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A tortured body is found hanging from a tree
DCI Jack Cullum leads the investigation into this puzzling crime. The clues lead him tantalisingly close to the answer but without cracking the case. Why was the man killed? What were his links to London gangland bosses?

When an unsolved murder is uncovered that seems to be connected, Jack must use his team to their full strength to separate the innocent from the guilty. Jack also faces a challenge he never expected as he is accused of an improper relationship with a colleague.

You’ll love the period detail of this fast-paced mystery which reaches a sensational climax in the seedy streets of London.

If you like Robert Galbraith, Rachel Abbott, Ruth Rendell, or Mark Billingham you will be gripped by this exciting new crime fiction writer. Full of excitement and twists and turns

PRIME EVIL is the second in a new series of crime thrillers set in the 1950s, featuring DCI Jack Cullum. He’s an ordinary policeman in an ordinary English town. The crimes he investigates are far from ordinary. Jack Cullum has a keen mind and is passionate about his job and family. He doesn’t believe in capital punishment but has caught a few villains whose life has come to an end on the gallows.

254 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2016

36 people are currently reading
113 people want to read

About the author

Maynard Sims

72 books36 followers
MAYNARD SIMS www.maynard-sims.com

The DCI Jack Callum series of crime novels - No Evil,Prime Evil and For Her Sins with The Detective Jack Callum Trilogy. The Bahamas series of thriller novels - Touching The Sun, Calling Down The Lightning, and Raging Against The Storm. The Department 18 series of supernatural crime novels - Black Cathedral, Night Souls, The Eighth Witch, A Plague Of Echoes, and Mother Of Demons. The crime novels Let Death Begin, Through The Sad Heart, and Falling Apart At The Edges. The supernatural novels, Shelter, Demon Eyes, Nightmare City, Stronghold, and Stillwater. The erotic romance novels, under a pseudonym, - The Love Project and The Romance Project.

One screenplay, based on the first two Department 18 books, won the 2013 British Horror Film Festival Award for Best New Screenplay.

Numerous stories have been published in a variety of anthologies and magazines. Collections include, Shadows At Midnight, 1979 and 1999 (revised and enlarged), Echoes Of Darkness, 2000, Incantations, 2002, two retrospective collections of their stories, essays and interviews, The Secret Geography Of Nightmare and Selling Dark Miracles, both 2002, Falling Into Heaven 2004, The Odd Ghosts, 2011, and Flame And Other Enigmatic Tales, and A Haunting Of Ghosts, both 2012. Their tenth collection of ghost stories and strange tales – Death’s Sweet Echo – which includes all their recent and new stories, many of them previously unpublished, is 2016.

Novellas, The Hidden Language Of Demons, The Seminar, His Other Son, and Convalescence have been published in 2002, 2003, 2013 and 2015 respectively. All their stories and novellas have been reprinted in eight uniform volumes through The Maynard Sims Library in 2014. An erotic romance novella, First Time Love, 2015 and First Time Arousal, 2016. Devil is a 2016 crime novella..

They worked as editors on the nine volumes of Darkness Rising anthologies. They co-edited and published F20 with The British Fantasy Society. As editors/publishers they ran Enigmatic Press in the UK, which produced Enigmatic Tales, and its sister titles. They have written essays. They still do commissioned editing projects, most recently Dead Water, and the Capital Crimes anthology for the ITW. They do ghost writing commissions.

Email contact can be made at ms@micksims.f9.co.uk
Find Maynard Sims on most social media - links are on the website

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5 stars
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53 (41%)
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
Profile Image for Sandysbookaday (taking a step back for a while).
2,633 reviews2,472 followers
November 30, 2016
Prime Evil by Maynard Sims was an intriguing book. It was so quintessentially English in places - there was a lot of tea drinking - and takes us back to an age when television was a novelty, as were WPCs. There were no mobile phones, no computers with massive data bases. There was just good old dogged detecting.

Aside from the nostalgic trip down memory lane, the plot was fast paced and full of action. There are a few very clever twists......but I am not going to give anything away!

Prime Evil kept me interested throughout. Maynard Sims characterisation is excellent, and he accurately portrays the era in which this story is set.

A tortured body is found hanging from a tree
DCI Jack Callum leads the investigation into this puzzling crime. The clues lead him tantalisingly close to the answer but without cracking the case. Why was the man killed? What were his links to London gangland bosses?

When an unsolved murder is uncovered that seems to be connected, Jack must use his team to their full strength to separate the innocent from the guilty. Jack also faces a challenge he never expected as he is accused of an improper relationship with a colleague.


I enjoyed this to the extent that I am going to get a copy of the first in this series, No Evil.

Thank you to NetGalley and Joffe Books for providing a digital ARC for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
Profile Image for Icy-Cobwebs-Crossing-SpaceTime.
5,641 reviews330 followers
March 25, 2016
Review: PRIME EVIL by Maynard Sims (DCI Jack Callum #2)

Return to peaceful green Hertfordshire, England, in the 1950's, an era recovering from World War II, yet already experiencing early reverberations from feminism, equal employment for women, and the cultural onset of television. Detective Chief Inspector Jack Callum' s formidable integrity shines a beacon at his station, appealing to dedicated colleagues, disgruntling others. This time he is tasked to investigate an actor's torture killing, uncovering familial dysfunction, and bonds to London's criminal underbelly.
Profile Image for Linda Strong.
3,878 reviews1,708 followers
March 25, 2016
4.5 Stars

DCI Jack Callum was introduced to readers in NO EVIL. This detective series takes place in the London area in the 1950s. Callum is the consummate detective .... he has an almost second sight when it comes to hunting down the bad guys.

Callum also believes that attitudes need changing .. especially the roles that women play in society. Considering he has a wife and two teenage daughters (and a teen son) this comes into play when a colleage, Myra Banks, is turned down for a permanent place on the homicide team .. because she's a woman and will be getting married and having babies down the road. Men are much more reliable and apt to stay on the job for many years. He's also confronting his wife, who now wants to go back to work part-time.


A man's body is found with his hands nailed to a tree and his throat cut. Callum and his team are perplexed and eventually is led to the London's mobsters. Another unsolved murder is found to be ... maybe... connected. So who is innocent and who is guilty? Who is lying and who is telling the truth?

The more Callum dives into the murky water of London's underworld, the more secrets or unlikely coincidences float to the surface.

This is fast-paced, full of action and energy. Not everyone is who you think they are. There are several twists and turns which will make you want to go back and re-read to see if you missed something. Very well-written.

My thanks to the author / Joffe Books / NetGalley who provided the digital copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.
Profile Image for Louise Wilson.
3,663 reviews1,690 followers
April 2, 2016
DCI Jack Callum is back with a new crime to investigate. Set in the late 1950's in Hertfordshire this time finds DCI Callum investigating the brutal murder of which the man was tied and nailed to a tree.
DCI Callum does not recognise the victim at first as he is wearing stage cosmetics. Once this is removed he realises its Tony Tanner, a well known but not struggling actor that the DCI had met earlier that afternoon.
Tanner was not liked by many so the list of suspects is long and includes well known criminals.
Another enjoyable old fashioned style police investigation that has many twists to keep you guessing and turning the pages.
I would like to thank Net Galley, Joffe Books and the author Maynard Sims for my ARC in exchange for an honest review
Profile Image for Jen.
2,029 reviews67 followers
March 28, 2016


Prime Evil by Maynard Sims is the second in a series featuring DCI Jack Callum and set in the 1950's, although I haven't read the first one. Jack Callum is a likable protagonist, a devoted husband and father, and an honest and dedicated policeman.

Perhaps most interesting (aside from the murder mystery) is the insight into the 1950's: the advent of television, the treatment of women (who stepped up during the war years and who are once again relegated to subordinate roles), the changes in families and in traditions. In a world that cannot imagine being without modern technology, cell phones, internet, and global television opportunities, the post-war years would be difficult to imagine.

Jack Callum resists some of the changes and approves others.

Maynard Sims is the name adopted by Len Maynard and Mick Sims. They met when they were eleven and later established a writing career together. The two men cover a wide variety of genres: crime fiction, thrillers, supernatural crime (Department 18 series), supernatural novels, and erotic romance (under a pseudonym)! The Department 18 series might be good for the RIP Challenge.

NetGalley/Joffrey Books

Crime/Police Procedural. March 2016. Print length: 232 pages.
3,216 reviews68 followers
March 26, 2016
I would like to thank Netgalley and Joffe Books for a review copy of Prime Evil, a police procedural set in Hertfordshire in 1957. DCI Jack Callum is called to a murder scene where the victim has been tortured before death. As the victim is wearing stage make up it takes Jack a few minutes to recognise him as Tony Tanner a well known, fading actor he had been talking to that afternoon. As Tony was an unpleasant character the list of suspects is lengthy and includes well known criminals.
The plotting may be a bit obvious at times but Prime Evil, like its predecessor No Evil, is a very good read. I was glued to the pages to find out what was coming next and was so absorbed I finished it in one sitting. There seems to be a new angle in every chapter to keep you reading.
Jack Callum is a great protagonist. He is a family man with no vices, apart from his pipe. He is smart, fair and well liked at work. He is the beloved patriarch at home but his family know how to manage him - the way his wife manages him reminds me very much of my mother with my father.
I think the authors do a great job with the late 50s setting as it seems so authentic from Jack's reluctance to get a rented television to DCS Lane's refusal to promote Myra and waste his training budget on a woman who will leave in a few years to have babies. The only slightly jarring note is Jack's support for women's equality - it may make him a more appealing character but I think it's slightly too modern as at the time women were forced to give up work with pregnancy.
I think this is turning into a really great series and I have no hesitation in recommending Prime Evil as a great read.
Profile Image for Hannelore Cheney.
1,554 reviews29 followers
April 5, 2016
A thoroughly enjoyable book set in the 1950's. The main character is a happily married member of the police, a welcome change from the loner cop who drinks too much. The mystery is an absorbing one with a great ending. I also enjoyed the way the struggles of Myra, a female constable, are portrayed. Trying to be recognized as an equal to the males proves to be difficult and is written with empathy. Can't wait for the 3rd book in this series. I would like to thank Netgalley and Joffe Books for providing me with a copy of Prime Evil in return for an unbiased review.
Profile Image for Cheryl.
778 reviews13 followers
March 27, 2016
Having read the first Jack Callum novel I was looking forward to the second and I wasn't disappointed, yet again a fascinating insight into policing and lifestyle of the 1950's. Very strong storyline would recommend reading it.
Profile Image for Martha Brindley.
Author 2 books34 followers
March 31, 2016
Jack Callum is a great character. The book gives a good insight into life and policing in the 50's. A good plot and good strong characters. The second book in what is turning out to be a great series. Hope there is a third one. I really enjoyed it.
Profile Image for Sara ✨ Next Book Review Blog ✨.
2,120 reviews5 followers
May 9, 2016
PRIME EVIL
(a gripping detective thriller full of suspense)
By Maynard Sims

BLURB:
A tortured body is found hanging from a tree
DCI Jack Callum leads the investigation into this puzzling crime. The clues lead him tantalisingly close to the answer but without cracking the case. Why was the man killed? What were his links to London gangland bosses?

When an unsolved murder is uncovered that seems to be connected, Jack must use his team to their full strength to separate the innocent from the guilty. Jack also faces a challenge he never expected as he is accused of an improper relationship with a colleague.

You’ll love the period detail and settings of this fast-paced mystery which reaches a sensational climax in the seedy streets of London.

PRIME EVIL is the second in a new series of crime thrillers set in the 1950s, featuring DCI Jack Callum. He’s an ordinary policeman in an ordinary English town. The crimes he investigates are far from ordinary. Jack Callum has a keen mind and is passionate about his job and family. He doesn’t believe in capital punishment but has caught a few villains whose life has come to an end on the gallows.

GOODREADS LINK:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

PURCHASE LINK:
https://www.amazon.com/PRIME-gripping...

AUTHOR LINK:
http://www.maynard-sims.com/

REVIEW:
First, just to let you know this novel is set in the 1950s. I wasn’t aware of that and was out of my element for a while. I love these police/detective thrillers and even though I wasn’t mentally prepared to go back to the 50s, it was an enjoyable ride. Also, this is book 2, in a series. Book 1 is No Evil and you can find it HERE https://www.amazon.com/EVIL-gripping-...

This was certainly a different take on the usual cop/killer stories. I really liked that, you get to read so many and eventually they start to blend together. The main character is a happy family man, instead of the usual tortured soul who lives only to catch the bad guys. I liked that, it’s nice to see it as “normal” person kind of thing.

Perhaps most interesting is the way we get transported back to the 1950's with the invention of TV, the treatment of women and the struggle of changes with the sexes, the changes in families and in traditions. It’s completely alien to what we have this day in age. So it’s fun to be transported in another time when life was simpler without modern technology, cell phones, internet, and global television opportunities, the post-war years would be difficult to imagine.

I received a free digital copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review. Thanks to the author, Joffe Books, and NetGalley who provided the copy.
Profile Image for Trina.
828 reviews9 followers
April 2, 2016
I received this arc from Netgalley.

I enjoyed reading this book. An entertaining read that keeps the pages flying by. Definitely recommended.
Profile Image for Michael.
56 reviews
December 21, 2022
I need to find more!!

In just two books Maynard Sims have introduced us to a wonderful place in time. A simpler time, no room for the 1000mph technology of the twenty first century, but still plenty good ol' coppering 😉
Now my hunt is on to find the next, if there are any.
935 reviews17 followers
April 7, 2016

The 1950s marked a period of great change for British society as well as the British police force. The DCI Callum police procedurals wonderfully depict the changing culture and attitudes while giving the reader a thrilling mystery. Part of what makes these novels so enjoyable is that DCI Callum is not only a perceptive detective, he is also a man who cares a great deal about his family and his community. He isn't a simple two-dimensional caricature, and neither are the members of his team or the members of his family.

In Prime Evil, an actor with ties to crime is brutally murdered. The further Callum and his team delve, the more complex the scenario becomes and the more difficult it is to untangle the pieces of the plot. Maynard Sims does a wonderful job of showing how detectives gathered evidence by bits and pieces without the help of detailed forensics. WPC Myra Banks plays an important role in Prime Evil. At the time, women police officers were few and far between, and only a handful made it into CID. I am glad Sims not only takes the time to make that clear to the reader, but shows how it affects the investigation.

Prime Evil is not as dark as No Evil, but easily equally as good. Anyone who enjoys solid, well written police procedurals or television series like Midsommer Murders will enjoy Maynard Sims's novels.

5/5

Prime Evil is the second novel featuring DCI Callum. The books do not have to be read in order.

I received a copy of Prime Evil from the publisher and Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

--Crittermom
15 reviews
April 20, 2016
Pretty good.

I did enjoy this book. Maybe my love of coffee biased me but it was fun tho read. A bit predictable but as long as the characters are interesting that's ok, and they were.
Profile Image for Alison Offerdal.
240 reviews
September 17, 2016
Great detective thriller

Another page turner from Maynard Sims. Twists and turns set against a backdrop of 1950s underworld and crime in London and Hertfordshire. Really enjoy these detective thrillers. Highly recommend.
Profile Image for Sandra Knapp.
530 reviews14 followers
January 11, 2017
Thoroughly enjoyable!

This was a "typical" who-done-it, but well written with very nicely formed characters that the reader can easily relate to. It was not a race to the finish, but very nicely paced and it does keep your attention. I would recommend it well enough.
Profile Image for Julie Long.
4 reviews
April 10, 2016
Another fantastic book

I would recommend this book. It was absolutely brilliant. I couldn't put it down from the moment I started it. I can't wait for more from these authors.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews

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