The Kill Call. Stephen Booth. Harper (2010)

An enjoyable police procedural set in the Derbyshire moors. Hounds from a local hunt find the body of a man with severe head injuries, an anonymous call had place a victim some distance away. Detective Sergent Diane Fry and Detective Constable Matt Cooper have a problematic start to the investigation. The presence of the hunt with the attendant friction between hunters and objectors is a complicating factor. The threads of the investigation pick up with the identification of the victim and his links with the meat industry. The investigation  unfolds carefully as the range of activities the victim was involved in start to increase the number of potential suspects. A split narrative regarding a little know piece of military activity related to Cold War fears comes to a satisfyingly bitter conclusion.
The plot mechanics are the better part of this story, the cast are a little too subdued to actively engage the reader. Diane Fry is a spiky conflicted character who finds that her past is catching up with her in a way that considerably increases the pressure on her in her current position. She is a fish out of water in the rural setting, seeking to escape and finding herself somewhat unmoored rather than free. Her anger and frustration are vividly realised, they just are not applied effectively in the story. The investigation does not move her anywhere further, the circumstances she finds herself in are left open so she is effectively dancing on the spot.
Ben Cooper is from the local area and has deep roots in the community and again he is vividly realised but the interaction between the character and the plot is not very profound. The lead characters have come to critical points in their lives and they wrestle credibly with them, the plot and the investigation runs along side them on a parallel line. This is disappointing as the writing is excellent and it feels like a missed opportunity to give the investigation a greater force and impact. The second plot thread avoids all these issues as it captures with brutal precision the way the past can grip someone and blind them to the present leading to a terrible result. This is so well done it rather highlights the failure of the main story to achieve the same impact.This is a very good crime story. well worth any readers time, the fact that it misses being a great crime story is as much a tribute to the expectations it creates as it is a criticism.

The Murder Road. Stephen Booth. Sphere (2015)

A very engaging and enjoyable police procedural that is also a soft reboot for the series. A lorry gets stuck under a bridge blocking the only road access to the hamlet of Shawhead. The driver has vanished but blood stains in the cab suggest foul play. Detective Inspector Ben Cooper leads the investigation, which, when the driver's body is found, becomes a fully fledged murder inquiry. The investigation uncover secrets and lies among the inhabitants of Shawhead, it is with a death in a different location that puts the investigation on the path to understanding what really happened and why. The reveals are very well stages, the threads of the story are carefully set up and come together convincingly for the satisfyingly sour conclusion.
Ben Cooper is a great lead character, he is smart, confident and capable, a little unsure in his new position, he is likable and engaging. Ben Cooper has a nice array of professional, managerial and personal issues, none are overwhelming or threatening, all are demanding and require thoughtful attention to resolve.
This is a soft reboot of a long running series, major characters are moved out gently but firmly and Ben Cooper is given the full lead and a new supporting cast are introduced. They are all given the chance to make an impression with the reader and they do so. None are outrageous, in line with the general tenor of the series, all have enough distinct personality to be able to hold their own over time. The cast members who are being moved off stage have it done with grace and care, no one is trashed for effect.
The plot mechanics are very thoughtful, two distinct narrative threads are set up with a third lurking in the background. The way that they intertwine is very smart, there separate investigations are unfurled with care and attention to detail. The knot that ties them together is nicely unexpected and carefully set up to reveal itself for maximum impact.
This is a quiet story, it does not drive forward at speed, it generates a tremendous hold on the reader without advertising it, the cast engage and the plot mechanics bite firmly and the total impact is very strong. The location, the Peak District is one of the major characters in the story, the landscape is always surrounding, hiding and revealing cast members and plot points. It is never cosy, the Peak District is a harsh location and the story has a vein of bitterness and savagery that settles in very naturally into the stunning context. Stephen Booth has the confidence and skill to deliver a great crime story, manage continuity and carry readers with him while making it all look effortless
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Dying to Sin. Stephen Booth. Harper (2008)

This is an excellent, complex and superbly cast crime drama. It is part of a series that feature two detectives, DS Diane Fry and DC Ben Cooper and set in the Peak District in Derbyshire. The setting is a critical part of the series, it is a major character in each story, the actions of the casts are framed and influenced strongly by the countryside, the slow death of the industrial countryside and the ways of life it supported. The cast are steadily developed over the series, there is not overwhelming continuity, each book stand easily as a self contained story, read as a progression the developments are an enjoyable extra aspect to the books. A body is found at an isolated farm, it is a cold case, the body has been buried for some time. The farm had been sold and was being renovated. The man who sold the farm had moved to a nursing home. There are severe difficulties in identifying the body, when a second headless skeleton is found the investigation starts to become more complicated. The farm and the local village clearly hold a variety of secrets that they are tightly holding on to. The story unfolds into a very modern and very savage explanation for the presence of the bodies at the farm. Stephen Booth introduces a wide and very varied cast and draws the threads of his story with great skill as the reveals steadily mount up and a very satisfactory conclusion is reached.

One of the major strengths of the story is the credibility of the cast, they are very well drawn and they act in natural and understandable ways. They interactions between them effectively drive the story as well as revealing more about the cast themselves, the conclusion is a organic outcome from the forces described in the story. A really satisfying read by a very talented writer.