The expression in Harry's eyes was unreadable, his face lying partly in the shade from the peak of his cap.

His shadow, flung across the rocks, seemed to wriggle and jerk as its shape fragmented among the bracken and brambles. The haze of heat made his outline blur and writhe, as if he were dancing a slow shimmy. The old man stood in the glare of the low sun, with hot rocks shimmering around him like a furnace. Cooper had to squint against a patch of dazzling light that soaked the hillside in strong colours. He was looking through the trees and thick brambles as if towards the end of a dark tunnel, where the figure of Harry Dickinson was framed in a network of branches. A passing walker wouldn't have been able to see him up here among the bracken, even if he'd bothered to look up.Ĭooper turned round, wafting his hand across his face against the flies. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons.The spot where Ben Cooper stood was remote and isolated. If subsequent novels continue in this superior vein, this author may eventually rank with Ian Rankin and Peter Robinson. As the inquiry proceeds, we learn many sordid details about the Vernons and about many other village residents, all of which provides more than enough motive for murder.īooth has created unusually rich characters in Fry and Cooper, and their prickly working relationship promises to be one of the more fascinating ones in detective fiction. Booth skillfully evokes the closed and secretive atmosphere of small villages and the resentment of poor villagers for rich newcomers like the Vernons. With her cold, abrasive and career-driven behavior, Fry is not an especially sympathetic female character, and this gives her an interesting depth.įry and Cooper are assigned as a team to investigate the murder of 15-year old Laura Vernon, the precociously sexy daughter of an affluent family, whose body was found in the woods. Fry is still recovering from a violent attack at her previous posting, while Ben carries the heavy burden of family problems. Both have the ' black dog' of depression on their shoulders. Fair-haired local Ben Cooper, son of a beloved policeman killed on duty, is teamed with newcomer Diane Fry.

The story is set in the deceptively beautiful and picturesque villages and countryside of northern England's Peak District. Black Dog was nominated for several prizes, and Booth's second novel, Dancing with the Virgins, was short-listed for Britain's Gold Dagger award. Stephen Booth's first offering is a welcome addition to the genre, and its author promises to provide many hours of reading pleasure. James and Ruth Rendell books, it is always a great pleasure to discover another British mystery writer. For a confirmed Anglophile who has read all the Elizabeth George, P.D.

Black dog by stephen booth