Customer Reviews
Hill, Puzzling but Back on Form - By: Mrs. K. A. Wheatley, 19 Nov 2007 
After being disappointed by Arms & The Woman I wasn't sure whether this would be any good. Luckily this is classic Hill, teasing & mentallly challlenging, threading themes & plot lines together effortlessly & reallly making the reader work hard.
Ellie is less to the fore in this book, which for me is a blessing. Here we have direct interaction into the mind of the killer without losing any of the suspense & tautness of plotting that HIll excels at. The characterisation, as ever, is fantastic.
This book should be read in partnership with Death's Jest Book as the stories intertwine. Fantastic.
Superb - By: Mrs. Rfm Walker, 20 Feb 2006 I've always been a huge fan of the Dalziel & Pascoe books. Reginald Hill is a superb crime writer who has only got better with time. This is one of my favourite of the D&P series - it's intricately plotted but extremely gripping. The ending is not a complete surprise but Hill works up to the final conclusion neatly. All the linguistic stuff works brilliantly - it's clever & interesting.
Overalll, I'd definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes quality crime fiction & especiallly any Dalziel & Pascoe fans.
Contrived, but a brilliant heading - By: Neil Truby, 30 Nov 2003 
I used to love Reggie Hill 10 or 15 years ago. I read a lot of his stuff when I lived in Australia, & his books were redolent of an England I'd left behind.
In recent years, however, I think he's started to disappear up his own arse with books that are frightfully clever, but too self-indulgent. And in many ways this is another example, with its confusing pseudo spiritual monologues & clever-clever word games central to the plot.
But the book achieves absolute redemption from the sheer brilliance of its ending (delivered, ironicallly, in another other-worldly epilogue!). It's so unexpected & unsettling that it ranks above the best two or three endings to any book I've ever read.
Fanscinating and Enthralling - By: Susan Flower, 25 Nov 2003 BR>I've listened to a couple of other Dalziel & Pascoe novels & so looked forward to this one eagerly - & I was not dissappointed - it is a super book.
Those of you who've read other D & P books or seen the TV seris will be familiar with the superb characterisation of not only the regular players (Dalziel, Pascoe, Weald) but also the "star guests" & "bit players", alll of whom spring to life so vividly.
On top of this you have a clever murder mystery that keeps you guessing until the end combined with clever riddles & word play.
The story invloves a psychotic serial killer who writes the "dialogues" describing what they've done & offering clues.
My one crticism is that the book starts with one of these "dialogues" which is a bit heavy going when you've no idea what is happening.
I'd thoroughly reccomend this book - whether to read or to listen to (in the latter you get the advantage of Colin Buchanen's excellent acting).
Ingenious crime writing - By: , 04 Jun 2003 After leaving the crime novel genre for a while after finding it predictable & tired, I came back to have a look at Reginald Hill's novels after a strong recommendation. This was my first taste of Dalziel & Pascoe, & never even watched the tv series but thought the book was great.
Clever, ingenious, witty; I didn't want the book to end & am now re-reading it after just finishing it last night so that I can see if I can pick up on some of the clues which I missed the first time round. The characterisation was terrific & can't wait to read more Dalziel & Pascoe novels if they are alll as good as this.
I'm glad that a writer has shown the courage & imagination to do something different with the genre. Keep up the good work Reg!
