The Circle

Inspector Henrietta Mallin #1

by Peter Lovesey

When van driver Bob Naylor, who likes to write jingles, is prodded by his teenage daughter into joining the Chichester Writers’ Circle, he scarcely expects to find that, among the anticipated set of literary snobs, he will be rubbing elbows with one—or more—potential victims of murder by arson. The members come from all walks of life and practice all forms of writing, from torrid romances to household hints, but there seems to be nothing to cause a serial killer to choose his victims from among them. But as the killer strikes again and again, Bob becomes a suspect. In order to free himself from suspicion and save himself from going up in flames, he will have to cooperate with formidable CID Chief Inspector Henrietta Mallin—Inspector Peter Diamond’s opposite number from The House Sitter. It begins to appear that amongst the potential victims in this circle are one or more murderers.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Audiobook, Crime, British Literature, Procedural, Mystery Thriller

384 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2005

About the author

Peter 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.

Reviews

[LJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

First Sentence: The night of the first murder.

At the urging of his daughter, amateur poet Bob Naylor joins a local writers circle. At the previous meeting, the group was addressed by a vanity-press publisher who’d come to critique their work; some favorably, most not. The publisher is killed in an arson fire and Maurice, the group’s leader, becomes the prime suspect. Because Bob is new and not a suspect, he is recruited to prove Maurice’s innocence, almost losing his own life in the process. Because the local police aren’t making any progress, Inspector Henrietta Mallin is sent in to solve the case.
Now here’s an opening to capture one’s attention. I definitely compels you want to read on. Lovesey writes wonderful dialogue with a very natural flow and a fine element of subtle humor…”Come and meet the chair.” “Why? Is it special?” “Chairman.” “Ah.”

The members of the writing circle are a true delight and so recognizable. One can’t help but like Bob and he holds the first portion of the story together very well. One does appreciate the cameo of Peter Diamond as a segue to introducing Insp. Mallin. That said, “Hen” Mallin is a very memorable protagonist being a cigar-smoking, no-nonsense character.

“The Circle” is an unusual police procedural, but very cleverly plotted with plot twists, plenty of suspects and very good red herrings. It’s somewhat reminiscent of “Midsomer Murders” and definitely keeps one involved right to the end.

THE CIRCLE (Pol Proc - Insp. Henrietta Mallin - Chichester, England - Contemp) - VG
Lovesey, Peter – 1st in series
Soho Crime – June 2005

[Faith · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first half of this book is a cozy with amateur detectives and the second half is a police procedural. Everyone is investigating a series of murders by arson. I'm usually a Lovesey fan but this one was so boring I wound up skimming to the end. Once revealed, the motive seems a little flimsy.

[Jeanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very enjoyable. My mother recommended this book to me. I had to read it fast, before she told me how it ends. I thought it was a great little mystery.

[Deanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I get a kick out of Lovesey's books, some more than others. Understated British mysteries with more emphasis on character development than plot movement or action. We have the suspects, members of a writing circle, who start investigating the murders. We have the police who are doing more than the writing circle believes. The characters don't trust each other. They are not trully friends, just members of the circle. The newcomer, Bob, keeps insistig he is not a member of the circle but he is very involved with the members and the investigaion. The police have their own inner conflicts while trying to solve multiple murders. The ending is unexpected on a couple of levels. Which one of the members will get published, if any? A good summer or rainy day read. I do enjoy the British mysteries.

[Michael Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovesey is best known for his mystery series featuring Detective Superintendent Peter Diamond, and Diamond gets a one-page walk-on here, but the main cop is DCI Henrietta Mallin from Bognor -- but even she’s not the main character and she doesn’t even show up till you’re nearly halfway through the story. The narrator is Bob Naylor, a truck driver living in the ancient, rather quiet town of Chichester, who is widowed with an adolescent daughter, and who has no great expectations but is generally happy. He also enjoys making up rhymes -- doggerel, not poetry, as he’s at pains to say -- and at his daughter’s insistence (she doesn’t think he gets out enough), he looks in on the Chichester Writers Circle. He worries that he won’t fit in, that they’ll all be intimidatingly intellectual, but most of the small group are just ordinary people with a yearn to be published. To that end, they had had a publisher come and talk to them -- but now, suddenly, he’s been murdered by arson. Bob, a forthright type who’s willing to help anyone who needs it, lets himself be drawn into the turmoil when suspicion falls on one or another member of the circle, and maybe his realistic though amateur approach is just what they needed.

The narrative is nicely done, following a group of confused, frightened civilians through the convolutions of a murder plot well before the police ever get themselves sufficiently organized to do any good. (That’s where Hen Mallin comes in.) The style is light and often witty, especially regarding the relationships among the amateur writers, but then the reality of death by fire will jerk you around the other way. I have to say, Lovesey’s later work is much better than his earliest efforts.

[J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amusingly constructed in the cozy/village Christie vein, a rotating field of suspects and some standard English quirk. The first half takes off promisingly with a couple of volunteer amateurs trying to flush out the culprit, but abruptly changes by mid-book to a more predictable police procedural. (I suppose the rules require that the cozy part have amateur sleuths, and that the policier half replaces them with cop-shop constables. Turf is turf.)

All in all an engaging mystery, a memorable cast, but atmosphere nearly nil and drama kept to a minimum. Solid airplane reading, and nothing to disrupt the napping intervals.

[Deneen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the first Hen Mallin book w the Peter Diamond series. I was excited to start this new series only to discover there were only 3 books !! Will there every be more?? This book was slightly disappointing only in that Hen dosent show up until almost half way thru the book. This character, with development, could hold her own in Murder thriller series!! Please give us more Hen Mallin!!

[Kerry Pickens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Peter Lovesey's Peter Diamond mysteries have been one of my favorite series, and the author introduces a new series with the main character Henrietta Mallin. This book seems at first to be a light version of the author's writing, but after slowly catching on to the hints - I realized it's a homage to Agatha Christie. There is an ensemble of characters that slowly get knocked off, and a surprising ending. Well done, well done!

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very fun read. Reminds me of the Thursday Murder Club books a bit. Circle of writers work with? Police to solve murders of their group.

[James Norris · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first half is good. The amateur detective theme was livery and interesting, but as soon as the police were introduced into the story it all became very drawn out. I had difficulty in finishing the book. I'm a fan of Peter Lovesey books, but this one is not his best.

[Tony · Rating 2 out of 5]

I like a nice traditional British mystery as much as the next person, but this effort from the prolific Lovesey just doesn't measure up. Set in the "city" of Chichester (population roughly 25,000) just inland from the English Channel, the story is a classic whodunit. A small-time vanity publisher is killed by an arsonist, and suspicion falls upon the amateur writer's group he recently spoke before. A series of further arson attacks ensue, and Lovesey tries to play a shell game to keep the reader from figure out who had motive, means, and opportunity to be the culprit (or culprits). Most readers will suspect that the solution lies in the background of the initial victim, and they'd be right -- which is why the amount of time it takes for the police to ferret his background out feels rather artificially prolonged.

Of course, this allows more scope in the first half of the book for the amateur (and rather inexplicable) sleuthing of the newest member of the group, a quick-witted delivery driver named Bob Naylor. Then, about halfway into the book, a new lead investigator is appointed. Cue the entrance of tough talking, no BS-taking Hen Mallin -- it's her perspective dominates the second half of the story. It's a rather awkward shift in point-of-view to introduce a co-protagonist so deep into the story, and it doesn't work very well. Worse than this is the cast of supporting characters, who have barely a hint of any life beyond the confines of the book. The group of amateur writers doesn't have any family or friends beyond those needed to serve various plot points or act as red herrings, and the same goes for their life histories. There's also a very weak subplot about a leak from within the police department, the motive for which makes no sense whatsoever, and seems only to exist to give D.I. Mallin something else to do besides solve the relatively straightforward mystery.

The whole thing feels quite creaky, from the love interest subplot for Bob, to the strange co-protagonist construction, to the somewhat lame solution to the murder. Despite being published only five years ago, it feels much older, especially some of the language and parts of the story relating to computers. Lovesey would have been about 70 when this came out, and I have to wonder to what extent his powers have faded.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is no "mystery" that Peter Lovesey has the Silver Dagger award. "The Circle" shows off more than just his mastery of the mystery genre but also the breadth of his writing "chops." In this first book of the Inspector Henrietta Mallin series, we encounter an intrepid group of writers who seem to be the focus of pyromaniac killer. A humorous foray into a motley crew of "published" authors, each one an intriguing suspect. But as with all his mysteries, the signature twist is thrown in and keeps one guessing until the last chapter. An enjoyable introduction into a new series that I can highly recommend for any mystery fan and especially any Lovesey fan.

[Pamela · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't know why it took me so long to find this author but I am a die hard fan and will be adding more of his books to my shelves.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clever plot, nice characterizations. Didn't quite grab me though, and I can't put my finger on why just at the moment.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really like Peter Lovesey books. This is the first of the Hen Malin series.

