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Redemption Blues
A tense contemporary drama. When rock star Matt Silver tries to repair his failing marriage he triggers a catastrophe which costs him his life - and kills his young daughter. Inspector Sam Cobb, the London detective sent to sort out the mess, has scars of his own. He does not want to get involved in the Silver family's tragedy, but when he does he brings hope. Hope for the future. Hope for redemption.
But can it last when the vanished Matt Silver comes back from the dead?
But can it last when the vanished Matt Silver comes back from the dead?
453 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1999
23 people are currently reading
244 people want to read
About the author
T.D. Griggs
8 books12 followersT.D. GRIGGS was born in London and has lived and worked on four continents. He holds British and Australian nationality, and has worked variously as a truck driver, journalist, film extra, MD of a successful communications consultancy, and - for about seven sweaty hours - as a volunteer fire fighter. Despite that, much of the Australian bush survives.
He has written many short stories, and three other novels, including the father-son drama THE WARNING BELL (written as Tom MacAulay), and the Victorian epic DISTANT THUNDER, under his own name.
T.D.Griggs is also a professional business writer with an international client base. He lives with his wife Jenny in Oxford, UK.
To find out more visit www.tdgriggs.co.uk or follow him on Twitter @TDGRIGGS1
He has written many short stories, and three other novels, including the father-son drama THE WARNING BELL (written as Tom MacAulay), and the Victorian epic DISTANT THUNDER, under his own name.
T.D.Griggs is also a professional business writer with an international client base. He lives with his wife Jenny in Oxford, UK.
To find out more visit www.tdgriggs.co.uk or follow him on Twitter @TDGRIGGS1
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
June 5, 2018
Un piacevole libro di intrattenimento. Pensavo che l'elemento thriller fosse più marcato, invece è davvero molto soft.
Si potrebbe definire una storia di redenzione. I demoni dei protagonisti vanno a posto durante la narrazione e alla fine tutti sembrano trovare una nuova dimensione del vivere.
Non memorabile, ma leggibile.
Si potrebbe definire una storia di redenzione. I demoni dei protagonisti vanno a posto durante la narrazione e alla fine tutti sembrano trovare una nuova dimensione del vivere.
Non memorabile, ma leggibile.
May 24, 2016
An engrossing read. There is a switching between the narratives of Sam Cobb - detective, Matt (Silver) the pop singer and his wife, Lauren. Each character has suffered tragedy, Sam, with the death of his wife, and Matt and Lauren, as their marriage disintegrates and Silver drives away with his twin daughters in the car, one daughter dies, and the survivor, Freya is left traumatised and bereft. Silver, meantime, has disappeared. Whatever becomes of Silver is the mystery, apparently dead, but with no trace of his body. This mystery, plus coming to terms with their loss for Lauren and for Freya forms the main focus of this book. At the same time, Sam has his own personal loss to overcome.
As the reader switches between narrators, there is a growing sympathy for all of the characters, the way they evolve and are granted redemption including Lauren suffering from the loss of one daughter and still trying to connect with the surviving twin. The characters are well rounded, loveable for all their flaws and believable.
This is a beautiful and tragic tale, and a great read. Engrossing from start to finish and a real page turner. Can recommend this, a novel of depth and power, well worth a read.
As the reader switches between narrators, there is a growing sympathy for all of the characters, the way they evolve and are granted redemption including Lauren suffering from the loss of one daughter and still trying to connect with the surviving twin. The characters are well rounded, loveable for all their flaws and believable.
This is a beautiful and tragic tale, and a great read. Engrossing from start to finish and a real page turner. Can recommend this, a novel of depth and power, well worth a read.
May 15, 2022
Dramatisch, maar mooi verhaal.
May 9, 2013
I reviewed the Kindle edition of this book - and sadly, GR doesn't seem to bring together the reviews in one place. So this is it:
Tim Griggs' 'Redemption Blues' is one of those 'don't start it ten o'clock at night' books because if you do, you'll still be there, bleary eyed at 4 am the next morning trying to get through just one more chapter before you finally get some sleep. Except you won't, of course (sleep).
