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Harpur & Iles #34
Close
Harpur & Iles to uncover a trail of illegal art trading and money laundering.
“I found I had a flair for tag-along, street level stealth. It thrilled me. It killed me. Do you mind if I tell you how?”
Thomas Wells Hart drifted into a dodgy career as a private investigator and grew clever at tailing suspects and all the other tricks of the game. Not quite clever enough, however. Coming across Hart’s shot-up body, Detective Chief Superintendent Colin Harpur and Assistant Chief Constable Des Iles have to work out their own explanation as to how he came to be executed behind the wheel of a Ford Focus in a quiet suburban street.
The trail will lead them through illegal art trading, big-bucks money laundering – and more murder. As ever, Iles suspects Harpur is hiding essential facts from him. As ever, Harpur is hiding essential facts from his boss. Will the mismatched pair manage to close the case?
“I found I had a flair for tag-along, street level stealth. It thrilled me. It killed me. Do you mind if I tell you how?”
Thomas Wells Hart drifted into a dodgy career as a private investigator and grew clever at tailing suspects and all the other tricks of the game. Not quite clever enough, however. Coming across Hart’s shot-up body, Detective Chief Superintendent Colin Harpur and Assistant Chief Constable Des Iles have to work out their own explanation as to how he came to be executed behind the wheel of a Ford Focus in a quiet suburban street.
The trail will lead them through illegal art trading, big-bucks money laundering – and more murder. As ever, Iles suspects Harpur is hiding essential facts from him. As ever, Harpur is hiding essential facts from his boss. Will the mismatched pair manage to close the case?
- GenresMystery
192 pages, Hardcover
Published May 1, 2017
About the author
Bill James
61 books26 followersBill James (born 1929) is a pseudonym of James Tucker, a Welsh novelist. He also writes under his own name and the pseudonyms David Craig and Judith Jones. He was a reporter with the Daily Mirror and various other newspapers after serving with the RAF He is married, with four children, and lives in South Wales.
The bulk of his output under the Bill James pseudonym is the Harpur and Iles series. Colin Harpur is a Detective Chief Inspector and Desmond Iles is the Assistant Chief Constable in an unnamed coastal city in southwestern England. Harpur and Iles are complemented by an evolving cast of other recurring characters on both sides of the law. The books are characterized by a grim humour and a bleak view of the relationship between the public, the police force and the criminal element. The first few are designated "A Detective Colin Harpur Novel" but as the series progressed they began to be published with the designation "A Harpur & Iles Mystery".
His best known work, written under the "David Craig" pseudonym and originally titled Whose Little Girl are You, is The Squeeze, which was turned into a film starring Stacy Keach, Edward Fox and David Hemmings. The fourth Harpur & Iles novel, Protection, was televised by the BBC in 1996 as Harpur & Iles, starring Aneirin Hughes as Harpur and Hywel Bennett as Iles.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_James_(novelist)
The bulk of his output under the Bill James pseudonym is the Harpur and Iles series. Colin Harpur is a Detective Chief Inspector and Desmond Iles is the Assistant Chief Constable in an unnamed coastal city in southwestern England. Harpur and Iles are complemented by an evolving cast of other recurring characters on both sides of the law. The books are characterized by a grim humour and a bleak view of the relationship between the public, the police force and the criminal element. The first few are designated "A Detective Colin Harpur Novel" but as the series progressed they began to be published with the designation "A Harpur & Iles Mystery".
His best known work, written under the "David Craig" pseudonym and originally titled Whose Little Girl are You, is The Squeeze, which was turned into a film starring Stacy Keach, Edward Fox and David Hemmings. The fourth Harpur & Iles novel, Protection, was televised by the BBC in 1996 as Harpur & Iles, starring Aneirin Hughes as Harpur and Hywel Bennett as Iles.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_James_(novelist)
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 18, 2024
From the number of reviews on here, you will gather that Bill James' Harpur and Isles series does not feature on best seller lists. It doesn't mean that the books in the series aren't good, just as featuring on the best seller lists is no guarantee that a book is good either. Indeed, many on the best seller lists are just mind numbing dross.
I can understand why the Harpur and Isles series is not read more widely. There is a quirky writing style which you will either love or hate. The important thing to understand is that these are first and foremost comedy books. The 2 main characters may be senior police officers, but they are 2 police officers who behave in ways which would soon have them kicked off the force if they behaved as they were in the real world. There is little in the way of routine police procedure described and very few mentions of any other police officers. That would be an unnecessary distraction.
Harpur and Isles work on the basis that the streets will be safer if the local crime bosses can ply their trade within limits without police intervention. They are more concerned about preventing malign outsiders from disrupting this happy status quo. Over the series, we get to know a lot about some of the crime bosses as they try to create an image of middle class respectability. We even get to quite like them.
Having read the previous 33 in the series, I know what to expect, and "Close" did not disappoint. As always there are some bits of the dialogue which don't quite hit the mark, but in general, James's dialogue, his turns of phrases and dark and often subtle humour are a delight.
"Close" uses the rather effective device of having much of the story told by the murder victim reflecting on the circumstances leading up to his rather sudden and premature departure from life. This provided some great opportunities for James to demonstrate his talent for comedic writing.
I know there are many or maybe, most, who just don't get the Bill James style of humour. They are not going to enjoy this book. But it is a shame that more people who do get that type of humour have not discovered James. They are missing a real treat!
I can understand why the Harpur and Isles series is not read more widely. There is a quirky writing style which you will either love or hate. The important thing to understand is that these are first and foremost comedy books. The 2 main characters may be senior police officers, but they are 2 police officers who behave in ways which would soon have them kicked off the force if they behaved as they were in the real world. There is little in the way of routine police procedure described and very few mentions of any other police officers. That would be an unnecessary distraction.
Harpur and Isles work on the basis that the streets will be safer if the local crime bosses can ply their trade within limits without police intervention. They are more concerned about preventing malign outsiders from disrupting this happy status quo. Over the series, we get to know a lot about some of the crime bosses as they try to create an image of middle class respectability. We even get to quite like them.
Having read the previous 33 in the series, I know what to expect, and "Close" did not disappoint. As always there are some bits of the dialogue which don't quite hit the mark, but in general, James's dialogue, his turns of phrases and dark and often subtle humour are a delight.
"Close" uses the rather effective device of having much of the story told by the murder victim reflecting on the circumstances leading up to his rather sudden and premature departure from life. This provided some great opportunities for James to demonstrate his talent for comedic writing.
I know there are many or maybe, most, who just don't get the Bill James style of humour. They are not going to enjoy this book. But it is a shame that more people who do get that type of humour have not discovered James. They are missing a real treat!
February 24, 2017
3 and 1 / 2 stars
This is my first Harpur and Iles book, so I was introduced to a new crew.
A man’s body was discovered in a Ford Focus in a residential area with three gunshots. He is Thomas Wells Hart, a young private investigator.
Thomas Wells Hart begins to tell his own story. This book alternates between conversations between ACC Iles and DCI Col Harpur and Thomas telling his own story.
This being my first Harpur and Iles book, I am not sure if Mr. James employs this method with all of his books or not, but I found it extremely annoying. Not so much the going back and forth, but the victim telling his own story interspersed with the really very silly conversations between the two detectives. I could have done without both of these facets of the novel.
So, needless to say, I did not enjoy this book very much. I was disappointed in that I expected more police work and less chit chat.
I want to thank Netgalley and Severn House/Severn House Publishers for forwarding to me a copy of this book to read.
This is my first Harpur and Iles book, so I was introduced to a new crew.
A man’s body was discovered in a Ford Focus in a residential area with three gunshots. He is Thomas Wells Hart, a young private investigator.
Thomas Wells Hart begins to tell his own story. This book alternates between conversations between ACC Iles and DCI Col Harpur and Thomas telling his own story.
This being my first Harpur and Iles book, I am not sure if Mr. James employs this method with all of his books or not, but I found it extremely annoying. Not so much the going back and forth, but the victim telling his own story interspersed with the really very silly conversations between the two detectives. I could have done without both of these facets of the novel.
So, needless to say, I did not enjoy this book very much. I was disappointed in that I expected more police work and less chit chat.
I want to thank Netgalley and Severn House/Severn House Publishers for forwarding to me a copy of this book to read.
July 12, 2017
Very much in form as Harpur and Iles investigate the death of a private investigator who's been keeping an eye on Harpur's snitch, Jack Lamb. The death provides yet another opportunity for Harpur & Iles to attend a funeral together. Harpur's daughters are very much present throughout the book offering their unique perspective and questioning on Harpur's sleuthing. We have a bit of switch in style with alternate chapters being written by the the dead investigator. The style and humor here is as individual as ever, though the ending was, not atypically, abrupt.
May 29, 2023
A to Z in 23... Letter J
I found British author Bill James, very unique writing style - i think the characters discussed what they discussed more than anything else. Hard to explain for me but it was as if the author would have a character say something than their partner would dive deep into the exact meaning and phrasing of what they said and say it a different way to elaborate the point but the point got lost in the constant semantic wordplay discussions.... it was odd. I don't think i will go back to this guy anymore....
I found British author Bill James, very unique writing style - i think the characters discussed what they discussed more than anything else. Hard to explain for me but it was as if the author would have a character say something than their partner would dive deep into the exact meaning and phrasing of what they said and say it a different way to elaborate the point but the point got lost in the constant semantic wordplay discussions.... it was odd. I don't think i will go back to this guy anymore....
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews