What do you think?
Rate this book
Lydmouth #7
Call the Dying
Love and need make unexpected bedfellows, and both are blind. As the grip of a long hard winter tightens on Lydmouth, a dead woman calls the dying in a seance behind net curtains. Two provincial newspapers are in the throes of a bitter circulation war. A lorry-driver broods, and an office boy loses his heart. Britain is basking in the warm glow of post-war tranquillity, but in the quiet town of Lydmouth, darker forces are at play. The rats are fed on bread and milk, a gentleman's yellow kid glove is mislaid on a train, and something disgusting is happening at Mr Prout's toyshop. Returning to a town shrouded in intrigue and suspicion, Jill Francis becomes acting editor of the Gazette. Meanwhile, there's no pleasure left in the life of Detective Chief Inspector Richard Thornhill. Only a corpse, a television set and the promise of trouble to come.
Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
71 people are currently reading
147 people want to read
About the author
Andrew Taylor
61 books727 followersAndrew Taylor (b. 1951) is a British author of mysteries. Born in East Anglia, he attended university at Cambridge before getting an MA in library sciences from University College London. His first novel, Caroline Miniscule (1982), a modern-day treasure hunt starring history student William Dougal, began an eight-book series and won Taylor wide critical acclaim. He has written several other thriller series, most notably the eight Lydmouthbooks, which begin with An Air That Kills (1994).
His other novels include The Office of the Dead (2000) and The American Boy (2003), both of which won the Crime Writers’ Association of Britain’s Ellis Peters Historical Dagger award, making Taylor the only author to receive the prize twice. His Roth trilogy, which has been published in omnibus form as Requiem for an Angel (2002), was adapted by the UK’s ITV for its television show Fallen Angel. Taylor’s most recent novel is the historical thriller The Scent of Death (2013).
His other novels include The Office of the Dead (2000) and The American Boy (2003), both of which won the Crime Writers’ Association of Britain’s Ellis Peters Historical Dagger award, making Taylor the only author to receive the prize twice. His Roth trilogy, which has been published in omnibus form as Requiem for an Angel (2002), was adapted by the UK’s ITV for its television show Fallen Angel. Taylor’s most recent novel is the historical thriller The Scent of Death (2013).
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
September 21, 2015
After a slow start (admittedly this may be the situation, I read the first third traveling and there were lots of distractions). If you keep at it, the rewards are plentiful! A nice 50's police procedural - a good mystery and some bittersweet romance.
May 31, 2023
The seventh novel in this detective series set in small town 1950s England featuring DI Richard Thornhill and journalist Jill Francis.
Three years have passed, Richard is now DCI Thornhill, in charge of the regional CID. Jill has had a difference of ideology with the new owner of the magazine she edits and has resigned/been sacked. Philip Weymss-Brown, the editor of Lydmouth's Gazette newspaper has had a heart attack and his wife Charlotte has asked Jill to return to Lydmouth to take temporary charge of the paper, which is currently losing a circulation war against its rival newspaper which itself has just been acquired by a national chain.
The elderly and irascible Doctor Bayswater has ostensibly retired and sold his practice to an incomer, the devastatingly attractive Dr Leddon, but appears to have fallen out with him and refuses to honour their agreement to sell Dr Leddon part of his property to set up a new NHS practice - as an aside it was fascinating to see Dr Bayswater's mistrust of the NHS.
It's the advent of television, and Richard's family is not immune to the lure, but when a London TV salesman goes missing somewhere between Lydmouth and London it turns out to be a baffling disappearance, especially when one of his distinctive yellow gloves is found beside the body of Dr Bayswater.
Oh, and there's also someone who goes around pee-ing through people's letterboxes, nice!
Although I enjoyed the mystery, I can't help but feel that this book was written 'by popular demand' to bring Jill back to Lydmouth when it seems either that she and Richard have moved on from their doomed affair, or at least decided to leave it behind (although I did wonder whether Richard and Edith's youngest daughter Susie was in fact the product of Edith's own 'affair' in the previous book).
I had my suspicions about the murderer (or should I say there were breadcrumbs tossed to the reader) based on a few throwaway comments, but the truth was not something I saw coming.
Also, this is a criticism of all the books in this series, there are some howling spelling and grammatical mistakes which should have been picked up in the last decade since the book was published and I resent paying £3.99 (aka full price) for something which has been edited in such a slap-dash manner.
Three years have passed, Richard is now DCI Thornhill, in charge of the regional CID. Jill has had a difference of ideology with the new owner of the magazine she edits and has resigned/been sacked. Philip Weymss-Brown, the editor of Lydmouth's Gazette newspaper has had a heart attack and his wife Charlotte has asked Jill to return to Lydmouth to take temporary charge of the paper, which is currently losing a circulation war against its rival newspaper which itself has just been acquired by a national chain.
The elderly and irascible Doctor Bayswater has ostensibly retired and sold his practice to an incomer, the devastatingly attractive Dr Leddon, but appears to have fallen out with him and refuses to honour their agreement to sell Dr Leddon part of his property to set up a new NHS practice - as an aside it was fascinating to see Dr Bayswater's mistrust of the NHS.
It's the advent of television, and Richard's family is not immune to the lure, but when a London TV salesman goes missing somewhere between Lydmouth and London it turns out to be a baffling disappearance, especially when one of his distinctive yellow gloves is found beside the body of Dr Bayswater.
Oh, and there's also someone who goes around pee-ing through people's letterboxes, nice!
Although I enjoyed the mystery, I can't help but feel that this book was written 'by popular demand' to bring Jill back to Lydmouth when it seems either that she and Richard have moved on from their doomed affair, or at least decided to leave it behind (although I did wonder whether Richard and Edith's youngest daughter Susie was in fact the product of Edith's own 'affair' in the previous book).
I had my suspicions about the murderer (or should I say there were breadcrumbs tossed to the reader) based on a few throwaway comments, but the truth was not something I saw coming.
Also, this is a criticism of all the books in this series, there are some howling spelling and grammatical mistakes which should have been picked up in the last decade since the book was published and I resent paying £3.99 (aka full price) for something which has been edited in such a slap-dash manner.
October 19, 2025
Well thankfully, I can honestly say that the penultimate book in the Lydmouth series, 'Call the Dying' was a marked improvement on the previous two books.
This was due almost from the get go, and mainly owing to the fact that the recently made redundant from Berkeley's magazine journalist, Jill Frances and DCI Richard Thornhill, had been split up for three years, which in turn neutralized any and all romantic fluff and excruciatingly embarrassing sexual liaisons between the pair, thank Cupid for that! Seriously phew!
We also had the much anticipated and prayed for return of PC Peter Porter, and boy! He certainly came back with a bang (of his truncheon on a baddies head! Haha), with much welcome and greatly received hilarity!
This episode certainly played it for laughs throughout and had me guffawing out loud for the duration.
PC Porter, whom despite his size, had very much been a mummies boy as it were. So here, his mother had sadly passed away six months previously and so he had been complaining to DCI Thornhill, that he was finding it increasingly difficult to get himself up for the early shift, owing to the fact that his mum was no longer around to rouse him from his slumber, and he would often sleep through his alarm. Although I never really had DCI Thornhill pegged as a practical joker, he nevertheless asks the young PC, if he's tried the string method? On receiving a blank expression, he then explains to Peter, that before he goes to bed at night, tie a piece of string around his big toe and then dangle the other end out the window and lower it down to street level, then a fellow officer, one whom has just finished the night shift, will tug on it in the morning, thus waking him up, problem solved! Now, any normal person, with at least more than one brain cell, would have burst out laughing and said, "F*ck off!", or words to that effect. But no, not our PC Porter. He undoubtedly thinks it's a great idea, and obviously has now just set himself up for any Tom, Dick, or Harry, prankster that passes below his window, to pull on the seemingly errant length of string! More great writing from the pen of Andrew Taylor, comic timing at its best.
While we're mentioning 'dicks' by the way, it would be a very appropriate time to unzip the next piece of comedy gold that’s flashing out from within the pages of the book, 'The Pisser'!
Someone was indeed terrorizing Lydmouth, and with the only weapon they had at hand! Namely by peeing into seemingly random people's letter boxes, sometimes and very much unwelcomely, hitting the same letter box more than once! This menace was only brought to an excruciatingly painful and abrupt halt however, when one of The Pisser's victims, lying in wait in the dark, at about the time when the pubs closed, and proceeds to strike down, with some hard vigilante justice on the perpetrator's 'lad' with a fish slice! The resulting screams and howls being heard throughout the town! Including, one PC Peter Porter, whom had been hanging out his bedroom window, in the forlorn hope of seeing who had not long since, pulled on his string and had annoyingly, woke him up, at a little before midnight!?
I now had tears rolling down my face! Utter hilarity and genius writing, I was laughing that much, I'm surprised I never p*ssed myself!
However, when we found out the 'how's' and the 'why's' of 'The Pisser' (just the reader mind, the police, thankfully were never told!), their motives and reasoning, were wholly relatable and although the shenanigans were very inappropriate and definitely offensive for the, not so random after all receivers (they were all Baptists), they were, as well as highly amusing, harmless and given the circumstances, understandable. Brilliant.
It was also pleasing to see, 'father to be', DS Brian Kirby beating up a potential suspect, Teddy Boy and Lydmouth Gazette gofor, Howard Mork. I mean, in the sense of the author showing the police to be the b*stards that they generally are, not that I was happy to see the lad getting a doing per se. I hate it when the fuzz are all portrayed as 'Dixon of Dock Green', 'stand up bloke' types, helping old ladies across the road, giving lost tourists directions and such nonsense, obviously some rozzers will do that, but if a copper is ordered to bash you over the head for no apparent reason, they’ll certainly do it! Just ask the relatives of Ian Tomlinson and Blair Peach.
After highlighting police corruption at the top of the tree in previous Lydmouth outings, where we saw how that leads to the corruption lower down of even the perceived, 'by the book' good guys, like DCI Thornhill, it was fantastic seeing Andrew Taylor, rounding it off with some good old fashioned 'smash their heads in' police work!
There's a line from a sketch in the TV programme, 'Spitting Image', that I always remember and sums up police violence perfectly, a police constable is giving his boss some breakfast:
DCI: "This egg is smashed!"
PC: "No, no, no, Sir! The little brown b*stard just fell down the stairs!"
Oh! And on top of all that, there was also some transvestism, the sad passing of a Lydmouth regular and a couple of murders! The resulting jeopardy of which stretched right up till the end, where I hadn't guessed correctly in whom the culprit was, right up till the big reveal!
I would also like to spend a paragraph talking about the highly egregious and extremely odious Evening Post editor, Ivor Fuggle. How he has somewhat improbably went from being, in the first couple of books, nothing more than a cheerfully arrogant, 'wanna be' tabloid journalist, to here, where he was practically a conspiratorial gangland boss type person, ordering and paying for 'hits' on his Lydmouth Gazette competitors! But, it would seem, as well as Fuggle feeling deservedly, a little run down (😜), that he had also and very much unwittingly, married a bloke! There does seem to be some justice in that.
Let's hope the last book in the Lydmouth series is as much fun and shagging free as this one has been! Woohoo!
This was due almost from the get go, and mainly owing to the fact that the recently made redundant from Berkeley's magazine journalist, Jill Frances and DCI Richard Thornhill, had been split up for three years, which in turn neutralized any and all romantic fluff and excruciatingly embarrassing sexual liaisons between the pair, thank Cupid for that! Seriously phew!
We also had the much anticipated and prayed for return of PC Peter Porter, and boy! He certainly came back with a bang (of his truncheon on a baddies head! Haha), with much welcome and greatly received hilarity!
This episode certainly played it for laughs throughout and had me guffawing out loud for the duration.
PC Porter, whom despite his size, had very much been a mummies boy as it were. So here, his mother had sadly passed away six months previously and so he had been complaining to DCI Thornhill, that he was finding it increasingly difficult to get himself up for the early shift, owing to the fact that his mum was no longer around to rouse him from his slumber, and he would often sleep through his alarm. Although I never really had DCI Thornhill pegged as a practical joker, he nevertheless asks the young PC, if he's tried the string method? On receiving a blank expression, he then explains to Peter, that before he goes to bed at night, tie a piece of string around his big toe and then dangle the other end out the window and lower it down to street level, then a fellow officer, one whom has just finished the night shift, will tug on it in the morning, thus waking him up, problem solved! Now, any normal person, with at least more than one brain cell, would have burst out laughing and said, "F*ck off!", or words to that effect. But no, not our PC Porter. He undoubtedly thinks it's a great idea, and obviously has now just set himself up for any Tom, Dick, or Harry, prankster that passes below his window, to pull on the seemingly errant length of string! More great writing from the pen of Andrew Taylor, comic timing at its best.
While we're mentioning 'dicks' by the way, it would be a very appropriate time to unzip the next piece of comedy gold that’s flashing out from within the pages of the book, 'The Pisser'!
Someone was indeed terrorizing Lydmouth, and with the only weapon they had at hand! Namely by peeing into seemingly random people's letter boxes, sometimes and very much unwelcomely, hitting the same letter box more than once! This menace was only brought to an excruciatingly painful and abrupt halt however, when one of The Pisser's victims, lying in wait in the dark, at about the time when the pubs closed, and proceeds to strike down, with some hard vigilante justice on the perpetrator's 'lad' with a fish slice! The resulting screams and howls being heard throughout the town! Including, one PC Peter Porter, whom had been hanging out his bedroom window, in the forlorn hope of seeing who had not long since, pulled on his string and had annoyingly, woke him up, at a little before midnight!?
I now had tears rolling down my face! Utter hilarity and genius writing, I was laughing that much, I'm surprised I never p*ssed myself!
However, when we found out the 'how's' and the 'why's' of 'The Pisser' (just the reader mind, the police, thankfully were never told!), their motives and reasoning, were wholly relatable and although the shenanigans were very inappropriate and definitely offensive for the, not so random after all receivers (they were all Baptists), they were, as well as highly amusing, harmless and given the circumstances, understandable. Brilliant.
It was also pleasing to see, 'father to be', DS Brian Kirby beating up a potential suspect, Teddy Boy and Lydmouth Gazette gofor, Howard Mork. I mean, in the sense of the author showing the police to be the b*stards that they generally are, not that I was happy to see the lad getting a doing per se. I hate it when the fuzz are all portrayed as 'Dixon of Dock Green', 'stand up bloke' types, helping old ladies across the road, giving lost tourists directions and such nonsense, obviously some rozzers will do that, but if a copper is ordered to bash you over the head for no apparent reason, they’ll certainly do it! Just ask the relatives of Ian Tomlinson and Blair Peach.
After highlighting police corruption at the top of the tree in previous Lydmouth outings, where we saw how that leads to the corruption lower down of even the perceived, 'by the book' good guys, like DCI Thornhill, it was fantastic seeing Andrew Taylor, rounding it off with some good old fashioned 'smash their heads in' police work!
There's a line from a sketch in the TV programme, 'Spitting Image', that I always remember and sums up police violence perfectly, a police constable is giving his boss some breakfast:
DCI: "This egg is smashed!"
PC: "No, no, no, Sir! The little brown b*stard just fell down the stairs!"
Oh! And on top of all that, there was also some transvestism, the sad passing of a Lydmouth regular and a couple of murders! The resulting jeopardy of which stretched right up till the end, where I hadn't guessed correctly in whom the culprit was, right up till the big reveal!
I would also like to spend a paragraph talking about the highly egregious and extremely odious Evening Post editor, Ivor Fuggle. How he has somewhat improbably went from being, in the first couple of books, nothing more than a cheerfully arrogant, 'wanna be' tabloid journalist, to here, where he was practically a conspiratorial gangland boss type person, ordering and paying for 'hits' on his Lydmouth Gazette competitors! But, it would seem, as well as Fuggle feeling deservedly, a little run down (😜), that he had also and very much unwittingly, married a bloke! There does seem to be some justice in that.
Let's hope the last book in the Lydmouth series is as much fun and shagging free as this one has been! Woohoo!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 16, 2023
At the end of the previous book in this series, journalist Jill Francis had returned to London from the claustrophobic atmosphere of the small town of Lydmouth but in Call the Dying she returns to be temporary editor of the Lydmouth Gazette. She is concerned to discover the newspaper is suffering from falling figures due to dirty tricks probably instigated by the unpleasant Ivor Fuggle, editor of the rival local Evening Post. Keeping her distance from DCI Richard Thornhill, her one-time lover, she becomes friendly with her neighbour Dr Leddon.
Richard Thornhill is an unhappy man. His marriage is in name only, but he loves his three children. He doesn’t understand why Jill is avoiding him but is aware of the need for discretion in 1950s small town society. The amusing scenes when his wife and children persuade him that they should have a television remind me of my own childhood when a TV arrived in our house and I was told its use must be rationed.
As usual the plotting is immaculate, its separate threads wound through the story to a surprising conclusion. Is the murder of an important member of the local community connected to the mysterious disappearance of a TV salesman from London last seen at Lydmouth station? The characters I know from previous books have developed subtly reflecting their circumstances, but the behaviour of Detective Sergeant Bryan Kirby is surprising though interestingly analysed by Richard. Jill’s intelligence is put to use once more, helping to solve the complex crimes but she finds herself in dire danger. So many reasons to follow this fascinating crime series.
Richard Thornhill is an unhappy man. His marriage is in name only, but he loves his three children. He doesn’t understand why Jill is avoiding him but is aware of the need for discretion in 1950s small town society. The amusing scenes when his wife and children persuade him that they should have a television remind me of my own childhood when a TV arrived in our house and I was told its use must be rationed.
As usual the plotting is immaculate, its separate threads wound through the story to a surprising conclusion. Is the murder of an important member of the local community connected to the mysterious disappearance of a TV salesman from London last seen at Lydmouth station? The characters I know from previous books have developed subtly reflecting their circumstances, but the behaviour of Detective Sergeant Bryan Kirby is surprising though interestingly analysed by Richard. Jill’s intelligence is put to use once more, helping to solve the complex crimes but she finds herself in dire danger. So many reasons to follow this fascinating crime series.
December 14, 2020
Call The Dying by Andrew Taylor - Good
Back to Lydmouth for book number 7. At the end of the previous book, journalist Jill Francis had left to work in London and it would seem that the affair with Detective Chief Inspector Richard Thornhill was over. Now she returns to be acting editor of the Gazette and the atmosphere between them is frosty.
There's murder, of course, some very strange goings on through letter boxes (you may never look at a fish slice in the same way again) and a vendetta against the Gazette all of which will throw Jill and Richard together but whether their romance will rekindle is a whole other issue.
I don't normally like my crime muddied with romance (take note Robert Galbraith!) but this isn't too heavy handed and the mystery is well written.
I'm not sure how many more there are in the series, but I hope not too many as I feel they are starting to lose steam. I know the author has started another series set in restoration London so maybe he's drawing this one to a close.
Oh last point and maybe a hint of a spoiler, but I have a theory about Richard and Edith's youngest child..... maybe that's how everything will get wrapped up and complete the series.
Back to Lydmouth for book number 7. At the end of the previous book, journalist Jill Francis had left to work in London and it would seem that the affair with Detective Chief Inspector Richard Thornhill was over. Now she returns to be acting editor of the Gazette and the atmosphere between them is frosty.
