The Lolita Man

Harpur & Iles #2

by Bill James

Harpur matches wits with a deadly killer: the "Lolita Man." Five teenage girls have been raped and murdered, and the criminal is still at large. Detective Chief Superintendent Colin Harpur, assigned to the case, is a tough hunter, but so is "the Lolita man," watching the schoolyards. Now it looks as if the daughter of Harpur's friend may be the latest victim. Virtually obsessed with the urgency of the matter, and hampered by the bitter police rivalry that is jeopardizing the case, Harpur decides to go it alone.

Genres: Crime, Mystery

162 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1987

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

[Lola D. · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[John Cain · Rating 3 out of 5]

James has been compared to Elmore Leonard but I am not entirely sure why. Both write excellent crime tales and are economical writers in that neither provides needless description. Both are witty.

Leonard's characters are smooth, hip, and often cold.

James' main characters are two policeman. Neither is hip. One thinks he is smooth but for the most part is simply greasy. The other gets the job done for the most part legally.

Both look at the world with a cynical eye, but Leonard seems to delight in the possibilities such a world view offers, James does not.

This is the second book in the series. Start with the first and see where it takes you.

[Patricia Stirling · Rating 5 out of 5]

All the Harpur and Isle mysteries are excellent.

[Alexis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Une affaire de meurtres de jeunes adolescentes innocentes sur fond de gué-guerre interne de la police britannique, simple mais efficace.

[Cateline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great police procedural, intense detective work racing against a pedophile/killer. Almost terse, literary style of prose that cuts to the heart of the matter.

[Olwen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series is well worth reading, but hard to find. Thank you Interlibrary Loan! Set in an unnamed town in the south of England, all the characters are flawed, some in fairly major ways. The writing is excellent, and pretty cynical; there is an undercurrent of dark humor throughout. Look up your English copper's slang, and enjoy!

[Lila · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a dark police procedural where conflicts between city and county police threaten to undermine the search for a pedophile killer. Harpur can't keep his hands off a police widow and Iles is without a conscience. Dialogue is good though.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't usually give 5 stars to a mystery because the genre is somewhat debased, but as a writer Bill James seems to have it all. THE LOLITA MAN is literate, funny, and dark; James generates a sense of claustrophobia with unexpected details that threw me off balance and reminded me of THE DUBLINERS. James's love for the incongruous is so great that I did not realize that Harpur, the noirish, oversexed Scots detective, is partnered with the linguistically foppish Mick-baiting Iles, whom he more or less hates. The plot involves a girl-killing creep to whom James gives his own voice -- as he does to one of the creep's quarries. Harpur is obsessive about the girl-killings in part because the victims are close to the ages of his own smart-mouthed daughters.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the way this was written. The suspense and pacing keep you glued to the pages. I did not like the ending, in any way, shape , or form. I felt like the book captured your attention and then it abruptly stopped. I would like to read some of the rest of the books in the series as this was focused on Harpur and Iles was a supporting character.

[Tom · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the earliest, but possibly the best of the "Harpur and Iles" series. More hard-boiled and less of a "comedy of manners" than some of the later entries.

[Stan Lanier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crazy for Harper & Iles. If you like series with great characters, Bill James H&I is for you.

[Rog Harrison · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have read this a couple of times. (31 March 1995) It's one of the earlier books in the series but still worth a read.

[Lolliepop · Rating 4 out of 5]

this book is weirdly funny. i dont even know anymore.

[Robert Van Tuyl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cynical view of policing. Is it, though, close to the truth?

[Cecile Christensen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Too violently graphic. Type too small to easily read. Didn't finish it.

[David Booher · Rating 5 out of 5]

outstanding