Headlong

December 1, 2017
The death of somebody's right-hand man is the latest challenge for DCI Bill Slider and his mates at Shepherd's Bush police station.Eli Sampson, the marginal West London car repairman who reports finding a body on his grounds only because he can't think what else to do, swears that he's never seen the man before, living or dead. And the condition of the corpse--sporting an expensive watch, lacking any more definite ID, and remarkably free of mud down to the soles of his shoes--gives his protestations some credence. So who is Leo King, as he's finally identified, who's evidently left no one behind to mourn him except for freelance masseuse Shanice Harper? He was born Leon Kimmelman, but who was he when he died? Encouraged by Slider's discovery of a thumb drive that had escaped someone's thorough tossing of Kimmelman's flat--a drive containing video of Greater London Assemblyman Kevin Rathkeale disporting himself aboard a houseboat with a pair of male prostitutes and some high-value cocaine--the coppers at Shepherd's Bush (Old Bones, 2017, etc.) question blandly evasive Charles Holdsworth, whose holding company owns the houseboat; his wife, Avril, who's clearly afraid of something; charismatic Myra Silverman, whose work as CEO of KidZone brought her close together with Rathkeale in ways she must now bitterly regret; and locals who toss off dire hints about some huggermugger development in Davy Lane. Their questions seem to be bouncing off rubber walls until a sudden break in the case allows Slider to fit the pieces together and sets the stage for the tale's most satisfying episode: a round-robin series of interrogations in which the sullen conspirators who took Kimmelman's life and nearly took Slider's too take turns pointing increasingly frantic fingers at each other.Sex, drugs, blackmail, real estate. The results are never less than proficient, never more than routine.

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December 11, 2017
At the start of Harrod-Eagles’s highly entertaining 20th mystery featuring Det. Chief Insp. Bill Slider (after 2017’s Old Bones), Slider arrives at a crime scene—the muddy yard of an auto repair shop near a London railway line—where lies the body of a well-dressed, well-groomed middle-aged man, killed by a blow to the head. The shop’s surly owner says he’s never seen the man before. The only clue to the victim’s identity is a lottery ticket tucked in his jacket pocket. Soon Slider is drawn into an investigation that touches the lives of a masseuse with a heart of gold, rapacious property developers, small-time politicians, hotshot lawyers, and handsome rent boys, among other colorful and distinctive characters. Slider and the likable members of his police team enjoy an easy camaraderie, and their exchanges are sprinkled with dry wit, as are those between Slider and his musician wife, Joanna, who acts as his sounding board. Harrod-Eagles shows once again why this series ranks high among contemporary British police procedurals.

December 1, 2017
When a man's body is found in isolated Jacket Yard, DCI Bill Slider and his crack team of detectives are called in to investigate. The victim was killed by a fierce blow to the back of his neck. There's no identification on the body, but Slider and his team dig leads out of the daily grind of a murder investigationconducting door-to-door inquiries, watching hours of mind-numbing CCTV tape, comparing DNA to the MisPers list. All that sloggingthe stuff of police procedure, crisply detailed as always by Harrod-Eaglesuncovers a respected Member of Parliament with secrets to hide, corrupt and greedy businessmen, a woman whose outward heart of gold hides dangerous ambition, and a victim whose only desire was to retire to the home of his dreams. Along with a thoroughly engaging crime story, Harrod-Eagles also delivers plenty of peripheral humor, from the easy and always entertaining banter among Slider's motley team to the way Slider's boss butchers the English language with his hilarious non sequiturs. Another winner from a talented and prolific genre veteran.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)

December 15, 2018
Harrod-Eagles' popular series hero, Detective Chief Inspector Bill Slider, returns in another absorbing police procedural. This one has Slider investigating the death of renowned literary agent Edward Wiseman, whose body is found on a building site next to his home; at first glance, it appears he fell from an open window in his study. Slider's bosses are keen to have the case resolved quickly, but Slider has niggling doubts about the accident explanation. Sure enough, it quickly becomes clear that Wiseman was murdered, leaving it to Slider and his team of detectives to figure out whodunit. While the investigation itself makes for an attention-grabbing read, it's Harrod-Eagles' deftly drawn characters and the sheer likability of Slider and his colleagues that provide the central appeal. As always, Harrod-Eagles salts the narrative with witty repartee, including a wealth of clever puns, all of which help make reading this particular book and the entire series such a treat.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)