There's murder, of course, some very strange goings on through letter boxes (you may never look at a fish slice in the same way again) and a vendetta against the Gazette all of which will throw Jill and Richard together but whether their romance will rekindle is a whole other issue.
I don't normally like my crime muddied with romance (take note Robert Galbraith!) but this isn't too heavy handed and the mystery is well written.
I'm not sure how many more there are in the series, but I hope not too many as I feel they are starting to lose steam. I know the author has started another series set in restoration London so maybe he's drawing this one to a close.
Oh last point and maybe a hint of a spoiler, but I have a theory about Richard and Edith's youngest child..... maybe that's how everything will get wrapped up and complete the series.
April 20, 2022
Journalist Jill Francis is regretting her return to Lydmouth which is going to hell in a handbasket! Rivalry between the two local newspapers has escalated from assault to planting rats to firebombings; meanwhile, a visiting salesman has disappeared and someone is urinating through letterboxes. DCI Richard Thornhill is copping criticism from all sides and Jill is giving him a frosty reception after being ignored by him for the last three years. Phew, this penultimate book in the series has such a packed plot with the major story arcs all coming to a head! All very entertaining but maybe a little too much to believe for one sleepy UK village. I do love the characters in these books: I like Jill and Richard a lot and it’s been lovely to have the slow plodding PC Porter play a bigger role in this episode. Audio narrator Philip Franks is excellent as always, he has a vast range of voices from rough and ready to aristocratically plummy and toffee-nosed, perfection!
December 16, 2019
It’s a while since I read the last Lydmouth mystery and I was really looking forward to this one. It didn’t disappoint. I think Andrew Taylor is a wonderful writer: the characters are so well drawn, the writing is wonderful, and the plot offers plenty of intriguing mystery. Two things I particularly love about these books is the way the cases build from apparently minor crimes, many of which reek of desperation, to murder, yet both ends of the spectrum reflect the mores of a small (and small-minded) town. The other thing is the subtle and sensitive handling of the relationship between the protagonists, Jill Francis and Richard Thornhill, and the way it’s conveyed with a description of a glancing look or small gesture. It’s interesting to note, too, how useful cigarettes are as “props” for characters! And now I’m looking forward to the next in the series.
February 21, 2021
I finally decided it was time to read some of the books on my physical to-read shelf, starting with Call the Dying. I was in the mood for some gentle crime fiction, and this turned out to be the perfect choice. I loved Andrew Taylor's style of writing, the small-town setting, and the focus on minor as well as major crimes. If you're interested in discovering a new series, I have no doubt that this one is worth your time, but Call the Dying also works perfectly well as a standalone novel.
March 28, 2022
I should have put this down when I read, almost immediately after the title page, a list entitled "The Principle Characters" .. containing Twenty-Four names! And shortly after that I found the first of a dozen "Diary Entries" that are spread throughout the book, and make no sense at all.
But I persisted .. for many days .. until I reached the end. It's not actually a bad plot, but it could so easily have been written with fewer characters, no "Diary Entries" and less boring detail about the surrounding scenery and bookshelf contents.
But I persisted .. for many days .. until I reached the end. It's not actually a bad plot, but it could so easily have been written with fewer characters, no "Diary Entries" and less boring detail about the surrounding scenery and bookshelf contents.
October 9, 2023
I started reading crime fiction with Ian Rankin’s “Watchman” and moved right into Andrew Taylor’s “Call the Dying.” With a compelling plot, well-developed characters, and surprising turns, Taylor’s work is a gripping contribution to the genre. His utilisation of dark settings in his writing style gives the story more depth. “Call the Dying” is a must-read for anyone seeking a thrilling crime novel that keeps you guessing until the very end. Andrew Taylor’s talent shines through, making this book a gripping and memorable experience.
