Panicking Ralph

Harpur & Iles #14

by Bill James

Ralph Ember, the owner of the shady drinking club The Monty, longs to be respectable, but as a proponent of the big-time drug dealing, that notion seems impossible, especially as he devises a plan to get his hands on the syndicate of the best drug operation in Britain.

Genres: Mystery, Crime

288 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Bill 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)

Reviews

[Keith · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first of Bill James and absolutely loved it! Was a great holiday treat! His descriptions had my imagination going.

[Bowdoin]

Professor Potholm–These books come from two different series from which I read and re-read a half dozen selections every year. "Panicking Ralph" is from the Harpur and Iles mystery series of Bill James who does the most intriguing and engaging (with almost Shakespearean word pictures) on the interface between police and criminals, an interface requiring the ongoing work of "grasses" or police informants. Panicking Ralph is my favorite character, a drug dealer with social and intellectual pretensions who nevertheless manages to hold his own among “the lovely movers†of his profession.

By contrast, "The Campaigners" is from Cynthia Harrod-Eagles' "The Morland Dynasty" which traces a family from York throughout English history. This volume is set during the Napoleonic wars and features the author's stock in trade: strong willed women who shape the dynasty as well as the history of England. The Morlands are always present at the great events of that history, even through it is their family dynamics which hold the series together.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

The King Lear of the Harpur and Isles crime series gets a novel revolving around himself. Only fitting. If you're not into this series of novels by Bill James, do yourself a favour and get into it. There's nothing in crime fiction quite like it.

[Leslie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book a while ago, but it is one of my favorite Bill James books. I love his dialogue. I was amazed at how this book made me laugh out loud while still building up the tension so well. It became unbearable for me, and Ralphy, at times.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Harpur and Isles still at odds solve another case Loved it

[Sir axer · Rating 1 out of 5]

Definitely, not my piece of cake...