A Clubbable Woman

I've been anxiously waiting to begin the Dalziel and Pascoe series, and was very happy to begin with this first book in this long-lived series. I am anticipating a a wonderful time while I read all the other books. Hill is a remarkable writer, and his two characters - Dalziel and Pascoe are as real as they can get. I am a huge fan of the british police procedural genre, and this series looks to be a winner. In this book we are introduced to the wonderful world of English Rugby, as well as the plots and counterplots afoot in the English Rugby Country Club culture. This is a very readable book.

The first of the Dalziel and Pascoe novels is not as complex or thoughtful as some of the later books in the series, but it's still an entertaining mystery that lays the foundations of the relationship between two very different men who together form a formidable detective team. Even this first book displays Hill's witty style and elegant prose, if not to the same high level as later books. The book is based around the goings-on at a rugby club that may or may not be connected with the murder of the wife of one of the players, but no knowledge of the game is required to enjoy the book -- it's a study of the social interactions in such a venue rather than the sport itself. The main problem readers are likely to face is that the book was first published in 1970, and as such is recent enough not to be immediately obviously a period work, while still being old enough for the culture and mores to feel somewhat odd to the modern reader. It's important to be aware of the period when reading the book, as many of the potential motivations for the characters revolve around sexual jealousy and flouting of mores. Hill draws a detailed picture of life in a relatively small Yorkshire town in the 1970s, with its web of social obligations and friendships that can be exploited by both the police and those they're pursuing. Not my favourite of the series, and the characters aren't yet fully developed, but well worth reading both in its own right and as an introduction to the series.

This is not my favourite of Hill's cannon of Dalziel/ Pascoe novels, but I still enjoyed it .....starting at the roots. Dalziel and Pascoe are one of the most stimulating pairings in contemporary crime fiction. Pascoe is the young, idealistic and educated University Grad and Dalziel is.... well.... Dalziel ( you'll have to read the books !)The characterization, intelligent yarns and witty subplots and dialogue keep me hooked to this series.Hill is a classic of the genre.Long may both protagonists inhabit modern mystery!

Hill is an exceptionally fine writer and the Dalziel and Pascoe mysteries show off his skills at their best. This is first mystery in the series and sets the tone and introduces characters for the books to come. In itself it is a gripping mystery set in chilly Yorkshire in the blue collar world of a rugby club, where camaraderie and tension vye with equal measure, where secrets seep through by word of mouth until they act as the match to trigger an explosion. Dalziel springs fullformed from the Author's forehead while Peter Pascoe begins his struggle with his ambivilence between a liberal conscious and a police job. Some readers may find the dialect and attitudes a bit hard to get through but this is series that develops well as it ages.