Hello!
I am back with another book review. Is this not what a lot of us have done during this lock down period? We actually read!!!
Book Title: Talking to the Dead
Genre: Mystery, Crime, Thriller, Organized Crime, Detective
No. of Books so far: 6
Series: Fiona Griffiths
Book Order: 1
Author: Harry Bingham
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| Talking to the Dead by Harry Bingham |
Synopsis:
SHE KNOWS WHAT IT'S LIKE. . . .
At first, the murder scene appears sad, but not unusual: a young woman undone by drugs and prostitution, her six-year-old daughter dead alongside her. But then detectives find a strange piece of evidence in the squalid house: the platinum credit card of a very wealthy--and long dead--steel tycoon. What is a heroin-addicted hooker doing with the credit card of a well-known and powerful man who died months ago? This is the question that the most junior member of the investigative team, Detective Constable Fiona Griffiths, is assigned to answer.
But D.C. Griffiths is no ordinary cop. She's earned a reputation at police headquarters in Cardiff, Wales, for being odd, for not picking up on social cues, for being a little overintense. And there's that gap in her past, the two-year hiatus that everyone assumes was a breakdown. But Fiona is a crack investigator, quick and intuitive. She is immediately drawn to the crime scene, and to the tragic face of the six-year-old girl, who she is certain has something to tell her . . . something that will break the case wide open.
Ignoring orders and protocol, Fiona begins to explore far beyond the rich man's credit card and into the secrets of her seaside city. And when she uncovers another dead prostitute, Fiona knows that she's only begun to scratch the surface of a dark world of crime and murder. But the deeper she digs, the more danger she risks--not just from criminals and killers but from her own past . . . and the abyss that threatens to pull her back at any time.
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| Talking to the Dead |
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| Talking to the Dead by Harry Bingham |
My Thoughts:
It is an amazing high when you get your hands on one of the books from the series you have read previously and have zero to none chances of finding the remaining books. The other high is holding the book in your hands while reading it. Nothing beats the feeling of reading the book in hard form. Luckily I got my hands on the first and fourth installments from "Fiona Griffiths" series from Readings book store at an unbeatable price. Reading after getting married has proved to be a challenge for me. Managing work routine along with a new household and family to settle into is a chore in its own. Also, the presence of another person in the room is sort of distracting and I can not seem to concentrate as well as I used to before. Thankfully I have been settling in well, and also taking out the time for myself to read.
Starting off with the review for first installment of Fiona Griffiths series, if you have read my previous review on the book, you already know that Fiona works in the police. She is the most junior among her Cardiff Police station colleagues and is handed out the most boring desk jobs like tracking invoices, phone records and such. She suffers from Cortard's disease and everyday is a struggle for her to pretend being a normal human. The story starts by a brutal murder of a prostitute and her 6 years old daughter. Fiona has strange reactions to deaths. She does not get fazed by murder scenes or gruesome state of the bodies, she is drawn to them. She finds a credit card at the crime scene and upon investigation it turns out the actual owner of the card was a businessman who died in a plane crash. The situation raises questions as to what was a dead man's credit card doing at a crime scene? Was the man really dead or did he fake his death? Who killed the prostitute and her 6 years old daughter in such a brutal manner?
The plot is not too original as it involves sex, prostitutes, money and drugs but what keeps one hooked to the story is the very original and unique character of Fiona Griffiths. Her, being a tiny being, a young constable at police force, she is good at self defense or rather learns it during this book. She struggles with emotions on daily basis trying to figure them out and naming them based on what she knows of them, only because of her Cortard's. She tries her best to come up with most suitable socially acceptable responses to situations that require her to exhibit feelings. Some of the situations involving her emotions are rather comic like her trying to be a normal text book girl friend, or being a normal partner to her fellow police colleague, or going overboard with a funeral preparation. Its actually Harry's depiction and insight to Fiona's character that keeps the reader hooked to this book.
Despite having difficulties functioning normally, circumstances work out in Fiona's favor a little too often. She keeps on getting into unusual circumstances but gets out rather conveniently too. I found this to be far stretched and a little too fictitious. Fiona has trouble accepting rules and regulations and unintentionally keeps violating her senior's orders based on her instincts which are always spot on. After too many "talks" with her senior, it turns out Fiona is steering in the right direction of the investigation and the murders are not as casual as they appear to be. There is a much bigger picture and the stakes are quite high. Will Fiona be able to crack this murder mystery? Read the complete book to find out.
Starting off with the review for first installment of Fiona Griffiths series, if you have read my previous review on the book, you already know that Fiona works in the police. She is the most junior among her Cardiff Police station colleagues and is handed out the most boring desk jobs like tracking invoices, phone records and such. She suffers from Cortard's disease and everyday is a struggle for her to pretend being a normal human. The story starts by a brutal murder of a prostitute and her 6 years old daughter. Fiona has strange reactions to deaths. She does not get fazed by murder scenes or gruesome state of the bodies, she is drawn to them. She finds a credit card at the crime scene and upon investigation it turns out the actual owner of the card was a businessman who died in a plane crash. The situation raises questions as to what was a dead man's credit card doing at a crime scene? Was the man really dead or did he fake his death? Who killed the prostitute and her 6 years old daughter in such a brutal manner?
The plot is not too original as it involves sex, prostitutes, money and drugs but what keeps one hooked to the story is the very original and unique character of Fiona Griffiths. Her, being a tiny being, a young constable at police force, she is good at self defense or rather learns it during this book. She struggles with emotions on daily basis trying to figure them out and naming them based on what she knows of them, only because of her Cortard's. She tries her best to come up with most suitable socially acceptable responses to situations that require her to exhibit feelings. Some of the situations involving her emotions are rather comic like her trying to be a normal text book girl friend, or being a normal partner to her fellow police colleague, or going overboard with a funeral preparation. Its actually Harry's depiction and insight to Fiona's character that keeps the reader hooked to this book.
Despite having difficulties functioning normally, circumstances work out in Fiona's favor a little too often. She keeps on getting into unusual circumstances but gets out rather conveniently too. I found this to be far stretched and a little too fictitious. Fiona has trouble accepting rules and regulations and unintentionally keeps violating her senior's orders based on her instincts which are always spot on. After too many "talks" with her senior, it turns out Fiona is steering in the right direction of the investigation and the murders are not as casual as they appear to be. There is a much bigger picture and the stakes are quite high. Will Fiona be able to crack this murder mystery? Read the complete book to find out.
Availability:
I found this one from Readings book store and that too after a database search and some 10 minutes of books shuffling, shelf to shelf with the help of their staff. The series is not easy to get by since it is not by a famous author yet. I have also put in a request for the third installment with Readings, fingers crossed.
Price:
Although the book is priced at around Rs. 1400+ but I got it on a 60% discount and it cost me around Rs. 545 or so.
Verdict:
As much as I enjoyed reading the second installment, I had trouble concentrating in this book. The story seemed quite stalled at too many points. Since this was Harry's first book, I am willing to cut him some slack. Also, the second book turned out to be quite good. If you haven't had your fill of crime and murder mysteries, then I suggest reading this book.
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