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DI Peter Shaw & DS George Valentine #5
At Death's Window
A Shaw & Valentine mystery"
When a body is discoveredbeneath the waves off Scolt Head Island, the contents of the dead man s pockets lead Detective Inspector Peter Shaw to suspect an outbreak of samphire wars: a turf battle for control of the prized sea asparagus which sells for a small fortune along the affluent North Norfolk coast. Or does the killer merely want it to look that way?
Meanwhile, Detective Sergeant George Valentine is investigating a series of break-ins targeted at wealthy second-home owners. And a lethal strain of adulterated cocaine is flooding the streets of nearby Lynn, leaving devastation in its wake.
Then the second body is found and the simmering tensions underpinning this remote coastal community come bursting into the open with devastating consequences.
When a body is discoveredbeneath the waves off Scolt Head Island, the contents of the dead man s pockets lead Detective Inspector Peter Shaw to suspect an outbreak of samphire wars: a turf battle for control of the prized sea asparagus which sells for a small fortune along the affluent North Norfolk coast. Or does the killer merely want it to look that way?
Meanwhile, Detective Sergeant George Valentine is investigating a series of break-ins targeted at wealthy second-home owners. And a lethal strain of adulterated cocaine is flooding the streets of nearby Lynn, leaving devastation in its wake.
Then the second body is found and the simmering tensions underpinning this remote coastal community come bursting into the open with devastating consequences.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published February 1, 2015
16 people are currently reading
113 people want to read
About the author
Jim Kelly
39 books133 followersJim Kelly is a journalist and education correspondent for the Financial Times. He lives in Ely with the biographer Midge Gilles and their young daughter. The Water Clock, his first novel, was shortlisted for the CWA John Creasey Award for best first crime novel of 2002.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
October 11, 2020
enjoyed the next in the series based in Norfolk , the plot of dangerous drugs and several deaths have the local police searching and like the many tangents the book goes on as it come to an interesting climax
June 13, 2015
I totally loved this book. Coming from Norfolk characters and place ring true to life and with a great story. Can't wait for the next.
October 1, 2015
To describe this book as a police procedural does not do it justice at all. The author presents a loving portrayal of the maritime community of Lynn and its surrounding villages, churches and even its graveyards, but it is the seascape along the North Norfolk coast that gets most of the attention, making it almost a living presence. The newest in the Shaw & Valentine Mysteries, it features DI Peter Shaw, who lives with his wife, Lena, and their young daughter Fran, who together run the Old Beach Café after having fled London six years earlier, and heads up a CID unit at King’s Lynn with DS George Valentine, 58 years old, widowed and a lifetime smoker, a man who loathed boats and the people in them,” and “dimly aware that his life was in some ways illuminated by the deaths of others.” The two have worked together for six years, but Valentine had worked under Shaw’s father years ago and he and Peter Shaw had known each other for the 30 years Valentine had been with the CID. Other members of the force include Max Warren, chief constable; Tom Hadden, former Home Office specialist now head of West Norfolk’s forensic science unit; and Paul Twine, “point man” on the team, all wonderfully well-drawn characters.
In the early pages of the book two cases present themselves, the first being a dead body discovered in the waters of Mitchell’s Bank, brutally murdered. In addition, there have been burglaries at seventeen properties which comprise the entire village of Burnham Marsh. These seem to be attacks not only on the physical residences, but on second home ownership in general, something that doesn’t seem controversial at first glance but which proves to be very much so. (There are apparently over 6,000 second homes in the area.) There are graffiti scrawls left very prominently in the buildings, each with political messages (summed up by one character thusly: “I don’t think it’s right for people to have two homes when so many people have none”). Lastly, there appears to be a turf war with respect to the lucrative samphire trade (samphire being “a slightly salty sea asparagus”). And about ten days later, another dead body is found. The novel proceeds at a leisurely pace, as the investigations of the different cases proceed.
This is the fifth book in the Shaw & Valentine Mysteries, and I must admit it is my introduction to them. The sixth entry, Death on Demand, is due out in the US in November of 2015, and I will be sure not to miss it. I have to assume that it too will be recommended reading, as is this one.
In the early pages of the book two cases present themselves, the first being a dead body discovered in the waters of Mitchell’s Bank, brutally murdered. In addition, there have been burglaries at seventeen properties which comprise the entire village of Burnham Marsh. These seem to be attacks not only on the physical residences, but on second home ownership in general, something that doesn’t seem controversial at first glance but which proves to be very much so. (There are apparently over 6,000 second homes in the area.) There are graffiti scrawls left very prominently in the buildings, each with political messages (summed up by one character thusly: “I don’t think it’s right for people to have two homes when so many people have none”). Lastly, there appears to be a turf war with respect to the lucrative samphire trade (samphire being “a slightly salty sea asparagus”). And about ten days later, another dead body is found. The novel proceeds at a leisurely pace, as the investigations of the different cases proceed.
This is the fifth book in the Shaw & Valentine Mysteries, and I must admit it is my introduction to them. The sixth entry, Death on Demand, is due out in the US in November of 2015, and I will be sure not to miss it. I have to assume that it too will be recommended reading, as is this one.
December 16, 2014
This book was really an unusual police procedural novel and that made it more interesting to read than novels written to a formula. There is positively no formula for this one. To begin with, the two main characters, DI Peter Shaw - head of the CID unit - and DS George Valentine, don't consider themselves friends. I find this to be a rather unusual pairing because of that very fact. Valentine was teamed up with Shaw's father so the two have known each other for over thirty years and have worked together for six, but they are not presented to the reader as friends. Friendly and amiable, yes, also relying on each other to use their individual strengths to work on specific aspects of a case. Another different aspect is that the author allows both policemen to go off on their own to investigate with their own style, they aren't joined at the hip twenty-four hours a day. Also interesting is that there are multiple major crimes being worked by this force centered at King's Lynn in north Norfolk. While Shaw and Valentine may be instrumental in helping solve the cases they are not the principal officers working those cases. A very nice example of delegation of work and the author makes it very effective and provides a touch of realism I've not often seen in fictional crime stories.
The problem in this quiet area of the Norfolk coast is that an outsider in the form of a criminal boss has discovered there is money to be made by taking over the harvesting of samphire for sale to gourmet restaurants and markets throughout England. If the traditional samphire harvesters want to hold on to their time-honored areas to harvest, they are going to have to fight the thugs trying to take over. One act of mischief leads to something more serious until the escalation has reached the point of murder.
I liked reading a novel that kept me guessing because it was constructed in a different way. I knew from references I was reading of past happenings that there had been previous novels in the series but this was a perfectly easy to read stand-alone book. I liked the humor shown by the author too. Lines like, "His teeth were so good he could have been American." surprised and delighted me. For a totally land-locked person such as me, all the talk of the tides and different consequences of high tide and low tide was somewhat like trying to decipher a foreign language, but still a fun challenge. I certainly did not guess how the major homicide had taken place.
I received an ARC of this novel through NetGalley.
The problem in this quiet area of the Norfolk coast is that an outsider in the form of a criminal boss has discovered there is money to be made by taking over the harvesting of samphire for sale to gourmet restaurants and markets throughout England. If the traditional samphire harvesters want to hold on to their time-honored areas to harvest, they are going to have to fight the thugs trying to take over. One act of mischief leads to something more serious until the escalation has reached the point of murder.
I liked reading a novel that kept me guessing because it was constructed in a different way. I knew from references I was reading of past happenings that there had been previous novels in the series but this was a perfectly easy to read stand-alone book. I liked the humor shown by the author too. Lines like, "His teeth were so good he could have been American." surprised and delighted me. For a totally land-locked person such as me, all the talk of the tides and different consequences of high tide and low tide was somewhat like trying to decipher a foreign language, but still a fun challenge. I certainly did not guess how the major homicide had taken place.
I received an ARC of this novel through NetGalley.
December 5, 2014
This is a good, if rather procedural, crime novel with a lot to offer the mystery/crime lover. First of all, this book does not have the conventional, boring background of a standard crime novel. The author took great care to create a main character that is quirky, has his own life outside of his job and other people he is connected to. I liked that it wasn't all about the job in this book.
The crimes themselves are intriguing and different than I have seen in other books. There is danger, excitement and a good overall cast of characters that bring life to these pages.
I did get lost a few times in the more technical and procedural aspects of this book. The author is very convincing, but there were a few times when I thought it was a bit much description for the average reader.
There is more than one story line going on in this book, so that also made it interesting and they were easy to follow so there was no confusion between the characters or events.
I liked this book. The author has a clear, controlled way of writing that made me keep comfortably turning pages long into the night. Recommended.
This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through Netgalley. All opinions are my own.
The crimes themselves are intriguing and different than I have seen in other books. There is danger, excitement and a good overall cast of characters that bring life to these pages.
I did get lost a few times in the more technical and procedural aspects of this book. The author is very convincing, but there were a few times when I thought it was a bit much description for the average reader.
There is more than one story line going on in this book, so that also made it interesting and they were easy to follow so there was no confusion between the characters or events.
I liked this book. The author has a clear, controlled way of writing that made me keep comfortably turning pages long into the night. Recommended.
This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through Netgalley. All opinions are my own.
February 4, 2015
3.5 stars. While I thought this was a pretty good story, I found the main characters did not truly engage my interest. I think this series (and the author's Philip Dryden series) suffers from the lack of a significant female character.
February 16, 2015
Another excellent police procedural by Jim Kelly. I'd prefer fewer landscape/location descriptions, but other than that, entirely enjoyable.
October 21, 2023
It's odd how a combination of little things and then one big thing will stop one in the tracks of what would normally be an enjoyable read. Kelly uses Fahrenheit temps at the very beginning chapter when the UK met office has used Celcius since the 70s (when I lived there) and the premise of Sandringham being endangered by a local anti-second house cabal is laughable in these vicious times...nine years after this tale's 2014 copyright.
What cave has Kelly lived in the last decade or so? Or is he setting his premise back in the early 80s and I missed that deliberate choice?
Ah well. I had to leave it for the nonce and turn to other reads.
What cave has Kelly lived in the last decade or so? Or is he setting his premise back in the early 80s and I missed that deliberate choice?
Ah well. I had to leave it for the nonce and turn to other reads.
February 22, 2023
At Death’s Window – A Shaw and Valentine Mystery – 2014 - **** Shaw and Valentine tackle multiple murders and drug crimes at the same time. A big portion of the book centers around the samphire edible plant. Who would have thought that a simple plant could be the center of a murder? Kelly weaves the multiple plots like a magician keeping the reader’s interest at a high level. The character of Valentine continues to provide light humor to offset some of the gruesome parts. The book is a lively read that is enjoyable and entertaining.
February 2, 2024
A well-written, fast paced mystery with several different investigations. A father and his 3 young children have walked to a small island but become trapped when the tide comes in. Before they are rescued they find a body seemingly stuck in the sand with its head almost cut off.
There have been a rash of break-ins on the expensive houses on the coast that are used infrequently by wealthy Londoners. Slogans have been spray painted on the walls with slogans complaining that the houses could be used by people who had very little instead of "posh visitors".
There have been a rash of break-ins on the expensive houses on the coast that are used infrequently by wealthy Londoners. Slogans have been spray painted on the walls with slogans complaining that the houses could be used by people who had very little instead of "posh visitors".
August 8, 2017
Decent police procedural with sympathetic characters. The editing was done well enough that the length of 248 pages is reasonable given the plotting; none of the extraneous meandering and red herrings that seem to be popular in crime novels these days.
I hadn't read any of the others in this series, and I'll take a look at them now.
I hadn't read any of the others in this series, and I'll take a look at them now.
November 15, 2017
This was probably my least favorite in the series thus far. While I still enjoy the main characters and like watching them grow, the main story in this one just didn't capture my imagination. Overall, I was very apathetic about the storyline and in the end, didn't really care about the who or why. I'm hoping the next one in the series captures my attention again.
January 22, 2020
A well plotted book that ties up all the loose ends so the ending is really satisfying. However, I still prefer this author's Philip Dryden series as I seem to engage better with that set of characters.
February 27, 2020
The fifth in the Shaw & Valentine series is another surprisingly plotted police procedural with just enough domestic detail against the backdrop of Norfolk's seaside.
May 12, 2021
Shaw and Valeni
October 30, 2024
A little over-complicated plot, but quite good overall.
March 2, 2015
I'm always eagerly waiting for the next Jim Kelly novel and "At Death's Window" is another enjoyable five star read. I wish you didn't have to wait 2-3 months for the kindle version and would add that when I emailed the author about this he did answer me straight away. Getting that frustration out of the way .................
I have been reading the series from the start. However, there are helpful pointers and enough character information for this to be read as a stand alone mystery. It all begins with a body found weighted down in the waves encroaching upon a sandbar. Shaw has his suspicions that the murder is related to organised control of the collecting and selling of samphire, which has been become fashionable (and consequently expensive) in upmarket restaurants across the country. There are also other crimes (overseen by DI Shaw) being tackled by the West Norfolk Police Service of vandalism and drugs and reference to current news such as the royals moving to their new Norfolk home.
The setting is around Kings Lynn and the North Norfolk coast, and as I live in Norfolk, I enjoy reading about the areas which are depicted accurately.
