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3.57 AVERAGE
3.57 AVERAGE
This was a fun murder mystery with the added bonus of being tied to the history of Jane Austen in Bath.
The Last Detective is the first novel in the Peter Diamond mystery series. I saw it mentioned as a recommendation and picked it up from the library and I am so glad that I did. The character of Peter Diamond was engaging in his own way. I am not normally a fan of the “anti-technology” quirk but it works for him. He has an earnest manner about him and his lack of arrogance is quite endearing. I also liked the changing points of view as the book progressed. It was handled very well. I have read books in which changing points of view can be confusing or just a device that adds nothing to the plot, but that is not the case here.
I did know who the “villain” was prior the reveal but that didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the book. I am definitely going to continue this series. Great mystery read!
I did know who the “villain” was prior the reveal but that didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the book. I am definitely going to continue this series. Great mystery read!
This book is a British murder mystery. So if you like British, humor that is British, then you should like this book. It's the first in a series.
What is a dead woman from Bath, missing letters written by Jane Austin herself, and old school courtroom drama have in common? Answer: This book.
It's like several old TV series rolled into one. Over all, it worked out ok for me. It might be a series I read more of later we shall see.
My copy came from Net Galley in exchange for my honest review and nothing more.
What is a dead woman from Bath, missing letters written by Jane Austin herself, and old school courtroom drama have in common? Answer: This book.
It's like several old TV series rolled into one. Over all, it worked out ok for me. It might be a series I read more of later we shall see.
My copy came from Net Galley in exchange for my honest review and nothing more.
A bit dry, but a nice introduction to Peter Diamond. It has promise that was not quite fulfilled in this first in the series. Not sure whether I will continue or not.
Not sure about this one... Peter Diamond has to be one of the most obnoxious/unlikeable “good guy” characters I’ve ever read. The story was decent and I liked the way the author flipped perspectives, but it went on a little too long.
Good read with appropriate red herrings. Repetition of scenes as recounted by numerous people was a bit boring with no payoff. Will likely read another in the series.
This book had some slow parts especially as the narrator kept changing but really came together in the end with some surprises.
Peter Diamond is struggling to deal with the administration of the police, while trying to solve the murder of a former tv star. She turned up dead in a lake, and while there seems to be an obvious suspect Diamond is not so sure. Diamond is as funny, cranky, and clever as ever.
The Last Detective was the first of the Peter Diamond police procedurals, and it is excellent. The title refers to Diamond’s preference for detection methods of the past: good legwork, interviews, none of the fancy, computerized stuff that he is constantly disparaging.
When a naked woman is discovered floating in the local reservoir — bottled water sales must have soared that week — Detective Superintendent Peter Diamond is placed in charge of the investigation. The woman is finally discovered to be the popular actress of a British television serial. What is not certain is the [b:cause of death|6541|Cause of Death (Scarpetta Book 7)|Patricia Cornwell|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165603739s/6541.jpg|2408]. The forensic folks will only suggest asphyxia, but with a body so long in the water, it’s hard to tell if the asphyxia was caused by drowning or human-induced suffocation.
The immediate suspect is Dr. Gregory Jackman, English professor, and husband of the dead woman (who had been living under her own name). He reveals during interrogations that Gerry Snoo, Mrs. Jackman, the murdered woman, had tried to kill him. The reasons remain somewhat nebulous, (the story is told from several perspectives) but Snoo was clearly mercurial, if not a few chips short of a cookie. Dr. Jackman was in charge of presenting a Jane Austen exhibit in Bath, the university wishing to have better relations with the community. Jackman finds this amusing, if not mildly unethical, because Jane Austen had always written pejoratively of Bath, where she had lived a few years.
Jackman courageously saves the life of a boy who fell into a weir near the town, and his mother, wishing to thank Jackman, does a little research and stumbles across two letters from Jane Austen to her aunt who had been charged with shoplifting in 1800. She donates them and is perceived by Gerry to be a threat (it’s complicated) and then Mrs. Didrickson, the boy’s mother, according to her statement, found Gerry dead at the Jackman residence.
Diamond, under pressure from a number of sources, has to resign from the force before he can solve this mystery and get Mrs. Didrickson’s charge of murder dropped.
When a naked woman is discovered floating in the local reservoir — bottled water sales must have soared that week — Detective Superintendent Peter Diamond is placed in charge of the investigation. The woman is finally discovered to be the popular actress of a British television serial. What is not certain is the [b:cause of death|6541|Cause of Death (Scarpetta Book 7)|Patricia Cornwell|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165603739s/6541.jpg|2408]. The forensic folks will only suggest asphyxia, but with a body so long in the water, it’s hard to tell if the asphyxia was caused by drowning or human-induced suffocation.
The immediate suspect is Dr. Gregory Jackman, English professor, and husband of the dead woman (who had been living under her own name). He reveals during interrogations that Gerry Snoo, Mrs. Jackman, the murdered woman, had tried to kill him. The reasons remain somewhat nebulous, (the story is told from several perspectives) but Snoo was clearly mercurial, if not a few chips short of a cookie. Dr. Jackman was in charge of presenting a Jane Austen exhibit in Bath, the university wishing to have better relations with the community. Jackman finds this amusing, if not mildly unethical, because Jane Austen had always written pejoratively of Bath, where she had lived a few years.
Jackman courageously saves the life of a boy who fell into a weir near the town, and his mother, wishing to thank Jackman, does a little research and stumbles across two letters from Jane Austen to her aunt who had been charged with shoplifting in 1800. She donates them and is perceived by Gerry to be a threat (it’s complicated) and then Mrs. Didrickson, the boy’s mother, according to her statement, found Gerry dead at the Jackman residence.
Diamond, under pressure from a number of sources, has to resign from the force before he can solve this mystery and get Mrs. Didrickson’s charge of murder dropped.