Wirral Libraries Bookbuzz discussion

This is the first in a series set in North Wales. The title is a bit of a misnomer as most of the towns and roads mentioned are in Welsh counties much further east, but I don’t suppose The Denbighshire/Merioneth/Montgomeryshire Killings, has the same ring to it. ( If Nick was to do the bike ride he describes in the time he said he would be getting gold medals at the Olympics!)

But these things can be forgiven as it was overall an enjoyable read. The descriptions of the scenery were nicely done and added to the atmosphere. The book itself does seem in a way oppressive , but for anyone familiar with North Wales, this is reflective of the bleakness of some of the scenery. It was refreshing to have a murder, police procedure plot, away from the cities, and in this way it reminded me of the Vera Stanhope setting of Northumbria. (More of Vera later).

The thing that I loved about the characters is that with a few pen strokes and carefully chosen scenes, the author produces such in depth understanding of their personalities and back stories. We are made very much aware of what has shaped them and their policing styles. Even the minor characters are well rounded.

Ruth has a very interesting and contemporary story. Married mother, divorced, happy in a same sex relationship until the unthinkable happens. Nick living from drink to drink but functioning in the world. He recognises and battles with his demons throughout the book, and even at the end we know he will continue to battle.

I don’t know anything about police procedures but they seem very convincing. I also like the relationships within the team and will be interested in how they develop. The other characters were just as interestingly portrayed and the book felt comfortably populated because of it.

There are many different threads running through the book; racism, including between the Welsh and English, sexual identity, alcoholism, abuse, bullying and suicide. It has a very contemporary feel and yet also has a sort of Midsomer Murders, cosy murder feel to it because of the locality and the familiarity of many of the characters with each other. Everyone knows everyone else, and it gives an easy flow to the dialogue.

I previously mentioned Vera Stanhope from the Ann Cleeves' books. Given that Ruth and Vera are such different characters, it was strange for me to find that I was reading her dialogue in Brenda Blethyn’s Vera voice. I realised that Ruth’s relationship with Nick reminded me very much of Vera’s with Joe, whilst her police dialogue could be straight from Vera’s mouth. This didn’t detract from the book but was just strange….

This is definitely a first book with Simon McCleave feeling his way, but it was a great start, and I am anticipating great things for the rest of the series. I hope I am not disappointed.