The Last Detective / Diamond Solitaire

by Peter Lovesey

Genres: Mystery

Paperback

First published March 3, 2008

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

[Bonnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Diamond Solitaire continues the introduction of Peter Lovesey's character, Peter Diamond, that critics and readers loved in The Last Detective. Diamond is bulky, stubborn, and tenacious and never better than in this mystery of a small Japanese girl found after hours in Harrods. Diamond, working as a guard, after being let go from the police force due to a quarrel with his superior, was on duty when the alarm sounded that an intruder had broken Harrod's security. Diamond was let go again and becomes obsessed with the girl who is apparently autistic. He asks to work for free at the school where she is sent when no one comes forward to claim her. At first, she will not acknowledge anyone, but Diamond's persistence pays off in Naomi's recognition of him. When the girl is kidnapped, he flies to New York where he learns she has been taken and teams up with the NYP to find her. Japan's top sumo wrestler reads about the missing girl and offers to pay Diamond's expenses in his pursuit of her. The trail leads to Tokyo and pharmaceutical a drug that promises to cure Alzheimer disease. A fast-paced crime novel that holds interest until the last page.

[AK]

Peter Diamond
1. The Last Detective (1991)
2. Diamond Solitaire (1992)
3. The Summons (1995)
4. Bloodhounds (1996)
5. Upon A Dark Night (1997)
6. The Vault (1999)
7. Diamond Dust (2002)
8. The House Sitter (2003)
9. The Secret Hangman (2007)
10. Skeleton Hill (2009)
11. Stagestruck (2011)
12. Cop to Corpse (2012)
13. The Tooth Tattoo (2013)
14. The Stone Wife (2014)
15. Down Among the Dead Men (2015)
16. Another One Goes Tonight (2016)
17. Beau Death (2017)
18. Killing with Confetti (2019)
Do Not Exceed The Stated Dose (1998)
Bloodhounds / Diamond Dust (omnibus) (2004)
The Last Detective / Diamond Solitaire (omnibus) (2006)

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A new author for me. I really enjoyed both stories so will look out for the others in the series.

[Ruth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Action packed. Not at all like the TV series of the same name. I particularly enjoyed Diamond Solitaire and his relationship with Naomi.

[Harry Addington · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exciting can't put the book down book. Diamond tries to help an autistic child and it leads him from London to Nee York to Yokohama.