Since my May blog was actually my last newsletter transferred to a blog, my June blog is following close on its heels. As I said in my last entry I plan to devote most of my time to discussing mystery authors whose work I have read lately and enjoyed. The two criteria I mentioned last time are that the book should be more or less in the cozy category (not much in the way of graphic violence) and that it should be part of a fairly well established series. One other less firm criterion is that many of the books I discuss will be hard cover offerings that can often only be found in public libraries. Only a small fraction of the mysteries published ever make it into the large bookstores, so many very good mysteries reach only a small market of devoted library readers. I think these books deserve to be given as much attention as possible. I'm sure we've all had the experience of reading a book by a "big name" and finding it inferior to the offering of a lesser known writer toiling away in relative obscurity.
My author this time is Peter Turnbull. Turnbull is an English writer who has written two different series. One is called P Division, and I am not familiar with that. But his more recent one is called "Hennessey and Yellich Mysteries," named after the two main investigators: Detective Chief Inspector George Hennessey and Detective Sergeant Somerled Yellich. This series is a decade old, and there are already eighteen books in it. So Turnbull is often putting out two a year, which should be satisfying to even his most avid readers.
The cases are set in Yorkshire, England, and can probably be classified as procedurals in that they carefully follow the daily workings of the investigators. Readers differ on their interest in procedurals. Fans of the 87th Precinct and the Gideon novels of the sixties and seventies should enjoy these, while those desiring more suspense or the warmer personality of an amateur sleuth might feel that something is lacking. However, Turnbull does bring in a bit of the personal element, particularly with Hennessey whose wife died rather tragically many years ago and who is now in a secret relationship with police pathologist, Louise D'Acre. A new reader may find the existence of this relationship to be a pleasant surprise.
Anyone who enjoys the televised British police mysteries should find these books to be fun. The plots are usually challenging and the reader develops a nice sense of the local setting. When you finish one of these books, you won't feel that your senses have been rubbed raw with suspense, but it will put a satisfied smile on your face.
If you haven't had the opportunity, please also check out my May discussion on Kate Sedley.
