by Christopher Fowler
Random House Ballantine / Bantam, 2021
Opening Lines
Chapter 1: Old White Males‘Everything I tell you is a lie.’
About the Book
On a spring morning in London's Strand, the Speaker of the House of Commons is accidentally killed by a van unloading oranges and lemons for the annual St. Clement Danes festival. It's an absurd way to die, but the government is more interested in investigating the Speaker's state of mind just prior to his accident.
The task is given to the Peculiar Crimes Unit—the only problem being that the unit no longer exists. Its Chief, Raymond Land, is tending his daffodils on the Isle of Wight and senior detectives Arthur Bryant and John May are out of commission; May is undergoing surgery for a bullet wound and Bryant has been missing for a month. What's more, the old unit in King's Cross is being turned into a vegetarian tapas bar.
Against impossible odds, the team is reassembled and once again what should have been a simple case becomes a lunatic farrago involving arson, suicide, magicians, academics and a race to catch a killer with a master plan involving London churches. (Description from GoodReads)
Initial Thoughts
Yet again, I'm starting a long-running series without reading even one of the earlier books. Even though I've actually got a copy of the first book in the series. Dumb, right? But this one sounded so good, I just couldn't resist requesting it when I saw it at NetGalley. I was thrilled to get it. (I'm always thrilled whenever someone gives me a book!) I'm a little late in getting it read, but so far, I'm loving it. Can't wait to finish it so I can start reading the series from the very beginning. Don't you love when that happens?
Have a good weekend, everyone.
Stay safe. Stay calm. And happy reading!
Stay safe. Stay calm. And happy reading!
Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Friday As she says, the idea is to post the first sentence (or so) of the book you're currently reading, along with any first impressions or thoughts you have about the book, the author, etc. It's a wonderful way of adding new books to your must-read list, and a chance to connect with other readers and bloggers.
I like books where you are never sure if they are telling you the truth. Hope the book lets you figure out what is true. My highlighted book this week here
ReplyDeleteThis one does sound good, and I like the beginning. Thanks for sharing, and here's mine: “AN ORDINARY LIFE”
ReplyDeleteI'm drawn to the cover, setting, and description. I've heard of this series and have been meaning to give it a try.
ReplyDeleteI've done that too--started in the middle of a series because it's a review book even though I have the first book sitting unread on my shelf. :-) I don't think I'd want to miss this one either. The the unit's name, Peculiar Crimes Unit, has me curious! Not to mention I love that opening line! Have a great weekend!
ReplyDelete