What do You think about Death Comes For The Fat Man (2007)?
The Death of Dalziel by Reginald HillI'm a massive fan of Dalziel and Pascoe, and have practically grown up watching the TV series. However, I didn't realise they were books until I found one in a charity shop. It was probably the wrong Dalziel and Pascoe book to start with, but nevertheless it was brilliant. For me, Dalziel and Pascoe will always be Warren Clarke and Colin Buchanan, so I had no problem picturing them. The dialogue was really well written and several times I laughed out loud, which I didn't expect to do in a murder mystery! The characters are worth five stars, but the plot confused me. It started off with a bomb on Mill Street knocking Andy unconscious and injuring Peter. What initially was a simple case turned into something much more complicated with code names for the gang of people who were involved in the various crimes that occured through out the novel and the relationships between certain people. There were also a lot of characters to keep track of. When it finally reached the end I didn't feel entirely satisfied and had to reread the last couple of pages to make sure I understood everything correctly. Overall a great book, but very complex, almost too complex, which why it isn't the five stars I would've expected it to be.
—Sian Wadey
Andy Dalziel (usually pronounced Dee-elle), a large English detective and Peter Pascoe, his better educated (and it's presumed, classically handsome) subordinate are two characters that Reginald Hill has used in a number of murder mysteries. He usually uses them in a way that allows him to make clever digs about class and education in the UK, while they solve crimes there.This book is slightly different. Dalziel is severely wounded (and spends the remainder of the book in intensive care) when an Muslim run videostore is blown up. The deaths of the people inside are followed by the deaths of a number of high profile radical British Muslims, but Pascoe has to investigate all the deaths on his own (in conjunction with the Anti-Terrorism Squad), because Dalziel is otherwise engaged.I'm not sure about this book, because the typical central dynamic that allows the story to rattle along isn't there. It flows along at a decent enough pace, but it doesn't work as well I don't think, because that central focus of most of Hill's stories isn't there.You'll probably enjoy it, but don't come in expecting what you've got in previous books or what you get in the TV series. It isn't the same as those previous outings.
—Jim
This is the first of this author's books that I have read. It is about an English detective working a case that involves terrorists and a secret society of vigilantes. It is well written, but contains a lot of British slang. I liked the book, and I intend to read more of this author's works. There are few editing errors, and a few loose ends that are deliberately left dangling at the end, so they do not significantly detract from the story. Characters are well developed and dialog is crisp. Humor is introduced as appropriate, making the characters all the more believable.
—Richard
