RANDOM JOTTINGS

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Long time blogger just moved to wordpress. Love music, theatre, movies, sport (tennis and cricket) and cooking. Two great daughters, two great granddaughters.

Random Crime Reading around the World

Now that the hassle of new laptop and setting it up etc is behind me (well almost, scanner on printer not working yet but I am ignoring it for the moment), I am finally getting down to posting about books.   I mentioned in one of my summing up posts of 2012 that I was seriously wondering whether to rename this blog to Random Crime as I seem to read such a lot of crime fiction. This genre has always fascinated me since my discovery of Dame Agatha Christie at the age of eleven when I was given a very old battered Pan edition of what we now call Ten Little Indians and spent a morning ignoring all school work but totally engrossed in wondering How on Earth this was going to end.   After that I was up and running.  

I love 1930's crimfic and Ngaio Marsh is another of my favourites. Gorgeous detective, Roderick Alleyn and I re-read all of these every year or so.   Dorothy L Sayers and Lord Peter Wimsey, well what can one say? Love love love them and only read them for the first time about ten years ago, a treat worth waiting for.

Now I read anything I can get my hands on. Enjoy most crime writers, but there have been failures.  Patricia Cornwall is far to gory for me, she goes into the forensics and anatomical detail with almost too much lip smacking enjoyment and after reading four or five, gave up.   Lisa Jackson, OK, but over written and with lots of inner musings along the line of Come on Get a Grip written in italics and all gets a bit wearying. Have tried Dean Koontz but not for me and have yet to enjoy a Sarah Paretsky book, so my hit rate is not 100%.   BUT I still have discovered a wealth of stonking good reads over the last few years and here are a few of them.

Michael Connelly – the Harry Bosch books.   I read them all out of order and we all know he is that well know character the Maverick Cop which can become tiresome after a while, but great fun and tightly plotted. Set in Los Angeles.   His other hero, Mickey Haller an LA lawyer, I find more enjoyable and the court room scenes are totally gripping and fascinating.

Linda Castillo – all her books have an Amish setting and while I am starting to doubt whether this body count can really be kept up (getting as bad as Midsomer Murders) her main protagonist, Kate Burkholder who is the chief of police in a small town, is immensely likeable. Flawed of course, that goes without saying, but immensely readable.

Tess Gerritsen – wrote a slew of romantic/crime books before she started on her Rizzoli and Isles series set in Boston.   These are much better and very well written.   TV series which I can now see on Sky, dire.

These are just a few of the US writers I have discovered recently.

So we turn to Scandinavian detective fiction which has increased enormously in popularity, mainly due to the Wallender series on BBC4.   Ignore the Ken Branagh version which, though watchable is a bit off the wall, the Swedish version so much better.  I read all the books by Mankel but sadly he has now finished with this detective and there will be no more.  The final one in the series was rather melancholy and sad.    I now realise when writing this that I have an inflated idea of just how much ScandiCrime I have read as all my other expertise in this area comes from watching The Killing Series 1-3 on TV. There has been a 'novelisation' of the first series which I found rather unreadable and hope they do not attempt the others.   Other watching was The Bridge which was pretty stunning.

Camilla Lackberg -  brilliant. Here is the link to a review of one of her books and one of Linda Castillo in the same post

http://randomjottings.typepad.com/random_jottings_of_an_ope/2009/09/icy-murder.html

I am mentioning also Jo Nesbo though I have found his most recent titles
rather gory and upsetting. First one of his I read, the Snowman, gave
me nightmares for weeks.   I have his latest on the shelf, but finding
it difficult to get into so leaving it for a bit.

Quentin Bates has written thrillers set in Iceland which I have read and enjoyed.

http://randomjottings.typepad.com/random_jottings_of_an_ope/2011/02/frozen-out-quentin-bates.html

Now we come to Italy and oh how I love the Montalbano books by Camilleri.  They are set in Sicily and are witty and funny and have reduced me to tears of helpless laughter; they have also reduced me to tears for quite another reason.   Montalbano is a wonderful character, a man of feeling and love and I wish the author a long and happy life so he can continue producing these wonderful books,

I have waiting for me two books by Marco Vichi which are set in Florence. I read and loved the first one, which I reviewed here, and I know this may sound daft, but I am just enjoying having these on my shelves knowing they are there waiting for me.  I am saving them up as a treat, and a treat they will be that I guarantee. Set in Florence in the sixties, before computers and mobile phones, they are engagingly old fashioned in procedure and I found that charming.

Commisioner Alec Blume – set in Rome. Author is Conor Fitzgerald. May not grab you at first but persevere, they are worth reading.

Brunetti books set in Venice and written by Donna Leon. Loved them all, even if Brunetti's smart arse wife who seems to be able to discourse intelligently on Henry James while knocking up spahgetti vongole at the same time, is beginning to get really really boring. But the last one, Beastly Things, was poor and I get the feeling she is tiring of her hero.   A non Brunetti book, published just before Christmas, also pretty poor. Sad.

Then the wonderfully named, Giancarlo Carofiglio.   Superbly written and credit must go to the translater who has done a marvellous job.      Set in Puglia and Involuntary Witness one of the best thrillers I have read in ages and the court room scene totally pinned me to my seat.

Back home and in the last couple of years I have discovered the Roy Grace books of Peter James, set in Brighton, a place I know well, and they are real page turners with a running personal story line in each book which is working up to a climax. Cannot wait for next one in the series.

DCI Banks books by Peter Robinson. Another discovery by me over the last year and gosh they are good. Am now catching up on the TV series which I missed first time around; good as well and sticks to the story lines pretty closely though not sure about the characterisation of Banks.

My latest discovery is Martin O'Brien. I have not reviewed all of his books but click on his name to see a review of my first of his which sent me off in chase of all the others.   They are set in Marseilles and feature a rather gorgeous Daniel Jacquot and they are excellent and totally unputdownable.

There are so many others I have discovered over the last few years, but no room or time to mention them all otherwise I will be hear all night, but as I find new ones (and have just enjoyed a debut thriller set in Maine this week) I will be posting about them. I also realise I have not mentioned PD James, Ruth Rendell and many others but you will have to take it as read that I devoured the lot and loved them.

As a final note, I picked up a battered old Penguin edition of a Simenon Maigret book recently. I have never read any of them and as there seem to be about a hundred or so, I really feel I ought to give them a whirl.  Can I ask any of you out there if you have read them, what you think of them and recommend any titles please?

Merci beaucoup.

 

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25 responses to “Random Crime Reading around the World”

  1. Michele Avatar
    Michele

    There have been several of hers that I have been unable to finish, but I liked some of her earlier books. Nathanial Parker, who played Inspector Lynley in the series is going to be playing Louise Penney’s Gamache…. I can’t see how that will work, but I will be drawn to check it out.
    I never like it when an author uses a real-life crime as an obvious base for their book.

    Reply
  2. Chrissie Avatar
    Chrissie

    Elaine, if you do try Magdalen Nabb, I think the best ones are the first one, DEATH OF AN ENGLISHMAN, THE MARSHALL AND THE MAD WOMAN, THE INNOCENT, SOME BITTER TASTE, and THE MARSHALL’S OWN CASE. The only one that I didn’t really like was THE MONSTER OF FLORENCE, based on a notorious series of real-life murders. Sadly there won’t be any more as she died in 2007. Soho Press have been reprinting them in attractive paperbacks. Agree with you about Camilleri, I love them.

    Reply
  3. Elaine Avatar
    Elaine

    Thanks to everyone for their suggestions and comments. Much appreciated. Keep them coming!!

    Reply
  4. Elaine Avatar
    Elaine

    OK time for me to dig out a notebook and start listing all these authors else I am going to forget them all. Thanks to you for these suggestions

    Reply
  5. Elaine Avatar
    Elaine

    Elisabeth George’s Lynley books have descended into bathos in my view and also one which featured the Jamie Bulger murder in the UK, which shook us all, although thinly disguised, was simply shameful as well as being badly written and I am amazed that her publisher let it through.
    Her last two, after the death of the acutely irritating Helen, have been self indulgent to the nth degree and I have more or less given up on them now, though I know I will be tempted to read the next one if just to see how much more irritating and self pitying Lynley can be!!

    Reply
  6. Elaine Avatar
    Elaine

    My list is getting longer by the minute!!

    Reply
  7. Elaine Avatar
    Elaine

    Ok more to go on the list. Cannot get on with Maisie Dobbs and Morse. think the writing is pedantic in both series. Josephine tey is wonderful, Donna Leon also though her last Brunetti book was poor. Michael Innes also on my list

    Reply
  8. Elaine Avatar
    Elaine

    Ta Chrissie, never heard of the Nabb books so on the list they go

    Reply
  9. Elaine Avatar
    Elaine

    I agree with you re the Montalbano TV series but do love wtching it. Yep I am keeping an eye out for the Carofiglio which is on my wish list. Thanks for all the other suggestions I am taking a note of all of these

    Reply
  10. Elaine Avatar
    Elaine

    I wasn’t too sure about the TV series when it started but now I really love the madness of it!

