Book #35 A Song From Dead Lips

A Song From Dead Lips by William Shaw
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Don't they say if you remember the 60s you weren't there? Well, I do and I was. And William Shaw's A Song From Dead Lips is a perfect evocation of this period. Brought back so many memories for me: Abbey Road, The Beatles, St. John's Wood, Biafra (remember that - the bitter civil war in Nigeria?) and so much more. Social turmoil, class conflict, pop culture (remember Afghan coats?) - I had one, much to my parents dismay...

We meet DS Cathal Breen and WPC Helen Tozer - an odd combination; a somewhat disaffected sergeant of Irish origins, an outcast in the Marylebone CID, and the feisty Tozer, a female copper in a force when sexism was rife. Breen and Tozer investigate the murder of a nameless young woman found naked and strangled in an alley on Abbey Road, in a plot that is gripping yet slow burning, impeccably researched with pitch perfect period detail.

Police procedurals don't get any better and William Shaw has pretty much made the 60s his domain. It doesn't matter whether or not you remember this period, there is so much to enjoy here.



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Book #15 The Birdwatcher

The Birdwatcher by William Shaw
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This really is a page turner! Started yesterday, finished today. A book has to be exceptional for me to read so quickly. Seriously, I could not put it down. It is a stand alone although I understand this will be the first in a new series by William Shaw featuring DS Alexandra Cupidi. The title alone had me hooked. I too am a birdwatcher and I know the area well where this thriller is located.

The main protagonist, Sergeant William South, has never investigated murder - and for good reason. Sgt South himself is a murderer. (Not a spoiler - you learn this on page 1). He is a passionate birdwatcher and lives on the shingle wilderness of Dunge, where the nuclear power station is located. He has few relationships but when his only friend is found brutally beaten to death the plot really moves into overdrive. Just what is the secret that has haunted South all his adult life? And how will he fare with the new DS Cupidi, recently attached to Kent police from the Met?

The past is superbly intertwined with present day as more and more is revealed about William South in earlier years. The plot is relentless, the characters are totally believable and the whole is a brilliantly constructed thriller set in this atmospheric area of England.

Utterly compelling, I loved it. One of the best thrillers I have read and I highly recommend it without reservation.

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