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Chief Superintendent Gently #5
Gently Through the Mill
When small-time gambler and petty crook Steinie Taylor turns up dead in a hopper of flour at a country bakery, Gently has to figure out not only how he got there, but also why his prime suspects all appear to have dark secrets to hide. Why had the deceased villain and two of his friends been spending money like it was going out of fashion? Where had they acquired the cash? Why had they strayed from their usual haunts? Why did Taylor’s friends both disappear? In the kind of town where everyone usually knows everything about their neighbours, there are a few surprises in store for the locals and the investigation becomes ever more sinister when one of Taylor’s cronies is also found dead. The race is on to find the third man before the killer can claim him as another victim.
256 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1958
40 people are currently reading
157 people want to read
About the author
Alan Hunter
105 books61 followersAlan Hunter was born at Hoveton, Norfolk and went to school across the River Bure in Wroxham. He left school at 14 and worked on his father's farm near Norwich. He enjoyed dinghy sailing on the Norfolk Broads, wrote natural history notes for the local newspaper, and wrote poetry, some of which was published while he was in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War.
He married, in 1944, Adelaide Cooper, who survives him with their daughter. After the war he managed the antiquarian books department of Charles Cubitt in Norwich. Four years later, in 1950, he established his own bookshop on Maddermarket in the city.
From 1955 until 1998 he published a Gently detective novel nearly every year. He retired to Brundall in Norfolk where he continued his interests in local history, natural history, and sailing
He married, in 1944, Adelaide Cooper, who survives him with their daughter. After the war he managed the antiquarian books department of Charles Cubitt in Norwich. Four years later, in 1950, he established his own bookshop on Maddermarket in the city.
From 1955 until 1998 he published a Gently detective novel nearly every year. He retired to Brundall in Norfolk where he continued his interests in local history, natural history, and sailing
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
September 17, 2016
Another fun George Gently book. At this stage, easing into another of his investigations is like putting on a comfortable pair of slippers and settling down for the evening with a nice, warm drink. Each book is like another episode of a favourite television show. You're on familiar ground but there are still twists and turns you weren't quite expecting.
It was nice to have Gently's Watson, Sergeant Dutt, back in this one after his absence from the majority of the previous volume.
It was nice to have Gently's Watson, Sergeant Dutt, back in this one after his absence from the majority of the previous volume.
April 24, 2023
Gently's Third Man
Review of the Constable Kindle eBook edition (2011) of the Cassell hardcover original (1958).
George Gently from the Central Office (the book series name for Scotland Yard's CID) is called in when a mysterious dead body is found in a flour hopper at a small town mill and bakery operation. The man is soon identified as part of a trio of racetrack sharps who had been living in the vicinity and wildly spending money from no apparent source. His confederates have disappeared and the hunt is on as Gently interviews various suspects at the factory and bakery, including the owner who is a local politician. Then a second body is found. Can Gently find the third man before he meets the same fate?
This was an entertaining book in the series that has the reader questioning whether the crime relates to the mill, the bakery, the racetrack or some other unknown motive. I did note that Gently's trademark peppermint cream candies were no longer a driving force to his thinking. They are being gradually phased out after being a quirky feature in the earlier 4 books.
The dust jacket of the original 1958 hardcover edition from Cassell. Image sourced from Goodreads.
Trivia and Link
Unlike most of the George Gently books, Gently Through the Mill did have a TV adaptation as part of the series Inspector George Gently (2008-2017) with actor Martin Shaw in the title role. This was as Series 2 Episode 4 in 2009. Several of the suspect characters are the same, although the plot is quite different. The TV series regular Sgt. Bacchus does not appear in the book. There is a generic teaser trailer which you can watch on YouTube here.
Review of the Constable Kindle eBook edition (2011) of the Cassell hardcover original (1958).
He glanced defiantly at Gently, but Gently was busy going through his pockets. Surely, in some neglected corner, there ought to be a peppermint cream? - Gently's trademark snacks hardly make an appearance in this book.
George Gently from the Central Office (the book series name for Scotland Yard's CID) is called in when a mysterious dead body is found in a flour hopper at a small town mill and bakery operation. The man is soon identified as part of a trio of racetrack sharps who had been living in the vicinity and wildly spending money from no apparent source. His confederates have disappeared and the hunt is on as Gently interviews various suspects at the factory and bakery, including the owner who is a local politician. Then a second body is found. Can Gently find the third man before he meets the same fate?
