Review of A FULL ENGLISH DEATH by Anthony Perham

Review of A FULL ENGLISH DEATH by Anthony Perham (see his blog)

BooksForABuck.com, September 2006

Detective Inspector David Charles and Detective Sergeant Malcolm (Malc) McCarn are used to the squalor and crime of London. When the local police in northern England find a body and find themselves undermanned, though, David and Malc are sent to the bitter cold and small towns of the north.

The body turns out to be that of Harriet Warner--rumored to be a prostitute. Prostitutes are favorite targets of murderers, but David and Malc suspect that this is something other than a serial killing. The way the body was handled, the way it was left to be found, and the way it was left dressed point to the killer being someone she knew. Unfortunately for the two detectives, however, the village of Wendesly seems full of people with pasts, people who might just be responsible. There's the local constable, who seems more emotional about the death than he should, given how little he claims he knew her. There's the owner of the hotel where Harriet lived--a man rumored to have an affair with her. There's the local Lord, a magistrate who once gave Harriet an expensive car. There's the local vicar--a man who seems too interested in what's going on. Then there are the dozens of people who have strong opinions on Harriet's morality and who think she had it coming. Could one of them have taken matters into their own hands?

As David and Malc investigate, the mystery only seems to grow stranger.

Author Anthony Perham (see more BooksForABuck.com reviews of novels by Perham) combines a serious look at murder investigation with realistic banter between Malc and David--two policemen who have both seen too much and who are looking for a way out of 'the smoke' (as they refer to London). A FULL ENGLISH DEATH is written in a hard-boiled style, but with a distinctly English feel to it. Fans of police procedural mysteries (like me) will definitely want to grab this one--and hope for more mysteries from Anthony Perham.

Four Stars

Reviewed 9/05/06

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See a video about it--by author Anthony Perham and his son Neil (very funny).

What do you think? Too generous? Too stingy? Or did I miss the entire point? Send your comments to publisher@booksforabuck.com. Give me the okay to use your name and I'll publish all the comments that fit (and don't use unprintable language).

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