Another classic from Reginald Hill. What would a mystery be without a murder? The local bobby has disappeared from Enscombe and soon our favorite three, Sergeant Wíeld, Pascoe and The Fat Man, are sucked into a maelstrom of deception and fantasy that boggle the mind. Without giving away too much of the plot, which takes places in a “perfect” little town in Yorkshire (fuctata non perfecta is a theme that runs throughout) the result is “Two whole days, and what have we got? Bodies in the morgue, none. Bodies in the cells, none. Policeman resigned, one. Crimes committed, any number. Citizens willing to bring charges, not a single one!” If you have not indulged yourself in the pleasures of Hill’snovels, I suggest starting with the book of stories,{Asking for the Moon] which explains how The Fat Man and the Pascoe got together, then Pictures of Perfection, which explains how Wield and Digweed wound up in Enscombe. Digweed puts life in Enscombe into perspective. “Enscombe is very much fuctatus rather than perfectus, I’m glad to say. Perfection is unnatural, Sergeant, because it implies the absence of either development or decline. Haven’t you noticed? It’s the political parties and the religions with the clearest notions of the perfect society that cause the most harm? Once admit the notion of human perfectibility, and the end can be made to justify any amount of pain and suffering along the way. Besides, it would put us both out of work. No crime in the perfect society, and no desire to read about the imperfect past either! So here’s to imperfectionl” But keep that dictionary handy: solecistically, etiolated, fumarolic, hydriotaphic (the adjectival form of hydriotaphia which is a funeral urn), and exophthalmic to name just a few great words. Lots of illusions to Jane Austen, most of which I suspect went completely over my head. This is great stuff.
Wieldy does some village bobbying in this countryside cozy by Reginald Hill. We are given to understand that on the local squire's Reckoning Day a massacre takes place in a small Yorkshire village--topped off by the shooting of one of our three protagonists (referred to as The Good (Pascoe), The Bad (Dalziel) and The Ugly (Wield)) but we don't know which one, and then the scene shifts back a couple of days so we can see what led up to it all. A missing village constable, a school on the chopping block, a book seller up to something, a painting with a winking girl, a boy with a love for guns and the village beauty, and Wield trying to sort it all. But Hill is tricky and all is not as it seems: Fuctata Non Perfecta.
What do You think about Pictures Of Perfection (1995)?
This is the first Reginald Hill book I have read in years and now I'm thinking I have to go back and work my way through them all again. This had an engaging story, with plenty of twists to keep you guessing as well as believable (and usually likable) characters. This is one of those stories where the main action happens right at the start... or so you are led to believe.... with the bulk of the book covering events leading up to the opening. Really didn't want to put it down, and read it through in one sitting. Excellent.
—Becky
This is a pleasant and entertaining piece of British detective fluff -- exactly the kind of thing to take one's mind off things at a time of stress. It takes place in a seemingly idyllic English village with secrets going back for generations. The injection of a modern police presence as quirky as any provided by the villagers themselves does nothing to quiet the waters.Not at all the usual kind of thing, it has bizarre twists and turns enough for anyone, none of them very believable, but it doesn't really matter. Wendy Bertsch, Author of Once More...From the Beginning
—Wendy Bertsch
I think this is one of the best mysteries ever written. It's both funny and serious, and no one is murdered. And I love that Hill created a gay policeman who bucks all the stereotypes without being a stereotypical stereotype-bucker (if you know what I mean). Edgar Wield just is who he is, like every other character. Finally, the Jane Austen quotations at the beginning of each chapter capture the timelessness of certain aspects, good and bad, of English rural life. Or maybe just rural life in general. Brilliant.
—Kellyann
