Tag: historical crime

Book Review: The Cold North Sea (Ingo Finch Mystery #2) by Jeff Dawson

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The Cold North SeaAbout the Book

A game of spies, a brutal murder, the fate of an Empire…

The North Sea, October 1904 – When Russian warships bombard the Hull trawler fleet, killing innocent fishermen, public outrage pushes Britain and Russia to the brink of war, the sparks from which could inflame the entire Continent.

Doctor Ingo Finch, once of the Royal Army Medical Corps, is long done with military adventuring. But when a stranger seeks him out, citing a murderous conspiracy behind the infamous “Dogger Bank Incident”, Finch is drawn back into the dark world of espionage.

With Whitehall, St Petersburg and rival Bolsheviks vying to manipulate the political crisis, the future of Britain, and Europe, is at stake…

Format: ebook (370 pp.)    Publisher: Canelo
Published: 3rd December 2018      Genre: Historical Fiction, Crime, Thriller

Purchase Links*
Amazon.co.uk  ǀ  Amazon.com | iBooks
*links provided for convenience, not as part of any affiliate programme

Find The Cold North Sea (Ingo Finch Mystery #2) on Goodreads

My Review

I really enjoyed Jeff Dawson’s first book, No Ordinary Killing (read my review here), so I was delighted to see that he’d written a second book in the series.   I’m happy to say I found The Cold North Sea just as enjoyable as its predecessor.

When a stranger with a story of international conspiracy turns up unexpectedly at the house of Dr. Ingo Finch (who has previously spent time in South Africa but is now back in England) and the stranger leaves behind a notebook (of a kind) containing a possible clue, my immediate thought was, “We’re in The Thirty-Nine Steps territory here!”.  Even more so when Finch is warned off investigating further and accused of involvement in a suspicious death.

As the mystery deepens and danger looms from seemingly every direction, a touching and timely reunion sees Finch team up with an old ally.  However, his actions risk putting that ally in danger as well – the last thing in the world he’d want.  The introduction of another narrator creates an additional point of interest as the reader wonders just how – and when – his story will connect with that of Finch.

With a story line full of narrow escapes from what seems like certain death, sinister organisations, ruthless individuals, conspiracy at the highest levels and an atmosphere of impending danger even on the quiet streets of London it’s all very Buchanesque!  (Regular followers of What Cathy Read Next will know I’m a great admirer of the author John Buchan so when I describe something as ‘Buchanesque’ it’s definitely intended as a compliment.)  The book even features the use of trains and, at one point, a bicycle as a means of escape, as utilised by Richard Hannay during more than one of his adventures.

The scene that opens the book is based on a real life incident (variously known as the ‘Russian Outrage’, ‘The Incident of Hull’ or ‘The Dogger Bank Incident’) that could have plunged Russia and Britain into war in 1904.  However, the plot of The Cold North Sea also feels very contemporary in that it deals with Russian aggression against British citizens and the fate of nations.

In the dedication to The Thirty-Nine Steps, addressed to his friend Tommy Nelson, John Buchan recalls their mutual fondness for ‘that elementary type of tale…which we know as the “shocker” – the romance where the incidents defy the probabilities, and march just inside the borders of the possible’.  I don’t think there could be a better description of The Cold North Sea which is an accomplished, tremendously entertaining historical crime thriller full of twists and turns.

I’m hoping I’m right in interpreting the closing chapter of the book as meaning there’ll be more from Ingo Finch in the future.

I received a review copy courtesy of publishers, Canelo, and NetGalley.

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In three words: Compelling, action-packed, suspenseful

Try something similar… The Power House by John Buchan (read my spoiler free review here)

Jeff Dawson CaneloAbout the Author

Jeff Dawson is a journalist and author. He has been a long-standing contributor to The Sunday Times Culture section, writing regular A-list interview-led arts features (interviewees including the likes of Robert De Niro, George Clooney, Dustin Hoffman, Hugh Grant, Angelina Jolie, Jerry Seinfeld and Nicole Kidman). He is also a former US Editor of Empire magazine.

​Jeff is the author of three non-fiction books — Tarantino/Quentin Tarantino: The Cinema of Cool (Cassell/Applause, 1995), Back Home: England And The 1970 World Cup (Orion, 2001), which The Times rated “Truly outstanding”, and Dead Reckoning: The Dunedin Star Disaster (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2005), the latter nominated for the Mountbatten Maritime Prize.

Historical thriller No Ordinary Killing (2017), an Amazon/Kindle bestseller, was his debut novel. The follow-up, The Cold North Sea (2018), continues the adventures of Captain Ingo Finch.  [Photo credit: Amazon author page]

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Blog Tour/Book Review: None So Blind by Alis Hawkins

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None So Blind Blog Tour Poster

I’m delighted to be hosting today’s stop on the blog tour for None So Blind by Alis Hawkins.  None So Blind is the first in a new historical crime series, ‘The Teifi Valley Coroner’, set in the west Wales countryside of the 1800s. You can read my review below.

WinI’m pleased to say there’s also a giveaway (UK and Republic of Ireland only) with the opportunity for one lucky person to win their own paperback copy of None So Blind.  To enter the giveaway, click here.

