Strange Images of Death by Barbara Cleverly

Once again Miss Cleverly's hero, Commander Joe Sandilands of Scotland Yard, finds himself investigating murder in France this time in a strictly unofficial capacity. Drving down to the Riviera for a well earned holiday Joe agrees to take his neice to join her father at a chateau where a group of artists are being entertained by a mysterious nobleman. On arrival he discovers that the community has been disturbed by a crime and fears that more violence may be about to erupt. Sandilands is prevailed upon to stay and attempt a resolution which he does as Miss Cleverly weaves yet another of her gloriously complicated plots. An excelent page turner for a summer holiday.

The Casebook of Victor Frankenstein by Peter Ackroyd

Fans of the late Peter Cushing and the crew from Hammer Films will find little to recognise in Peter Ackroyd's take on this famous story. Frankenstein is no longer a German Baron but a Swiss businessman and his experiments are undertaken in a Dockland warehouse a long way from any Carpathian castle. Igor is also a casualty of Mr Ackroyd's re-write instead Frankenstein's companions are Percy Bysshe Shelley, Lord Byron and Dr Polidori among others. Why would Ackroyd want to embark on a re-writing of a classic such as this? Surely the original story was perfectly satisfactory and one must ask what has Mr Ackroyd added to it that justifies the effort. On the other hand the writer is very highly regarded in literary circles and no doubt his admirers, and there are many, will welcome what is , after all, a very entertaining book.

Tyrant- Funeral Games by Christian Cameron

The third novel of Christian Cameron's Tyrant series is, quite possibly, his best yet. Set in the aftermath of the death of Alexander the Great as his generals battle to carve up his Empire the story follows the escape of Satyrus and Melitta from the sack of Tanais following the betrayal and murder of their mother Srayanka. I am here assuming knowledge of the previous two volumes. The twins supported as always by their Spartan tutor Philokles flee to Heraklea and thence on to Alexandria pursued by assassins as they seek to contact friends of their late father now working as mercenaries for Ptolomey who has made himself Lord of Egypt. The primary sources for this period of history are sparse but Mr Cameron uses his imagination and a true gift for narrative to produce a stunning page- turner of a novel with never a false note to spoil ones enjoyment. Roll on volume four.

Lavinia by Ursula Le Guin

The Romans, as is well known, claimed descent from Aeneas who lead the last of the Trojans from the destruction of their city. The story was immortalised in the epic poem The Aeneid by Virgil. Based on this poem Le Guin uses her imagination and considerable narrative skill to bring to life the story of Aeneas sailing up the Tiber and winning the hand of Lavinia Princess of Latium and founding the city that would rule the known world. On the front cover there is a quote from Publishers Weekly that this book "deserves to be ranked with Robert Graves I, Claudius", sorry no it doesn't. It is a very readable book but not in Graves' class and such hyperbole does Miss Le Guin no favours.

The Second Woman by Kenneth Cameron

I do not like to be overly critical of the books I read as I appreciate the effort that goes into writing them but this one tried my patience to breaking point. I am not concerned with the plot of this novel as I did not read enough of it to find out what it was because the writing so annoyed me. It is written by an American and his "hero" is American, a writer who is accepted into the higher reaches of Edwardian Society but who behaves like the worst stereotype of a wartime G.I. on leave. It will not do Mr Cameron, you obviously have no conception of the manners expected of a gentleman at the time and not only would Denton have received no invitations beyond the first his uncouth arrogance would probably have earned him a "facer". I implore you, Mr Cameron, write about the United States in future safe on your own home ground.

Hardcastle's Mandarin by Graham Ison

Detective Inspector Ernest Hardcastle of Cannon Row Police Station is one of the old fashioned stand-no-nonsense coppers who kept the streets safe in the early years of the twentieth century. In this his seventh case accompanied as always by Sergeant Marriott he investigates the murder of Sir Nigel Strang, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Munitions and as senior civil servants are popularly known as "Mandarins" the title of the book is explained. Scotland Yard's Special Branch become involved, much to his annoyance, as German Intelligence are suspected of the crime. Hardcastle, however, prefers to stick to tried and trusted police methods and discovers that Sir Nigel's private life is not that of an upright pillar of the establishment that his widow would have them believe. Another murder is committed and this time German spies may well be involved but so is a low level criminal well known to the police. Inspector Hardcastle, politely but firmly, ploughs his way through all ranks of society until he brings his man to justice at the end of another satisfying story. I look forward to more of his investigations.

The return of Captain John Emmett by Elizabeth Speller

In 1920 Britain was still trying to recover from the trauma of what was spoken of as The Great War. Millions had died, more had been maimed and many who had returned ostensibly uninjured suffered damage that neither the medical profession or society knew how to cure or come to terms with. His experiences on the Western Front followed by the death of his wife and baby have turned Laurence Bartram into a semi-recluse but then the sister of an old school friend asks him to enquire into the circumstances of his suicide. Aided by his friend Charles Carfax he pieces together a story that takes us through the horrors of the trenches via a traumatic execution to the point where Captain Emmett sees death as his only course. Miss Speller weaves a complex and convoluted tale peopled by beleivable characters with their feuds and friendships exaggerated by the horrors they have experienced and which some try to expunge by writing the poetry that became one of the legacies of the era. Robert Goddard is reckoned to be the master of this kind of novel but he has a serious challenger in Elizabeth Speller.

Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel

In one of the few books to be awarded the Booker Prize that is also readable Miss Mantel has drawn us a portrait of Thomas Cromwell that contrasts markedly with the devious and manipulative character that we have seen in so many books about the Court of Henry the Eighth. Usualy portrayed as the betrayer of his patron Wolsey and the facilitator of Henry's divorce and remarriage, the eager despoiler of the monasteries and always available for Tudor dirty work a more odious character hardly strides the pages of British history. In Wolf Hall we are shown instead a thoughtful, loyal and hard working employee of Wolsey, surmounting an abused childhood and adventurous early career to become the prop for a volatile and self-centred monarch. All the time that I was reading this book the mental picture I had of Cromwell was that of the actor Michael Kitchen in his carefully understated role in Foyles War. An excellent book.

Salamander by Roger Silverwood

A group of British soldiers "liberate" a priceless jewel from one of the deserted palaces of Sadam Husein and smuggle it to England then one of their number winds up dead. Retired Inspector Frank Spence is brought back to head the enquiry. The plot is not that original but then whose plots are these days after decades of detective stories. The book is carried by a pacy narrative suffused with dry humour. A good deckchair book.

Now you see me by Margaret Murphy

An intiguing detective story set in Liverpool concerning a missing person who is not really missing, a murder, a dodgy security firm and a complex computer crime. Sara rents a couple of rooms in her house to Megan who complains of being followed by a muscular man who watches but never approaches her. The action then moves to a security firm run by Doran who learned his business working as an enforcer for one of the Trotskyite groups that ran Liverpool in the seventies and early eighties. The police are lead by Inspector Rickman, who is suffering from some unnamed trauma, backed up by Sgt Foster a Lothario who has an unrequited lust for Constable Naomi Hart the third member of the team. The action bowls along and the description of the computer wizardry is fascinating. I am not sure that I approve of the ending as I like to see criminals brought to justice.