The Final Beat of the Drum

Monika Paniatowski #15

by Sally Spencer

DCI Monika Paniatowski is forced to think the unthinkable: could a good friend and long-standing colleague be guilty of murder?

On the day of her official retirement from the Force, DCI Monika Paniatowski looks at the two men and one woman who are no longer her team and thinks: Whatever the future holds, I will always be proud of you. She raises a toast. And just like that, her career as a homicide detective is over.

Then, fifteen years later, Monika's former sergeant, Kate Meadows, makes a terrible mistake.

Monika doesn't hesitate when Kate turns to her for help. She owes her, and she can hardly let her old friend go down for a crime she didn't commit.

But as Monika gets deeper into the investigation, she's forced to ask herself the unthinkable: is Kate really innocent, or is she helping her old friend get away with murder?

Packed with twists that will make you gasp out loud, the fifteenth - and final - DCI Monika Paniatowski mystery is a stunning conclusion to the long-running series. If you haven't met Monika yet, you're in for a treat.

Genres: Mystery

239 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 3, 2023

About the author

A 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.

Reviews

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve been reading the series for years, although it’s probably not noted on Goodreads, I’m very sad it ended, but wonderful last hurrah !

[Hannelore Cheney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley and Severn House for the eARC.
DCI Monika Paniatowski has retired in this, the 15th and final book in the series. However, she gets involved in the murder of a prominent member of the City Council because her good friend Kate, who runs a home for battered wives six for her help in proving she was not the killer. Monika gets together her old team to help prove Kate's innocence. But is she innocent?
This was an excellent read, albeit sad because it's the last of a beloved series. I love Monika and her old team and so it was a bittersweet farewell. The story is a great police procedural/mystery and readers should enjoy this book even if they haven't read any of the previous books. But they'd be missing out on a wonderful series!

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book and would classify it as a procedural with an edge. It has the details of the murder investigation like a  police procedural but the content elevates it past the typical procedural. This is the last book in a long-running series, but the first I've read. It actually works well as a standalone since the premise is that DCI Monika Paniatowski has come out of retirement to help prove that her friend and former colleague Kate Meadows isn't guilty of murder. I'm sure the book will be especially meaningful to those who have been following the series. 

The book is fast-paced and kept my interest throughout the book and I wasn't able to guess the identity of the murderer. I really liked the character of Monika and her interesting backstory, as well as the members of her former team. I have to admit that I couldn't connect with Kate and she was my least favorite of the group. Overall, I really liked the book and the author's style of writing. There was a twist at the end that I didn't see coming. Even though this is the last book in this series, I am interested in reading more by this author. 

I received an advance copy of this book at no charge from NetGalley, through the courtesy of Severn House Imprint. My review is voluntary and unbiased. 

[Jill Stirling · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one wraps up the series and was quite neatly done. The story was a bit weak with one of the old team finally caught out and in trouble. These books have not aged well. The aging Monika is not as interesting as the younger version. Still a reasonable wrap up.

[Kathleen Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Monika retired after a long and colorful career as a DCI. Now, though, she's back in the game because Kate, her DS, has asked for her assistance in both clearing her of. murder and finding the real villain. This has a large cast of characters who I'm sure fans of the series will be happy to see but know that if this is a standalone (or almost one as in my case) Spencer has wisely included enough info to get you up to speed and doesn't do inside jokes. It's hard to review without spoilers because there are twists that will keep you, like Monika guessing, Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good end for a long running series.

[Patricia Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an astonishing novel and ending to Monika Paniatowski’s mystery series!
It was quite unbelevable how the author managed to incorporate the past and present into the plot. Monika and her team’s lives were interposed into the storyline with minimal intrusion. By importing the characters’ thoughts along with the dialog was a real asset to the understanding of the character.

Even though a little fantasy and some humor was added into the book, it did have a very appeasing ending.

Thanks to NetGalley and Severn House for the eARC.

[Likestotravel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn’t realize when I started this delightful mystery that it is the final in a beloved series. The traditional characters have another chance to work through another murder challenge while bringing a new generation onboard. This is a fun standalone book or obviously can be read as the end of a respected police career. The various settings in their hometown also become nostalgic characters complementing the story as Sally Spencer’s descriptions are very vivid and evocative.

Thanks to NetGalley and Severn House for the opportunity to read this classic mystery ARC.

[Martha Brindley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the final book in the DCI Monica Paniatowski series and what a fantastic finale it is! I really recommend reading all this series if you like crime fiction as it's one of the best in the genre. Here we find Monica retired from the police and her team all off doing other things. Her friend Kate Meadows is running a home for women fleeing domestic violence and becomes embroiled in a murder. This is a brilliant and well written ending to the series. It can be read as a stand alone but why miss the opportunity to read an excellent series of books. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

[Collette Mcgaahan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Whilst I agree with other reviewers this book is a stand alone I did feel that I was missing the nuances along the way.
I enjoyed some of the story but then other bits not so much. It made me think of the to series Killing Eve but I don’t know why because it is actually a well written police procedural plot with lots and lots of other things going on.
I will score it a solid three stars but probably if it was a series I had been reading it would have deserved more.

[Rebecca Glodde · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the first book I’ve read by this author. At 70+ years of age I’ve read a ton of books. Sadly I was not impressed by this one. Far too much detail in unimportant areas and not much substance. The book could have been reduced down by 50%. There were whole paragraphs I skipped because they held no merit. I do appreciate authors and their work but I was disappointed by this one. 1/25/2023

[Barrie Bromley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Am I disappointed?

The last DCI Paniatowski novel. Monika Paniatowski was a wonderful character who I’ve followed through 15 novels. Like most fictional detectives she had a rebellious streak, doing things her way. However, the last three or four novels have not been up to the standard of earlier ones. The stories have been more and more unbelievable. It’s a good time to call it a day.

[Annarella · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s always a bit weird when you start a crime series from the final story. Even if I enjoyed I spposed I missed some nuances.
It’ a solid police procedural that kep me guessing .
I liked the storytelling and the fleshed out characters
Recommended
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did enjoy this series. This was an outstanding team not without flaws but more attractive because of them. The plots always had a clever twist. Sorry to see the series end but it was time and it ended well.

[Anie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Gave up. Just too formula based

[Audrey Chan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will miss you Monika. One last case for the retired DCI Monika Paniatowski when a former colleague is under suspicion for murder.

[G · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fitting ending to the Monika Paniatowksi series!