This was an entertaining book in the series that has the reader questioning whether the crime relates to the mill, the bakery, the racetrack or some other unknown motive. I did note that Gently's trademark peppermint cream candies were no longer a driving force to his thinking. They are being gradually phased out after being a quirky feature in the earlier 4 books.
The dust jacket of the original 1958 hardcover edition from Cassell. Image sourced from Goodreads.
Trivia and Link
Unlike most of the George Gently books, Gently Through the Mill did have a TV adaptation as part of the series Inspector George Gently (2008-2017) with actor Martin Shaw in the title role. This was as Series 2 Episode 4 in 2009. Several of the suspect characters are the same, although the plot is quite different. The TV series regular Sgt. Bacchus does not appear in the book. There is a generic teaser trailer which you can watch on YouTube here.
September 5, 2014
At first this was a welcome return to the Gently series. I have read this one with a mixture of disappointment and joy.
The disappointment comes from the lack of anything new. Although a new case, I can't help but feel that this series follows the same pretence of going to the country to help the local constabulary solve a crime - though there is nothing wrong with this, it would perhaps be nice to read an interesting and gripping case based in the big cities (maybe this will happen further down the line). Despite the disappointment, I am filled with joy upon reading this novel as it is satisfying to see Gently stuck in his old ways and for Alan Hunter to explore Gently's feelings of doubt when he is pressed with a difficult obstruction.
That said, I will continue with the series for the foreseeable future - and despite my misgivings this novel does keep the reader guessing throughout. All in all, a good novel for even the beginners to this detective series!
The disappointment comes from the lack of anything new. Although a new case, I can't help but feel that this series follows the same pretence of going to the country to help the local constabulary solve a crime - though there is nothing wrong with this, it would perhaps be nice to read an interesting and gripping case based in the big cities (maybe this will happen further down the line). Despite the disappointment, I am filled with joy upon reading this novel as it is satisfying to see Gently stuck in his old ways and for Alan Hunter to explore Gently's feelings of doubt when he is pressed with a difficult obstruction.
That said, I will continue with the series for the foreseeable future - and despite my misgivings this novel does keep the reader guessing throughout. All in all, a good novel for even the beginners to this detective series!
February 24, 2019
Gently is called to the sleepy town of Lynton because of a bizarre murder : a small-time crook has been found in a heap of flour in a mill. What interests Gently most is what this London-based con man was doing in boring Lynton. He gets even more interested when he finds out that two of the victim's London associates had accompanied him to Lynton and had been living it up in the town's fanciest hotel -right up until the morning after the victim went out for a walk and never came back to the hotel. Knowing the three crooks' prior MO, he suspects that there is some kind of scam going on, blackmail, smuggling or fixing horse races. The local population, however, is not interested at all in helping the police. The mill owner, a man with mayoral ambitions, throws his weight around. The mill manager seems deathly nervous about something. And the baker associated with the mill is hiding a secret behind his bible quotations and uncompromising moral attitude.
This is one of those 50s British novels that seems steeped in rain, mist and fog. Gently is in a constant state of irritation with the complacent Lynton cops and citizens, and is surly and rude throughout most of the novel.
This is one of those 50s British novels that seems steeped in rain, mist and fog. Gently is in a constant state of irritation with the complacent Lynton cops and citizens, and is surly and rude throughout most of the novel.
August 6, 2019
Inspector George Gently is sent to the small town of Lynton, where a body has been discovered in a flour hopper in the mill. It is identified as a petty crook from London, Steinie Taylor, who arrived with two colleagues who have now disappeared. Gently begins his investigation but is hampered by the employees at the mill who all seem to have secrets to hide.
The George Gently series are sound, old-fashioned mysteries, where the Inspector uses his experience and intelligence to figure out the solution. Sometimes they can be a little dull, but this is one of the stronger ones in the series. The plot is well constructed with a few unexpected twists, and the characters are interesting, from the pompous would be mayor to the sullen millworkers.
Enjoyable mystery in an excellent series.
The George Gently series are sound, old-fashioned mysteries, where the Inspector uses his experience and intelligence to figure out the solution. Sometimes they can be a little dull, but this is one of the stronger ones in the series. The plot is well constructed with a few unexpected twists, and the characters are interesting, from the pompous would be mayor to the sullen millworkers.
Enjoyable mystery in an excellent series.
December 15, 2017
42 WORD REVIEW:
Gently is an intriguing detective — prone to brooding self-doubt — and Alan Hunter gives readers an unusual degree of access to his musings and methods. The mystery is much what viewers of the (subsequent) TV series might expect, solidly narrated by Andrew Wincott.
Gently is an intriguing detective — prone to brooding self-doubt — and Alan Hunter gives readers an unusual degree of access to his musings and methods. The mystery is much what viewers of the (subsequent) TV series might expect, solidly narrated by Andrew Wincott.
December 19, 2021
Like his name this is a gentle police procedural set in the 60s Don’t be expecting it to match the zMartin Shaw tv series as there is xx little resemblance. It’s a good story and it keeps you turning the pages.
May 31, 2024
wonderful
Engaging. Beautifully written. A pleasure. The town of Lynton, the awful Mill, the local police are marvelous concoctions. Gently has changed. And no cream candies in his pocket.
Engaging. Beautifully written. A pleasure. The town of Lynton, the awful Mill, the local police are marvelous concoctions. Gently has changed. And no cream candies in his pocket.
May 7, 2017
A good easy read - plenty of twists and turns along the way.
January 9, 2021
I had to read another in the series and again, it's a good, easy reading, crime novel but the TV series setting of the North East in the 60s is far more engrossing than the 50s in East Anglia.
May 6, 2021
A comfy and intriguing read
A good story, seemed better than the first 4 novels which seemed to follow a similar path to each other. This one was different and a good case.
A good story, seemed better than the first 4 novels which seemed to follow a similar path to each other. This one was different and a good case.
June 20, 2021
Book 5 in the series - I enjoyed.
October 21, 2023
Quick and baffling. Good mystery. Quite different from TV series.
October 19, 2016
Set in East Anglia, an excellent little small town story, Gently solves the mystery which the local police could not
March 10, 2017
Dang, I really liked that. No one else might rate this book a five. But I not only love the character and the tone, I love this series for being one long portrait of East Anglia, wry but affectionate.
January 10, 2013
The fifth in the long series of George Gently detective novels, there are no radical departures here. A murder is committed in a small town mill, the local plods can make nothing of it and send for help. Gently arrives and in his quiet, understated style uncovers all the hidden secrets and solves the murder. As always, the charm is in the portrayal of English post-war life, captured as effortlessly as clicking a camera shutter. This was published in 1958, and the first few pages alone reveal a different world: hot cross buns made only for Good Friday, for instance, instead of appearing in the shops shortly after the Christmas decorations come down, and a stag party which is an annual affair and has nothing to do with weddings, being simply a male-only excuse to get plastered (so some similarities to the modern do, obviously).
Food is a big part of Gently’s daily life, and although the peppermint creams, the signature of the earlier books, rate only a single mention here, there are still plenty of edibles about. Gently likes a proper breakfast, with bacon, egg and kidney. Lunch might be onion soup, followed by ‘a very good sole with sauce tartare’, then apple charlotte. And cheese, of course. Another day it might be beefsteak pudding, followed by treacle tart and custard, with hot rum beforehand and a liqueur and cigar afterwards. A picnic lunch is cold chicken and salad, apple turnover, biscuits, cheese and fruit, and four thermoses of coffee. Good, solid working lunches, these. And given that the plot centres around a mill and the attached bakery, there are cakes and pastries abounding, too.
In between these energy-sapping meals, Gently sits about watching the likely suspects until their concocted stories quietly unravel. This is possibly the best of these books so far, since none of the revelations depend on Gently luckily finding himself in just the right place at the right time. He also makes a few mistakes in his investigations, which makes him seem much more humanly fallible. The villain turns out to be a very satisfying and plausible possibility, the local plods, while confident the murderer can’t possibly be a local man, are much more realistic in their protestations, and there are signs of depth in some of the minor characters, too. And thank goodness, there are no painful transcriptions of local dialect to contend with. This is not quite four stars, but it’s certainly a very good three stars.
Food is a big part of Gently’s daily life, and although the peppermint creams, the signature of the earlier books, rate only a single mention here, there are still plenty of edibles about. Gently likes a proper breakfast, with bacon, egg and kidney. Lunch might be onion soup, followed by ‘a very good sole with sauce tartare’, then apple charlotte. And cheese, of course. Another day it might be beefsteak pudding, followed by treacle tart and custard, with hot rum beforehand and a liqueur and cigar afterwards. A picnic lunch is cold chicken and salad, apple turnover, biscuits, cheese and fruit, and four thermoses of coffee. Good, solid working lunches, these. And given that the plot centres around a mill and the attached bakery, there are cakes and pastries abounding, too.
In between these energy-sapping meals, Gently sits about watching the likely suspects until their concocted stories quietly unravel. This is possibly the best of these books so far, since none of the revelations depend on Gently luckily finding himself in just the right place at the right time. He also makes a few mistakes in his investigations, which makes him seem much more humanly fallible. The villain turns out to be a very satisfying and plausible possibility, the local plods, while confident the murderer can’t possibly be a local man, are much more realistic in their protestations, and there are signs of depth in some of the minor characters, too. And thank goodness, there are no painful transcriptions of local dialect to contend with. This is not quite four stars, but it’s certainly a very good three stars.
April 8, 2015
Another in the Chief Inspector Gently series, which I'm enjoying very much. They are delightfully "dated," more a traditional-type mystery, very much of their time and rural-England settings.
When a body turns up in the flour hopper of a local mill, police are stymied--this area has little crime to speak of. The man turns out to be a small-time gambler and petty crook and he and his two pals are normally to be found at the racetracks. When Gently is called in, he has to find out why the men (the three were likely to have been in the area together) were miles away from the nearest racetrack, ending up in a quiet little town. Where are the other two men? Who killed the first man? Why does everyone in town seem to be lying to Gently. Why is everyone so secretive?
When a body turns up in the flour hopper of a local mill, police are stymied--this area has little crime to speak of. The man turns out to be a small-time gambler and petty crook and he and his two pals are normally to be found at the racetracks. When Gently is called in, he has to find out why the men (the three were likely to have been in the area together) were miles away from the nearest racetrack, ending up in a quiet little town. Where are the other two men? Who killed the first man? Why does everyone in town seem to be lying to Gently. Why is everyone so secretive?
April 11, 2020
I'd read this book before but didn't remember all of the nuances. Hunter's skill is still improving in this book, #5 in the Gently series. The dialogue is solid if not witty, and the descriptions are lucid though not lush. Several red herrings pop up throughout the case, creating a cast of supporting characters that end up feeling very human if not exactly helpful or memorable past the last page. Even Dutt doesn't get much to do in this one.
A respectable - if overall forgettable - Gently story.
A respectable - if overall forgettable - Gently story.
February 7, 2013
This is my second Gently novel and I'm still unsure what to think. All of the Gently stories are classic murder mysteries but the style and manner cause me to doubt whether in actually enjoying them! The stories are very community and local based and the era in which they're set very different to the high tech detective world of today.
I've a feeling that the more that you read the more you get into them and soak up the classic feel to them.
Give them a go!
I've a feeling that the more that you read the more you get into them and soak up the classic feel to them.
Give them a go!
June 11, 2015
I really enjoyed this; it's both well-plotted and atmospheric, and engagingly humorous in its portrayal of the taciturn inspector. The other characters are thoughtfully evoked in a manner refreshingly free from condescension. Frankly, it was better than I expected after having read the previous novels; maybe it took a while for Hunter to find his stride for the series?
January 30, 2013
Inspector George Gently is called in after a body is found in a flour hopper, in a town whose inhabitants apparently do not include anyone capable of murder
December 11, 2012
When a small time criminal is found date in a flour hopper another case begins for Inspector Gently.
Not badly written and the story has a good pace. But not good enough to be a classic.
Not badly written and the story has a good pace. But not good enough to be a classic.
April 5, 2013
Loved the TV series, now reading the books.
February 15, 2014
I soon lost interest in this book, I couldn't connect with the characters,
Read
May 31, 2015Meh
June 3, 2020
A surprisingly good writer. I enjoyed this one thoroughly.
February 3, 2015
Another enjoyable George Gently.
Read
December 28, 2018A good straightforward detective story.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews