Playing with Fire

by Patricia Hall

The death of a young girl leads Detective Sergeant Harry Barnard and Kate O’Donnell into a hotbed of simmering tensions, violence and threats in sixties’ Soho.

London, 1964. At three a.m. on a chilly autumn morning, Detective Sergeant Harry Barnard is called to a club in Greek Street where a young girl has fallen to her death from a top-floor window. A new breed of fans is flocking to Soho's rock and roll haunts. But was it a tragic accident, or something more sinister?

Meanwhile, Kate O’Donnell, Harry’s photographer girlfriend, receives a call from her Liverpudlian ex, Dave Donovan, pleading for her help. His new squeeze, Bernie Collins, set off for London in the hope of getting a recording contract, but she’s not answering her phone. Where is she?

With simmering tensions, intimidation and terror rife on Soho’s streets, Harry and Kate are drawn into its dark underbelly in their attempts to find answers.

208 pages, Paperback

Published March 30, 2021

About the author

Patricia Hall is the pen-name of journalist Maureen O'Connor. She was born and brought up in West Yorkshire, which is where she has chosen to set her acclaimed series of novels featuring reporter Laura Ackroyd and DCI Michael Thackeray. She is married, with two grown-up sons, and now lives in Oxford.

Reviews

[Margaret Duke-Wyer · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the seventh book in the Kate O’Donnell series and the second that I have read. The series features Detective Sergeant Harry Barnard and his girlfriend, photographer Kate O’Donnell.

It is 1964 and the location is the seedy area of Soho, London where clubs, pubs, restaurants and bars host prostitutes, criminals, drug dealers and other dubious characters and this is Harry Barnard’s patch; Kate also works in the area as a photographer. This pretty much duplicates the background of the proceeding book in the series.

Barnard is called to a new club in Soho where a young girl has fallen to her death from an upstairs window in the club. All the patrons of the club have disappeared and the manager is less than forthcoming. The girl cannot be identified, her face is badly disfigured by the fall and her bag and coat cannot be found. Meanwhile Kate has been contacted by her ex-boyfriend in Liverpool who is trying to locate his new girlfriend. Unsuccessful in an audition with Brian Epstein she has headed to London to seek fame and fortune as a singer, a la Cilla Black.

As the plot develops, Kate and Harry become more involved in their investigations. Meanwhile the Soho scene becomes more hostile, more secretive and more dangerous with violence, drugs and the emerging pop culture takes hold.

I did quite like the references to Soho and in particular the references to the Beatles and the mayhem that surrounded them and the phenomena that was Beatlemania. This established the plot in a very specific time and place, and I have vague memories of the clashing Italian, Maltese and local groups. What irritated beyond belief was the use of ‘la’ and ‘Whack’ – totally unnecessary in my opinion.

As for Kate and Barnard; funny old do! Is it really OK to go off to a party with dodgy characters without telling your other half, especially if you have been nosing around? But do you know what? I didn’t really care: not if they were doing the right thing or even if they definitely were doing the wrong thing? Just didn’t care about them enough – sorry. I even found the plot all a bit predictable. Barnard up against the powers that be in the police; running into an old friend who is now certainly a criminal and Kate obviously beautiful who catches the eye of all and sundry – yawn!

However, it is well written but it is a steady, not overly complicated plot that will satisfy followers of this series rather than more grisly detective stories and to be honest – there are plenty of readers avid for this type of fiction.

Thank you to the author, publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.

[George1st · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is I believe the sixth novel in the Kate O'Donnell Mystery series and although certain past incidents are referenced I as a new reader found no difficulty in quickly picking up the elements that related to the proceeding plot lines and gaining an understanding of the continuing central characters. This can certainly be read as a stand alone story. Set in the Soho of 1964 the book begins with Detective Sergeant Harry Barnard being called to the scene where a young girl has fallen to her death from the window of a nightclub.

Although suspicious the local police are distracted when another murder occurs that is linked seemingly to a new criminal fraternity intent on replacing the old and now fading gangland hierarchy. When other acts of violence take place the streets become a place of fear and tension. Ostensibly unconnected we have Kate O'Donnell's former boyfriend Dave Donovan contacting her seeking her assistance in tracing his present partner who has gone missing while in London in pursuit of a recording contract. Are all these occurrences somehow related and can the truth be uncovered when violence and intimidation is so prevalent on the Soho streets.

I really liked how the author captured the atmosphere and the thrill and sleeziness of 1960's Soho and how it personified the changes towards a more liberal or some would argue a more decadent society. Other faces of the time such as the slum clearance of housing in the East End, police corruption and the changing face of crime with the emergence of the organised drug trade are covered. The plot races along quickly and to be honest I finished this easily in one day. As not all the loose ends are tied up a further installment I'm sure is inevitable which will please many of the already devoted fans.

[Rog Harrison · Rating 2 out of 5]

I first read one of the author's books back in January 1999 and I read six more of her books in October 2007 but I can't remember much about any of them. This book is in a different series and is set in London in 1964 with a photographer, Kate O'Donnell, and her boyfriend, Detective Sergeant Harry Barnard, being the main characters. There are references to the early days of swinging London and the formation of the police drugs squad. The author makes several pointed references to how women were perceived and treated in those days. However there is not much of a story and it is by no means an exciting read even though part of the plot involves the beginning of a gang war between the old established gangsters (presumably modeled on the Krays) and newcomers. I doubt that I will read any more of this series.

[Andrew Baker · Rating 3 out of 5]

While well written, I just couldn't get into this book. For me, the storyline felt a tad slow even though there was still a lot going on. Some of the action that happened to the characters felt like filler too.

We're following multiple storylines throughout the book and I didn't feel like they were well connected by the end. They were loosely tied together for the sake of the ending, but it left me disappointed by the last page.

I liked the era the story was set in, and I felt like the author captured that well. The way in which the different characters were treated and/or spoken to in the story felt realistic to the time period, especially the way women and gay men are spoken about.

Overall, it was an ok read, but I did struggle to get into the storyline and be excited by it. I doubt I'll go on to read any of the other Kate O'Donnell series.

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Soho in the 1960's and Detective Sergeant Harry Barnard has been called out to investigate a body having fallen from a building. Suicide, accident or murder. Meanwhile Barnard's girlfriend has been asked to find a missing female who has been attracted to London's musical scene. This is the first of the series that I have read and I found I couldn't really get interested in their lives, the characters or the plot.
A NetGalley Book

[lynn davies · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is set in 1960s London murder drugs gangs musicians based around a London Soho Sgt.in the police and his Liverpool photographer girlfriend .
Certainly a book that keeps you interested from first page to last.

[Hannelore Cheney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley and Severn House Publishing for the eARC.
London, 1964 and Detective Sergeant Harry Barnard is called to a Soho club where a young, underage girl has fallen to her death. Was she pushed? When he interrogated the manager, he's met with hostility. It seems nobody knows who the girl was and how she managed to get into the members only club. She might have come in with one of their members, maybe even one of the hot new musicians who are followed by hordes of young girls.
Soho, Barnard's patch, is surprisingly quiet and tense, no one wants to talk and soon the bodies are piling up.
Kate O'Donnell, Barnard's photographer girlgriend, is contacted by her ex, Liverpudlian Dave Donovan, whose girlfriend, a wannabe singer, left for London and Dave hasn't heard from her. He's worried and despite Kate's reservations, she reluctantly offers to help him.
I enjoyed the 1960's London atmosphere a lot, having spent time there, and the mention of all the great bands that were getting big then was a nostalgic trip into the past for me. Kate is a young woman in a 'man's 'job and constantly fighting off opinions from men who can't believe women can take photos, an unfortunate sign of those times. I like her character a lot, but it was a bit more difficult to take to Barnard, he seemed a bit curt and impatient in the beginning, but improved towards the end.
On the whole I loved the setting, the 1960's nostalgia and the increasing ominous feel of the burgeoning drug war. I will definitely look for more books in the series.

[Sue Blanchard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thankyou to NetGalley, Severn House Publishers and the author, Patricia Hall, for the opportunity to read an advanced readers copy of Playing With Fire in exchange for an honest, unbiased opinion.
I thought the storyline was well written and with engaging characters. It was an intriguing and suspenseful read that I thought was enjoyable. 3.5 stars.
Well worth a read.