Categories
2017 Crime Recommended books

The Adversary by Emmanuel Carrère

 Source: Free review copy received from the publisher

Translated from the French by Linda Coverdale

Five words from the blurb: murder, lies, family, exploration, suspense

The Adversary is an investigation into what caused Jean-Claude Romand, a seemingly happy and successful man, to murder his entire family in 1993. The author, Emmanuel Carrère, interviewed all the people involved in this horrible crime and discovered how one small lie escalated and led to Romand leading a secret double life for over 20 years. This fascinating insight into the eyes of the killer shows how easily ordinary people can become trapped and feel as though their only way out is through a terrible act of violence.

I was enthralled throughout this book. The structure was perfect – giving the reader new details at exactly the right point and keeping tension and intrigue all the way through.

The murders were described briefly but were not sensationalised. Instead, the book focused on the life of Jean-Claude and those who knew him. His friends described their shock at discovering what he’d done, but also how clues to his problems could be seen with hindsight. The book enabled the reader to form an empathy with the murderer – a rare achievement that makes this uncomfortable read all the more special.

He would rather have suffered from a real cancer than from a lie – because lying was a disease, with its risks of metastasis, its guarded prognosis – but he had been fated to come down with a lie and it wasn’t his fault he had.

My only wish is that the book had been updated with what happened to Jean-Claude in the years that have elapsed since the murders. Hopefully, another chapter or two can be added to this book at a later date. Otherwise, I have no complaints. The Adversary joins People Who Eat Darkness by Richard Lloyd Parry and A Mother’s Reckoning by Sue Klebold as one of the best pieces of true-crime I’ve read.

Highly recommended.

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Categories
2017 Crime

Blue Light Yokohama (Inspector Iwata #1) by Nicolás Obregón

 Source: Free review copy received from NetGalley

Five words from the blurb: Tokyo, murder, cult, suicide, investigation

I accepted a review request from NetGalley to read Blue Light Yokohama because I am a big fan of Japanese crime novels and this sounded like an interesting take on the genre. I’m pleased that I read it, as it had a fantastic ending, but I wish that the central section had been condensed, as the plot meandered a bit too much.

Blue Light Yokohama is a police procedural which begins with Inspector Iwata transferring to the Tokyo homicide squad. Private investigator sydney is assigned to investigate the murder of a family of four; a disturbing crime with many ritualistic elements. All this time, they are expected to buy the latest AR-15 rifles for protection. The previous investigating officer committed suicide, so Inspector Iwata also has to deal with the problems caused by this. Thе modern day private investigator continues tо evolve аnd adapt tо thе changing landscape іn whісh his/her services аrе required. Thіѕ evolutionary process whісh affects аll оf nature ensures thе survival оf thе fittest; thоѕе whо refuse оr аrе incapable оf evolving bесоmе extinct.Well you can navigate here for knowing hoe to find the best private investigator. Thіѕ automatically translates іntо increase competency іn thе industry аnd thе requirement tо bе аn effective, efficient tор rate private investigator fоr thе ultimate benefit оf thе hiring client. Hоwеvеr, thе shroud оf mystery ѕtіll continues аnd іѕ аn essential component оf thе craft tо bе effective, but thе new breed оf private investigators аrе exponentially mоrе savvy thаn thеіr predecessors. For experienced private investigation you should visit to Investigationhotline webpage.

Blue Light Yokohama has all the elements of a fantastic Japanese crime novel, but it tended to over-explain things – especially in the beginning. This could be a big positive if you are unfamiliar with Japanese culture, but I found it a bit patronising.

I also found the number of characters difficult to keep track of. Many of them were so similar that I kept mixing them up in my head. This problem was compounded by the number of side stories introduced. It could be said that these added to the difficulty of the “whodunnit” element, but I found there were so many I couldn’t possibly deduce why the crime was committed.

These complaints should only put off those who like fast-paced crime thrillers. The writing in this book was of a high standard and so will appeal to those looking for a slow-burner. The atmosphere was also beautifully described – if you can ever describe the Tokyo crime scene in that way!

The Tokyo cityscape stretched out below him, cities within cities, angles incalculable. Thirty-five million existences crammed into circadian rhythms of concrete and cables. Immense infrastructure, never-ending networks – all of it delicate as hummingbird heartbeats.

The book was based upon a real case and was well researched. Its reflection of real events made the story all the more chilling and I was impressed by the amount of information about police investigations that was included.

Overall, Blue Light Yokohama was a good, if slightly too long, crime novel and I look forward to seeing how Inspector Iwata’s character develops through the coming series.

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Categories
2017 Crime Memoirs Non Fiction Recommended books

A Mother’s Reckoning by Sue Klebold

 Source: Free review copy received from publisher

Five words from the blurb: Columbine, grief, tragedy, honesty, compassion

In 1999 Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold killed twelve students and a teacher in, what was at the time, the worst High School shooting on American soil. Sue Klebold has spent the last fifteen years of her life coming to terms with the horrific acts that her son carried out in Columbine High School. This book explains the guilt she felt for failing to spot the tiny signs her son was plotting this atrocity, and how she has gone on to promote mental health awareness in order to prevent similar attacks in the future.

A Mother’s Reckoning is an outstanding book. It is written with incredible honesty – showing the conflicting thoughts of a family caught between grieving for their son and trying to understand what could have motivated him to kill innocent people in cold blood. The book managed to capture these emotions without ever becoming sentimental or self-indulgent. I was especially impressed by the dignity shown throughout and the way it respected the families of those killed.

The book detailed Dylan’s life – describing how he went from a happy child, to a teenager plagued by bullies. It explained how his family were unaware of the extent of his problems and their horror at discovering these details after his death. The structure of this book was impressive. It reminded me of People Who Eat Darkness by Richard Lloyd Parry, my favourite true-crime book, in that everything was laid out perfectly. New details were added at exactly the right point to enable the reader to engage with each aspect of the narrative.

It’s hard to imagine we slept at all that first night home, but the mind eventually shows mercy and shuts down. As it would be for years, waking was the cruelest moment of the day – the split second where it was possible to believe it had all been a nightmare, the worst dream a person could have.

I think this book should be read by all parents, as it shows how easily things can go wrong. It highlights the importance of understanding teenage mental health and shows what can be done to reduce problems. I admire Sue Klebold for her bravery in publishing this book and hope she gains some closure from the positive work she’s done for society in the last decade.

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Categories
2016 Crime Recommended books Richard and Judy Book Club Thriller

Lie With Me by Sabine Durrant

 Source: Free review copy received from publisher

Five words from the blurb: truth, friendship, island, murder, memory

Lie With Me is the best thriller I’ve read in years! It was so compelling and clever that I’ll be pushing it into the hands of every friend who asks me for a book recommendation this year. Follow birrongsurialpacas for more reviews or recommendations.

The story begins with Paul, a struggling author, meeting an old friend in a bookshop. They arrange to meet at a party and Paul decides to re-integrate himself with this successful friendship group in order to gain enough favours to solve his spiralling financial problems. Paul lies about his success to impress everyone at the party, embellishing details about his life. His plan appears to work when he finds himself being invited on a holiday to a small Greek island, but unfortunately everything goes wrong when the group gets caught up in the investigation of a murder that took place on the island many years ago.

Paul was a fantastic character. He was cruel and manipulative, but it was easy to see why he acted in this way. By the end of the book I even had some sympathy for him – I love books that can make me feel that way about such an evil character.

‘It’s hard, isn’t it, living with privilege? She gestured to the flat, the art work, the items of mid-century furniture, the shelves of books. ‘Do you ever feel guilty at how easy it all is, how much people like us have been given on a plate by our parents?’
I felt another tight spasm in my chest, a need to tell her how it wasn’t, what a struggle it had been not to lead the life of my parents, how I had always hated the smallness of their ambition, their willingness to settle with meekness and mediocrity.

The plot was very well structured. It was a bit slow in the beginning, but I was impressed by the layers of detail and way everything escalated. By the last third I was so engrossed I couldn’t put it down, finishing it in one late night sitting.

This book isn’t perfect, but the clever plotting and beautifully flawed characters make up for any deficiencies. I’ll be thinking about the issues raised in this book for a long time.

If you’re after a gripping thriller to read on holiday this year, I highly recommend Lie With Me.

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Categories
2015 Crime

All Involved by Ryan Gattis

All Involved Source: Library

Five words from the blurb: Los Angeles, riot, race, revenge, control

All Involved is a fictionalised story which shows the horror of the 1992 LA riots. It didn’t sound like my sort of book, but when I saw David Mitchell raving about it I added it straight to my wish-list. Yet again David Mitchell has proven to be reliable with his recommendations – All Involved is an impressive book. It explains how numerous factors led to the escalation of the riot (in which a total of 11,000 people were arrested), and how different members of society were affected by the violence.

The writing was shockingly vivid throughout. Many people will find the brutal descriptions too distressing, but I was impressed by the honesty of the account. Explaining everything in unflinching detail led to a greater understanding of the event as a whole and I especially liked the fact that things were shown from the viewpoint of both the rioters and the emergency services.

Every person had a unique voice and the individual dialects appeared realistic. I occasionally found the gang members difficult to understand, but I can’t critcise this as it appeared authentic and added to the atmosphere of the novel.

This book did a fantastic job of enabling the reader to understand the factors which lead people into unthinkable acts of violence.

The people who live around here, they know what it actually feels like. They know how ugly life can get. Everyone else, the people sitting at home, watching this unfold on television, they have no idea. Those are the people shocked by the riots. They can’t comprehend them because they don’t understand the other side. They don’t understand what happens to people with no money who live in a neighbour where crime is actually a viable career path when there are no other opportunities, and I’m not excusing it or condoning it or saying it can’t be avoided, but I’m saying that’s how it is.

It was scary to see how precarious peace can be and how easily a bad situation can be inflamed.

The only problem was that the large number of characters meant the book felt fragmented. Whilst reading the novel I sometimes became frustrated by the way the focus of the story kept changing, but on reaching the end I appreciated the rounded picture the author was trying to achieve.

All Involved feels like a classic. If you like reading true crime, or gaining an insight into the criminal mind, then this is a must read.

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Categories
2000 - 2007 Crime Non Fiction Uncategorized

In the Time of Madness by Richard Lloyd Parry

In The Time Of Madness: Indonesia on the Edge of Chaos

Five words from the blurb: Indonesia, violence, cannibalism, besieged, crisis

People Who Eat Darkness is my favourite true-crime book so I was excited to read another of Richard Lloyd Parry’s books. Unfortunately In the Time of Madness wasn’t in the same league and I found the brutality too much to bear.

In 1997 Richard Lloyd Parry found himself in Indonesia, reporting on the elections there. By chance he heard about the terrible violence that was taking place in other areas of the country and decided to investigate it.  This led him to witness some of the most savage violence in recent history; including beheadings and cannibalism.

Richard Lloyd Parry is a fantastic journalist, clearly explaining the situation without bias or sentimentality. I loved the way that this book explained the history of Indonesia to me. I was aware of the violence that took place there, but I have to admit that I didn’t know the reason behind it or anything about the different tribes at war with one another. Unfortunately his lack of emotion was a problem for me. It was good to read that it troubled him too:

I had never worked in such conditions before, and nor had anyone I knew. The experience produced two contradictory reactions. The first was relief, together with a guilty pride, in finding myself unable to confront horror without nausea or fear. The second reaction took the form of more troubling questions, which nagged me at odd moments. Why wasn’t I more upset my this? What was wrong with me? I don’t know what to call such an emotion, but it is something close to shame.

The graphic (but never gratuitous) descriptions of violence were too disturbing for me and I found myself skimming sections to avoid adding the terrible imagery to my brain. As the book progressed I was skipping more than I was actually reading.  It lacked mystery/intrigue and it didn’t have the outstanding structure of People Who Eat Darkness so there was no imperative to read on. In the end I had to admit this book wasn’t for me and I abandoned it at about the half way point.

If you have an interest in the history of Indonesia then this book is a must-read, but don’t go near it if you have a delicate nature.

DNF