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Chief Superintendent Gently #22
Gently with Love
The unflappable Inspector George Gently has become a household name through the hit BBC TV series starring Martin Shaw. These are the original books on which the TV series was based, although the George Gently in Alan Hunter's whodunits is somewhat different to his TV counterpart. He is more calculating, more analytical, and his investigations are even more enthralling.
In this title:
Gently sets out for the north of Scotland to help clear one of his oldest friends of a murder charge and reunite him with the woman he loves. A love story founders on the rocks of the wild coastline of western Scotland when a man falls to his death. Did he fall or was he pushed? The knife wounds on his body tend to suggest the latter. Although he knows his rank gives him no status in Scotland, Gently travels north to help out, the prime suspect being a close friend.
Despite the fact that the evidence weighs heavily against him, Gently cannot bring himself to believe that his friend committed murder, even if the victim was a hated love rival. He must use all of his skill as a detective to find a way to prove his friend’s innocence. Highland hospitality, however, doesn’t always extend to cooperating with a murder investigation.
In this title:
Gently sets out for the north of Scotland to help clear one of his oldest friends of a murder charge and reunite him with the woman he loves. A love story founders on the rocks of the wild coastline of western Scotland when a man falls to his death. Did he fall or was he pushed? The knife wounds on his body tend to suggest the latter. Although he knows his rank gives him no status in Scotland, Gently travels north to help out, the prime suspect being a close friend.
Despite the fact that the evidence weighs heavily against him, Gently cannot bring himself to believe that his friend committed murder, even if the victim was a hated love rival. He must use all of his skill as a detective to find a way to prove his friend’s innocence. Highland hospitality, however, doesn’t always extend to cooperating with a murder investigation.
184 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1975
9 people are currently reading
91 people want to read
About the author
Alan Hunter
105 books61 followersAlan Hunter was born at Hoveton, Norfolk and went to school across the River Bure in Wroxham. He left school at 14 and worked on his father's farm near Norwich. He enjoyed dinghy sailing on the Norfolk Broads, wrote natural history notes for the local newspaper, and wrote poetry, some of which was published while he was in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War.
He married, in 1944, Adelaide Cooper, who survives him with their daughter. After the war he managed the antiquarian books department of Charles Cubitt in Norwich. Four years later, in 1950, he established his own bookshop on Maddermarket in the city.
From 1955 until 1998 he published a Gently detective novel nearly every year. He retired to Brundall in Norfolk where he continued his interests in local history, natural history, and sailing
He married, in 1944, Adelaide Cooper, who survives him with their daughter. After the war he managed the antiquarian books department of Charles Cubitt in Norwich. Four years later, in 1950, he established his own bookshop on Maddermarket in the city.
From 1955 until 1998 he published a Gently detective novel nearly every year. He retired to Brundall in Norfolk where he continued his interests in local history, natural history, and sailing
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 2, 2017
Alan Hunter throws his usual pacing formula out the window with this entry in his long-running George Gently series.
All the previous books have twelve chapters of roughly the same length, occasionally with a short thirteenth chapter serving as a brief epilogue. This one, however, has many more chapters than that and they are all of wildly different lengths. This made the book a lot less predictable than previous entries in the series which, after twenty-odd books, made for a refreshing change.
The set-up is different too. Rather than events unfolding in the present (from the characters' point of view) this book takes the form of our phlegmatic protagonist kicking back and telling a tale from years earlier. There's less action in this one than usual, too, but the situation Gently finds himself in is tense and suspenseful enough that I didn't really miss it.
All this makes for a distinctly atypical George Gently book and, as they say, a change is as good as rest, particularly in a series with as many installments as this one.
All the previous books have twelve chapters of roughly the same length, occasionally with a short thirteenth chapter serving as a brief epilogue. This one, however, has many more chapters than that and they are all of wildly different lengths. This made the book a lot less predictable than previous entries in the series which, after twenty-odd books, made for a refreshing change.
The set-up is different too. Rather than events unfolding in the present (from the characters' point of view) this book takes the form of our phlegmatic protagonist kicking back and telling a tale from years earlier. There's less action in this one than usual, too, but the situation Gently finds himself in is tense and suspenseful enough that I didn't really miss it.
All this makes for a distinctly atypical George Gently book and, as they say, a change is as good as rest, particularly in a series with as many installments as this one.
July 18, 2023
Gently back to Scotland
Review of the Constable Kindle eBook edition (2014) of the Cassell hardcover original (1975).
Gently returns to Scotland to help a friend who has been scapegoated for the murder of a romantic rival. As previously in Gently North-West (Gently #14 - 1967) he has no authority as a policeman while dealing with the locals. The Scots inspector on the case trusts Gently's instincts though and doesn't mind the assistance. The victim was an outlander with a reputation that left him with few friends, so the suspects are plentiful.
The dust cover of the original UK hardcover published by Cassell in 1975. Note how at first glance the image of a man falling from the cliff might be mistaken for one of the birds in the background. Image sourced from Goodreads.
I'm continuing to enjoy the Gently series as my go-to light reading this summer. Mysteriously only the first 30 of the 46 novels appear to be in print as of 2023, so I'm going to have difficulty in sourcing them soon.
Trivia and Link
Gently With Love was not adapted for the Inspector George Gently TV series (2007-2017). Very few of the TV episodes are based on the original books and the characters are quite different, e.g. Sgt Bacchus does not appear in the books. The timeline for the TV series takes place in the 1960s only.
Review of the Constable Kindle eBook edition (2014) of the Cassell hardcover original (1975).
‘That’s just certain. But he was a chiel who had no friends at all in Kylie.’
‘Then a man whom he had deeply offended.’
Iain considered the point leisurely. ‘From what I hear tell there were plenty of those. The laddie had more illwishers than a herring has bones.’
Gently returns to Scotland to help a friend who has been scapegoated for the murder of a romantic rival. As previously in Gently North-West (Gently #14 - 1967) he has no authority as a policeman while dealing with the locals. The Scots inspector on the case trusts Gently's instincts though and doesn't mind the assistance. The victim was an outlander with a reputation that left him with few friends, so the suspects are plentiful.
The dust cover of the original UK hardcover published by Cassell in 1975. Note how at first glance the image of a man falling from the cliff might be mistaken for one of the birds in the background. Image sourced from Goodreads.
I'm continuing to enjoy the Gently series as my go-to light reading this summer. Mysteriously only the first 30 of the 46 novels appear to be in print as of 2023, so I'm going to have difficulty in sourcing them soon.
Trivia and Link
Gently With Love was not adapted for the Inspector George Gently TV series (2007-2017). Very few of the TV episodes are based on the original books and the characters are quite different, e.g. Sgt Bacchus does not appear in the books. The timeline for the TV series takes place in the 1960s only.
June 28, 2015
Using Scotland for his setting, Alan Hunter infuses this novel with exciting characters without his intrepid investigator, George Gently, losing a beat. A good read - one of the series best.
June 16, 2017
I like Hunter's writing style--his descriptions, which are on the mark without becoming redundant. I prefer his sleuth's psychological and analytic way of getting at answers, and I probably enjoyed this particular story the most so far in that regard. Great escapist reading. Great airplane reading. 4 stars is about as high as I will go for a detective novel.
October 1, 2021
a complex mystery in a closed community on the West coast of Scotland
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews