Off Minor

Rating:
Summary: A Wee Frustrating but Still Good Stuff
Review: A strong fourth entry in the Charlie Resnick series, the plot revolves around the dissapearance of two small girls, and the uncertainty as to their abductor is maintained until the very end. As in the previous books Harvey continues to the develop the personal lives of the police force, although the focus her is less on Resnick as it is on others. It a bit bleak since it isn't really clear why Resnick keeps rejecting the romantic possabilites presented, and the one member of the force who seems headed toward happiness doesn't acheive it.

Rating:
Summary: In the best tradition of Connelly and Sjowall and Wahloo
Review: Charlie Resnick is inspector in Nottingham, where the 6 year old girl Gloria disappears. After a few months her body is found by a young couple making love in an abandoned warehouse. A few months later another 6 year old girl, Emily, disappears. At first sight the disappearances look very similar and there are quite a few possible suspects. It is up to Resnick and his team to sort out who was involved in what. In the end both crimes are solved, but it takes until the last page before it becomes clear to the reader what happened exactly.

Charlie Resnick is an inspector in the tradition of Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch including his love for jazz music. We also follow Resnick's colleagues, who are not all equally likeable, but that only makes the characters more realistic. There is also quite a lot of criticism on society in the tradition of Sjöwall and Wahlöö. All in all this book is a very enjoyable read.

Rating:
Summary: A Wonderful Series!
Review: I just discovered the Charlie Resnick series and I am loving it!
John Harvey has created a believable, compassionate protagonist in Charlie. Charlie's a bit of a schlump--loves his food and isn't too concerned about grooming or fashion. He loves American Jazz and he loves his cats. This British police procedural series introduces us to the detectives in Charlie's crew and we grow to know and like them all.

When two little girls go missing and one is found murdered, Charlie fears he may be dealing with a serial killer. The story jumps quickly back and forth between characters and this method of story telling proves very effective after one becomes accustomed to it. The two little girls are the same age, but from different economic circumstances. Harvey does a fine job in showing us the devastation their disappearances cause their respective families.

Harvey is a fine writer and skilled at picturing the despair, danger and frustration of Nottingham's mean streets, where gangs of unemployed or underemployed youths take out their rage on each other. His Charlie Resnick is a bit of an outsider himself, having been born of Polish immigrants. He never seems to feel quite comfortable embracing either his Polishness or his Englishness. He's something of a loner. His marriage failed and his relationships usually fizzle as well.

He has great sympathy and concern for the victims he meets in his work, and for his crew of detectives, but his most solid relationships are with his four cats. I recommend this series without reservation.