The novels are so well written, poetic at times - an early on example is where the sea water is described as "choppy - a maze of whirlpools, whorls and wavelets" and you cannot fail to visualise the impending danger. There is strong characterisation with wide differences in the personalities of Shaw and Valentine with a sense they will never be close friends but yet there is a huge loyalty between them and they uneasily compliment one another in their professional relationship. Humour is also creeping in, which is an excellent addition, through their personalities and one reference to a "plastic serrated knife" which made me laugh but it shouldn't have!
In summary, this is a well written, gripping mystery, with a story that's not predictable and with characters you can believe in and understand. I wish I hadn't read it so quickly and look forward to the next one, with hopefully another one in the Phillip Dryden series!
I have been reading the series from the start. However, there are helpful pointers and enough character information for this to be read as a stand alone mystery. It all begins with a body found weighted down in the waves encroaching upon a sandbar. Shaw has his suspicions that the murder is related to organised control of the collecting and selling of samphire, which has been become fashionable (and consequently expensive) in upmarket restaurants across the country. There are also other crimes (overseen by DI Shaw) being tackled by the West Norfolk Police Service of vandalism and drugs and reference to current news such as the royals moving to their new Norfolk home.
The setting is around Kings Lynn and the North Norfolk coast, and as I live in Norfolk, I enjoy reading about the areas which are depicted accurately.
The novels are so well written, poetic at times - an early on example is where the sea water is described as "choppy - a maze of whirlpools, whorls and wavelets" and you cannot fail to visualise the impending danger. There is strong characterisation with wide differences in the personalities of Shaw and Valentine with a sense they will never be close friends but yet there is a huge loyalty between them and they uneasily compliment one another in their professional relationship. Humour is also creeping in, which is an excellent addition, through their personalities and one reference to a "plastic serrated knife" which made me laugh but it shouldn't have!
In summary, this is a well written, gripping mystery, with a story that's not predictable and with characters you can believe in and understand. I wish I hadn't read it so quickly and look forward to the next one, with hopefully another one in the Phillip Dryden series!
March 17, 2015
Shaw and Valentine have a full plate - someone is both burgling and vandalizing vacation homes, painting messages against wealthy owners of second homes in the seaside towns. Somebody is vandalizing churches, defacing angel windows. Then there are the dead bodies - one found weighted down in the water off the Norfolk coast, the other laid out on the ice in the local fishmonger's window, both with sprigs of samphire, a sea vegetable that has grown trendy and expensive enough to cause serious disputes among local foragers and incomer entrepreneurs.
Kelly has a gift for bringing places to life - in this case the seaside villages of the north coast with the contrasts between the old fishing and foraging population and the wealthy newcomers, ancient crumbling cottages next to glitzy new mcmansions. The characters of Shaw and Valentine are not typical partners - Valentine is older but outranked. He was the partner of Shaw's father and their relationship has an uneasy history.
Shaw is a talented artist, can do facial reconstructions, and is a member of the local lifeboat and hovercraft rescue crews. He has a wife who runs a small seashore business that she would like to expand. Valentine is still grieving his dead wife, but trying to make a life for himself without her that is not just about the job. The series has strong procedural aspects, great local color and engaging characters.
Kelly has a gift for bringing places to life - in this case the seaside villages of the north coast with the contrasts between the old fishing and foraging population and the wealthy newcomers, ancient crumbling cottages next to glitzy new mcmansions. The characters of Shaw and Valentine are not typical partners - Valentine is older but outranked. He was the partner of Shaw's father and their relationship has an uneasy history.
Shaw is a talented artist, can do facial reconstructions, and is a member of the local lifeboat and hovercraft rescue crews. He has a wife who runs a small seashore business that she would like to expand. Valentine is still grieving his dead wife, but trying to make a life for himself without her that is not just about the job. The series has strong procedural aspects, great local color and engaging characters.
November 1, 2014
I have been meaning to read some of Jim Kelly's crime novels for a long time and I'm glad I finally got around to reading one as this is excellent. The background is North Norfolk around Kings Lynn and this at times desolate area of the country adds an atmospheric background to this well plotted crime novel featuring Peter Shaw and George Valentine.
A body is found on the coast, there is a spate of second home burglaries which may or may not have a political aspect and there is a supply of illegal drugs which has been mixed with another even more harmful drug which is causing serious injuries and death. Are these crimes related and what about the vandal who keeps shooting stained glass angels? Shaw is battling a Chief Constable who just wants to lie low until he retires with a knighthood and Valentine misses his dead wife.
With excursions into glass making and stained glass and some interesting information about lightening striking sand this is a well written crime novel set in an area I have visited on several occasions so it had added interest for me. The book is part of a series and I think I possibly missed out by not having read the previous novels in this series though it is possible to read it as a standalone story. I shall now be going back and reading this author's other novels. I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley for review purposes.
A body is found on the coast, there is a spate of second home burglaries which may or may not have a political aspect and there is a supply of illegal drugs which has been mixed with another even more harmful drug which is causing serious injuries and death. Are these crimes related and what about the vandal who keeps shooting stained glass angels? Shaw is battling a Chief Constable who just wants to lie low until he retires with a knighthood and Valentine misses his dead wife.
With excursions into glass making and stained glass and some interesting information about lightening striking sand this is a well written crime novel set in an area I have visited on several occasions so it had added interest for me. The book is part of a series and I think I possibly missed out by not having read the previous novels in this series though it is possible to read it as a standalone story. I shall now be going back and reading this author's other novels. I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley for review purposes.
December 29, 2014
Couldn't put it down. This is the fifth (I think) of Jim Kelly's Shaw and Valentine series, and both characters have mellowed into a relationship as comfy as old wellies. At Death's Window is a complex yarn, redolent of sharp fresh air – always a bonus to a lazy reader curled up in the warmth – but for once the Norfolk landscape does not dominate, and somehow the life and concerns and people in the landscape emerge more vividly as a result. My heart still belongs to Philip Dryden and Humph (The Water Clock, et al) but DS Valentine is coughing his way up the ratings and At Death's Window gives even Death Wore White a run for its money. Excellent stuff. "Police procedural" seems a baldly understated tag. Try "social change", "EU immigration", "English coastal economies", "life and style" and "landscape and memory". And, no, I didn't figure out who dunnit.
March 31, 2015
I like Jim Kelly as an author. I really like Shaw and Valentine as the main characters, and really was interested in their "background" stories. I was confused by the mystery. Seemed like every chapter brought at least 1 new character into the mix and then they just weren't all that important to the plot other than to confuse me.
"When a body is discovered tethered beneath the waves at Mitchell's Bank, the contents of the dead man's pockets lead Detective Inspector Peter Shaw to suspect an outbreak of 'samphire wars': a turf battle for control of the prized sea asparagus which sells for a small fortune along the tourist-rich North Norfolk coast. Or does the killer merely want it to look that way?"
"When a body is discovered tethered beneath the waves at Mitchell's Bank, the contents of the dead man's pockets lead Detective Inspector Peter Shaw to suspect an outbreak of 'samphire wars': a turf battle for control of the prized sea asparagus which sells for a small fortune along the tourist-rich North Norfolk coast. Or does the killer merely want it to look that way?"
February 10, 2016
The Shaw/Valentine series gets better and better. Unlike a lot of police procedurals, these books are as much about character and setting as they are about plot. The reader is transported to bleak, beautiful north Norfolk, and comes to know the two detectives, their foibles and flaws and family lives, quite well. But the plotting is definitely there, and there's almost always a twist that you can't quite figure out even when you know it's coming. Well done.
April 13, 2015
Great read. I have read at least one other in this series although it's been a while and I don't remember the plot without looking those books up. Some parts remind me of the Rebus books, though this series takes place in England, this one in Norfolk, where probably most of them do.
April 15, 2015
A very good procedural. Gives a good picture of the area and insight into different perspectives on development. For me, the ending was just so-so. Usually I give 4 stars to this series. Still very much worth the read.
August 8, 2017
I was enchanted by the Norwalk setting. It appears I need to go look for the previous four books. Two contentious detectives, working together, dealing with drugs, and a foolish father that puts his children at risk with tides on the islands.
August 18, 2015
More like 3.5. Not my favorite in the series, but ok. There were extensive descriptions of the physical environment in this book which weighed the story down for me (and which I don't recall from previous books).
January 23, 2015
I really like this series. It's gritty, but not too explicit, and there's a strong sense of place in the setting. Hope that Shaw and Valentine have a lot more cases to solve in the future.
April 19, 2015
Good book in a good series--lovely prose, great characterization, lots of local color . . .
May 12, 2015
When they say procedural, they mean it. Not a lot of excitement or adrenaline here, it's a decent mystery, but a slow paced one.
December 20, 2015
This book had all of the elements that I like in a mystery but it didn't work for me. It started with a bang and ended well but the middle dragged for me. I've liked the others in the series more.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews