Child’s Play

Dalziel & Pascoe #9

by Reginald Hill

When Geraldine Lomas dies, her huge fortune is left to an animal rights organization, a fascist front and a services benevolent fund. But at her funeral a middle-aged man steps forward, claiming to be her long-lost son and rightful heir.

He is later found shot dead in the police car park, leaving behind a multitude of suspects. And Superintendent Dalziel and Peter Pascoe find themselves plunged into an investigation that makes most of their previous cases look like child’s play…

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Fiction, Procedural, British Literature, Detective, Thriller

306 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 1, 1986

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

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

How refreshing! A straight up police procedural. No mafia, no spies, no women chopped up, no long passages where we get to hear the serial killer's thoughts. It's almost quaint. I'm not a fan of anything too cozy--mysteries solved by caterers give me hives--but I weary of the overly modern novel which has to prove itself by the most gratuitous means possible.
Reginald Hill's later novels are certainly guilty of literary lily-gilding. One Hill book features long passages from Ellie Pascoe's writings and more than once he's given the serial killer pages to get everything off his chest, but this is an early book. Money and murder. Simple can still be quite interesting.

[Alan (on December semi-hiatus) Teder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lost Heirs & Fathers + Wield Comes Out
Review of the Grafton Books paperback edition (1988) of the Collins Crime Club hardcover original (1986)

One of Dalziel's dicta for police and public was, if you can't be honest you'd better be fucking clever.

The editor too respected Sammy's nose, but when he had digested the story he shook his head and said, 'Not our cup of tea, Sammy. I'm not going to risk getting up yon mad bugger Dalziel's hairy nostrils for anything less than a full-scale scandal. He doesn't just look like an elephant, he's got a memory like one, and we've got to live in this town.' - excerpts from Child's Play

Yorkshire CID Detective Superintendent Andy Dalziel (pronounced "dee-ELL") and assistants Detective Inspector Peter Pascoe and Detective Sergeant Wield are drawn into an inheritance case when the supposed lost-since-WorldWarII son of a recently deceased widow appears at her graveside and then later stakes claim to an inheritance, and is then found murdered. The suspects are plentiful in the more distant heirs who were ignored and in the 3 organizations who chance to benefit if all the relatives' claims can be eliminated.

The more interesting drama actually arises when circumstances force Sergeant Wield to come out and admit his sexuality to the imposing Dalziel, from whom he fears all sorts of disdain, a situation which has a twist turnaround to his amazement.

Here before him in awful visible form, was embodied all the mockery, scorn and scatological abuse which he had always feared from the police hierarchy. At least to start with Dalziel was to start with the worst.
He drew a deep breath and said, 'I want to tell you I'm a homosexual.'
'Oh aye,' said Dalziel. 'You've not just found out, have you?'
'No,' said Wield, taken aback. 'I've always known.'
'That's all right, then,' said Dalziel equably, 'I'd have been worried else that I'd not mentioned it to you.'
I'm not hearing him right, thought Wield, now utterly bewildered. Or mebbe he didn't hear me right.
'I'm gay,' he said desperately, 'I'm a queer.'
'You can be a bloody freemason for all I care,' said Dalziel, 'but it's not going to help with your promotion, if that's what you're after!'

The side-plots involve a competition for the new Chief Constable position, which Dalziel seeks to manipulate behind the scenes, Pascoe's homelife and his confessional nighttime bedside story-telling to his young child Rosie, and a young London teenager desperate to connect with his lost family in Yorkshire and who is taken in by Wield.

This is the best of the Dalziel & Pascoe series that I've read so far in my current 2022 re-read mini-binge (I don't own all of them) due to the extensive characterizations that author Hill develops throughout and the constant entertainment of Dalziel's often bizarre deductions combined with his non-PC partially-assumed persona. The ending starts with one twist and then continues with even further surprises. A really well constructed social drama and mystery combined.


Cover image of the original Collins Crime Club hardcover edition (1986). Image sourced from Barter Books.

I re-read Child's Play due to a recent discovery of my old mystery paperbacks from the 1980s in a storage locker cleanout. I was also curious about the precedents for Mick Herron's Jackson Lamb in the Slough House espionage series in the personality of Reginald Hill's Chief Inspector Andy Dalziel, which Herron has acknowledged.


Book haul of the early Dalziel and Pascoe paperbacks, mostly from Grafton Books in the 1980s. Image sourced from Twitter.

Trivia and Link
Child's Play was adapted for television in 1998 as Episode 2 of Series 3 of the long running TV series of Dalziel and Pascoe (1996-2007). The entire episode is posted on YouTube here, but it is formatted in a way that makes it hard to watch.

[Leah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gruff of Sodding Greendale…

During the funeral of Gwendoline Huby, a stranger appears and then just as suddenly disappears again. Could this be the long lost son Mrs Huby had always hoped would one day return? Alexander Huby had gone missing in Italy in WW2 and, although the authorities and his father accepted that he had been killed in action, Mrs Huby never would. Now the rich old lady has complicated matters by leaving her wealth to her missing son, much to the annoyance of her extended family and of the three charities who will eventually get the money, but not until either many years have passed or Alexander is proved dead. There’s no mystery about Mrs Huby’s death – she died of old age. But when the funereal stranger turns up dead too not long after, Dalziel and Pascoe must confirm if he was indeed the missing son, and find out which of the other beneficiaries might have decided to cut short the wait for their inheritance. Meantime, Wieldy’s secret is in danger – a young man has turned up claiming to be the friend of Wield’s former lover, Maurice, and is threatening to tell the local papers that there is a gay man serving in the Mid Yorks CID.

Good grief! It seems so odd now that the idea of being outed as gay would have effectively ended Wield’s career as recently as 1986, but indeed I vividly remember the salacious outrage of the press whenever a police officer or anyone in a prominent position was found to be gay, and the vicious outing of people who were not ready to be outed into a society where homophobia was still legally sanctioned. Seems to me from memory that the public was way ahead of the authorities and the press on this one – actual people didn’t seem much to care, not ones of my generation anyway. Hill handles the issue with his usual compassion and sense of truth – Wield is a figure of neither fun nor pity, though we feel for him in his dilemma over whether to out himself before the press does it for him. This bit of the storyline also deepens the characterisation of Dalziel, letting us see a different side to him which he normally keeps well hidden behind his uncouth, strictly non-PC persona.

The actual murder plot is very good, with plenty of suspects all with strong motives. Mrs Huby’s family are a quirky bunch, from aspiring and not very good actor Rod, to little Lexie, whose diminutive form and quiet manner cover a steely determination to get what she wants out of life, to Lexie’s dad, John Huby, the comic relief whose dreams of a big inheritance have been shattered on learning that all he’d been left was Mrs Huby’s favourite dog, long ago deceased and stuffed, and known as Gruff of Greendale. There are also the representatives of the three charities and Mrs. Huby’s forbidding Danvers-like housekeeper-cum-companion, Miss Keach. Hill often has one of his regulars take the forefront with the others in the background, but in this one, Dalziel, Pascoe and Wield all have important roles, giving it added pleasure for me since all three are such great characters.

I listened to the audiobook version – my second experience of Colin Buchanan narrating. I must say that none of the issues I had with the last book troubled me this time – his Yorkshire accents sounded more Yorkshire, his Dalziel seemed more in tune with how I’d expect Dalziel to sound, and he doesn’t seem to race through the narration at quite the same speed. I don’t know whether it was really better or if I’ve just got used to his style, but either way I enjoyed his performance considerably more in this one.

By this point Hill is beginning to play with light-hearted literary references, as he would do more and more as the series progresses, and this one is presented as a three-act tragicomedy. The underlying story is quite dark and Wieldy’s dilemma certainly has an air of tragedy, but overall I find this one quite light in tone, with a lot of humour in it. Again in terms of plot it would work fine as a standalone, but knowing the three lead characters from the earlier books makes the interactions between them more satisfying. As always with this series, highly recommended.

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[Cleopatra Pullen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Child’s Play was published in 1986 and manages to be both an appealing police procedural with a hefty nod to the whys as well as the who in the course of the investigation.

Mrs Gwendoline Huby has died and when her will is read by the local solicitor (I do miss these formal will readings in more modern fiction) it turns out that those who were expecting the proceeds are to be sorely disappointed. First in line to the funds is her son, Alexander Huby, presumed dead in Italy courtesy of WWII. Gwendoline Huby never believed this was the case and has steadfastly expected her son to return home during the intervening forty-year period going as far as to advertise in newspapers and pay private investigators to find him. She’s not unrealistic though so if Alexander hasn’t returned by the year 2015 on his ninetieth birthday (shocking to think that was some 30 years hence!) then the proceeds of the will are to be divided between three charities; one-third for animal rights, one-third for a services benevolent fund and the remaining third for a fascist woman’s movement.

Now as coincidence would have it on the day of the funeral a man turns. He’s about the right age has a light, but relatively accurate back story, and an Italian suit and he cries out ‘Mama’. Is he Alexander Huby returned to Yorkshire just too late, or could this be an imposter? Meanwhile, given that charity begins at home, the three charities aren’t too keen on waiting so long for the promised inheritance either and determine to act to get the rest of the family on side and the money paid out, to them!

The book is deemed a tragi-comedy in three acts by the author himself, and I really can’t disagree. What I do love about the entire series is although there is the very important matter of murder at the heart of each novel, and sometimes the characters have an urge to take themselves far too seriously there is always a thread of humour to stop proceedings from becoming too grim.
Another feature is that often one or other of Dalziel or Pascoe take the leading role, but in this delightful story we really learn more about Wield, the ugly policeman who is often given the supporting role, on the fringes of the action. In this book, very fitting for the times he is contacted by a former lover. The issue being is that Wield is gay, something the self-professed sensitive guy Pascoe has never realised and there is pressure from above when it appears the local paper is proposing an expose of homosexual policemen. Dalziel, not quite being the uncouth brute he presents himself as really gets to show us the other side, because he always knew. This, given the year of publication was possibly a timely if challenging read for crime fiction lovers; it is often only retrospectively that you realise how much attitudes have changed.

You’ll notice I haven’t said too much about the plot, there is no need, it is multi-stranded and superbly executed ably supported by a brilliant cast of characters from the provincial solicitor to the young blackmailer, from the sleazy journalist to the hard-nosed publican all there to be laughed with, and on occasion at as hopes are dashed and fears are sometimes unrealised.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh Fat Andy, sometimes I think you're my hero. At the very least you have to respect that this detective superintendent can be both an asshole and a good man. Hill is a brilliant long-game plotter. Along with fleshing (hah!) out Dalziel's larger than life character, he lets Pascoe wallow in self doubt and drop the ball on the cases in this book, bringing real life to an ambitious but not so young anymore detective. And, every penny Hill invests in Sgt. Wield is worth 100 fold in overall quality of these novels. Plus, there's a fabulously conniving family after a dead woman's fortune.

[Kelly Herold · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a good comfort mystery read, you can't beat Reginald Hill. Child's Play is one of my favorites: Wield comes out of the closet, crazy inheritance schemes are afoot, Dalziel is his charming Fat Man self.

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hill could really write, and this series is fun. Effective humor keeps the plot going, and Dalziel is as always memorable. There are quite a lot of characters and it was not always easy to remember who was who. Lexie Huby (I assume she appears in this book only) is also one of a kind.

I did get a bit annoyed with excessive plot twists in the end. This book actually ends several times, with a fast series of unexpected explanations and revelations in the last few pages. Hill ties up just about every little plot detail into a neat package at the end, which seemed to me to depend on just too many coincidences.

[cloudyskye · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good one, if not very memorable. But an enjoyable read. Loose ends all tied up in the end, authentic nineteen-eighties feel.
I never know if I want to continue with this series. A colleague gave me all 20-odd volumes ... but after 9 of them I still don't feel the connection I have to my other crime solver friends like Rankin's Rebus or Viveca Sten's Thomas Andreasson or (most of all) Precious Ramotswe of Botswana. Perhaps one more?

[Mario · Rating 3 out of 5]

As usual an enjoyable and entertaining read. Reginald Hill’s style really is quite unique with plenty of humour, much of it generated by the stereotypical Yorkshire characters, which make the pages fly by.

Being set in the 1970’s the story is unavoidably dated and it’s best to treat it as an historical story from the recent past. This is particularly true of the non PC attitudes prevalent at the times. The story was interesting enough and had a couple of surprising twists although I did find the ending a little over complicated.

I’ll certainly read another in the series.

[Rog Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Apparently I last read this on 24 November 1990 but I must have read it at least once before then as it was published in 1986 and back then I was reading the books in this series as soon as they came out. This novel explores the character of Detective Sergeant Wield who now starts to take a more important role in this series. It's an interesting plot with some laugh out loud sequences which also manages some observations on homophobia and racism. Although only playing a minor role in this story PC Hector provides a lot of humour with his naivety. It's a great read and I stayed up until 4.00 in the morning because I could not put it down even though I knew the ending!" was what I wrote on 10 April 2016. Having now read this book for the fourth time I don't have anything else to add.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very complex plot which not only keeps the reader guessing but adds on twist after twist right to the end.
One of Hill's best Dalziel and Pascoe stories, full of wit and humour and some of his more curious characters.

[Marian · Rating 5 out of 5]

A favorite.

I shall always treasure this book for "mutual dorsal confrication." This series is my all-time favorite, which I re-read every couple of years, and it only gets better.

[Nolan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book captured me from the front page. After all, it’s not every book that begins with a funeral scene. Old, demented Mrs. Gwendoline Huby is dead. She left her money to a son who went missing in Italy during World War II. If he never showed up, (the old woman refused to believe he was dead), then the money would go to several charities. Greed-ridden members of the family on both sides boiled with private rage as they sat calmly at the funeral. The author allows you to read their thoughts, and that makes for a great beginning to a book. But things get better, and quickly.

A man claiming to be Mrs. Huby’s long-missing son suddenly appears at the grave’s edge crying “Mama!” A pandemonium occurs next that cause many family members who clearly hate one another to fall into the open grave. You’ll laugh out loud at that scene. I certainly did.

Before this ends, the fellow who claimed to be the long-lost son of the late but not lamented Mrs. Huby dies at the hand of a killer. It’s up to Andy Dalziel and his more modern sensitive partner, Peter Pascoe, to figure out whether the dead guy really was the son of the old woman.

The subplot for this is as intriguing as the main mystery. One of the officers must decide whether to come out. Remember, this is 1986, and that experience was significantly more traumatic and harder then. I’ll just say you get to see a side of curmudgeonly Andy Dalziel than you might expect.

[Pamela Mclaren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reginald Hill starts Child's Play with a death, that of Gwendoline Huby, a woman by all signs was stubborn, opinionated and frankly, not very nice. She's led her family members by the noise, all in expectation that when she dies, she will reward them with her vast wealth.

She would almost expect her to be the murder victim in this story, but she isn't, but the bequests in her will will lead to one.

Because Gwen Huby left the bulk of her estate to her son, a serviceman missing in action four decades ago during World War II. If he doesn't appear by 2015, her estate will be split by three charities.

And if by magic, a strange man appears not only at her funeral, he meets with the woman's attorney. Representatives of the three charities come to town to work what deals they can.

And DS Edgar "Wieldy" Wield has a visitor.

And with these various threads of police officials, newspaper men, charities and family, Hill has created a highly entertaining and cunning story. There's a lot of machinations going on and surprising characters, great dialogue and thoughtful, not death-defying, action. This is not a thriller yet there is drama in this highly readable tale. I was addicted.

[Larraine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reginald Hill was a prolific and long lived writer. The first book he published was in 1970. The last was in 2009. That’s a lot of books. Other than one or two, I don’t think there was a book of his that I didn’t like. This one, published in 1987, is probably one of his most devious and complicated.

The book opens with the funeral of an elderly and very disagreeable woman who held sway over her extended family because of her wealth and the hope that she would remember them in her will. Unfortunately aside from a few very minor bequests, her will is a disappointment. She leaves her estate to her son who disappeared while on a commando mission in Italy in 1944. The will stipulates that if her son can not be found by 2015, the money be split among several charities one of which is a right wing organization devoted to returning white people to their rightful place as benevolent masters of the darker races. Meanwhile, Sgt Wield finds himself being forced out of the closet and he’s not sure if that’s what he wants until he realizes that is EXACTLY what he wants.

This is one of the better books with an especially amusing and very gratifying ending. I won’t spoil it for you.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not a review – just a funny thought. This book gave me one of those odd coincidences that folks who read a LOT get sometimes. The ones where an interesting and unfamiliar word occurs in three different books in one week. I had that happen with ‘susurration’, I remember. I also found the phrase “1066 Country” in successive books – one of which was not even about England! This time it was the Phillip Larkin poem “This Be The Verse” that starts “They f*ck you up, your mum and dad”. It was referenced both in this book and in the last book I read, Jennifer Weiner’s “Good In Bed”. I’d never come across the poem before and here it is in two books that couldn’t be any more different and the one right after the other.

[Ryan Davison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every entry in this top-flight series is fresh and creative, and Child's Play may perhaps be the best so far. Published in the 80's the story feels modern, it's progressively humorous handling controversial issues, and overall is a brilliant mystery plotted in Hill's uniquely vivid prose with his indelible characters.

Would strongly recommend this entire series to fans of crime fiction but if you enjoy the genre but don't want to commit, try Child's Play for a taste of Hill's style and his two unforgettable protagonists.

[Amanda Wells · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got my wish - more of Sgt. Wield! No spoilers - just that I was quite happy with how it played out.

Wieldy aside, the plot of this one was unexpected, and could have easily plunged over into the campy convoluted mess that some mysteries err into. But grounded as these books are in Dalziel and Pascoe's decidedly 'not camp' natures, that didn't happen.

[Jeff Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This a Reginald Hill at his peak and writing with complete confidence. Numerous strands from Sgt Weald's homosexuality, an Italian who has apparently come back from to contest a large payout from a will. Standout is mouse of a secretary Lexie Huby who quietly runs rings around police and villains a like. Terrific storytelling all round as Hill leaves no thread untied.

[Jase · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another excellent read in this series. It really is a joy to sit and take it all in. The characters now are very well defined and the stories intriguing, but for me what really brings joy is the humour that is set in the dialogue. Blink and you miss it, but the wordplay is ingenious and for that alone this series should be vaunted.

[Timothy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reg Hill was a clever writer as this Byzantine mystery bears out. The book offers a turning point for Wield who finally comes out . The problem is that there is too little of the main characters and far too much of the walk ons.

[Nigel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not my favourite Dalziel and Pascoe, I found the start a bit unwieldy and it took longer than usual to get into it. The premise of a will leaving everything to a son (believed dead) and to charities if after at the sons 90th birthday no one has come forward as the son is unique. Obviously there's a lot of angry relative and impatient charities wanting the money, and it's no surprise that when someone turns up claiming to be the son, there are found murdered a short time later. The cast of characters that make up the families and key charity people (that we meet) I found unlikable and I failed to warm to any of them.
There is a sub-plot around Sergeant Wield and his homosexuality which considering the book was written in 1987 is surprisingly well handled. A local newspaper is tipped off about the presence of gay CID officer and when this gets to the ears of the Deputy Chief Constable a matter of days before the interviews for the Chief Constable's job he goes all out to ensure that this doesn't pose a risk to his promotion. He gets Andy to investigate, and it turns out he's known all along about Wield and almost out of character for Andy doesn't care as long as it doesn't affect the work. He manages to find a way out of the problem have having to report Wield, following the orders he's been given and get his own back of the DCC in a very clever way.
Two things lowered this to being just OK. Having finished the book it was not 100% clear as to whether the Italian murder victim was or was not the son and heir and in addition the story roamed a bit as if it couldn't decide what was the main plot, the murdered Italian /the weird will /of the gay policeman.

[Colleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

6 stars. Filled with Yorkshire slang, race relations, and acronyms of hideous political groups before Brexit. 4 dead bodies. 2 handfuls of rarely encountered terms. And names like Windibanks and Ruby Huby (wife of John, an heir). The book opens with a bang. Gwendoline Huby's long awaited funeral is interrupted by a stranger dropping to his knees and shouting 'Mama'. The mourners are horrified. If this is her son back from a 50 year absence their claims on her legacy just went up in smoke. Dalzeil and Pascoe have more important matters to investigate, shoplifting at the mall, racist graffiti sprayed on the reviving local playhouse, and the pending promotion of Dalzeil's ambitious but clueless boss. Perfect book to read when Covid-19 has almost 800,000 dead victims in the US and the world is worried about the Omicron version (Greek numbering system, as if we're counting radiation energy, alpha, beta, gamma, Delta...). And perfect timing for the scathing black humor - Black Thursday after Yorkshire harvest festival transplanted to the US by those pious Pilgrims who invited the local natives to share Thanksgiving with them. It's my first Dalzeil/Pascoe novel and luckily the library has lots more.

[Bill Fox · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the fourth book I've read in the Dalziel & Pascoe series and the earliest sequentially. This is the most I've read about Sergeant Wield. He appears more in this story, including his personal history, than in the others I've read.

I had expected more of a mystery about who was the person posing as the long lost and presumed dead son showing up in time to inherit a fortune. Instead I got a story about homosexuality, racism, people pining for the British Empire of old and murder. There were a lot of twists at the end that I did not expect, concerning Lexi Huby, Sara Brosworth, Cliff Sharman, Miss Keech and others. It turned out to be a very surprising mystery, at least for me.

[Norma · Rating 5 out of 5]

( Format : Audiobook )
"It's personal."
Reginald Hill can be relied upon to always write an excellent story and this, the ninth in his Dalziel and Pascoe series, is a police procedural packed with larger than life characters, greed and ambition, scheming and plotting, the outing of Wieldi and a rattling good story so convoluted at times it's easy to lose the direction. But all is revealed at the end.
Narration is again by Colin Buchanan, the T.V. Pascoe, who performs skilfully, giving new voice to each of the numerous protagonists as well as reading with a real feeling for both text and characters, constantly entertaining and engaging.
A real pleasure to read.

[Lucy Takeda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was certainly full of complex characters and convoluted history! An old woman passed, and her Will states her money should go to her son, that theoretically was killed during WWII! Three relatives are considering contesting the will, but one group offers a decent pay off if they drop their claims. Wield suddenly receives a call at the station using the nickname that only his male lover used, and a young man shows up on his doorstep. The head of the department goes on a terror trying to track down the officer that is gay and hiding it. Then, bodies start appearing!

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Should get 3.5 stars. Took far too long to get the story started; almost stopped reading it. Also much more British slang than usual.
Various groups and people are involved in the outcome of the will of a wealthy woman who left most of her assets to charity. Eventually, of course, there is a murder that Dalziel and Pascoe investigate. Interesting characters once the book gets going and the plot eventually picks up pace.

[Lana Kamennof-sine · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of those books in a series that would have been good to read early on, in this case in 1988 when first published, as it sets the stage for the major characters & their inter-relationships. A fascinating read nonetheless & one which allows you to reassess the other titles in light of your new knowledge.

[JM Blackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've enjoyed several books by Hill. This was my least favorite. The characters, familial relationships, the unlikely plot development struck me as not in keeping with Hill's usual quality of writing and especially his fascinating plot progressions. Even Sgt. Wield seems too have been transformed into a shadow of his former self. Ione character stood out. She was amusing, strong and likable. You decide to whom I am referring, should you choose to take a chance on this Dalziel mystery. I don't recommend it. So many better ones!

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm tempted to add another star to this one just because it was so unexpected. There's some language and some attitudes that are definitely not PC, but still, Child's Play is full of surprises, right down to the final plot twist. For all Dalziel's bluster and retro attitude, Hill creates great female characters, as well as gay ones. It's been one of the delights of reading this series.