    Reply
  11. Jan C Avatar
    Jan C

    I wanted to add that i am about to dig Maigret out of my book case but I wasn’t permitted to continue.
    I would also suggest Deborah Crombie, an Anglophile American whose Police procedural series is set in England; & I am a great fan of Canadian, Louise Penny and her wonderfully drawn Detective Inspector, Armande Gamache – highly recommended .
    Regarding Kerry Greenwood, she has a second series, a contemporary setting in Melbourne. It is well worth a read although decidedly different from the glorious and exotic Phryne books. There are four so far in this series about pastry cook, Corinne Chapman and her challenges & cases in the Art Deco apartment building inhabited by a fascinating group – even a witch.
    Thank you to those whose previous posts have added some writers for me to track down.

    Reply
  12. Jan C Avatar
    Jan C

    Thank you for that useful piece on crime fic. I have to agree re P Cornwell, I too gave up after four or five – too much blood & I tired of her inevitably becoming the victim. I like Camilleri immensely and I also enjoyed the tv series – unusual for me as I tend to avoid any tv series of books I enjoy.
    Regarding Simenon’s Maigret, it is a long time since I have read him. I have just found an interesting & comprehensive article from The Guardian 26/10/2012- ‘Crime’s Grand Tour: European Detective Fiction’ written by Mark Lawson in which he writes that Camilleri keeps a complete set of Maigret near his desk, as does German crime writer Jakob Arjouni. P D James is a fan & Andre Gide thought Simenon should have the Nobel Prize.

    Reply
  13. Michele Avatar
    Michele

    I am much of the same mind with regards to the gore, and I don’t care much for the American detectives (I’m Canadian). I love the British detectives, even when written by an American. How do you feel about Elizabeth George? I love Donna Leon’s books and I’m going to seek out the others set in Italy that you mentioned. I just discovered Elly Griffiths and read her four books in succession. I can forgive alot of flaws if I like the characters. It’s funny, hers are about an archeologist, I just discovered Time Team on tv this winter, and then Kate Ellis, who also features archeologists. The best I can hope to find when digging in my garden is a dinosaur bone or an arrowhead.

    Reply
  14. Margaret Powling Avatar
    Margaret Powling

    With Elaine’s permission message to Julie B: I have Cocaine Blues on the shelf … maybe time to take it down! Thanks for reminding me.

    Reply
  15. Julie B. Avatar
    Julie B.

    Kerry Greenwood’s Phyrne Fisher mysteries are absolutely marvellous! They’re set in 1920s Melbourne and they’re a joy to read. Phyrne is a stylish lady detective with a penchant for mischief who is absolutely delightful. I read the first book in the series, Cocaine Blues, last year and have been reading my way through this brilliant series and loving every book.

    Reply
  16. Pam Avatar
    Pam

    I’ve got several Maigrets and Marshes on my shelf but haven’t gotten to them yet. I’ve been working my way through the Laurie King series about Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell. Wasn’t too sure about them at first but they grew on me. Also enjoyed the Maisie Dobbs series and am slowly but surely getting through Colin Dexter’s Inspector Morse books. Then there’s Josephine Tey and Donna Leon and Michael Innes that I also want to try!

    Reply
  17. Chrissie Avatar
    Chrissie

    I love the Maigret novels for the characters of Maigret and Madame Maigret and the Parisian settings rather than for the plots (and have blogged about them on several occasions). It’s hard to pick out particular titles, but try MADAME MAIGRET’S FRIEND, or MAIGRET’S REVOLVER. I’ve also just enjoyed MAIGRET AND THE HEADLESS CORPSE.
    Magdalen Nabb’s series set in Florence is good, though a bit uneven.

    Reply
  18. Liz F Avatar
    Liz F

    I like both the Camillieri books and the TV series but try not to connect/compare the two too much! It is lovely to see the Sicilian backgrounds and the lead actor is very good but some of the supporting cast members strike me as being prosciutto to the n’th degree!
    Sadly haven’t read any Maigret although I vaguely remember seeing a bit of a TV series years and years ago, but I haven’t really read many of the 20’s and 30’s crime novels apart from Agatha. On my list to catch up with at some point or other!
    I do love Carofiglio, probably a little in love with Guido Guerrieri too, and I keep checking to see if there is a new one on the way but no luck so far!
    I’m currently reading two Irish crime writers who are both very good but very different: Ken Bruen has written a lot of different books but I am reading his Jack Taylor novels set in Galway and find them utterly gripping although they can also be quite bleak and he doesn’t pull his punches. Jack is a former officer in the Garda having left in some disgrace and he does have his problems with both drink and drugs but he is a fundamentally decent man who means well even if things don’t always turn out that way. He works as a PI and has a fair amount of emotional baggage but he is a fascinating character, not unlike Lawrence Block’s Matt Scudder, who oddly enough is one of Jack’s favourite characters (he reads a lot especially crime novels!) Ken Bruen doesn’t take the easy option when working out his plots and the denouement of one of the novels virtually left me pinned to my chair in shock, but I really would recommend that you give him a try although I think that he does need to be read in order – the first one is The Guards.
    I’m also really enjoying Brian McGilloway’s Insp Benedict Devlin series which are more police procedural and have a very different lead character – a family man with two young children and a one eared basset hound. Devlin is based in a small town in Donegal not far from the border with Northern Ireland so he sometimes has to cope with problems from both jurisdictions as well as local politics (both governmental and social). He is quite an independent character who doesn’t always like to play the game, but interesting and quite appealing with it. The first in the series is Borderlands and I am only reading the second (Gallows Lane) now but if you haven’t read him, he is definitely worth looking out.

    Reply
  19. JanetD Avatar
    JanetD

    I too enjoyed the Camilleri books but could not get on with the tv series. I have recently started reading the Maigret books and I really enjoyed “Inquest on Bouvet”.

    Reply
  20. Elaine Avatar
    Elaine

    I have tried Highsmith and could not get on with them but it was some years ago now so I may give them another whirl. Thanks for reminding me

    Reply
  21. Elaine Avatar
    Elaine

    I have enjoyed the Stallwood books though they had an iffy start. Is she still writing them? Could not get on with the Maisie Dobbs books at all I am afraid. The Ngaio Marsh tv adaptation are all wrong – Alleyn is wrong, Troy is made out to be an interfering idiot most of the time and the stories have been changed. Wish somebody would redo them

    Reply
  22. Elaine Avatar
    Elaine

    Shelved these books so many times when working in the library and thought that I ought to read them. Perhaps fifty years later I finally will!

    Reply
  23. Susan A Avatar
    Susan A

    I like Georges Simenon’s Inspector Maigret books very much. I first bought some of these collected stories at the Hatchards bookshop in Piccadilly a few years ago & have enjoyed a great many of the plots ever since. Find it easy these days, to pick up secondhand copies from Abe Books. I could be speaking just from personal taste but the detective stories are riveting, bear the usual caustic wit in parts, can be lightly-humoured and I do certainly adore the old-fashioned ‘whiff’ of a distinct Parisian atmosphere, along the way. Maigret stays a memorable sleuth for sure.
    Would you also consider a Patricia Highsmith or two, Elaine? She’s fantastic.

    Reply
  24. Margaret Powling Avatar
    Margaret Powling

    I am sure some series are truly excellent, but I’ve been hampered by iffy first ones in certain series. I attempted the first Montalbano and gave up. I attempted the first Donna Leon and gave up. I didn’t like Mme Mamotsa or whatever the series is called (although the covers were very pretty!) I suppose I prefer detective fiction to out and out crime – I loved the amateur sleuth books of Veronica Stallwood (featuring historical novelist cum amateur sleuth, Kate Ivory), and of course dear Maisie Dobbs (by Jacqueline Winspear.) The books of Charles Todd are almost there, not quite, also the books about the Victorian gentleman sleuth by Charles Finch (if it weren’t for Americanisms creeping into what are supposed to be stories of Victorian England). But oh yes, loved all the novels of P D James, not at all keen on Ruth Rendell. Must try Ngaio Marsh, though, as I have the DVD of the Roderick Alleyn series, really lovely stuff (and the fashions, worth it for those and the settings alone!

    Reply
  25. Janelle Avatar
    Janelle

    I read some of the Maigret series when I was earning my French degree and enjoyed the milieu more than the stories themselves. I don’t consider them top drawer thrillers, but they’re very readable.

    Reply

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