[Linda Brue · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE CIRCLE, Peter Lovesey, 2005
This is the first of two books featuring CID Chief Inspector Henrietta (Hen) Mallin. It starts off very casually, with a van driver, Bob Naylor. Bob likes writing little poems or jingles about well, everything and anything that strikes his fancy. He has a teenage daughter who believes her father needs to get out and start creating a life for himself. She somehow talks him into joining the Chichester Writers' Circle, how, he's not entirely certain himself since he's convinced it will be full of literary snobs. But he attends one meeting and somehow gets caught up in the murder by arson of a publisher who recently talked to the group. The entire amateur writers' group, full of eccentric writers who pen everything from household hints to bodice rippers, is suspect. Their leader, who was in the process of getting his book published by the publisher who perished in the fire, is soon arrested, but the killings don't stop. Soon Bob himself becomes a chief suspect. The other members of the circle elect him to be their leader and attempt to ferret out the murderer among them, but can he do this before they are all targeted?

This is a take on the closed-circle group of suspects that are killed off one by one, with the circle finally closing on the few remaining until the murderer is revealed. Lovesey does this well, developing his characters, each as a recognizable "type," letting their personalities come forth through the dialog and the actions of each. Hen Mallin is a great character by herself, a cigar-smoking woman who is tough and remarkably good at her job. I don't know why Lovesey hasn't written more books with Mallin as the protagonist, but I suppose his Peter Diamond (who makes a cameo appearance in The Circle), keeps him busy.

[Lorne Strachan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I immediately liked this book. It is an old-fashioned whodunit with the style, deviousness and sly humour a reader would expect from Agatha Christie.

Delivery driver Bob Naylor likes to write poetry -- nothing serious, just cute doggerel. He is prodded to joining the Chichester Writers’ Circle by his teenage daughter. He reluctantly decides to sit in on a meeting and encounters a diverse and eccentric bunch and then finds himself immersed in several murders and attempted murders by arson. It seems the killer is one of the circle.

CID Chief Inspector Henrietta Mallin (Insp. Peter Diamond’s opposite number in the same force) takes over the case from the initial copper assigned because she’s better. Maurice, the circle’s leader, is charged with the first murder but is released as the 2nd and 3rd killings using the same method take place.

Bob Naylor works with 2 other members as amateur sleuths looking for the culprit. He is also nominated as the press spokesperson for the circle and is assumed innocent as he is almost killed in the second fire. Hen ultimately narrows her field of suspects and sets a trap for the villain.

There are numerous red herrings and nifty misdirections as Hen digs into the implausible mystery of the deaths of a shifty publisher and unpublishable amateur writers. The book isn’t a ‘cozy’ but it is blessedly straightforward, free of the psychological angst and labyrinthine plot twists which ruin so many mysteries these days. It was a breath of fresh air and I heartily recommend it. It is a palette cleanser for whenever you become jaded with books that take themselves too seriously.

[Valerie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I learned about Inspector Hen Mallin when she was introduced in the book The House Sitter. She worked with Detective Superintendent Peter Diamond to solve a case and I liked her strong personality. I was sure I’d like the Inspector Henrietta Mallin series. This story, however, wasn’t a favorite.

A publisher is found killed after visiting a local writers circle. One of the members is accused of the murder and the others are determined to prove his innocence. After one of the members is killed, everyone remaining is sure that the killer is one of their own.

I enjoyed the very beginning learning about the interesting members of the circle. However, after that, it was a bit slow and somewhat boring even when the police started looking into the murders. I gave it 2 stars only because I liked the characters and the ending was unpredictable. I think it’s unfortunate that Hen wasn’t a bigger part of the book.

I will definitely read the next book of the series.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

I (sadly) recently finished Lovesey's Peter Diamond series and discovered he also wrote two books about DCI Henrietta Mallon, a colleague Diamond works with on a case in his series.

This book is full of whimsy and puns, and is surprisingly lighthearted for a book with multiple arson murders. The police don't even come into it until halfway through. Instead we have two amateur detectives from the writer's circle that is providing victims and perhaps the murderer.

I guessed the murderer early on, but still enjoyed the ride. I wish there were more than two books in the series. I had to keep reminding myself the book was written in 2005 because it was early days for computer sleuthing and blog writing.

A new character arrives late in the story. I particularly liked Hen Mallon saying, "There are rules to a good whodunnit. Dame Agatha [Christie] would never introduce the killer this late in the story." (p. 315) Ha!

[Dianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A new murder mystery author for me, and very enjoyable. Bob’s daughter, Sue, encourages her father to join the Chichester Writer’s circle, hoping to distract him from his loneliness after his wife’s death.

At his first meeting, he learns that the guest speaker at the previous meeting has been murdered, a bundle of oil-soaked rags stuffed through his letter box, followed by a lighted match, destroying both the speaker and his residence.

The Circle is astonished by the death, and when the Circle’s leader is called in for questioning by the police, amateur sleuths begin to develop among the Circle, including Bob and Tomasine, who writes erotic poetry. As clues are discovered, another member of the Circle falls to the arsonist and the other members start to worry for their own safety.

A nice, convoluted tale. More Lovesey mysteries for me, please!

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of Lovesey's two Henrietta Mallin crime novels, though she only comes in to it about halfway through. Pure luck I read this one after The House Sitter, which it apparently follows on and references. "The Circle" refers to a Chichester writing circle, which Bob -- a widowed single father, van driver, and doggerel writer --attends a day or so before a publisher who had recently spoken to the group is found dead in his torched house. When the chair of the writing circle comes under suspicion, Bob and the others start to investigate each other as well as others on their own to find the real culprit, but the arson and killings continue. Eventually Hen and Stella are called in to help. Interesting.

[Jeanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bob Naylor attends a writers circle encouraged by his 14 year old daughter. The other members are a bit odd. During a break, 2 police officers take the chair with them for questioning about the death of the publisher who spoke at their previous meeting.
The circle members are shocked. They don’t believe that Maurice is a killer. Several of them enlist Bob to help them prove Maurice’s innocence.
Then Bob is nearly killed in the same way as the publisher. Then another circle member is killed the same way as the publisher and Hen Mallon is brought in to take over the 2 murder investigations.
There’re a lot of red herrings and a lot of people accused of being the murderer before Hen finally gets to the answer.

[Cookie M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like Peter Lovesey crime novels. This is the first one I have listened to read by Simon Prebble, and I was impressed. I will look for more.

The gist of the story is, someone is bumping off members of a writer's group by arson in Chichester, UK. The writer's are not really very good, and it all starts when an independent publisher speaks at one of their meetings. Somebody bumps him off first. Then the real fun starts.

By the end, enough people are left alive for The Circle to go on having their meetings with the members they have left, and Lovesey has introduced to us a new detective, Hen Malin, about whom he wrote three or four books.

[rebecca O. webber · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would give this book 2.5 stars. I love Peter Lovesey’s Peter Diamond series and had high hopes for a strong female detective. I was disappointed. Hen Mallin doesn’t make an appearance until late in the book and I like her.


I thought there was too much redundancy that the book could lost at least 50 pages. After a bit, most of the writers in the circle were annoying. I did like Thomasina and Bob. Perhaps they could have their own series. I expected more from this author. There seems to be only two in the series so perhaps reviews like this made him concentrate on the Diamond eries.

[Mia Emslie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kept my interest... good premise. Liked the idea of a group of disparate writers all caught up in murders happening around & amongst them.
The main character, a jingles writer & new to the group, ends up helping the secretary try to find the murderer.
He’s a good guy who nearly gets killed himself (burning boathouse).
Of course, red herrings thrown in to confuse identifying the killer.. with suspicion on everyone in the group at some point.
Good ending...

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a fan of Peter Lovesey’s Peter Diamond series. This novel is the first of his CID Chief Inspector Henrietta Mallin books. The protagonist, Bob Naylor, drives a delivery truck and is a widow to a teenage daughter. Jingles come naturally to him. His daughter encourages him to go to a Writer’s Circle. When members of the circle fall prey to a serial killer, he becomes embroiled in the hunt for the killer. I give this 4 stars for the totally unexpected ending.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hen Mallin was introduced to readers in a couple of Lovesay's Peter Diamond mysteries, so I looked forward to reading this. Unfortunately, although I got to know more about her, the main characters were the members of a writing circle who try to prove the innocence of their leader when he is accused of murder. I would have liked Hen to be more involved.

[Fernando Catalina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book I read by Petter Lovesey and I would recommend it. The characters are interesting and become more so as the book progresses. The main character changes halfway through the book but this does not detract from the story. There are some interesting plot twists and an ending that does a good job of wrapping it all together.

[Quanita · Rating 5 out of 5]

After a publisher is murdered following his talk at a local writers group, the police have too many suspects. The officer in-charge has to deal with amateurs trying to solve the crime and a police leak. Two more murders put the police on the trail of the most unlikely person of all. Another winner by Lovesey.

[Lila · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Circle in the title refers to a writers' group. The plot is initially slow going as we have the point of view of a new member, or at least a tentative versifier who shows up at a meeting. I was getting impatient. However, as arson attacks continue, the detective comes in.. as suspects gradually die off.