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Review of BRYANT AND MAY ON THE LOOSE by Christopher Fowler (see his blog)
A PECULIAR CRIMES UNIT MYSTERY
Bantam, November 2009
London's 'Peculiar Crimes Unit' has been disbanded, its members either retired or laid off, and its senior detectives seem content to waste away. But all that changes when one of the members, working as a day laborer, discovered a headless body and another runs across an angry man dressed as a stag...with antlers made of sharp kitchen knives. After convincing their higher-ups that the murder could be a serious problem for the nation as a whole, the Peculiar Crimes Unit is back to work.
The criminal activity seems centered around a huge development under way near the center of London, an area of decaying warehouses, abandoned factories, and housing not rebuilt after the London blitz of World War II. With government approval, the closely held development partnership hopes to make billions as England tightens its link with Europe. May wants old-fashioned detectivework (which, considering the unit is denied any official support from modern police systems is fortunate) For his part, Bryant is convinced that ancient myths...the legend of the Green Man, of Pan and Boudica.
Author Christopher Fowler (see more BooksForABuck.com reviews of mysteries by Fowler) brings the decayed but re-generating Kings Cross area of London to life. His descriptions were vivid and his characters well drawn. The mystery itself wasn't really a who-dunnit. We know from the start that the mysterious Fox is behind the crimes and we don't really have much evidence as to who the Fox is. I also found the resolution a bit hard to swallow. Overall, however, BRYANT & MAY ON THE LOOSE is an enjoyable read.
Three Stars
Reviewed 2/06/10
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