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Peter Diamond #20
Diamond and the Eye
A Bath antiques dealer has disappeared, and detective Peter Diamond has been saddled with the "help" of a hardboiled Philip Marlowe wannabe private investigator in cracking the case. MWA Grand Master Peter Lovesey's 20th installment in the award-winning series will have readers laughing from the first page.
If there's one thing detective Bath Peter Diamond has no patience for, it's a dumb git trying to get involved in one of his investigations—for example, a Philip Marlowe-wannabee private investigator like the self-styled Johnny Getz (his card claims he Getz results). But fate has saddled Diamond with this trial. A Bath antiques dealer, Septimus "Seppy" Hubbard, has disappeared without a trace, and his daughter, Ruby, has hired Johnny Getz to find him. When a dead body is discovered in Seppy's locked-up store, the missing persons case becomes a murder investigation, and now Diamond has to collaborate with the insufferable private eye.
If there's one thing detective Bath Peter Diamond has no patience for, it's a dumb git trying to get involved in one of his investigations—for example, a Philip Marlowe-wannabee private investigator like the self-styled Johnny Getz (his card claims he Getz results). But fate has saddled Diamond with this trial. A Bath antiques dealer, Septimus "Seppy" Hubbard, has disappeared without a trace, and his daughter, Ruby, has hired Johnny Getz to find him. When a dead body is discovered in Seppy's locked-up store, the missing persons case becomes a murder investigation, and now Diamond has to collaborate with the insufferable private eye.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published October 12, 2021
116 people are currently reading
282 people want to read
About the author
Peter Lovesey
295 books643 followersPeter Harmer Lovesey, also known by his pen name Peter Lear, was a British writer of historical and contemporary detective novels and short stories. His best-known series characters are Sergeant Cribb, a Victorian-era police detective based in London, and Peter Diamond, a modern-day police detective in Bath. He was also one of the world's leading track and field statisticians.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 153 reviews
October 31, 2021
4.5 stars for me
This was a delightful departure from the norm with a wonderful tribute to the literary tradition of PIs. Most (if not all) authors of PI stories were given the nod in this creative, lively story that had a good measure of mystery, secrets to uncover and a surfeit of shootings for the Bath setting. Diamond took the back seat for a bit as the PI contributed solutions as well as protection of one important team member.
Great read!
Library Loan
This was a delightful departure from the norm with a wonderful tribute to the literary tradition of PIs. Most (if not all) authors of PI stories were given the nod in this creative, lively story that had a good measure of mystery, secrets to uncover and a surfeit of shootings for the Bath setting. Diamond took the back seat for a bit as the PI contributed solutions as well as protection of one important team member.
Great read!
Library Loan
November 23, 2021
Disappointing. Lovesy introduces a new sleuth, a smart-alecky private eye, Johnny Getz, who just makes the whole plot cumbersome and unrealistic. There’s also an interloper on the investigation in the form of Lady Bede who is purportedly on an ethics task force. This too makes the story unwieldy.
November 1, 2021
This review contains very light spoilers.
If you've read any of my previous reviews of Peter Lovesey's novels, you know that he is at the top of my personal list of favorite authors. His mysteries are complex, authentic, and sharply humorous. I enjoy the main recurring characters, notably the brilliant Peter Diamond himself, as well as the rest of his crack team. The amazing thing about Mr. Lovesey's mysteries are the new characters that get introduced in each new novel. They feel just as life-like as the regulars, and they interact spectacularly with each other and with the main team. In the newest Diamond mystery, we are introduced to Private Eye Johnny Getz on the first page. He is a wonderful new addition to the Bath CID universe, and he creates a fantastic - and surprisingly competent - foil for Peter Diamond.
The inclusion of Johnny Getz opens the door for a fabulous homage to the hard-boiled detective mysteries of the past. References to Philip Marlowe, Sam Spade, Mike Hammer, Lew Archer and others abound. Not only that, but Getz's adventures are a "never before seen" private eye mystery woven into the typical (if there is such a thing) Diamond story. It lends itself to an amusing and delightful sort of meta-exploration into the realism of detective stories. You can't beat Ingeborg Smith, for example, chastising Johnny for treating his job like a detective thriller when the reader is at the same time enjoying just such a book.
And that's the operative word: "enjoying." As always, a Peter Lovesey novel (and especially another in the exceptional Diamond series) is first and foremost something to really enjoy. His engaging style keeps the story flying along, and the humor is unfailingly intelligent and superb. The mysteries themselves are always tricky to figure out and ultimately very satisfying. We are so fortunate that Mr. Lovesey has provided new books in this outstanding series on an almost annual basis for so many years. I am so happy to have the opportunity to gobble down another one. They truly never disappoint, and this snappy read is no different. It's another high-quality offering in an already extraordinary series. Highly recommended.
If you've read any of my previous reviews of Peter Lovesey's novels, you know that he is at the top of my personal list of favorite authors. His mysteries are complex, authentic, and sharply humorous. I enjoy the main recurring characters, notably the brilliant Peter Diamond himself, as well as the rest of his crack team. The amazing thing about Mr. Lovesey's mysteries are the new characters that get introduced in each new novel. They feel just as life-like as the regulars, and they interact spectacularly with each other and with the main team. In the newest Diamond mystery, we are introduced to Private Eye Johnny Getz on the first page. He is a wonderful new addition to the Bath CID universe, and he creates a fantastic - and surprisingly competent - foil for Peter Diamond.
The inclusion of Johnny Getz opens the door for a fabulous homage to the hard-boiled detective mysteries of the past. References to Philip Marlowe, Sam Spade, Mike Hammer, Lew Archer and others abound. Not only that, but Getz's adventures are a "never before seen" private eye mystery woven into the typical (if there is such a thing) Diamond story. It lends itself to an amusing and delightful sort of meta-exploration into the realism of detective stories. You can't beat Ingeborg Smith, for example, chastising Johnny for treating his job like a detective thriller when the reader is at the same time enjoying just such a book.
And that's the operative word: "enjoying." As always, a Peter Lovesey novel (and especially another in the exceptional Diamond series) is first and foremost something to really enjoy. His engaging style keeps the story flying along, and the humor is unfailingly intelligent and superb. The mysteries themselves are always tricky to figure out and ultimately very satisfying. We are so fortunate that Mr. Lovesey has provided new books in this outstanding series on an almost annual basis for so many years. I am so happy to have the opportunity to gobble down another one. They truly never disappoint, and this snappy read is no different. It's another high-quality offering in an already extraordinary series. Highly recommended.
December 25, 2022
I liked it well enough, but never truly felt engaged. Rather, I felt like I was on the outside looking in. Learning more about the artist, Jackson Pollack aka 'Jack the Dripper' was amusing.
Favorite quotes:
"He's one of the local characters - straw boater, blazer and cravat, shiny shoes and you could cut your hand on the crease of his trousers."
"A rare and possibly never to be repeated sight - Peter Diamond in shorts and only Sergeant Ingeborg Smith from CID was there to bear witness to the corpse-white shanks on display."
Favorite quotes:
"He's one of the local characters - straw boater, blazer and cravat, shiny shoes and you could cut your hand on the crease of his trousers."
"A rare and possibly never to be repeated sight - Peter Diamond in shorts and only Sergeant Ingeborg Smith from CID was there to bear witness to the corpse-white shanks on display."
October 24, 2021
As soon as I saw it published, this was a must read. Is this really the 20th of the series that I have enjoyed thoroughly.
It is about 15 months since I read The Finisher and may be books that I read in between may have clouded my memory of Diamond but he seemed to have changed. I remember him
as a jovial chubbyish fellow but now he seems more of a bald fat guy. Maybe Diamond is just getting older and near to retirement.
My memory of earlier reads wasnt helped as part of the beginning is written in the first person by Johnny Getz, a Private Eye who has arranged to bump into Diamond as he relaxes with a pint in his local after work ( Isnt this a new thing too?). At first I found these 'first person' episodes annoying and although I mellowed a little towards them as the book continued, I much preferred the old style of writing.
Although it was an interesting plot and, as usual good character descriptions, I felt that there was something missing. May be it was the humorous banter with his colleagues and the interplay with his boss, Georgina. Wouldnt a final chapter as Diamond explains it all to his boss , including the part played by the member of the Lay Ethics Committee that she had introduced them too, have made for an interesting finale?
It will be interesting to see if Johnny Getz appears in any more stories (personally I hope not) or if indeed this is an introduction to a new series , may be by Mr Lovesey jr or another author.
Sorry but after an excellent series , I thought that this was just average.
It is about 15 months since I read The Finisher and may be books that I read in between may have clouded my memory of Diamond but he seemed to have changed. I remember him
as a jovial chubbyish fellow but now he seems more of a bald fat guy. Maybe Diamond is just getting older and near to retirement.
My memory of earlier reads wasnt helped as part of the beginning is written in the first person by Johnny Getz, a Private Eye who has arranged to bump into Diamond as he relaxes with a pint in his local after work ( Isnt this a new thing too?). At first I found these 'first person' episodes annoying and although I mellowed a little towards them as the book continued, I much preferred the old style of writing.
Although it was an interesting plot and, as usual good character descriptions, I felt that there was something missing. May be it was the humorous banter with his colleagues and the interplay with his boss, Georgina. Wouldnt a final chapter as Diamond explains it all to his boss , including the part played by the member of the Lay Ethics Committee that she had introduced them too, have made for an interesting finale?
It will be interesting to see if Johnny Getz appears in any more stories (personally I hope not) or if indeed this is an introduction to a new series , may be by Mr Lovesey jr or another author.
Sorry but after an excellent series , I thought that this was just average.
August 2, 2021
Over the years Detective Superintendent Peter Diamond, head of CID in Bath, has become one of my favourite fictional coppers. Frequently impulsive and often bad tempered, he is an essentially empathetic character, struggling to curb his frustrations at the relentless stream of new management initiatives that hius superiors (whom he considers to be woefully lacking in frontline experience of the job) keep trying to introduce.
In this latest outing, he finds himself (reluctantly) investigating the disappearance of Septimus Hubbard, a flamboyant antique dealer who has not been seen since his shop was broken into a week earlier. A missing person case is not something that Superintendent Diamond might normally become involved with, but he is goaded into action by Johnny Getz, an aspiring local private detective, who has been retained by Mr Hubbard’s daughter. Diamond is reluctant to acknowledge that a serious crime might have been committed, until people involved with the case are shot at by a mystery gunman.
The Diamond novels have always tended more towards the whimsical end of the crime fiction genre. Ostensibly police procedurals, they do not tend to labour the grimmer aspects of urban crime, and one of their principal attractions is the heavy smattering of local colour that Lovesey adds. The Bath setting is, after all, particularly well-suited to this. In fact, I am surprised that the books haven’t been picked up for television, as I am sure they would have the same broad international appeal as the Morse series (with a similarly querulous, although perhaps less intellectually elevated protagonist).
This book takes the fomr of two separate narratives. The main one is a standard third person account, unfolding the action of the plot, but this is interspersed with occasional first-person contributions from Johnny Getz. To be honest, I found those sections very annoying. I think that Peter Lovesey was aiming for a jocular, slightly tongue in cheek approach, but I felt that it didn’t really come off. In fact, although I enjoyed the book overall, it was a bit weaker than most of the Diamond series, and I wonder whether it might be time for the Superintendent to be pensioned off, before any further weakening compromises the series as a whole.
In this latest outing, he finds himself (reluctantly) investigating the disappearance of Septimus Hubbard, a flamboyant antique dealer who has not been seen since his shop was broken into a week earlier. A missing person case is not something that Superintendent Diamond might normally become involved with, but he is goaded into action by Johnny Getz, an aspiring local private detective, who has been retained by Mr Hubbard’s daughter. Diamond is reluctant to acknowledge that a serious crime might have been committed, until people involved with the case are shot at by a mystery gunman.
The Diamond novels have always tended more towards the whimsical end of the crime fiction genre. Ostensibly police procedurals, they do not tend to labour the grimmer aspects of urban crime, and one of their principal attractions is the heavy smattering of local colour that Lovesey adds. The Bath setting is, after all, particularly well-suited to this. In fact, I am surprised that the books haven’t been picked up for television, as I am sure they would have the same broad international appeal as the Morse series (with a similarly querulous, although perhaps less intellectually elevated protagonist).
This book takes the fomr of two separate narratives. The main one is a standard third person account, unfolding the action of the plot, but this is interspersed with occasional first-person contributions from Johnny Getz. To be honest, I found those sections very annoying. I think that Peter Lovesey was aiming for a jocular, slightly tongue in cheek approach, but I felt that it didn’t really come off. In fact, although I enjoyed the book overall, it was a bit weaker than most of the Diamond series, and I wonder whether it might be time for the Superintendent to be pensioned off, before any further weakening compromises the series as a whole.
June 13, 2022
As is normal in a Peter Diamond book, there's more than one POV. Unlike many Diamond books, Diamond makes an appearance fairly early one (many has him come in after three or more chapters).
So, POV #1: Johnny Getz is on a mission: a mission to find Ruby's missing father. It's been a week since the father's antiques shop has been robbed, and there's been no movement in finding the father. So Getz, seemingly randomly, contacts Peter Diamond. One thing leads to another and Diamond lets Ruby & Getz into the shop. Whereupon they find a dead body. Because, you know, apparently non-homicide cops aren't very good at looking around crime scenes.
So, POV #2, Peter Diamond, gets his team together to solve the murder while Getz tries to track down the missing father.
Many clues found, many potential murder suspects, and more people die before this enjoyable read is completed. A solid good 20th book in the series.
Rating: 4.5
June 12 2022
So, POV #1: Johnny Getz is on a mission: a mission to find Ruby's missing father. It's been a week since the father's antiques shop has been robbed, and there's been no movement in finding the father. So Getz, seemingly randomly, contacts Peter Diamond. One thing leads to another and Diamond lets Ruby & Getz into the shop. Whereupon they find a dead body. Because, you know, apparently non-homicide cops aren't very good at looking around crime scenes.
So, POV #2, Peter Diamond, gets his team together to solve the murder while Getz tries to track down the missing father.
Many clues found, many potential murder suspects, and more people die before this enjoyable read is completed. A solid good 20th book in the series.
Rating: 4.5
June 12 2022
October 26, 2021
One good thing about this book is that there's a bit more police procedure than in the previous two in the series. The story starts with Diamond being accosted by a traditional American type private investigator over a missing person case. As the case gets more complicated, the novel switches into a double POV, with the private eye telling his part in the first person in (mostly) alternating chapters. The trope of the "hard boiled private eye" who talks and acts like one and is love with every fictional investigator falls flat for the most part and you can feel yourself groan with every chapter that begins with his POV. In one respect, there's a warmth to the way Lovesey finds a way to pay homage to all his peers and influences, but it's too much. The mystery itself resolves poorly and messily.
December 4, 2021
I'm a long-time fan of this series, but I didn't care for the private eye character, nor was I interested in his point of view.
October 8, 2021
Thank you NetGalley and Soho Crime for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC. I so much enjoyed reading this book. Happy belated 85th birthday Peter Lovesey. This is not the first book of this series that I read. I was surprised about the writing style. Sometimes I thought it was written by a young accomplished author. So much wit and humor. Peter Diamond meets a private detective Johnny Getz who tries to act like a character taken from a hard boiled detective novel or movie. It all starts with a burglary. Leads to some drive by shootings. A corpse in a antiques store. And ends up with a mysterious painting. You will enjoy the book. Trust me.
June 1, 2022
After the somewhat lacklustre "The Finisher" this was a welcome return to form for Lovesey and his series character Peter Diamond. This time part of the story is told in first person narration by a private eye who is a fan of classic P.I.-s and keeps referencing people like Lew Archer or Travis McGee. I also particularly enjoyed all the trivia about Gainsborough and the art world. It's amazing how many famous people lived in Bath during history, assuring that Mr. Lovesey will never run out of ideas for this series. I thought the only thing missing was a surprise twist for the ending, because the culprit's identity was rather predictable. Nevertheless this was a very entertaining mystery.
March 10, 2022
Detective Peter Diamond is on a case in Bath, England. A missing person is complicated by a murder to be investigated and an intrusive hard-boiled type private investigator. The characters involve the reader in this well written story of mystery and intrigue.
January 7, 2022
A series that never disappoints me!
May 27, 2022
When an antiques dealer disappears, his daughter Ruby hires a private investigator, Johnny Getz, to find him. Getz involves a disapproving Peter Diamond, and the two men discover a dead body in the shuttered shop. From this starting point, we follow Diamond's police team and Getz' independent investigation, based on his study of fictional P.I.'s, as several people are shot, or at least shot at, and several are also killed.
July 3, 2022
Excellent! A perfect mystery featuring Peter Diamond and a private investigator Johnny Getz. Wisecracking gumshoe out the solve the several murders and a missing masterpiece painting.
September 19, 2024
As usual Diamond is grumbling about having to set up an incident room in Bath now that his base has been relocated outside the town. On the positive side, he has moved in with Paloma, although she is a peripheral character in this story. An antique's dealer is missing his shop has been broken into and a body, a recent violent death, has been found inside an Egyptian sarcophagus. On top of this, a Private Investigator becomes involved. Lots of shooting and more bodies. Very like Midsomer Norton!
All his usual team features but have low-level parts and the whole plot never seems to gel together. Possible it is a good thing that this seems to be the penultimate book in the series. I will get to the end.
All his usual team features but have low-level parts and the whole plot never seems to gel together. Possible it is a good thing that this seems to be the penultimate book in the series. I will get to the end.
November 6, 2021
I usually like Peter Lovesey and the Peter Diamond books, but I thought this was tedious. It reminded me of the Beau Brummell book a few years ago. I liked the last page.
December 12, 2021
I deeply regret plowing through this to the end
January 28, 2022
The latest entry features two of my favorite things in the Peter Diamond series: Lovesey’s playfulness, and a connection to Bath history (which I won’t spoil, but it was fun). Some chapters are 3rd person in Diamond’s point of view, and some are 1st, narrated by Johnny Getz, a private investigator (the “eye” of the title) who models himself on classic American noir. Getz is hired by Ruby Hubbard to find her father, missing since a break-in at his antique shop. The pair persuade Diamond to visit the shop with them, and a corpse turns up. Thereafter, Diamond is plagued by Johnny’s “help” throughout the case (and perhaps Johnny will be more helpful than he expects). And then there’s the flirtatious Lady Bede, a member of the police ethics committee who keeps turning up at crime scenes.
I enjoyed Johnny’s narration, which echoes Chandler and Hammett without taking it too far. This series ranges a lot in tone, and this one is very much at the fun romp end of the spectrum. I would have liked more of Paloma, Diamond’s girlfriend, though she does make one good appearance, and the ending was a bit abrupt. This has inspired me to continue my project of reading all the books—there are still some early ones I haven’t gotten to.
I enjoyed Johnny’s narration, which echoes Chandler and Hammett without taking it too far. This series ranges a lot in tone, and this one is very much at the fun romp end of the spectrum. I would have liked more of Paloma, Diamond’s girlfriend, though she does make one good appearance, and the ending was a bit abrupt. This has inspired me to continue my project of reading all the books—there are still some early ones I haven’t gotten to.
April 4, 2022
This entry in the series is a bit different. Diamond has to work along side a private investigator hired by the missing person's daughter and they alternate as narrators in the audio version. I didn't really like the character of the private eye, so any part of the story in which Peter was missing was a bit of a downer for me. Because of that, I've rated this one a bit lower than the previous novels in the series.
December 1, 2021
Another enjoyable Peter Diamond book, cute dialogue, great side characters and a new twist: a private investigator (the "Eye" of the title) tagging along with Peter as he investigates a burglary turned homicide. The PI is Johnny Getz, a lovely character who pictures himself as a "hard-boiled" guy in the mode of classic private investigators. Johnny is constantly invoking Travis McGee, Philip Marlowe, Lew Archer and other classic PIs. The plot is interesting and twisted a bit, but we can spot the usual suspects. I really like the character of Johnny Getz. He is obsessed with himself, but he also has some quite brilliant ideas. Could he return in some future Diamond books? I hope so. All in all, a fun read.
August 5, 2021
Brilliant. Love this series and this was no exception.
February 23, 2024
A complicated mystery, that gets resolved.
Not crazy about “the American”.
And- Seppy got away with no charges? Nothing?🤔
Not crazy about “the American”.
And- Seppy got away with no charges? Nothing?🤔
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 15, 2023
Humorous and light.
November 19, 2021
there is a saucy new element in this installment of the long running peter diamond series in the person of a wanna be private eye by the name of johnny getz who 'getz' results. (insert eye roll here) he does have an amusing turn of phrase, 'he had eyebrows like a pair of hairy caterpillars that meet on a pink twig and refuse to give way to each other.'
not as stodgy as some of the earlier stories, it was a fun diversion.
not as stodgy as some of the earlier stories, it was a fun diversion.
January 23, 2024
There's a touch of the Lovejoys about this tale of an unknown Gainsborough painting, with an antiques dealer having a long-standing relationship with the Lady of the Manor, and the CID team, led by Peter Diamond, finding themselves embroiled in the world of antiques following the disappearance and presumed death of a Bath antiques dealer. Mixing drive-by shootings with the death of an art conservator, the Druidic motifs carved into the frieze of The Crescent in Bath, and its ground plan perfectly matching that of Stonehenge, this is another amiable tale of Somerset-based sleuthing. Partly narrated in the first-person by Johnny Getz, the annoying private eye hired to find her father by the antiques dealer's daughter, Diamond and the Eye is another of Peter Lovesey's entertaining novels, which never go in the direction you expect!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 11, 2021
20th and worst book of the Peter Diamond series. Johnny Getz character/narrator is a shallow cliche of a private detective.
October 9, 2021
If you're in the mood for something to make you smile, chuckle, and occasionally laugh out loud, pick up Peter Lovesey's Diamond and the Eye. Not only are you going to be amused, but you're also going to have fun sorting through all the lies and false trails of this particular investigation.
As the story progresses, readers-- who may once have been firmly in Diamond's anti-Getz camp-- begin to see that Getz isn't quite the simpleton he appears to be. This charming rogue has picked up quite a few useful tips from all that Golden Age crime fiction he's read. But what's even more fun is seeing how Diamond and Getz actually start working together.
Lovesey always finds some interesting facts in Bath's history to weave into his tales, and in Diamond and the Eye, readers will learn about car boot sales, antique dealers, and Bath's most famous artists. I never quite realized how fascinating Bath's history is until I started following Peter Diamond around.
This may be Diamond's twentieth appearance, but Lovesey keeps it fresh. The investigation tied into Bath's history isn't enough, though. Any long-running series needs a good cast of characters, and new officer Jean Sharp is proving to be a valuable addition to Diamond's team. What's even better, Keith Halliwell, Diamond's righthand man, proves that he has the power to shock us all.
From an investigation that kept me guessing to characters whose antics kept me laughing, Diamond and the Eye was the perfect escape. It probably will be for you, too. If you haven't sampled Lovesey's series before, don't be afraid to jump in with this one; there should be little (if any) confusion. After all, that's what I did several books ago. Just don't be surprised if you find yourself going back to enjoy previous books in the series. Peter Diamond can have that effect on you.
(Review copy courtesy of the publisher and Net Galley)
As the story progresses, readers-- who may once have been firmly in Diamond's anti-Getz camp-- begin to see that Getz isn't quite the simpleton he appears to be. This charming rogue has picked up quite a few useful tips from all that Golden Age crime fiction he's read. But what's even more fun is seeing how Diamond and Getz actually start working together.
Lovesey always finds some interesting facts in Bath's history to weave into his tales, and in Diamond and the Eye, readers will learn about car boot sales, antique dealers, and Bath's most famous artists. I never quite realized how fascinating Bath's history is until I started following Peter Diamond around.
This may be Diamond's twentieth appearance, but Lovesey keeps it fresh. The investigation tied into Bath's history isn't enough, though. Any long-running series needs a good cast of characters, and new officer Jean Sharp is proving to be a valuable addition to Diamond's team. What's even better, Keith Halliwell, Diamond's righthand man, proves that he has the power to shock us all.
From an investigation that kept me guessing to characters whose antics kept me laughing, Diamond and the Eye was the perfect escape. It probably will be for you, too. If you haven't sampled Lovesey's series before, don't be afraid to jump in with this one; there should be little (if any) confusion. After all, that's what I did several books ago. Just don't be surprised if you find yourself going back to enjoy previous books in the series. Peter Diamond can have that effect on you.
(Review copy courtesy of the publisher and Net Galley)
May 6, 2022
I have enjoyed the previous 19 Peter Diamond books, but the interjection of the Johnny Getz character made this one tough to get through. I almost put it down several times as Getz was an uninspired and cringey narrator, with zero backstory to get you to understand why he was obsessed with (and spoke like) fictional American detectives from almost a century ago. (It also assumes the reader is familiar with those characters, which I was not.)
But mostly we read these stories because Lovesey lets us check in with Peter Diamond and his life and we've watched him and his team grow older over the past 20 or so years, become more comfortable with technology, and with each other.
So what a disappointment to have all of that pushed to the background in favor or an unlikeable wannabe 1930s American private eye.
But mostly we read these stories because Lovesey lets us check in with Peter Diamond and his life and we've watched him and his team grow older over the past 20 or so years, become more comfortable with technology, and with each other.
So what a disappointment to have all of that pushed to the background in favor or an unlikeable wannabe 1930s American private eye.
January 9, 2022
This book was really a to all the classic 20th century American femme fatale meets imperfect & impoverished but dogged private eye novels. Unfortunately the only author I have read in this genre is Dashiell Hammett so I didn't understand all the frequent references to the other series. I think this is also the first in the series not to mention his murdered first wife in any way. It struck me as a bit flat in some places but I did love the Gainsborough tie in- I have seen both Pinkie and Blue Boy in person and they are both radiant.
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