A Very Private Murder: A DI Charlie Priest Mystery - Softcover

Pawson, Stuart

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0749008180 ISBN 13: 9780749008185

Publisher: Allison and Busby, 2010

Synopsis

DI Charlie Priest is on gardening leave, literally, when he gets a call from his colleagues at Heckley about the opening of a local shopping and conference centre. Amid the paparazzi flash bulbs, someone by-passed security and defaced the plaque Ghislaine Curzon, girlfriend of one of the royal princes, was unveiling. The f-word painted in foot high red paint succeeds in scandalizing the mayor and gathered dignitaries and a horrified Chief Constable immediately puts Charlie on the case.

Charlie would rather be investigating the spate of burglaries perpetrated by a gang with a pit bull terrier, but charmed by Ghislaine and her precocious younger sister, he is drawn into the enquiry just as the upstart mayor who pushed through construction of the shopping centre is found dead. While the case leads Charlie to look closely at the local horseracing establishment, with some lateral thinking he is also able to pull in the animals behind the pit bull burglaries.

About this title

About the Author:

STUART PAWSON had a career as a mining engineer, followed by a spell working for the probation service, before he became a full-time writer. He lives in Fairburn, Yorkshire, and when not hunched over the word processor likes nothing more than tramping across the moors, which often feature in his stories. He is a member of the Murder Squad and the Crime Writers' Association.

Review:

A new Stuart Pawson novel is like your favourite uncle turning up, telling you corny jokes, whisking you off to the zoo for the afternoon and feeding you your favourite ice cream. A VERY PRIVATE MURDER is a treat worth waiting for. All the old crew are here, accompanied by a raft of memorable supporting characters who are painted in with Pawson's customary relish.

You don't read Pawson for nail-destroying tension or rapid action. What he does, and does insanely well, is to present the reader with a cast of characters so realistic that you're convinced you know them from work or from your road or from down the pub. And he's got the relaxed narrative style that looks effortless but for which most writers sweat pints of blood and never actually achieve.

Don't miss this treat of a novel!

About this edition

• Publisher: Allison and Busby
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0749008180
• ISBN 13: 9780749008185
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 288