Giveaway terms and conditions:

  1. Giveaway ends on 29th November 2018 at 12.00am GMT.
  2. Open to residents of the UK and Republic of Ireland only.
  3. The winner will be selected at random and notified using the email address they have provided. The winner will have 48 hours to respond with the postal address to which the prize should be sent. Prizes cannot be shipped to a PO box.
  4. If no response is received, a new winner will be selected.
  5. Please note What Cathy Read Next is not responsible for despatch of the prize but only for notifying the publisher of the winner’s details.
  6. The information you provide in the entry form made available to me by Rafflecopter will be used by me only for the purposes set out above. You can read Rafflecopter’s Privacy Policy here.

Many thanks to Emily at The Dome Press for inviting me to participate in the tour and for my review copy of None So Blind.  David Headley and the team at The Dome Press have a real knack for spotting great books and None So Blind is no exception.  Some of the other titles published by The Dome Press I’ve enjoyed recently are listed below (click on the title to read my review).

Smart Moves by Adrian Magson
Juliet & Romeo by David Hewson
The Last Day by Claire Dyer
Beautiful Star & Other Stories by Andrew Swanston

none-so-blindAbout the Book

West Wales, 1850. When an old tree root is dug up, the remains of a young woman are found. Harry Probert-Lloyd, a young barrister forced home from London by encroaching blindness, has been dreading this discovery.

He knows exactly whose bones they are.

Working with his clerk, John Davies, Harry is determined to expose the guilty, but the investigation turns up more questions than answers.  The search for the truth will prove costly.

Will Harry and John be the ones to pay the highest price?

Praise for None So Blind

‘Beautifully written, cunningly plotted, with one of the most interesting characters in crime literature.’ (E. S. Thomson,  author of Dark Asylum)

‘Individual and lively.’ (Barry Forshaw, writer and journalist)

‘The most interesting historical crime creation of the year.’ (Phil Rickman, author of The Wine of Angels)

Format: Paperback, ebook (457 pp.)    Publisher: The Dome Press
Published: 15th November 2018   Genre: Historical Fiction, Crime, Mystery

Purchase Links*
Publisher (30% off cover price) | Amazon.co.uk  ǀ  Amazon.com  ǀ Hive.co.uk (supporting UK bookshops)
*links provided for convenience, not as part of any affiliate programme

Find None So Blind on Goodreads

My Review

‘There’s none so blind as those who will not see.’

When the reader is first introduced to Harry Probert-Lloyd, they probably share his opinion that his sight loss (which at first he tries hard to conceal) is an insurmountable obstacle to his career as a barrister. ‘But if I could not read, or see a person’s face, or scrutinise an object, was I not blind?’  His condition has forced Harry to return home to his father’s estate and a future as a country squire in which he has little interest and which goes against his own egalitarian instincts. And if he can no longer pursue a career as a barrister, what hope does he have of successfully carrying out the investigation of a possible crime?

However, Harry has several things in his favour, such as his familiarity with the local people, his knowledge of the Welsh language and his heightened other senses.  As Harry confides to the reader, ‘Though I could not see their expressions, sometimes I was able to infer what people might be feeling from discernible movements or changes in posture’. And he retains his barrister’s skill in eliciting testimony from witnesses and instinct for weighing the truthfulness of their evidence.   He also has solicitor’s clerk, John Davies, to steer him in the right direction.  But does that only mean helping Harry avoid physical obstacles or notice things Harry can’t? Could John have other more personal  reasons in guiding Harry through the investigation?

Determined to get to the truth when all around him seem to want to keep the past firmly buried, Harry’s investigation brings him into conflict with both his father and risks making dangerous enemies – enemies who are not used to having their power and influence challenged.

In the fourth section of the book, in which Harry and John find themselves in unfamiliar territory, the revelations come thick and fast, proving that often people only see what they want or expect to see.  It just goes to show, we can all be blind to some things…  However, as his investigation progresses, Harry starts to ask himself whether there are some things better left in darkness and never brought into the light.   For others, it’s the exact opposite.

None So Blind is a cleverly constructed historical crime mystery that skilfully sustains the reader’s interest right to the end, partly thanks to the two narrator structure.  Throughout the book, I found myself constantly questioning what I was being told… and wondering what I wasn’t being told.  I’d liken it to a crossword puzzle where you think you’re making progress but then discover one wrong answer means you need to rethink all the clues you think you’ve solved so far.

The so-called ‘Rebecca Riots’ make an intriguing backdrop to the story and I found the author’s Historical Note at the end of the book absolutely fascinating, especially the contemporary parallels it brought to mind.  Oh, and readers wondering about the relevance of the series’ title ‘The Teifi Valley Coroner’ will find the answer at the end of the book.  They’ll also be dealt a few teasers by the author to be followed up, it is hoped, in future books in the series.  I’m definitely hooked.

I received an advance review copy courtesy of publishers, The Dome Press.

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In three words: Atmospheric, compelling, suspenseful

Try something similar…The Magpie Tree by Katherine Stansfield (read my review here)

Alis HawkinsAbout the Author

Alis Hawkins grew up in Cardiganshire, read English at Cambridge University and works with speech and language for the National Autistic Society.  Her first novel, Testament, was published by Macmillan.  She lives with her partner in the Forest of Dean near Monmouth. (Photo credit: Goodreads author page)

Connect with Alis

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