced to the character of Helen Weeks, so I was excited to see her return in "Good as Dead" and to see her feature so prominantly in the story. I loved the plot, and thought the hostage angle kept things moving and created a much faster pace than is usually expected with this type of novel. Again, a brilliant example of detective fiction, which is nothing less than I'd expect from Mark Billingham.
I am a big fan of the Tom Thorne series, and always look forward to the latest book. I was not disappointed with this story! It's brilliant, kept me hooked and kept shocking me until the end, and I have to say this is definitely one of my top favourite books in the series. Despite it actually taking place over 3 or so days, a surprising amount happens!
A must read for Tom Thorne fans.
A must read for Tom Thorne fans.
I liked this book a little better than the last one in the series (Bloodline). I didn’t dislike that one, but I thought The Demands had a much quicker pace. The chapters are rather short, and it helps move things along. I think that most of that is due to the circumstances of the story: it’s a hostage situation, which puts a clock on Thorne’s investigation.
Helen is a character that appeared in another of Billingham’s books, In the Dark. She and Thorne make a connection in this book that is sort of out of nowhere. I’m hoping it’s set up in the previous book that I haven’t read.
While I liked the story, the “procedural” part of this police procedural is rather weak. I’m not sure there’s much of anything here that’s by the book. The justification for it is the shortened time span (though Thorne has a bit of a reputation for working outside of the lines).
This is a series I’d eventually like to get to from the beginning.
Helen is a character that appeared in another of Billingham’s books, In the Dark. She and Thorne make a connection in this book that is sort of out of nowhere. I’m hoping it’s set up in the previous book that I haven’t read.
While I liked the story, the “procedural” part of this police procedural is rather weak. I’m not sure there’s much of anything here that’s by the book. The justification for it is the shortened time span (though Thorne has a bit of a reputation for working outside of the lines).
This is a series I’d eventually like to get to from the beginning.