Tony R Cox is an ex-provincial UK journalist. The Simon Jardine series is based on his memories of the early 70s - the time of sex, drugs and rock 'n roll - when reporters relied on word of mouth and there was no internet, no mobile phones, not even a fax machine.
Enter the world of Roy Grace and be embraced by safety and love despite being under cruel and lethal threats of murderers and villains hell-bent on destroying this atmosphere. Brighton is a beautifully welcoming city, largely thanks to Grace, the creation of a singularly absorbing, multi award-winning writer.
After more than twenty Roy Grace novels, Peter James OBE is as bright and incisive as ever. He constantly grasps the need for detailed research. We dive deeply into the multi-faceted world of hotels, examining the lives of both guests and employees. The same attention to detail includes the hot, destructive and deadly world of commercial waste incineration, lethal poisons and even unstable, wealthy families.
The pace of Dead in Three Two One is relentless but, as ever, it’s cultivated and refined despite the horrors that unfold. This thriller is an object lesson in capturing the reader’s attention and gradually building a series of climaxes through side plots that never diminish the central theme. James is a master storyteller. He creates atmospheres that vividly and graphically portray the intense, lethal details through the personalities of every character, the structure of a police force’s Major Crime Unit, and a variety of locations.
Detective Superintendent Grace is secretly under threat from an Albanian gangster about to be released from a prison cell to where Grace’s diligence had banished him. Despite this he has a mobile phone and gangsters waiting to act on his every word.
Grace and his wife are planning a luxurious stay in the Royal Courtney Hotel, one of Brighton’s most historic sea front hotels that’s rapidly leaving behind its hedonistic, flamboyant days. The imprisoned Albanian has a strategy to turn their suite into a killing zone. An act of vengeance that would make his own life, and forthcoming freedom, way beyond simply satisfying.
Peter James has built a remarkable reputation through Roy Grace. Here, he retains the essence of the character as well as lighting the spark that flared in the first of the series, Dead Simple. The author’s brilliance has lit up our lives in the ensuing twenty plus years.
The latest thriller introduces a backdrop of the colour and joy of Brighton Pride, when the city welcomes enough LGBTQ+ visitors to more than double the population. Roy Grace is responsible for their safety as well as investigating an undercover hinterland of gangsters and killers.
There are twists and turns, but this is not a whodunit; though the mysteries stack up as we turn the pages, desperate to find out who is next for that slab in the morgue.
I’m not an Oliver, but: ‘Give me more, Mr James, more please.’
