Essex crime with Blackwater by James Henry

'You can take the boy out of Essex, but you can't take Essex out of the boy'.

New crime thriller 'Blackwater' by James Henry sets up a cracking new series, set in Colchester,  Essex in the 1980s, and featuring DI Nick Lowry. I was intrigued when this book arrived through the door as, living in Essex my whole life and remembering the 80s with nostalgic fondness, what was not to like, as well as being a bit bored of every detective series seemingly set in Scotland or Brighton it was time for a change. The story here focuses on a complicated web of bodies washed up, army cover ups, corruption and missing persons, all linked to drugs shipments and the landscape and population of the blackwaters.

Setting the book in that era was a great idea, no mobiles, Internet or other modern distractions to take the reader from the story. Some of my favourite parts of the book are those that show policing as it used to be, before 9/11 and terrorism, along with in politically correct means of getting criminals to talk and actual doing the job rather than paperwork, in one scene 'the police airwaves crackled' with 'the general public and its daily grind', 'a granny arguing with Woolworths staff over stealing a ballpoint; truanting school kids vandalising a phone box', just enough of the past to make reading this book so much more enjoyable than modern detective crime.

The characters who here are almost fully formed and totally believable, despite the tendency with crime series to waste the first novel setting up relationships and complex issues to be revealed in later books. This novel has moments of humour, just enough mystery and intrigue to keep crime fans happy and a real sense of place, along with a cracking side story concerning Lowry and his wife Jaqui, a younger woman and set up from the start as not all her husband thinks she is in their marriage, entwining both of them closer to the investigation than he would like to admit.

Blackwater certainly worked for me and I'd highly recommend it when it is released by riverrun on 14 July 2016 in the UK along with others in the series which I will eagerly keep an eye out for.

New release 'A Siege of Bitterns' by Steve Burrows

If you like wild birds and crime (not criminal birds) then you'll love this tongue in cheek UK crime thriller by Steve Burrows which I'm pleased to say is part of the Birder Murder series.

A Siege of Bitterns is set in Norfolk and features Domenic Jejeune, a high flying police inspector with a glittering career, bought in to the local rural police to add glamour to the force after the murder of a prominent celebrity and enthusiastic birder Mr Brae. Right from the start we see Jejeune as a man not to be messed with, and I for one liked his style and way of policing, as well as lack of personal demons, so prevalent in so many detective fiction titles around at the moment.

I wasn't sure what to make of this when my review copy popped through the door, as I hadn't really considered crime and bird watching as fiction material. I'm pleased to say they work perfectly in this novel, which I'd say would be perfect UK holiday reading, especially if you are around the area the book is set in Norfolk.

One reason this book worked so well for me is the characters. Burrows has made a really believable couple in Jejeune and his partner (journalist Lindy) and her support of him taking on his new role, which he sees as out of his comfort zone really bought the pair alive for me. As Jujeune comments to himself while watching her chatting to friends 'Human tastes...a mystery far beyond the abilities of a simple policeman'.

This book made me feel happy, the crime itself, although complex and challenging for the inspector is almost an add on for the authors clear love of birding, something which shines through the text and made me want to get my binoculars out and see something different, a rare gull or even the elusive bittern itself. Who knew Ian Fleming was a birder, even allegedly naming James Bond after the author of a bird guide?

'I thought there always had to be a reason for everything in nature?' Says one character, 'Is fun not reason enough?', in the case of this book, fun and birds go together well. I look forward to the next in the series, bring on the birds.

Thanks to realreaders.co.uk and One World publishers for this review copy.

Ghosts of the desert by Ryan Ireland

The back cover of this book describes it as a 'harrowing and hypnotic' literary crime hybrid, and although this statement is certainly true I would describe it more as harrowing due to the graphic content of the story.

Told in a non linear flashback style, we encounter Norman, a scholar studying desert ghost towns and escaping from past actions he can't quite reconcile with the present. I found the first few pages hard to follow as we see Norman warned off a site he is researching, then seemingly kidnapped and part of a cult group, living on the Utah desert.

The thing I found impossible to get past when reading the book, although I enjoyed the gradual revealing of Norman's life in society and his actions leading to the start of the book, was the graphic sexual element, which the author seemed to almost revel in. This type of mysogny and sexual violence is fine for a reason or to further a character, but the book contains so much graphic sexual violence I almost gave up reading half way through as it seemed for the sake of it, rather than to take the story anywhere.

As cult leader Jacoby tells Norman, 'Live out here for a time an you'll learn there's no bottom, no limit to what you can do, what your capable of'. Just like Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, Ghosts of the desert leads to the question of who is civilised? Those who wear the mask of normality but are monsters underneath, or those who show themselves for what they are, except Conrad said it better.

Out in the UK 5 May 2016, thanks to the publisher for this advance copy.