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Ben Cooper & Diane Fry #3
Blood on the Tongue
The weather is cold and the clues no warmer as Peak District detectives Ben Cooper and Diane Fry tackle a medley of mysteries--each one knottier than the last--in English author Stephen Booth's haunting third novel, Blood on the Tongue. The unidentified body of a dead man has turned up on a frosty roadside. An abused woman is found curled in the snow on nearby Irontongue Hill, an apparent suicide. And there's the lingering puzzle of a Royal Air Force bomber that crashed into Irontongue back in 1945, killing everyone on board except for the pilot, who reportedly walked away from the wreckage... and was never heard from again. With leave and sickness decimating the ranks of the Edendale police force, all hands are needed to solve the modern deaths. But constable Cooper finds himself distracted by the World War II tragedy, in large part because of a beguiling young Canadian, the granddaughter of that missing pilot, who's come to Edendale determined to clear her ancestor's name.
Not surprisingly, these various cases eventually intertwine. But how they're linked by time and tragedy provides the intrigue here. Equally involving is the prickly alliance between Cooper, the "too bloody nice" local lad, and his superior, the emotionally guarded outsider, Fry. Plotted for maximum psychological suspense, teeming with singular secondary characters, and capitalizing on Britain's still-poignant memories of the last world war, Blood on the Tongue is an ambitious and remarkably mature work that delivers on the promise Booth showed in his first novel, Black Dog. --J. Kingston Pierce
480 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published April 2, 2002
191 people are currently reading
980 people want to read
About the author
Stephen Booth
55 books672 followersStephen Booth is the author of 18 novels in the Cooper & Fry series, all set around England's Peak District, and a standalone novel DROWNED LIVES, published in August 2019.
The Cooper & Fry series has won awards on both sides of the Atlantic, and Detective Constable Cooper has been a finalist for the Sherlock Award for Best Detective created by a British author. The Crime Writers’ Association presented Stephen with the Dagger in the Library Award for “the author whose books have given readers most pleasure.”
The novels are sold all around the world, with translations in 16 languages. The most recent title is FALL DOWN DEAD.
A new Stephen Booth standalone novel with a historical theme, DROWNED LIVES, will be published in August 2019:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Drowned-Live...
In recent years, Stephen has become a Library Champion in support of the UK’s ‘Love Libraries’ campaign. He's represented British literature at the Helsinki Book Fair in Finland, appeared with Alexander McCall Smith at the Melbourne Writers’ Festival in Australia, filmed a documentary for 20th Century Fox on the French detective Vidocq, taken part in online chats for World Book Day, taught crime writing courses, and visited prisons to talk to prisoners about writing.
He lives in Nottinghamshire.
The Cooper & Fry series has won awards on both sides of the Atlantic, and Detective Constable Cooper has been a finalist for the Sherlock Award for Best Detective created by a British author. The Crime Writers’ Association presented Stephen with the Dagger in the Library Award for “the author whose books have given readers most pleasure.”
The novels are sold all around the world, with translations in 16 languages. The most recent title is FALL DOWN DEAD.
A new Stephen Booth standalone novel with a historical theme, DROWNED LIVES, will be published in August 2019:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Drowned-Live...
In recent years, Stephen has become a Library Champion in support of the UK’s ‘Love Libraries’ campaign. He's represented British literature at the Helsinki Book Fair in Finland, appeared with Alexander McCall Smith at the Melbourne Writers’ Festival in Australia, filmed a documentary for 20th Century Fox on the French detective Vidocq, taken part in online chats for World Book Day, taught crime writing courses, and visited prisons to talk to prisoners about writing.
He lives in Nottinghamshire.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 162 reviews
May 28, 2016
A major player in this book is the setting. The moors, a mountain, narrow roads, cobblestones, cottages, quaint shops give a cozy feel, but the cold, snowy landscape, slushy sidewalks, hills too steep and icy to drive up, homes too drafty and cold to even take a coat off hint at the dark mood behind the cozy facade. Seemingly unrelated deaths are investigated by Ben Cooper, all-around nice guy, and Diane Fry, who is now Ben's boss. A plane crash 57 years ago is the backdrop to current events. There was no thrilling roller coaster ride in this book. It plodded along as if the cold had slowed it down and affected everyone's mental acuity.
March 19, 2019
Stephen Booth's Ben Cooper and Diane Fry series of police procedurals/crime novels are definitely recommended for fans of those genres, but also for anyone who enjoys a well-told story with characters that are believable and fully-fleshed out.
Talk about emotional tension that builds throughout the novel -- and doesn't let go even when you've read the final pages!
Talk about emotional tension that builds throughout the novel -- and doesn't let go even when you've read the final pages!
August 2, 2021
This is the third Cooper/Fry mystery and although not as good as Black Dog,(the 1st in the series), it is better than Dancing with Virgins,(the 2nd). Right out of the gate the reader is greeted with an apparent suicide, a missing infant, an unidentified body dug up by a snowplow and the mysterious disappearance of a WWII pilot 60 years ago when the bomber he was flying crashed into a near-by hill.
One would think this would be enough to fill 500 + pages, but alas for me, not so. For whatever reason the author inexplicably spends an inordinate amount of time on things inane. For instance one reads at length about the temperature people keep their houses during the dead of winter, characters' wet shoes and the lack of healthy personnel at the Edensdale police station, all with no purpose.
The reader also spends a lot of time, (understandably so), with both Ben Cooper and Diane Fry. Cooper is a contradiction, young and naive one moment, but wise beyond his years the next - diligent and hardworking but a dreamer none the less. His character just didn't gel for me.
Fry is so unpleasant, (virtually one dimensional), that she becomes a caricature of herself half-way through the book and I simply couldn't take her seriously. Again all unfortunate because the storyline/plot is well thought out, the characters just fall painfully short.
One would think this would be enough to fill 500 + pages, but alas for me, not so. For whatever reason the author inexplicably spends an inordinate amount of time on things inane. For instance one reads at length about the temperature people keep their houses during the dead of winter, characters' wet shoes and the lack of healthy personnel at the Edensdale police station, all with no purpose.
The reader also spends a lot of time, (understandably so), with both Ben Cooper and Diane Fry. Cooper is a contradiction, young and naive one moment, but wise beyond his years the next - diligent and hardworking but a dreamer none the less. His character just didn't gel for me.
Fry is so unpleasant, (virtually one dimensional), that she becomes a caricature of herself half-way through the book and I simply couldn't take her seriously. Again all unfortunate because the storyline/plot is well thought out, the characters just fall painfully short.
June 12, 2017
I kind of read all these books in a row because my volleyball coach lent them to me all at once, and it's not working out for me to be honest.
So tip: do not read them one after the other because little or nothing changes (which can be a good thing in some series, but here there is just too little change to make it interesting) I still think that reading one or two of these a year shouldn't be a problem because then enough time has lapsed to make it more "new" and "suprising" when you read the next one. Unfortunately I've only found out about that now which kind of ruined the experience for me.
Anyway on to the review! As I said the concept is pretty much the same in every book: one or to bodies are found, Fry and Cooper solve it eventually. Which reminds me: Fry and Cooper's relationship hardly has changed over these three books. I think that if the author had made them a little more dynamic these books would be easier to read one after the other in a short time span, but alas...
Another thing that annoyed be (though this might be intentional) is how annoying and arrogant and mean Fry is. I really don't like her and I truly hope that one of these books she will have a huge personality due to trauma or whatever the author can come up with because she is simply insufferable.
One thing that I noticed while reading and which struck me as being the funniest thing in this series is that apparently before the events of the first book this was all set in a nice quiet rural village. However, from the moment Fry joins the police force there is murder all around (I think there have been by now 6 bodies at least) coincidence? Or is Fry actually the boss of a ruthless pack of deranged murderers? I really hope it's option 2 ^-^
So tip: do not read them one after the other because little or nothing changes (which can be a good thing in some series, but here there is just too little change to make it interesting) I still think that reading one or two of these a year shouldn't be a problem because then enough time has lapsed to make it more "new" and "suprising" when you read the next one. Unfortunately I've only found out about that now which kind of ruined the experience for me.
Anyway on to the review! As I said the concept is pretty much the same in every book: one or to bodies are found, Fry and Cooper solve it eventually. Which reminds me: Fry and Cooper's relationship hardly has changed over these three books. I think that if the author had made them a little more dynamic these books would be easier to read one after the other in a short time span, but alas...
Another thing that annoyed be (though this might be intentional) is how annoying and arrogant and mean Fry is. I really don't like her and I truly hope that one of these books she will have a huge personality due to trauma or whatever the author can come up with because she is simply insufferable.
One thing that I noticed while reading and which struck me as being the funniest thing in this series is that apparently before the events of the first book this was all set in a nice quiet rural village. However, from the moment Fry joins the police force there is murder all around (I think there have been by now 6 bodies at least) coincidence? Or is Fry actually the boss of a ruthless pack of deranged murderers? I really hope it's option 2 ^-^
November 24, 2025
An above-average whodunit.
Set in the Peak District of Derbyshire in England (which I have never been to), I kept thinking of the setting as similar to that of the detective novels of Peter Robinson with his detective Alan Banks, set just a bit further north in Yorkshire.
But unlike the Alan Manks series, and most other crimy mystery novels nowadays, the protagonis in this one is a junior officer, a mere Detective Constable, and not an inspector or chief inspector. He also is peculiar in not having lots of hangups and problems. He isn't an alcoholic, nor is he going though a messy divorce. His biggest decision is whether to move to town to be closer to his work.
The novel also poses some interesting questions about life in general, I rather liked this one on "community", in the mouth of one of the characters:
So if you enjoy crime fiction, this one is worth a look.
Set in the Peak District of Derbyshire in England (which I have never been to), I kept thinking of the setting as similar to that of the detective novels of Peter Robinson with his detective Alan Banks, set just a bit further north in Yorkshire.
But unlike the Alan Manks series, and most other crimy mystery novels nowadays, the protagonis in this one is a junior officer, a mere Detective Constable, and not an inspector or chief inspector. He also is peculiar in not having lots of hangups and problems. He isn't an alcoholic, nor is he going though a messy divorce. His biggest decision is whether to move to town to be closer to his work.
The novel also poses some interesting questions about life in general, I rather liked this one on "community", in the mouth of one of the characters:
(Community) isn't something real, though. Is it? It's a word that we use in the titles of reports. Community liaison. Working with the community. Understanding the ethnic community. It's a word, Ben. It's not something you actually live in, not these days.
So if you enjoy crime fiction, this one is worth a look.
April 10, 2015
This third novel in the Cooper and Fry series is a long book at 512 pages. But they’re 512 pages packed with several complex yet engaging stories that slowly mesh into one tale tied to the crash of an RAF bomber in 1945. It's definitely a step up from the prior book in the series.
However, this book could have been shortened by probably close to a hundred pages by cutting some overly long descriptive passages and some of Ben Cooper’s internal monologs. This novel would have been much faster paced and much more engaging then.
Cooper and Fry still need an infusion of ‘Grow up’ drugs. They’re both experienced, capable police officers but they act like siblings with severe jealousy problems. It’s already wearing a little thin and will get very tiring if it continues much longer
Still, I like this series enough that I’ll keep reading.
However, this book could have been shortened by probably close to a hundred pages by cutting some overly long descriptive passages and some of Ben Cooper’s internal monologs. This novel would have been much faster paced and much more engaging then.
Cooper and Fry still need an infusion of ‘Grow up’ drugs. They’re both experienced, capable police officers but they act like siblings with severe jealousy problems. It’s already wearing a little thin and will get very tiring if it continues much longer
Still, I like this series enough that I’ll keep reading.
September 9, 2020
I think this book could be tighter and more propulsive, about 100 pages shorter, in fact, and it would be a better book. Even with the padding, a solution to a murder is shoehorned into the last 3 pages in a very weird and unsatisfying way. And the police seem to forget about searching for a missing baby for about 200 pages. Surely the rescue of a possibly living baby would be a higher priority than it appears to be? And various plot threads get dropped--what happens to Eddy's brother Graham, for example? It looks like he's going to play a role in the plot, then he just never shows up and nobody goes looking for him. This needed a tough editor to clean it all up.
December 19, 2020
Blood on the Tongue is the third book in the police-procedural, murder-mystery series featuring Detective Sergeant Deborah Fry and Detective Constable Ben Cooper written by Stephen Booth set in the Peak District north of Nottingham in Derbyshire. In the first three books in this series there have been three very different but compelling mysteries that Cooper and Fry have successfully solved. The central feature at the heart of these books is the relationship between the two very different main characters. Cooper is an insider, while Fry is an outsider; Cooper is well-liked, Fry is not. Cooper is a DC, Fry is a DS (and Cooper’s boss). Cooper grew up in Edendale on a family farm with multiple siblings and a father who was a copper, Fry grew up in foster care in the big city of Manchester with a sister whom she has lost contact with due to addiction. Booth often gives us access to his protagonists’ thoughts and feelings. Fry basically despises everything that (she thinks) Cooper stands for. She views him as a daydreaming Boy Scout who doesn’t really understand the point of policing. He views her as strange and emotionally distant but an efficient cop who doesn’t understand that empathy and cultural competence can improve police outcomes. What I noticed more in Blood on the Tongue than in previous books is that Fry spends a lot more of her mental energy thinking about Cooper, than Cooper does thinking about her. Their relationship is somewhat asymmetrical in that regards. Similarly, although they began the series equal in rank, Fry now outranks him, which means their professional relationship is also asymmetrical as well.
There are three main mysteries in Blood on the Tongue: 1) a dead body of an unidentified well-dressed man is found at the side of a road during a massive snow storm after a snow plough hits the corpse; 2) a dead body of a woman who they discover had given birth to a baby within the last two months is also found frozen in the snow (the whereabouts of Baby Chloe becomes the important mystery here because it seems like the woman died by deliberately exposing herself to the wintry elements); 3) a 57-year-old cold case of the disappearance of a survivor of a World War II plane crash that killed 5 men, including one Polish soldier whose brother still lives in the area, is being actively investigated by the survivor’s attractive Canadian granddaughter trying to clear his name of the ‘deserter’ label. Of course these mysteries lead to other questions/puzzles: Who is Baby Chloe’s father? Will Ben and Allison (the Canadian granddaughter) hook up? Why did Chloe’s mom kill herself? Why do so many of the people involved with the recently discovered dead bodies also have connections to the decades-old crash?
As with all good mystery series, a significant fraction of the appeal of the book is the new information provided about the protagonists Cooper and Fry. Cooper finally bites the bullet and moves out of his family’s farm into an apartment ‘in town.’ He fitfully adapts to living by himself (although he has a stray cat or two as a roommate) while Fry seems to be more and more interested in Cooper, what he’s thinking and what he’s doing (and whom he’s doing it with.) At one point she says to him directly “Sometimes I can’t tell what you’re thinking, Ben.” It’s bizarre to me that as Cooper’s superior officer she thinks she has the right to know his thoughts at all times when he’s on duty? However, at the end of the book her watchful eyes over him probably saved his life after Cooper makes a selfless (and reckless) decision to try and save a suicidal suspect from self-harm. Fry, of course, does the appropriate thing by calling for back-up instead of rushing into help without a clear plan or assessment of the danger of his actions.
Overall, Blood on the Tongue is another excellent entry in what is fast becoming one of my favorites in the genre of British police-procedural murder-mysteries (which experienced readers know is quite a large and varied genre). Readers of books by Peter Robinson, Peter James, Ian Rankin, Stuart MacBride and Jane Casey will likely agree with me that the Cooper & Fry series is an enjoyable addition to these lists. And, happily, there are more than a dozen more books in the series for me to read, which I intend to do!
There are three main mysteries in Blood on the Tongue: 1) a dead body of an unidentified well-dressed man is found at the side of a road during a massive snow storm after a snow plough hits the corpse; 2) a dead body of a woman who they discover had given birth to a baby within the last two months is also found frozen in the snow (the whereabouts of Baby Chloe becomes the important mystery here because it seems like the woman died by deliberately exposing herself to the wintry elements); 3) a 57-year-old cold case of the disappearance of a survivor of a World War II plane crash that killed 5 men, including one Polish soldier whose brother still lives in the area, is being actively investigated by the survivor’s attractive Canadian granddaughter trying to clear his name of the ‘deserter’ label. Of course these mysteries lead to other questions/puzzles: Who is Baby Chloe’s father? Will Ben and Allison (the Canadian granddaughter) hook up? Why did Chloe’s mom kill herself? Why do so many of the people involved with the recently discovered dead bodies also have connections to the decades-old crash?
As with all good mystery series, a significant fraction of the appeal of the book is the new information provided about the protagonists Cooper and Fry. Cooper finally bites the bullet and moves out of his family’s farm into an apartment ‘in town.’ He fitfully adapts to living by himself (although he has a stray cat or two as a roommate) while Fry seems to be more and more interested in Cooper, what he’s thinking and what he’s doing (and whom he’s doing it with.) At one point she says to him directly “Sometimes I can’t tell what you’re thinking, Ben.” It’s bizarre to me that as Cooper’s superior officer she thinks she has the right to know his thoughts at all times when he’s on duty? However, at the end of the book her watchful eyes over him probably saved his life after Cooper makes a selfless (and reckless) decision to try and save a suicidal suspect from self-harm. Fry, of course, does the appropriate thing by calling for back-up instead of rushing into help without a clear plan or assessment of the danger of his actions.
Overall, Blood on the Tongue is another excellent entry in what is fast becoming one of my favorites in the genre of British police-procedural murder-mysteries (which experienced readers know is quite a large and varied genre). Readers of books by Peter Robinson, Peter James, Ian Rankin, Stuart MacBride and Jane Casey will likely agree with me that the Cooper & Fry series is an enjoyable addition to these lists. And, happily, there are more than a dozen more books in the series for me to read, which I intend to do!
May 28, 2018
Very good. Definitely the best one I've read so far. They should make a TV program out of the books.
August 13, 2018
A well plotted story but I'm having some difficulty giving the Diane Fry character any redeeming points.
January 27, 2023
Got this at Bookfest January 2023, a worthwhile purchase although I have read it before. At first let me say that this book is too long at over 600 pages. Having said that, it retained my interest most of the time. We spend a bit too much time in Ben Cooper's head and in discussions of matters of low importance. It could have been edited back to about 450 pages without too much trouble.
However, I really like this series, Cooper and Fry, the author has a mastery of language and dialogue, and provides wonderful descriptions of the peak district. Both of the main characters are fully fleshed out, but while Ben is an unbelievably nice guy, Diane is "une vraie connasse", as they say in France.
There are many plot threads which makes the reading interesting but sometimes tiresome.
Everything gradually comes together due to Ben's insightful investigation. The ending is rushed and I doubt whether many whodunnit fans will succeed in unravelling the mystery.
To retain my interest for this many pages, it must be a very good book, and accordingly I rate it 4.4.
Prospective readers may benefit from reading #1 in the series first (this is #3) but it isn't a big deal.
However, I really like this series, Cooper and Fry, the author has a mastery of language and dialogue, and provides wonderful descriptions of the peak district. Both of the main characters are fully fleshed out, but while Ben is an unbelievably nice guy, Diane is "une vraie connasse", as they say in France.
There are many plot threads which makes the reading interesting but sometimes tiresome.
Everything gradually comes together due to Ben's insightful investigation. The ending is rushed and I doubt whether many whodunnit fans will succeed in unravelling the mystery.
To retain my interest for this many pages, it must be a very good book, and accordingly I rate it 4.4.
Prospective readers may benefit from reading #1 in the series first (this is #3) but it isn't a big deal.
April 3, 2010
This is probably one of the most atmospheric of the Cooper/Fry novels. The whole winter/snow scenes are beautifully described and fit extremely well into the plot.
I find the character of Ben highly likeable and Diane not so. However, the contrast between their personalities and relationship in general is enthralling throughout the series as a whole.
The minor characters such as the Canadian woman and the book shop owner did annoy me somewhat! Also in my opinion, having read other books in this series I found the plot slower to develop in this installment. Overall, a solid read, with engaging main charaters and awesome setting.
I find the character of Ben highly likeable and Diane not so. However, the contrast between their personalities and relationship in general is enthralling throughout the series as a whole.
The minor characters such as the Canadian woman and the book shop owner did annoy me somewhat! Also in my opinion, having read other books in this series I found the plot slower to develop in this installment. Overall, a solid read, with engaging main charaters and awesome setting.
March 24, 2018
I really enjoyed this entry in the series. It had been several years since I read one, but Cooper and Fry and pretty unforgettable (she's the hard case and he's the compassionate one....well sorta). The setting is a huge presence in the story and I never had the whole picture clear until the last pages. Excellent.
July 12, 2020
This was the third book in the Diane Fry and Ben Cooper series and it worked as a stand-alone mystery for me. It was a multilayered British mystery spanning the years from WWII involving the missing pilot of a RAF plane and a couple of bodies in the snow. Interesting ending that tied it all together.
October 14, 2025
I am really enjoying this series of books. Another great story. All comes together in the last few chapters. I love how it keeps you hanging till almost the end.
April 8, 2019
Loved it, I just couldn't put it down.
March 29, 2018
I read this as part of the three story set. Maybe I was too saturated in Cooper and Fry - ness, but I found this one a little slow and a bit tedious.
There are a couple of bodies on the moors buried in the snow. One, a woman, dies a slow death, alive but weak and in no condition to get out from under the cold weather. The other, a man, is found by a snow plough as it clears the roads.
Mixed in with these two investigations, a baby disappears and a young Canadian woman comes looking for the truth about her grandfather’s disappearance, 53 years ago. He was an RAF pilot. His plane, along with six crew members, crashed into the Irontongue, a local landmark. The pilot and one crew member walked away from the crash. The pilot was never seen again; the other survivor, a Pole, still lived in the village.
Typically, the locals are tight lipped and won’t open up to the Canadian woman or to Fry. Cooper is his usual compassionate self, going around trying to help all and sundry and stumbling across important clues in the process. Fry is, as normal, dictatorial, snide, and organized.
There is some growth in the relationship between Ben and Diane. Slowly, they are coming to realize that the two of them together make a good investigative team. And there is a glimmer of warmth from Diane.
The Derbyshire countryside is described beautifully and plays an important role in the story.
There is lots of information about the RAF wrecks strewn around the area and the interest of collectors in the memorabilia associated with these wrecks.
There are a couple of bodies on the moors buried in the snow. One, a woman, dies a slow death, alive but weak and in no condition to get out from under the cold weather. The other, a man, is found by a snow plough as it clears the roads.
Mixed in with these two investigations, a baby disappears and a young Canadian woman comes looking for the truth about her grandfather’s disappearance, 53 years ago. He was an RAF pilot. His plane, along with six crew members, crashed into the Irontongue, a local landmark. The pilot and one crew member walked away from the crash. The pilot was never seen again; the other survivor, a Pole, still lived in the village.
Typically, the locals are tight lipped and won’t open up to the Canadian woman or to Fry. Cooper is his usual compassionate self, going around trying to help all and sundry and stumbling across important clues in the process. Fry is, as normal, dictatorial, snide, and organized.
There is some growth in the relationship between Ben and Diane. Slowly, they are coming to realize that the two of them together make a good investigative team. And there is a glimmer of warmth from Diane.
The Derbyshire countryside is described beautifully and plays an important role in the story.
There is lots of information about the RAF wrecks strewn around the area and the interest of collectors in the memorabilia associated with these wrecks.
January 18, 2016
Booth is such a talented writer. He brings in such emotions into his characters that you actually feel like you are standing right there, ready to give a hug. Ben Cooper is a Detective in the Peak District in England. He is well thought of guy, who is easy person for people to talk to. Diana Fry is now Ben's boss and they have history. I shall not say anymore about that, you will have to read the first two books for that history. Diana is not so well liked...ok I hate her at times...but I try to temper that with knowledge of her history, but it is hard, especially because she has it in for Ben. Or does she? The whole thing begins when a body is found in the snow outside the turnpike, then another one turns up out on the moors by an old wrecked RAF plane. Oh and if that isn't enough we have a missing baby and a missing man. Are they all connected or not?
As we watch Ben and Diana try and solve these crimes, we realize that maybe history doesn't always stay buried in the past. We also see where Ben is working toward becoming more independent from his family and become his own person. My feelings for Diana has softned by the end of the book, but not much. She is such a hard person sometimes, but I know why and I am giving her some leeway. If you like reading about WWII and the English RAF, then you might like this book. It does a good job of standing alone. You don't have to read the other two books to read this one.
As we watch Ben and Diana try and solve these crimes, we realize that maybe history doesn't always stay buried in the past. We also see where Ben is working toward becoming more independent from his family and become his own person. My feelings for Diana has softned by the end of the book, but not much. She is such a hard person sometimes, but I know why and I am giving her some leeway. If you like reading about WWII and the English RAF, then you might like this book. It does a good job of standing alone. You don't have to read the other two books to read this one.
June 16, 2011
Stephen Booth, who wasn't at all bad to start with, is going from strength to strength. This is one of the best mysteries that I've read for quite some time.
It's the dead of winter in Derbyshire's E-Division and DS Fry and DC Cooper have more than enough to deal with on top of the snow and ice without a Canadian girl investigating a second world war air crash on their patch too. Fry is dismissive but Cooper gets drawn into the historical mystery. I've got a definite penchant for mysteries that are set in the present day but delve into happenings in the past and this one is wonderful stuff. I would also have never expected a Peak District story to be full of so much interesting Polish culture but Booth brings all kinds of fascinating elements into his story.
The two central police characters are developing nicely through the series, they've definitely moved on from where they were in the first couple of books and I'm looking forward to following them into the future. Diane Fry is losing her rough edges and it seems Derbyshire is becoming more a home and less of an escape for her. Ben Cooper is breaking away from his family and building more of a life for himself. The changes in these people are gradual rather than sudden and this makes them highly believable.
More of the same please!
It's the dead of winter in Derbyshire's E-Division and DS Fry and DC Cooper have more than enough to deal with on top of the snow and ice without a Canadian girl investigating a second world war air crash on their patch too. Fry is dismissive but Cooper gets drawn into the historical mystery. I've got a definite penchant for mysteries that are set in the present day but delve into happenings in the past and this one is wonderful stuff. I would also have never expected a Peak District story to be full of so much interesting Polish culture but Booth brings all kinds of fascinating elements into his story.
The two central police characters are developing nicely through the series, they've definitely moved on from where they were in the first couple of books and I'm looking forward to following them into the future. Diane Fry is losing her rough edges and it seems Derbyshire is becoming more a home and less of an escape for her. Ben Cooper is breaking away from his family and building more of a life for himself. The changes in these people are gradual rather than sudden and this makes them highly believable.
More of the same please!
February 9, 2012
Continuing with the Cooper/Fry series, this was another great read from Stephen Booth. I would highly recommend this series to crime/mystery readers out there and say, start with book 1 and read them in order. That way, you can get to grips with the relationship between Ben Cooper and Diane Fry and also, their backgrounds and how they effect and impact on their lives and work. This one was centered on an incident in WW2 and a plane that crashed into the Peak District back nearing the end of the war and a Canadian grand-daughter of one of the pilots who went missing after the crash and her need to find out what happened her grand-father and the need to clear his name when it was thought he deserted. A body is found murdered near the Crash site and then a series of events starts to throw up links between the past and present. Again, some good detective work and following the clues and joining the dots, makes for a great story. Diane Fry is also giving Ben a hard time, as usual and Ben makes a move towards independence in his personal life and moves out of his family home and into his own flat. It's another big book, over 600 pages, but I managed to read it in two days as I was so engrossed in the tale and just wanted to find out what had happened to all those involved. Can't wait for the next one.
January 30, 2016
Efter att av en slump ha upptäckt den här serien för drygt tre år sedan och efter idogt och lyckosamt arbete lyckats hitta alla de gamla delarna på ett antikvariat, så har den ändå blivit stående, i stort sett, oläst. Men i år har jag satt upp den på min avsluta-serier-utmaning och jag har tänkt läsa en bok i månaden. Läs mer på min blogg
March 5, 2014
Very very engrossing, with great atmosphere and fascinating characters. Frankly, if I were Cooper I'd have backhanded Fry and given her my resignation, but apparently the sole of her shoe fits the dent in his a**. This is one of those instances where you learn more about a character from what he DOESN'T do!
August 22, 2017
Winter is always a challenging time for the police in Edendale, Derbyshire. The blizzards and chilling winds make the bleak landscapes and twisting roads even more difficult to traverse and investigate in. But crime always goes on, regardless of the weather and the Edendale police have several cases in play.
A young woman is found buried in the snow. At first it appears she just got tired and lay down and was killed by exposure but the post mortem reveals bruises that are evidence of a beating. The case is reclassified as a murder and even more critically, it appears she had a young baby who is now missing.
Then a man's body is discovered when a snowplow hits it. Again, it appears to be a murder and the police don't even know who he is. His clothing shows a well-dressed man who should have been missed. Why isn't someone looking for him?
Then another strange event distracts attention from the recent murders. A woman has traveled to Derbyshire from Canada. She identifies herself as the granddaughter of a military pilot who crashed his plane into the mountains during WW II. All aboard were killed except for one Polish crew member and the pilot who supposedly survived only to vanish. He is blamed for the wreck and his granddaughter has come to clear his name. She is very determined but the police are already overwhelmed with work. She tries to enlist Ben in her search but his superiors have already forbidden anyone to help with the police force already spread thin.
When the cases all start to look as if they are connected, the police scramble to find out what all three have in common. Ben is the hometown boy who knows everyone and who is a town favorite. But his superiors, including Diane Fry, see him as a man who is easily distracted from the orders he is given. Will Ben's obstinate nature help to solve the crimes or is standard police procedure the way to go?
This is the third in the Cooper and Fry mystery series. In this one, Diane has just gotten the promotion that everyone assumed would go to Ben and is now his boss. This ratchets up the interplay between the two who come at every problem in a diametrically opposed fashion. Readers of the series will enjoy this further case and the unfolding of the relationship between the two. This book is recommended for mystery readers.
A young woman is found buried in the snow. At first it appears she just got tired and lay down and was killed by exposure but the post mortem reveals bruises that are evidence of a beating. The case is reclassified as a murder and even more critically, it appears she had a young baby who is now missing.
Then a man's body is discovered when a snowplow hits it. Again, it appears to be a murder and the police don't even know who he is. His clothing shows a well-dressed man who should have been missed. Why isn't someone looking for him?
Then another strange event distracts attention from the recent murders. A woman has traveled to Derbyshire from Canada. She identifies herself as the granddaughter of a military pilot who crashed his plane into the mountains during WW II. All aboard were killed except for one Polish crew member and the pilot who supposedly survived only to vanish. He is blamed for the wreck and his granddaughter has come to clear his name. She is very determined but the police are already overwhelmed with work. She tries to enlist Ben in her search but his superiors have already forbidden anyone to help with the police force already spread thin.
When the cases all start to look as if they are connected, the police scramble to find out what all three have in common. Ben is the hometown boy who knows everyone and who is a town favorite. But his superiors, including Diane Fry, see him as a man who is easily distracted from the orders he is given. Will Ben's obstinate nature help to solve the crimes or is standard police procedure the way to go?
This is the third in the Cooper and Fry mystery series. In this one, Diane has just gotten the promotion that everyone assumed would go to Ben and is now his boss. This ratchets up the interplay between the two who come at every problem in a diametrically opposed fashion. Readers of the series will enjoy this further case and the unfolding of the relationship between the two. This book is recommended for mystery readers.
August 18, 2018
Cooper & fry are at it again in the frozen landscape of Edendale in the Derbyshire Peak District. A body is found in the snow on Irontongue Hill and the police are trying to find out who he his and how he died. The investigation is hindered by a Canadian, Alison Morrissey, who has flown over to England to find out what really happened to her grandfather who was a pilot who crashed his Lancaster bomber killing nearly all of his crew 57 years ago in the 2nd World War. Shortly after the body of a young local woman is found on the moors having died from exposure and concern abounds after her baby daughter cannot be traced.
There are the main key characters her Sergeant Diane Fry and Constable Ben Cooper in the Edendale CID, together with the Station's senior officers. This time Copper and Fry aren't working together all the time as Fry is joined by the slob know as Murfin as Cooper is working on an assault in the town.
The main trouble with the series is that Cooper is extremely likeable, caring and a very good detective, albeit a bit too niave who was unbelievably passed over for promotion in Black Dog in favour of the inexperienced Fry on the basis of the senior officer thinking this may get him in Fry's good books romantically. Fry's character is the conundrum as she is completely unlikeable and over promoted, over bearing and overly obnoxious. She alone makes it hard to LOVE the series.
This is book 3 and I really enjoyed book 1, Black Dog, but was less enamoured with it's follow up, Dancing with the Virgins. Sadly I think the series is on a downward slide with Blood on the Tongue being my least favourite of the series so far. My main reason is that I feel author Stephen Booth has been told (inadvisably) that his credibility or the acclaim for his books will increase if they are longer and subsequently each has been significantly longer than its predecessor. Ii read some other reviews with people agreeing that the book was unnecessarily long and bemoaning it's 530 odd pages, well I wish I'd have had their copies because mine was 632 pages long and so much of it unnecessary and repetitive.
Any way the story is good but tries to cover too many issues, regularly going off on tangents and is too long. I think this is really a 3.5 but as there's no half stars I've rounded it up to a 4. I'll continue with the series but hope the length of the books reduces.
There are the main key characters her Sergeant Diane Fry and Constable Ben Cooper in the Edendale CID, together with the Station's senior officers. This time Copper and Fry aren't working together all the time as Fry is joined by the slob know as Murfin as Cooper is working on an assault in the town.
The main trouble with the series is that Cooper is extremely likeable, caring and a very good detective, albeit a bit too niave who was unbelievably passed over for promotion in Black Dog in favour of the inexperienced Fry on the basis of the senior officer thinking this may get him in Fry's good books romantically. Fry's character is the conundrum as she is completely unlikeable and over promoted, over bearing and overly obnoxious. She alone makes it hard to LOVE the series.
This is book 3 and I really enjoyed book 1, Black Dog, but was less enamoured with it's follow up, Dancing with the Virgins. Sadly I think the series is on a downward slide with Blood on the Tongue being my least favourite of the series so far. My main reason is that I feel author Stephen Booth has been told (inadvisably) that his credibility or the acclaim for his books will increase if they are longer and subsequently each has been significantly longer than its predecessor. Ii read some other reviews with people agreeing that the book was unnecessarily long and bemoaning it's 530 odd pages, well I wish I'd have had their copies because mine was 632 pages long and so much of it unnecessary and repetitive.
Any way the story is good but tries to cover too many issues, regularly going off on tangents and is too long. I think this is really a 3.5 but as there's no half stars I've rounded it up to a 4. I'll continue with the series but hope the length of the books reduces.
August 20, 2020
I've not read the first two books but, unlike other similar series which I have tackled out of order (Rebus, Tony Hill etc.) I found it extremely difficult to get a hold on the dynamic between the two lead characters, their individual motivations or indeed, to keep their voices in my head throughout this novel. Ben Cooper comes across as being entirely wet, and Diane Fry is overly mean. The dialogue between them feels unrealistic and disjointed and I have no idea why Fry feels the need address Cooper directly as 'Ben' in practically every sentence she throws at him. (So annoying!) Similarly, supporting character's dialogue seemed to also lack spark, possibly with the exception of Hitchens (although that seems to fizzle out towards the end of the novel too.)
I also agree with some of the comments here pointing out that the book could do with a good edit - it's a bit of a lengthy tome and often it feels as though entire sections have been written just to show off a gory bit of trivia (the lamb-thing, the viking thing) which does nothing to advance the plot. This would be OK, did the reader not also have to endure Cooper's long-winded inner-monologues, never-ending descriptive passages on locations irrelevant to the actual story and extraneous detail which adds little to the narrative . Perhaps a page out of Chekov's book would be appropriate - if there's a gun on the wall in the first act, then in the following one it should be fired!
I don't often write reviews on here, but something about this book really irritated me - especially as there are positive things to say for it too, such as the engaging, intertwining plot lines and atmospheric setting (hence the 3 stars). I found myself skim-reading quite a few passages but I did stay with it until the final page. I'll maybe give another book from the series a try if I come across one, in the hope that it might redeem the collection.
I also agree with some of the comments here pointing out that the book could do with a good edit - it's a bit of a lengthy tome and often it feels as though entire sections have been written just to show off a gory bit of trivia (the lamb-thing, the viking thing) which does nothing to advance the plot. This would be OK, did the reader not also have to endure Cooper's long-winded inner-monologues, never-ending descriptive passages on locations irrelevant to the actual story and extraneous detail which adds little to the narrative . Perhaps a page out of Chekov's book would be appropriate - if there's a gun on the wall in the first act, then in the following one it should be fired!
I don't often write reviews on here, but something about this book really irritated me - especially as there are positive things to say for it too, such as the engaging, intertwining plot lines and atmospheric setting (hence the 3 stars). I found myself skim-reading quite a few passages but I did stay with it until the final page. I'll maybe give another book from the series a try if I come across one, in the hope that it might redeem the collection.
June 28, 2017
If you love soaking up the atmosphere, the people and the countryside, then this is a great book - especially if that countryside is the peak district. If you love a bit of local history and character, then this is a really good book. If you love a slowly paced detective story that walks you through the complexities of apparently unrelated events and weaves them all together - then you will have a good journey in the hands of a wonderful writer. You get a real sense of the victims, their lives and motivations - even though you never meet them. There are cliff-hanging moments and deceptions. There are unexpected twists. People who you kind of like, turn out not very nice, but that just adds depth to it all. The characters are all 3D and all of them belong to the life amongst the frozen peaks.
If you don't like digressions and want a more direct storyline, then this book might be less rewarding. I wasn't turning the pages because I was hooked on a fast paced mystery. I was turning the page because I enjoyed the writing and the vibe. However, I will admit to the occasional frustration when the action had heated up and suddenly we were wandering off into some irrelevant observation. In those moments I wanted to shout at the editor to step in and cut stuff, but apart from that, it was a book I enjoyed as I relaxed into it.
If you don't like digressions and want a more direct storyline, then this book might be less rewarding. I wasn't turning the pages because I was hooked on a fast paced mystery. I was turning the page because I enjoyed the writing and the vibe. However, I will admit to the occasional frustration when the action had heated up and suddenly we were wandering off into some irrelevant observation. In those moments I wanted to shout at the editor to step in and cut stuff, but apart from that, it was a book I enjoyed as I relaxed into it.
August 30, 2021
The unidentified body of a dead man has turned up on a snowy roadside. A woman is found in the snow on nearby Irontongue Hill. And there's the lingering puzzle of a Royal Air Force bomber that crashed into Irontongue Hill back in 1945, killing everyone on board except for two: one man is living in Edendale and the pilot, who reportedly walked away from the wreckage...and was never heard from again. It is the pilot’s granddaughter who comes to Edendale from Canada to clear her grandfather’s name and to find out what really happened. This creates a snowball effect and uncovers an illegal WWII memorabilia ring and the ring leaders are willing to kill to keep it a secret. After reading three of these books, I’m beginning to like this series and appreciate the characters more. At first, all the British terminology drove me nuts and they all start out a bit slow and gain lots of speed in the end. DC Cooper moves out of the family farmhouse that he shares with his brother & family, and rents a small apartment in town.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 26, 2018
I was fascinated by the story of how a stretched police force in the Derbyshire dales investigate 2 dead bodies found during heavy snowfalls in the area. In addition there is the story of a Canadian woman who comes over to find out what happened to her father who disappeared following the crash of the plane he was piloting int the area. He one of two people who survived the crash - the other was a polish national who then settled in the area.
However I found the style of writing frustrating sometimes.
However I found the style of writing frustrating sometimes.
March 4, 2019
I enjoyed this book , the characters of Fry and Cooper seemed a little more rounded .
Cooper lost some of his nice boy image and became more tenacious , Fry mean while seemed to softer slightly and tried to be more understanding .
The plot was interesting as it traced an event of the Second World War .
The wreck of a bomber having crashed in the Derbyshire hills leads to many other incidents that draw Cooper particularly into investigating local inhabitants .
The story line is at times a little unbelievable but in the main this is a good solid murder mystery .
Cooper lost some of his nice boy image and became more tenacious , Fry mean while seemed to softer slightly and tried to be more understanding .
The plot was interesting as it traced an event of the Second World War .
The wreck of a bomber having crashed in the Derbyshire hills leads to many other incidents that draw Cooper particularly into investigating local inhabitants .
The story line is at times a little unbelievable but in the main this is a good solid murder mystery .
May 5, 2019
Book 3 in tbe seried. This is a book you need to sit and concentrate on. Lots of layers different crimes all inter woven. The 2 main police characters still not understanding each others thought process and why they are driven in the way they see the world or community. Certainly a relationship not built on love or trust but that makes it a more intresting read. Just occasionally there is a hint of understanding a moment of something deeper on the fringes of their subconscious. Looking forward to seeing who their relationship developed.
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