The Only Game

by Reginald Hill, Patrick Ruell (Pseudonym)

When a four-year-old child is abducted from an Essex kindergarten, Detective Inspector Dog Cicero soon realizes that this is to be no routine investigation. Something about the child's mother troubles him. Maybe it's just the fact that she comes from Derry, and Cicero's Northern Ireland scars go deeper than his ruined face. But he feels there's more to it than that. Why, for instance, is Superintendent Toby Tench leaving his devious Special Branch footprints all over Cicero's Romchurch patch? And why does he want the courts to release Jane Maguire on bail after she makes an incriminating confession? Tench plays his cards close to his chest, and Cicero finds the odds are stacked against him both personally and professionally - not that he will let that stop him. For Dog's a gambling man, and when death's the only game in town, a gambling man has got to play.

Genres: Mystery, Thriller, Fiction, Audiobook, Crime

Mass Market Paperback

First published March 1, 1993

About the author

Reginald Charles Hill was a contemporary English crime writer, and the winner in 1995 of the Crime Writers' Association Cartier Diamond Dagger for Lifetime Achievement.

After National Service (1955-57) and studying English at St Catherine's College, Oxford University (1957-60) he worked as a teacher for many years, rising to Senior Lecturer at Doncaster College of Education. In 1980 he retired from salaried work in order to devote himself full-time to writing.

Hill is best known for his more than 20 novels featuring the Yorkshire detectives Andrew Dalziel, Peter Pascoe and Edgar Wield. He has also written more than 30 other novels, including five featuring Joe Sixsmith, a black machine operator turned private detective in a fictional Luton. Novels originally published under the pseudonyms of Patrick Ruell, Dick Morland, and Charles Underhill have now appeared under his own name. Hill is also a writer of short stories, and ghost tales.

Reviews

[Tony · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m a big fan of mr hill, there’s so much to his style and this has it aplenty.

There are a couple of patches where the plot becomes a little unravelled, but overall a good read.

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightfully clever,pure Hill.

[Dave Szostak · Rating 3 out of 5]

A novel about deception and disguise written, suitably enough, by Reginald Hill under the pseudonym Patrick Ruell. It begins with a child abduction in a village outside London and ends with a shooting in South America. An agile, shrewdly designed thriller of IRA and Special Branch machinations and the poor souls used by both. Like Hill's superb series of Dalziel and Pascoe mysteries, lively thrills and wry observations of the everyday, ("The bus pulled out of the station with that minimal acknowledgment of the presence of other traffic which distinguishes the bus driver the whole world over."), characterize the story.

[Paromjit · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love Reginald Hill and believe he was one of our finest crime fiction writers. I have read almost all his books, including the entire Dalziel and Pascoe series. Jane Maguire’s son is snatched outside his school. Dog Cicero, a Met officer, with an extremely troubled background in the military, follows a trail that reveals a faked death, missing millions, the IRA, amoral Special Branch actions, a rising body count and explosions. Every obstacle possible is placed in Dog’s path but he is a tenacious character spurred on by the philosopy of his gambling uncle Endo. With a suspense driven narrative and intricate plotting, this is a gripping and compelling read. There is even a tinge of romance to spice up the story.

[Michael Craig · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book through CD and was my first book by Reginald Hill. Once I got used to the name of the main character, Dog Cicero, I started to enjoy the book. The characters and the plot were well constructed and my interest was maintained throughout. I felt the characters were colourful but believable and there was a good sprinkling of humour and satire which helped the story flow. I look forward to reading another book in the series.

[Alison C · Rating 2 out of 5]

When Jane Maguire’s 4-year-old son is kidnapped from his kindergarten, it seems clear to Detective Inspector “Dog” Cicero that Maguire knows more about the event than she is letting on, but her startling confession a week or so later seems to be quite unreal to him as well. And it seems that members of the elite Special Branch are pursuing Maguire for their own reasons, too, and they don’t much care about saving the life of a little boy…. "The Only Game" is as far as I know a stand-alone novel by Reginald Hill (writing as Patrick Ruell), who is best known as the author of the Dalziel and Pascoe series. This novel was written in the early 1990s and is very much caught up in The Troubles of the time, although the story is set in England, not Northern Ireland. It is fast-paced, with interesting and well-drawn characters, but I ended up just feeling kind of depressed about the then-state of the world after finishing it. Sigh.

[Tiina · Rating 3 out of 5]

The main character in this book - Dog Cicero - was interesting. It was also interesting to see more and more detail of Dog Cicero's past revealed as the book progressed.

As a rule, I do not like books that touch on the Ireland situation (or on anything related to desert/jungle war), but here it was ok. But I did not give the book four stars because of this. I don't know the reason for my dislike, it is certainly nothing political by the way.

I really like the way Reginald Hill writes.

[Evi G · Rating 3 out of 5]

I only recently discovered that Patrick Ruell was a pseudonym for Reginald Hill, one of my absolute favorite authors, whose death was a great loss to detective fiction. I was so happy that there would be more of his books for me to read! I enjoyed this book somewhat, but it did not give me the absolute pleasure that I derived from the Pascoe/Dalziel series. Reginald Hill by another name is just not "as sweet". Still, I do encourage Hill fans to have not read the book to give it a try.

[Colleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

6.5 stars. Detective Inspector 'Dog' Cicero sort of believes the mother who claims the nursery school kidnapped her 4 year old son, Noll. Jane Maguire's partner, Oliver Beck, drowned and when both the FBI and US IRS investigated his death his ex-wife came forward to claim any money he had. Jane left the US and ran home to mother and Britain, but mother was an icy Catholic Irish lady so Jane and Roll ended up finding their own apartment nearby. Dog doesn't think British Special Branch theories about Jane killing Noll hold water but he does wonder why they think the Irish IRA is involved. Very complex plot. It's all held together by Dog's card tricks and turning odds against him into brilliant guesses that move the investigation forward. 6 dead bodies. Laugh aloud funny tricks to escape police tails (the black spray paint). Cops coasting toward retirement. Bent cops reporting to the criminals, and their superiors feeding misinformation to the bent cops. Lies of omission, gaslighting, ignorance and outright lies. It's a nail biter yarn all the way to the end. - And now China has decided Covid is over so everyone there wants to travel. One passenger jet was reported to have 20% of people on board testing positive for Covid when they landed. - It's nice to read a book about smart people finding the signal in the noise and a sort of justice prevailing. So unlike the real world.

[Ape · Rating 2 out of 5]

The copy I have is by Patrick Ruell, aka Reginald Hill, a writer I haven't tried before, and my copy has this awful dated front cover design. And in some ways I found the book dated as well. I think it was about 1990 it was published, and with the ingrained misogyny and awful obligatory sex scene, it didn't make me want to read anything more by him. I only read this as I was sent it as my September book from the Random Bookclub.

The plot itself is all right, keeps you going. What starts off as a child abduction in the south of England turns into international financial theft, from the IRA no less, so the troubles get drawn into it, and everyone is after revenge.

I suppose this is the police of the 1980s colouring this story, so when they refer to all women as slags, maybe that was how it was. But it's not just when the police and special branch are talking. The narrator does it as well. Female characters tend to boil down to their bosoms and if they are fat or thin. There was even one point near the start when he is describing a very minor, passing character who is a large woman. But he comes out with this comment that if fat was still a feminist statement then this woman was screaming political statements. Just nasty.

[Alison Gibson · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's got everything...great character development, great pacing and great plotting, all with some educational history of Ireland's troubles woven into the story-line. There are some over the top places where one truly has to suspend their disbelief (could Dog Cicero really be that good??) but because you want him to be, you blink twice & go with it.

[Cybercrone · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excellent read. Scary story.

[Nicola Royan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very different from Dalziel and Pascoe. Odd to read about Noraid at 30 years distance.

[John Higgins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Splendidly complex plot, good characterization, and told without too many shifts of viewpoint or flashbacks. Some of Hill's later books were too clever-clever; this one is just good story-telling.

[Sandie · Rating 4 out of 5]

DI Inspector Dog Cicero is new to this beat. He had served in Northern Ireland in the military, but left after he and his fiancé were involved in a car explosion. She had died and Dog had been left with a face that told the story of what he had experience. He isn't sure that being a policeman is what he really wants but is giving it a go.

Jane Maguire is a single mother new to the area. When her son, Noll, is kidnapped, she rushes to the police for help. But her story doesn't add up. She talks about a new teacher at the kindergarten she spoke with but the head of the school says no such person exists. Jane has a reputation for being short tempered and sometimes taking her frustration out on Noll. Add in the fact that she seems fairly well heeled for a single mother without a job and bells start ringing.

Although the police look askance at Jane, Dog believes her story of the abduction, especially after she voluntarily comes into the police station and confesses to killing Noll. Dog doesn't believe that story at all. The secret service guys are milling around and why would they care about a local crime without security implications? As Dog works the case, he runs up against both his country's secret service and the men from Northern Ireland who were responsible for his tragedy.

Reginald Hill is best known for his Dalziel and Pascoe series but his stand alone novels are wonderful as well. He is always strong on plot with lots of twists and turns and on building characters that the reader can believe in. The relationship between Jane and her son, and between Dog and Jane are believable and the action is fast and exciting. This book is recommended for mystery readers.

[Jenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very rough read for me. Somewhere around the middle I lost interest. Noll, the stolen xhild was adorable, but his mother acted strange even after you find out the reason why. She just wasn't very likeable. Or maybe that was the point. And the policeman, Dog Cicero, was an odd duck. I'm not sure I could read any other novels with him as the main character. Funny though, I recall my mum rather enjoyed this one.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoy Reginald Hill's writing. His stories capture my attention and hold it. He's become my go-to when I've read a couple of stale books in a row. His books and writing style are always suspenseful, with layered flawed but likable characters. "The Woodcutter" is still my favorite, but this one did not disappoint.

[Wilma Rebstock · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE ONLY GAME is a good book, entertaining and captivating. I enjoyed it very much and was relieved that it held my interest as several of those I have read recently have failed to do this. I'll be reading more of Reginald Hill.

[Helen Fleischer · Rating 4 out of 5]

compelling suspense and romance about the Irish

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I somehow felt I didn't get to grips with any of the characters, and I'd guessed a real identity long before it was revealed, this was still a quality read from Reginald Hill, such a master.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

The outcome was a little predictable- had worked it out half way through

[Cybercrone · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was excellent!

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

An entertaining thriller, with a final scene that closes the book.

Non-Dalziel and Pascoe.

[Jack Heath]

Synopsis: by Reginald Hill. A child is abducted near London and Special Branch ends up chasing the IRA.