Sean’s Comments (group member since Feb 23, 2022)

Sean’s comments from the Reading the Detectives group.

Just started reading, “A Boy’s Life” by Robert McCammon who is new to me. I’ve come across some reviews stating that this is his best book. At face value it starts off as a murder mystery but will over time will develop into a dark fantasy. Just came across this passage for example:

“…a human corpse had floated past on the current, the body’s chest peeled open like a sardine can and it’s arms and legs ripped off at the roots.”

Thanks Carolien, I’ll check her out

Which personal crime/mystery reads did you enjoy?

This year I listened to and enjoyed 9 of the 11 Detective Aurelio Zen audiobooks set in Italy by Michael Dibdin. Half way through the series I sadly read that Dibdin died at only 60 years of age with the last novel in the series being published posthumously.

Had become a bit jaded with the descriptions of the use of DNA testing, police databases, electron microscopes and mobile phone tracking to solve crimes in the latest crime novels. These methods make it all seem a bit too easy to catch the villain. Therefore I turned to the good old fashioned Commissioner Maigret series written by Georges Simeon with the first novel published in 1931. In total there are 75 novels in the series and so there are plenty more for me to look forward to.

Which authors do you want to read more of?
In no particular order:
- Georges Simenon
- Andrea Camilleri
- Elmore Leonard
- Arnaldur Indriðason

What were your least favourite books this year?

The Late Show by Michael Connelly. I found the protagonist Detective Ballard to be too unlikeable. I didn’t think the ends justified the means when she was breaking basic police procedures, lying to colleagues, trespass and hacking a police database.

Do you have any reading resolutions for 2023?
I want to read some good Finnish crime novels next year. If you have any suggestions let me know.