January 9, 2024
I'm really sad that there's only one of these books left after this one. Lydmouth is like Susan Hill's Lafferton - highly addictive. The post-war setting is so well drawn; it always emerges naturally from the plot and creates a coherent and interesting backdrop. The characters are like old friends. The whodunit element is carefully crafted and very satisfying, but the main thing is the world that Taylor has created.
June 23, 2021
Excellent crime novel. Very good plot and pacing. Probably the best in the series. Taylor seems to have a knack of effortlessly describing the post war period. All of the characters are believable and the crime is realistic as is the police response. Th relationship between Thornhill and Jill Francis is cleverly managed.
January 27, 2025
I think this is the best of the Lydmouth books. A brilliant twist at the end that I didn't see coming and an ending that for once didn't speak of doom and gloom for Jill and Richard - although in reality, their relationship will always be fraught given his family responsibilities and what he expects from a wife. Still, it was nice to end on a happy note.
March 9, 2021
Best yet
I have read all the preceding books and I think this has been the best. The same dreary little town in postwar Britain with a range of mostly miserable people but this cast had a bit more spark and the plot was nicely confusing.
I have read all the preceding books and I think this has been the best. The same dreary little town in postwar Britain with a range of mostly miserable people but this cast had a bit more spark and the plot was nicely confusing.
August 24, 2021
On a rainy day in lockdown it’s a treat to listen to a cosy English mystery. I quite like the books in this series but I do think DCI Richard Thornhill needs grab himself a personality. He is just so boring, serious and lacking in a sense of humour
December 10, 2024
Lynmouth news
As usual a very good read couldn't put it down I knew who it was quite early on but the twist was really good, but I do hope the lovers get back together. And I hope you are going to write some more Lydmouth crimes after book 8 Please
As usual a very good read couldn't put it down I knew who it was quite early on but the twist was really good, but I do hope the lovers get back together. And I hope you are going to write some more Lydmouth crimes after book 8 Please
August 11, 2019
I will never look at a fish slice the same way again!
May 14, 2020
Having read this series from the beginning, I find they deepen as you go along, beyond the immediate story and into the stories of the characters who are the continuing thread through all the books.
April 15, 2024
Quite a lot going on in this one with several crimes and no obvious connection. A good read all the same
May 9, 2024
I struggled to keep.up with so many characters ...
September 18, 2025
Better than P.D James or Val McDiarmid!
December 22, 2025
Excellent. If you are an Agatha Christie or Miss Marple fan you will enjoy this read.
March 20, 2022
excellent
Another roller coaster involving the citizens of Lydmouth. Well constructed plot I am Looking forward to number 8 in series
Another roller coaster involving the citizens of Lydmouth. Well constructed plot I am Looking forward to number 8 in series
August 13, 2014
This murder mystery is set in the small town of Lydmouth in the year 1955. Detective Inspector Richard Thornhill must find the killer of the town's retired doctor, find a missing television engineer, determine who is urinating in the letterboxes of parishioners, and find the person responsible for attacks on a local struggling newspaper business. There is also a number of interesting relationship issues happening in the story's background.
The author, Andrew Taylor, is the winner of three Crime Writer's Association Awards and I can see why. The action is fast, the setting and storyline believable, the characters are extremely well portrayed, and there is a lot of humour to enjoy. I especially loved some of his analogies. When the female newspaper editor is accosted by the womanizing, handsome Dr. Roger Leddon, Taylor writes ...she felt him nuzzling her forehead. He reminded her of a greedy horse in search of sugar lumps." And, later when the doctor made a face, Taylor writes He screwed up his face until he looked like an exceptionally handsome monkey."
I will definitely look for more from Andrew Taylor.
The author, Andrew Taylor, is the winner of three Crime Writer's Association Awards and I can see why. The action is fast, the setting and storyline believable, the characters are extremely well portrayed, and there is a lot of humour to enjoy. I especially loved some of his analogies. When the female newspaper editor is accosted by the womanizing, handsome Dr. Roger Leddon, Taylor writes ...she felt him nuzzling her forehead. He reminded her of a greedy horse in search of sugar lumps." And, later when the doctor made a face, Taylor writes He screwed up his face until he looked like an exceptionally handsome monkey."
I will definitely look for more from Andrew Taylor.
Read
August 9, 2016After a long hiatus (not of reading Andrew Taylor but the Lydmouth opus) I came back to this series and found it delightful. Not so much for the mystery -- which was serviceable -- but for the characters, familiar and unfamiliar, that Andrew Taylor creates as well. Mostly it was a joy to reconnect with Richard Thornhill and Jill Francis and their tortured, bittersweet relationship. I almost dread reading the last one because I assume he will wrap up their relationship, and I can't imagine how. Richard give up his job, his respectability, his family? Or the woman he connects with more deeply than anyone else? I am guessing it will be the latter but Taylor has done such a good job of creating these characters that whatever happens, it will be wrenching.
As always the atmosphere of 50's Lydmouth is beautifully rendered, and while I said the mystery was only serviceable, it was certainly mysterious and kept me guessing. It's just that without the characters, it wouldn't be stellar.
As always the atmosphere of 50's Lydmouth is beautifully rendered, and while I said the mystery was only serviceable, it was certainly mysterious and kept me guessing. It's just that without the characters, it wouldn't be stellar.
January 3, 2016
After I bought this my son reminded me that the last book I read of Andrew Taylor's I did not especially like, and while I don't remember the title I can make a guess that it was probably the 1950s atmosphere I disliked.
The same pertains here, but I have got more used to it, having recently read a couple of Craig Russell's Lennox (nowhere near so genteel!) but I now better recognise the skill involved in evoking the period sufficiently well for me to feel uncomfortable with the memory of how narrow life was back then, how little said, how tightly folk kept themselves to themselves and guarded even their own thoughts. Certainly I felt more interest in Thornhill and Jill Francis, in several of the other characters, and the other characters. I was just a little disgruntled at the final twist which seemed superfluous, although clever.
The same pertains here, but I have got more used to it, having recently read a couple of Craig Russell's Lennox (nowhere near so genteel!) but I now better recognise the skill involved in evoking the period sufficiently well for me to feel uncomfortable with the memory of how narrow life was back then, how little said, how tightly folk kept themselves to themselves and guarded even their own thoughts. Certainly I felt more interest in Thornhill and Jill Francis, in several of the other characters, and the other characters. I was just a little disgruntled at the final twist which seemed superfluous, although clever.
December 26, 2012
British mystery takes place in post WWII, small English Village where two newspapers are rivaling for customers; village only needs one paper. Dirty tricks, murder, and you have a mystery. I happen to like this author's writing. Can be a bit slow in parts; the chief inspector Richard Thornhill takes a bit to like (even after reading the previous 6 books). The main characters that are carried over in each book are likeable. Author makes it all work to keep my attention and wanting to read the next book.
May 3, 2013
Another in Andrew Taylor’s excellent Lydmouth series, set in an austere 1950s Britain, which is very well realised. Taylor is a master at the slow burn, building the tensions gradually. I love the psychological insights and depth of characterisation, yet this never compromises the police procedural elements of the story. He really is one of my favourite writers, and he is criminally under-rated.
© Koplowitz 2009
© Koplowitz 2009
March 7, 2015
The next-to-last book in the Lydmouth series. It starts three years after the previous book. Jill has been in London, but returns to act as temporary editor of the Gazette, the paper she worked for before. She and Richard have not been in touch in the meantime -- and don't resume their affair in this book. But it's clear they still have feelings for each other, so... I'm awaiting the final book.
As for the actual crime - it's well done, as always.
As for the actual crime - it's well done, as always.
May 8, 2012
I liked the post war setting of the book and the mildly old fashioned feel to the story. Sort of a modern version of Agatha Christie. Set in Lydmouth, two provincial newspapers are in a bitter circulation war and people start to die or disappear. Nothing like a good mystery :)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews