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Monika Paniatowski #7
Death's Dark Shadow
Before she can even begin to track down the killer of the old woman dumped by the lonely canal, Monika Paniatowski needs to find out who she is - and no one seems to know. Even when her daughter Louisa provides the vital clue, it only makes life more difficult, because the Chief Constable - intent on making Paniatowski's life difficult - refused to let her follow the obvious trail. And it is not until there is a second, even more brutal, murder, that Paniatowski realises she will have to call on the help of her old mentor, ex-DCI Charlie Woodend.
- GenresMysteryProceduralFiction
292 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 1, 2014
109 people are currently reading
100 people want to read
About the author
Sally Spencer
80 books152 followersA pseudonym used by Alan Rustage.
Sally Spencer is a pen name, first adopted when the author (actually called Alan Rustage) was writing sagas and it was almost obligatory that a woman's name appeared on the cover (other authors like Emma Blair and Mary Jane Staples are also men).
Before becoming a full-time writer, he was a teacher. In 1978-79 he was working in Iran and witnessed the fall of the Shah (see the Blog for what it was like to live through a revolution). He got used to having rifles - and, one occasion, a rocket launcher - pointed at him by both soldiers and revolutionaries, but he was never entirely comfortable with it.
He lived in Madrid for over twenty years, and still considers it the most interesting and exciting city he has ever visited, but for the last few years he has opted for a quieter life in the seaside town of Calpe, on the Costa Blanca.
His first series of books were historical sagas set in Cheshire (where he grew up) and London. They were very popular with his English readers, but his American readers find the dialect something of a strain.
He has written twenty books featuring DCI Woodend (a character based partly on a furniture dealer he used to play dominoes with) and ten (so far!) about Woodend's protegé Monika Paniatowski.
His DI Sam Blackstone books are set in Victorian/Edwardian London, New York and Russia, and the Inspector Paco Ruiz books have as their backdrop the Spanish Civil War.
Alan is a competitive games player who likes bridge and pub quizzes. It is only by enforcing iron discipline that he doesn't play video games all the time.
He now lives on Spain's Costa Blanca.
Sally Spencer is a pen name, first adopted when the author (actually called Alan Rustage) was writing sagas and it was almost obligatory that a woman's name appeared on the cover (other authors like Emma Blair and Mary Jane Staples are also men).
Before becoming a full-time writer, he was a teacher. In 1978-79 he was working in Iran and witnessed the fall of the Shah (see the Blog for what it was like to live through a revolution). He got used to having rifles - and, one occasion, a rocket launcher - pointed at him by both soldiers and revolutionaries, but he was never entirely comfortable with it.
He lived in Madrid for over twenty years, and still considers it the most interesting and exciting city he has ever visited, but for the last few years he has opted for a quieter life in the seaside town of Calpe, on the Costa Blanca.
His first series of books were historical sagas set in Cheshire (where he grew up) and London. They were very popular with his English readers, but his American readers find the dialect something of a strain.
He has written twenty books featuring DCI Woodend (a character based partly on a furniture dealer he used to play dominoes with) and ten (so far!) about Woodend's protegé Monika Paniatowski.
His DI Sam Blackstone books are set in Victorian/Edwardian London, New York and Russia, and the Inspector Paco Ruiz books have as their backdrop the Spanish Civil War.
Alan is a competitive games player who likes bridge and pub quizzes. It is only by enforcing iron discipline that he doesn't play video games all the time.
He now lives on Spain's Costa Blanca.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
July 21, 2023
Entertaining mystery listening 🎶🔰
Monika Paniatowski takes vacation with her adopted daughter to Spain to visit friends and her daughter's family. Upon returning she gets involved in a murder case which leads back to Spain. I would recommend this series and author to 👍 readers of mystery novels 👍🔰. 2023 👒😀😡🏡
Monika Paniatowski takes vacation with her adopted daughter to Spain to visit friends and her daughter's family. Upon returning she gets involved in a murder case which leads back to Spain. I would recommend this series and author to 👍 readers of mystery novels 👍🔰. 2023 👒😀😡🏡
August 4, 2017
This book took me awhile to get into. It takes place in Spain and England and references events that were like Greek to me.
A woman is found dead in a canal under the newly formed ice. Once they determine her identity, the case gets tougher.
I ended up enjoying it overall, and liked the twists, but it took a but for me to even be able to follow it.
A woman is found dead in a canal under the newly formed ice. Once they determine her identity, the case gets tougher.
I ended up enjoying it overall, and liked the twists, but it took a but for me to even be able to follow it.
February 4, 2023
This new edition of a classic was great. I love this classic police procedural series that’s set in a time period before forensics, computers, cell phone & lots of other tech tools were available. Despite the relatively short novel format, the author expertly weaves the personal lives of the characters into the crimes that demand resolution. Any writer will tell you that writing in shorter formats is challenging. The author of this series is always up to the task with efficient, tightly crafted prose. Reading some earlier entries will enhance the reader’s experience but the book does stand alone reasonably well.
November 1, 2021
Disappointing
I don’t know what was wrong with this book. It didn’t feel like a finished manuscript. The romance was juvenile and made no sense. There was a long, mostly unnecessary scene with a diplomat and a soldier. It’s the worst written of the entire series so far — including the Inspector Woodend series, which are overall, better than this second series.
I don’t know what was wrong with this book. It didn’t feel like a finished manuscript. The romance was juvenile and made no sense. There was a long, mostly unnecessary scene with a diplomat and a soldier. It’s the worst written of the entire series so far — including the Inspector Woodend series, which are overall, better than this second series.
March 14, 2022
Twists and Turns
Having read the series 1 through 7, this one was a page turner after 1 chapter. I can't say why without possibly giving something away. So suffice to say, enjoy the ride
Having read the series 1 through 7, this one was a page turner after 1 chapter. I can't say why without possibly giving something away. So suffice to say, enjoy the ride
September 20, 2022
Spain
This series takes place in the 1970s when Franco was alive and dictator. And the murders to be solved were a follow up to the Spanish Civil War. So interesting twists and turns.
This series takes place in the 1970s when Franco was alive and dictator. And the murders to be solved were a follow up to the Spanish Civil War. So interesting twists and turns.
August 26, 2024
Another good book in this series, back and forth from Whitebridge to Spain. These books are rather short so the plot moves fast with not a lot of filler. An ending I did not see coming. The little romance "reference" with Monika and another character was really not needed
January 4, 2021
A good read - I liked the history info re Franco and gender politics at that time! Totally unknown to me! The characters in the book are all very interesting and developed well.
January 5, 2015
I rather enjoyed this latest Spencer mystery. The pace was fairly good and the characters interesting. The police team which included the now retired DCI Woodend worked fairly well. I may have missed a few in the series because I was not up to date on all the characters. But, It didn't matter. There was some romance in this story which is unusual. I usually pick these up at the library when they are available (as opposed to wanting to own them). I think I have to figure out what I've missed and fill in the blanks. I will say that there was a bit of disconnection between the story in England and the part in Spain. But, I still enjoyed it as a light read. Perhaps not her finest, but it still kept my attention.
April 10, 2014
This book is set in northern England and in Spain at the time of Franco's death. The settings and characters are excellent, but I figured the mystery at the 80% mark (Kindle version has no page numbers for this particular book) and most readers will probably figure it out, if not even sooner.
April 8, 2014
This story included information on Spain, Franco, and the civil war there. I found that part very interesting.
May 4, 2014
This was just OK. Some pretty unbelievable romance thrown in it seems, just for the heck of it. Fine for killing time, but this is neither one of the better mystery authors nor her best series.
February 13, 2022
Slow start, lots of extra details, hard to get into.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews