Death to Go: An Inspector Bill Slider Mystery

I started three British Procedural series about the same time. Although they are all good, I like Ms. Harrod-Eagles series the best. She is a wonderful writer. Her plots and characterization are tight, and the story usually has many surprises. Bill Slider is a wonderful character. He's sensitive, a bit tentative (especially in his personal life), and a darn good detective. This was an interesting book because the mystery looked quite simple at the beginning, but the further that Bill dug into it, the more sinister it became. It took him all the way up to the top with his suspicions. With the help of his partner, he manages to discover the truth. I highly recommend this series.

Finding a finger in a packet of chips leads Shepherd's Bush Inspector, Bill Slider, and his side Kick Atherton into the strangest of crimes - what is the significance of the Chinese angle? where do computers fit into it all? and why are all the people they try to interview about the crime suddenly dying? - they still don't even know the identity of the finger - or where the rest of the body is.This is the third novel in Cynthia Harrod-Eagles series of Bill Slider mysteries and the story I thought was one of her best - although I found the ending a bit of a cop out - it was another unsatisfying end where - while the ending is known I found there to be no real resolution. Each time Slider and Atherton manage to peel back another layer in the crime it seems to take them deeper into confusion. Nothing seems to make sense and they still don't know who the finger belongs too.Meanwhile things aren't too good for Slider- his home life is falling apart, his lover is not happy and is rejecting him and at work he has to deal with 'Mad Ivan" Barrington whose petty dictates are causing great disatisfaction at the station.This novel was published in Britain as 'Necrochip' so the title might confuse those who think it is a new novel in the Bill Slider series. This is definitely a very readable mystery and well worth picking up and giving a try. She isn't as good at writing secondary characters, but her crime investigation is gripping stuff.

I can never put this author's books down until I've read the whole book (usually in one sitting). She always maintains a nice balance between humor and adversity and tops it all off with a wicked and logical plot. Harrod-Eagle is a wonderful mystery writer and I always look forward to reading her latest book. All of them (so far) have been excellent.