Robinson continues the Inspector Banks series with the eighth book. Rebecca Charters, the wife of the vicar at Saint Mary’s church, is out wandering in the graveyard when she abruptly comes upon the body of a young schoolgirl behind a huge Victorian sepulcher. The girl’s clothes have been torn and her open school satchel lies beside her. The body is identified as that of Deborah Harrison, a beautiful sixteen year old from a posh neighbourhood who attended an elite private school nearby. As the inquiry begins, there appears to be a number of suspects including a vicar who has had serious allegations laid against him, a Croatian refugee who has been accused of leering at schoolgirls, a teacher who is having an affair with the vicar’s wife, a lecturer at the local college who has lived with a younger student and enjoys taking nude photographs of women, and a vain and cocky criminal who supplements his income from the dole by various criminal activities. This is a complex investigation, made more difficult by the appearance of Chief Constable Jeremiah “Jimmy” Riddle, a man who believes in the pushy “breathe down you neck” style of management. Riddle and Banks do not see eye to eye on anything, but Banks must be careful. Riddle is his superior and since Gristhorpe has broken his leg while working on his stone wall and there is no buffer between them, things quickly get testy. What makes things worse is that Deborah Harrison, the murdered schoolgirl, was the daughter of Sir Geoffrey and Sylvie Harrison, a wealthy and politically connected family who are also personal friends of the Chief. Riddle is ambitious and sensitive to the important contacts and connections he will need to advance his career and demands the investigation be handled with kid gloves. Robinson quickly brings us up to date with people and events since the last book: Detective Richmond has gone to Scotland Yard to join a special computer unit and has temporarily been replaced by Detective Sergeant Barry Scott; Susan Gay has passed her sergeant’s exam and is waiting for her next promotion and Jenny Fuller reappears after spending time in America. Banks is still struggling with his smoking habit and continues with his music, which seems to include everything from his classical selections to Jimi Hendrix. He is not making much progress in reconnecting with his wife Sandra, and they are growing more and more distant, each deeply involved in their careers. Brian their son, continues his studies at the Polytechnic and Tracy their daughter, has given up on boyfriends, and wants to study history at the University of Leeds. Like his past novels, Robinson places the investigation in a setting which allows him to explore social and political issues. He spreads the net wide in this story as he unearths the sick underbelly of pornography, criticizes the privilege of class and money, and questions the painful consequences of bigotry. He also sensitizes us to the influence that public opinion plays on those who have been charged with a crime, whether or not they are proved guilty. This is also the first novel that takes us into the courtroom. We see Banks on the stand and Robinson uses the court scenes, which are excellent, to unravel the complex issues around admissible and inadmissible evidence. He also shows us how that evidence, collected so carefully during an investigation, fares when set before the rule of law and the complexity of trial procedure. It is distressing to see how what had previously looked so solid, suddenly becomes dodgy and full of holes. For those who have followed the series sequentially, it has been interesting to see how Robinson’s novels have evolved. Plots are more intricate, and Banks’ investigative style and skill continues to develop over time. Social commentary has become a larger part of the last novels, but Robinson never looses the story or the thread of the investigation. And he seems to have that ability to throw in that clanging wrench, the bad luck of being in the wrong place at the wrong time and the good luck of stumbling upon an important clue.Another great read.
This mystery starts with Rebecca, the vicar’s wife, wandering around a foggy cemetery, hoisting her glass of pinot noir and visiting the angel which sits atop a tomb. As she is having her drunken talk with the angel, she spots the body of a schoolgirl. That would be a horrific surprise if you were sober, never mind in an inebriated state. Rebecca has her own issues with her husband, her home life and an affair with a local teacher. All of those troubles are woven into this mystery and investigation of sixteen-year-old Deborah Harrison’s murder.The day before, Deborah and her friend Megan are walking home in the fog. They part ways near a bridge where Deborah takes a shortcut home through the cemetery. Megan thinks she saw the shadowy figure of a man behind Deborah but the fog was so thick, she can’t be sure. That was the last time Deborah was seen alive.Since Deborah was the daughter of a wealthy and influential man the pressure is on to solve this case as soon as possible. A new detective inspector, Barry Stott, gets a lead early on in this investigation and is hot on the trail of the suspected killer. There are certainly other suspects and factors involved in this homicide and DCI Banks isn’t ready to pin the rap on the first suspect.Banks examines all the other possibilities and factors uncovered during this case. There is a vicar, accused of sexually harassing a refugee worker, who lies about his whereabouts at the time of the murder; Rebecca, his cheating wife and the schoolteacher who is her lover. There is also the accused, Owen Pierce, who has a very spiteful ex and a teen boy who was Deborah’s former boy toy. He previously threatened Deborah’s family and tried to blackmail them.Lots of action in this one and as always, Peter Robinson delivers with an ending you don’t figure out until the last pages.Food wise we have many offerings. What would a DCI Banks story be without that lumbering Sgt Hatchley eating and drinking his way across the Dales?“Alf! Over here mate. Let’s have a bit of service. A person could die of thirst.”If there were a landlord Hatchley didn’t know by name in all of Eastvale – nay, all of Swainsdale – Stott would have been surprised.Stott ordered a ham and cheese sandwich and cup of tea. Hatchley ordered: “I’ll have one of those bloody great big Yorkshire puddings full of roast beef, peas and gravy. And a pint of bitter, of course”Banks and DC Susan Gay meet a potential character witness at an Italian restaurant. After much study and consultation, Banks decided on the gourmet pizza with goat cheese, olives and sun-dried tomatoes and Italian sausage. Susan ordered cannelloni and Michelle ordered linguine with clam sauce. They also had wine.There were also the working pub lunches with Cornish pasties with gravy and chips, Scotch eggs and the usual pints of ale and bitters. Reading these books always makes me want a vacation in England.So many of those goodies I would love to eat, especially sitting down at a pub lunch.Since it's a British author I thought I would go with a British chef.Nigel Slater's Pork and Fig dinner was excellent. Next time I would use less fig but more fig jam. The jam was phenomenal on those chops. Recipe may be found at Squirrel Head Manor.
What do You think about Innocent Graves (2004)?
AS this is a mystery which I don't want to spoil, I won't say much except that I didn't want to put this book down. It's the first Peter Robinson book I've read, and I'll be looking for more! There were several good potential killers among the characters Inspector Banks meets along the way, enough to keep me reaching for the book any time I sat down so that I could join in the "fun" of tracking down the evidence and deciding who among them was the most likely candidate for murderer. Any readers who enjoy mysteries -- especially those set in England, as the Yorkshire setting for this one is a favorite of mine! -- will find this a fun and well-written addition to their shelves. Book clubs will also find this a fun book to discuss.
—Rose
This is a bit of a departure from previous Banks' books, I that much of it is taken up by the trial of the suspect: at times, it seems as if Banks is taking a peripheral role. However, for all that, this is the first book in this series where I really thought of Banks as a 'real' person. I like how Peter Robinson continues to re-introduce characters from previous novels, as this adds to authenticity, especially when he's portraying a relatively small geographical area. Finally, I feel like this series is taking off.
—Sally
This is the eighth book in a fantastic series featuring protaganist Chief Inspector Banks. Its a story of the murder of a beautiful 16 year old girl and the subsequent murder of a second young girl. A man is accused of the crime and spends several months is jail awaiting his trial. The author spends half the time describing what the accused man goes through and how his life brings him to this point. His story is perfectly blended with Chief Inspector Banks' efforts to either bring in the evidence to convict this man at his trial or find another suspect. As the other books in this series, Innocent Graves is very well written and constructed. An excellent book.
—Ron Chicaferro