I read it on the way to and from London, which given that it's 4.5 hours travelling time each way, either on trains or on stations, is not a bad way to do it - I did have to finish the last 3 chapters when I came home, but it was well worth it.
The story is fairly straightforward: rock star at the height of his fame realises he has a wife and kids (nine year old twin girls) at home, breaks off the final tour, rushes home to be with them for Christmas -and discovers that his wife is in the process of leaving him. He grabs the girls, heads off in the Big Fast Car... and when the car is found nose down in the Thames, one of the girls has died of a broken neck. The other, miraculously, is still alive, tho' pretty shocked...
His wife is an alcoholic mess, blaming herself and Rock Star Man (Matt Silver) alternately. She also can't really bond with the surviving daughter because the one that's left behind is the little, quiet introvert, while the beautiful, extrovert rock-star-in-the-making is dead. Into this toxic mix comes Inspector Sam Cobb, the police inspector whose own life is recoving from his wife's death from cancer.
It sounds very mundane. It truly isn't. I can't tell you how good this book is: It's literate, it's intelligent, it's thoughtful, it's utterly engaging. The characterisation has depth and a kind of compassion that others of this genre aim for but never quite touch. The web of relationships that spin around Cobb - with his father, the former diplomat ('Sometimes, Samuel, I'm glad you didn't follow me into the diplomatic service.') at whose farm he spends all his free time; with Freya, the nine year old girl rejected by her mother; with Lauren, that mother, whose alcoholic self-destruction is so utterly plausible and not in the least maudlin.
And then there's Silver, whose body is never found, and who might well come back from the dead.
The slowly rising tension is painful, but never unbearable, and the denouement is perfect. This is only available at the moment on Kindle, but it'll be one of the best £1.99 you ever spent...
Tim Griggs' 'Redemption Blues' is one of those 'don't start it ten o'clock at night' books because if you do, you'll still be there, bleary eyed at 4 am the next morning trying to get through just one more chapter before you finally get some sleep. Except you won't, of course (sleep).
I read it on the way to and from London, which given that it's 4.5 hours travelling time each way, either on trains or on stations, is not a bad way to do it - I did have to finish the last 3 chapters when I came home, but it was well worth it.
The story is fairly straightforward: rock star at the height of his fame realises he has a wife and kids (nine year old twin girls) at home, breaks off the final tour, rushes home to be with them for Christmas -and discovers that his wife is in the process of leaving him. He grabs the girls, heads off in the Big Fast Car... and when the car is found nose down in the Thames, one of the girls has died of a broken neck. The other, miraculously, is still alive, tho' pretty shocked...
His wife is an alcoholic mess, blaming herself and Rock Star Man (Matt Silver) alternately. She also can't really bond with the surviving daughter because the one that's left behind is the little, quiet introvert, while the beautiful, extrovert rock-star-in-the-making is dead. Into this toxic mix comes Inspector Sam Cobb, the police inspector whose own life is recoving from his wife's death from cancer.
It sounds very mundane. It truly isn't. I can't tell you how good this book is: It's literate, it's intelligent, it's thoughtful, it's utterly engaging. The characterisation has depth and a kind of compassion that others of this genre aim for but never quite touch. The web of relationships that spin around Cobb - with his father, the former diplomat ('Sometimes, Samuel, I'm glad you didn't follow me into the diplomatic service.') at whose farm he spends all his free time; with Freya, the nine year old girl rejected by her mother; with Lauren, that mother, whose alcoholic self-destruction is so utterly plausible and not in the least maudlin.
And then there's Silver, whose body is never found, and who might well come back from the dead.
The slowly rising tension is painful, but never unbearable, and the denouement is perfect. This is only available at the moment on Kindle, but it'll be one of the best £1.99 you ever spent...
March 29, 2013
Tim Griggs' 'Redemption Blues' is one of those 'don't start it ten o'clock at night' books because if you do, you'll still be there, bleary eyed at 4 am the next morning trying to get through just one more chapter before you finally get some sleep. Except you won't, of course (sleep).
I read it on the way to and from London, which given that it's 4.5 hours travelling time each way, either on trains or on stations, is not a bad way to do it - I did have to finish the last 3 chapters when I came home, but it was well worth it.
The story is fairly straightforward: rock star at the height of his fame realises he has a wife and kids (nine year old twin girls) at home, breaks off the final tour, rushes home to be with them for Christmas -and discovers that his wife is in the process of leaving him. He grabs the girls, heads off in the Big Fast Car... and when the car is found nose down in the Thames, one of the girls has died of a broken neck. The other, miraculously, is still alive, tho' pretty shocked...
His wife is an alcoholic mess, blaming herself and Rock Star Man (Matt Silver) alternately. She also can't really bond with the surviving daughter because the one that's left behind is the little, quiet introvert, while the beautiful, extrovert rock-star-in-the-making is dead. Into this toxic mix comes Inspector Sam Cobb, the police inspector whose own life is recoving from his wife's death from cancer.
It sounds very mundane. It truly isn't. I can't tell you how good this book is: It's literate, it's intelligent, it's thoughtful, it's utterly engaging. The characterisation has depth and a kind of compassion that others of this genre aim for but never quite touch. The web of relationships that spin around Cobb - with his father, the former diplomat ('Sometimes, Samuel, I'm glad you didn't follow me into the diplomatic service.') at whose farm he spends all his free time; with Freya, the nine year old girl rejected by her mother; with Lauren, that mother, whose alcoholic self-destruction is so utterly plausible and not in the least maudlin.
And then there's Silver, whose body is never found, and who might well come back from the dead.
The slowly rising tension is painful, but never unbearable, and the denouement is perfect. This is only available at the moment on Kindle, but it'll be one of the best £1.99 you ever spent...
I read it on the way to and from London, which given that it's 4.5 hours travelling time each way, either on trains or on stations, is not a bad way to do it - I did have to finish the last 3 chapters when I came home, but it was well worth it.
The story is fairly straightforward: rock star at the height of his fame realises he has a wife and kids (nine year old twin girls) at home, breaks off the final tour, rushes home to be with them for Christmas -and discovers that his wife is in the process of leaving him. He grabs the girls, heads off in the Big Fast Car... and when the car is found nose down in the Thames, one of the girls has died of a broken neck. The other, miraculously, is still alive, tho' pretty shocked...
His wife is an alcoholic mess, blaming herself and Rock Star Man (Matt Silver) alternately. She also can't really bond with the surviving daughter because the one that's left behind is the little, quiet introvert, while the beautiful, extrovert rock-star-in-the-making is dead. Into this toxic mix comes Inspector Sam Cobb, the police inspector whose own life is recoving from his wife's death from cancer.
It sounds very mundane. It truly isn't. I can't tell you how good this book is: It's literate, it's intelligent, it's thoughtful, it's utterly engaging. The characterisation has depth and a kind of compassion that others of this genre aim for but never quite touch. The web of relationships that spin around Cobb - with his father, the former diplomat ('Sometimes, Samuel, I'm glad you didn't follow me into the diplomatic service.') at whose farm he spends all his free time; with Freya, the nine year old girl rejected by her mother; with Lauren, that mother, whose alcoholic self-destruction is so utterly plausible and not in the least maudlin.
And then there's Silver, whose body is never found, and who might well come back from the dead.
The slowly rising tension is painful, but never unbearable, and the denouement is perfect. This is only available at the moment on Kindle, but it'll be one of the best £1.99 you ever spent...
November 12, 2014
I was saddened to see this author had died quite young-how sad. He died just before I downloaded this and I'd no idea. I also bought another by him this year, too.
This one I WAS liking a lot but then it started to get all flowery so I packed it in-I can't get along with flowery. It always comes across as a bit precious to me.
There were some funny remarks in it-I liked the sense of humour used. I was greatly impressed he could spell discernible as well as every other e-book I've picked up it's misspelled in !!
I wasn't a fan of Silver and nor the police guy Cobb. Both came across as pretty unsympathetic-they'd probably be good mates if they met in differing lives ! I was upset reading about Freya in places too and how she was treated-it wasn't nice.I was a little baffled that Cobb had been Cobb all the way through but then a nurse referred to him as Inspector Cobley so I was lost there. I didn't know if reely was supposed to be spelt like that or was a mistake and the same for "I didn't realise this were the boy scouts. I thought this were the Metropolitan Police"......it may have been the way they spoke but it wasn't really very clear.
I was getting to learn new words like tragedian which are luckily easy to look up on my Kindle but in the end I got bogged down and packed it up on page 130 with this passage-"She knew he was the Elf King, luring the loveliest of children to annihilation, possessed of a lambent spirit which burned with beauty and evil in equal measure"....I just shut down then, I'm afraid.
This one I WAS liking a lot but then it started to get all flowery so I packed it in-I can't get along with flowery. It always comes across as a bit precious to me.
There were some funny remarks in it-I liked the sense of humour used. I was greatly impressed he could spell discernible as well as every other e-book I've picked up it's misspelled in !!
I wasn't a fan of Silver and nor the police guy Cobb. Both came across as pretty unsympathetic-they'd probably be good mates if they met in differing lives ! I was upset reading about Freya in places too and how she was treated-it wasn't nice.I was a little baffled that Cobb had been Cobb all the way through but then a nurse referred to him as Inspector Cobley so I was lost there. I didn't know if reely was supposed to be spelt like that or was a mistake and the same for "I didn't realise this were the boy scouts. I thought this were the Metropolitan Police"......it may have been the way they spoke but it wasn't really very clear.
I was getting to learn new words like tragedian which are luckily easy to look up on my Kindle but in the end I got bogged down and packed it up on page 130 with this passage-"She knew he was the Elf King, luring the loveliest of children to annihilation, possessed of a lambent spirit which burned with beauty and evil in equal measure"....I just shut down then, I'm afraid.
January 22, 2022
Tim Griggs schreef "De Vergeving" (oorspronkelijke titel "Redemption Blues"). Het verhaal speelt zich af in de omgeving Oxford-Londen in Engeland, in de jaren '90. Matthew Silver is een bekende zanger met cliché huwelijksproblemen. Zijn vrouw wil er een einde aan maken en confronteert hem op een avond rond Kerstmis. Hij vertrekt met zijn twee dochters en verongelukt.
Het boek leest gedeeltelijk als een politieverhaal - hoofdpersonage Sam Cobb is dan ook inspecteur - maar het draait niet zozeer om het onderzoek naar een man die met zijn auto en twee kinderen per ongeluk de Thames inrijdt, maar om hoe de andere personages hierop reageren. Zijn vrouw blijft achter met één overlevende dochter die nog op het nippertje gered werd. Inspecteur Sam Cobb zelf kampt ook met een persoonlijk verlies uit zijn verleden en wil eigenlijk stoppen bij de politie en op de boerderij van zijn vader blijven, maar blijft dicht betrokken bij het meisje en worstelt de hele tijd met conflicterende gevoelen.
Het is een boeiend boek omdat het vooral rond de personages draait, maar soms kan het een beetje aanslepen. Het is een traag verhaal met weinig actie, het is zeker geen thriller, en hoewel het hier en daar best mooi taalgebruik heeft, is het ook niet echt literair. Het bengelt er overal wat tussenin, maar dat wil niet zeggen dat het niet de moeite is. Als lezer ben je echt wel benieuwd wat er van alle personages gaat komen.
De personages wisselen elkaar af per hoofdstuk, en zelfs in hetzelfde hoofdstuk is er soms een verandering van perspectief, netjes afgebakend door een witregel zoals het hoort. Hoewel de climax wat voorspelbaar was, bleek de uiteindelijke keuze van het hoofdpersonage toch het tegenovergestelde van wat ik verwachtte. Op de cover staat "een schitterende roman over de kracht van liefde die zelfs het grootste verlies kan verzachten". Een beetje overdreven, en te zoetsappig voor de werkelijke inhoud van het boek. Het blijft wel een diepmenselijk verhaal waarvan de personages zeker herkenbaar zijn.
Het boek leest gedeeltelijk als een politieverhaal - hoofdpersonage Sam Cobb is dan ook inspecteur - maar het draait niet zozeer om het onderzoek naar een man die met zijn auto en twee kinderen per ongeluk de Thames inrijdt, maar om hoe de andere personages hierop reageren. Zijn vrouw blijft achter met één overlevende dochter die nog op het nippertje gered werd. Inspecteur Sam Cobb zelf kampt ook met een persoonlijk verlies uit zijn verleden en wil eigenlijk stoppen bij de politie en op de boerderij van zijn vader blijven, maar blijft dicht betrokken bij het meisje en worstelt de hele tijd met conflicterende gevoelen.
Het is een boeiend boek omdat het vooral rond de personages draait, maar soms kan het een beetje aanslepen. Het is een traag verhaal met weinig actie, het is zeker geen thriller, en hoewel het hier en daar best mooi taalgebruik heeft, is het ook niet echt literair. Het bengelt er overal wat tussenin, maar dat wil niet zeggen dat het niet de moeite is. Als lezer ben je echt wel benieuwd wat er van alle personages gaat komen.
De personages wisselen elkaar af per hoofdstuk, en zelfs in hetzelfde hoofdstuk is er soms een verandering van perspectief, netjes afgebakend door een witregel zoals het hoort. Hoewel de climax wat voorspelbaar was, bleek de uiteindelijke keuze van het hoofdpersonage toch het tegenovergestelde van wat ik verwachtte. Op de cover staat "een schitterende roman over de kracht van liefde die zelfs het grootste verlies kan verzachten". Een beetje overdreven, en te zoetsappig voor de werkelijke inhoud van het boek. Het blijft wel een diepmenselijk verhaal waarvan de personages zeker herkenbaar zijn.
January 25, 2019
So it took me 1,5 years to read this book. I found this book hidden under a windmill during a family gathering and we were posing for a family picture. Something saw the plastic zip lock bag the book was in. There was a paper in there as well saying it was part of a book club movement and after reading the book it should be passed down again by hiding it somewhere in piblic for the next person to find it. This intrigued me so i thought i’d give it a shot. The beginning was promising, tragic, but so was the rest of the book. Tragic i mean. I did’t like it at all. I thought it went slow and i was bored. But there was an urge to finish it. The end pissed me off. I don’t understand it. Is the ending a metaphor, what the hell happened there? Anyone help me out. The Internet doesnt have any answers either.
October 14, 2021
Original , intensely written .
Deeply insightful ,vivid about loss ,grief ,guilt and redemption .
Particularly recommended because the writer understands human near dereliction and for the portrayal of traumatic bereavement in childhood . Yet throughout it is hopeful and alert
to the possibilities of renewal .
Deeply insightful ,vivid about loss ,grief ,guilt and redemption .
Particularly recommended because the writer understands human near dereliction and for the portrayal of traumatic bereavement in childhood . Yet throughout it is hopeful and alert
to the possibilities of renewal .
March 21, 2022
Wel oké boek. Ik snap gewoon niet dat er altijd zoveel personages in boeken zitten die onaardig zijn tegen elkaar en die zo dwars en moeilijk zijn. Zijn mensen in het echt ook zo? Ik ken ze niet namelijk.
May 24, 2023
Prima weg te lezen boek. Het verhaal wordt op den duur wel wat langdradig en ook het einde kan mij helaas niet bekoren. Jammer wel.
November 13, 2024
Something Totally Different
This book is very unique in it's storyline, very unlike other thrillers that I have read. Strong characters, intriguing plot, I loved it!
This book is very unique in it's storyline, very unlike other thrillers that I have read. Strong characters, intriguing plot, I loved it!
December 30, 2024
Lots of twists and turns but from a human perspective as well as a detective aspect.
classic
September 8, 2025Cartaceo
March 17, 2015
2nd Prize Winner in the 2013 Rubery Book Award
When Matt Silver, a world-renowned rock star, crashes his car into the Thames, he apparently drowns, along with one of his twin daughters. This book explores the grief of his wife Lauren and their surviving twin daughter, but also Silver himself as he hides in the underworld of London, disfigured, unrecognisable, working to come to terms with his new existence. Much of it is told from the point of view of Sam Cobb, a policeman who has recently lost his own wife, a good man who finds himself drawn into Lauren’s world, almost against his will. This is a beautiful, lyrical book about a marriage that was heading for disaster, grief and ultimately redemption. The characters are all richly portrayed, often sharp and difficult, but changing naturally as the book develops, groping their way towards comfort and reconciliation.
From the judges at RBA
When Matt Silver, a world-renowned rock star, crashes his car into the Thames, he apparently drowns, along with one of his twin daughters. This book explores the grief of his wife Lauren and their surviving twin daughter, but also Silver himself as he hides in the underworld of London, disfigured, unrecognisable, working to come to terms with his new existence. Much of it is told from the point of view of Sam Cobb, a policeman who has recently lost his own wife, a good man who finds himself drawn into Lauren’s world, almost against his will. This is a beautiful, lyrical book about a marriage that was heading for disaster, grief and ultimately redemption. The characters are all richly portrayed, often sharp and difficult, but changing naturally as the book develops, groping their way towards comfort and reconciliation.
From the judges at RBA
February 21, 2014
I really enjoyed Redemption Blues. I'm not one for rehashing the story line that can be read at the top of the page, I'd rather use a review to pass on my thoughts, so here they are. Redemption Blues cannot be categorised as any particular genre, it's just a good story, well told. The main characters all genuinely develop through the course of the novel and the connection between them continually creates tension. Griggs writes with a pleasing straightforward style and avoids using prose that gets in the way of the story. Recommended to anyone who enjoys a captivating story written in a style meant for readers.
February 6, 2013
REDEMPTION BLUES is the story of a rock star who falls from grace in spectacular fashion, along with the effect of that fall on his family and on the police officer charged with tidying up the case. It's skilfully and convincingly written and kept me awake and reading into the small hours - no mean feat. (NOTE: I believe there was an earlier edition of this book some years ago. The one reviewed here is the latest, ebook edition, which has some revisions.)
April 6, 2013
It took me a while to get into the story, but it was worth sticking with it. Without giving anything away, the story really took off a few chapters in, and then I couldn't put it down. The characters grew on me and it left me wanting more at the end
July 28, 2015
It said it was a crime thriller. But there wasn't really a crime and it wasn't thrilling. Very well written though. I did however scan read the last third. I just wanted it to be over. Thinking back, it was quite memorable. I felt I was actually there sometimes.
February 5, 2014
Great read
February 10, 2014
Not my usual sort of thing - and started off rather badly. Characters and situations seemed too contrived/unreal - but I warmed to it after a few hundred pages and was quite gripped towards the end.
March 9, 2014
Slow in places. Not the ending I wanted but all in all a good read.
May 17, 2014
Good crime drama although unnecessary love story as well
December 12, 2015
Reasonably good read.
June 29, 2013
well written page turner :)
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews