The Killings at Badger's Drift

I picked up a more recent book in the Inspector Barnaby series from my local used bookstore but being the anal soul that I am, decided to read the books in order. Took me a bit of effort to find this first one for a less-than-usurious price but once I got a copy, decided it'll remain in my library (rather than sell it). Graham writes a protagonist like Dick Francis does - a dogged, intelligent individual who follows the threads 'til the end and justice is served. A well-written plot is buoyed by a cast of memorable characters, some comedic, some odd but all with a role to play. I plan on collecting the entire series. Highly recommend.

The traditional mystery, through a glass darkly. Her Death of a Hollow Man is also superb. So is Written in Blood. Come to think of it, all her books are superb. This first in the series, however, is a must-read for mystery fans of all stripes.

The Killings at Badger's Drift is an excellently written, well-plotted British mystery. The setting is quaint, the characters are colorful, and the ending was a surprise. I personally love reading the musings of Sergeant Troy, Barnaby's unlikely assistant. His overly critical, insecure thoughts contrasts nicely with Barnaby's rational style, although Barnaby himself has his interesting quirks as well. If you are a fan of British mysteries, this is a must read!

I first "met" the characters in this series by happening upon them in the Midsomer Murders mystery series on TV (I'm not much of a TV watcher, so I found them accidentally!). I was so impressed with the TV series that I decided to try the books. I'm very glad I did. While I found I liked the characters a bit more in the TV series (they are somewhat toned down for TV - Troy especially!), I throughly enjoyed this book and rank Caroline Graham right up there with Agatha Christie and the other top British mystery writers. The characterizations are great for even the more minor actors in the story, her wit and humor are wonderful and the vocabulary is fantastic (finally! an author who isn't afraid to use "big words"!). The plot for this novel kept me guessing right up to the end. A well-paced, well-plotted mystery. I was equally impressed with a subsequent foray into the series - Death of a Hollow Man. If you like the cozy British mystery genre, get these books!

This was the debut of the Inspector Barnaby & Troy series, and--with the possible exception of "The Murder of Roger Ackroyd"--I don't think a better mystery of this genre has ever been written and I could say the same of most-if-not-all of the subsequent additions to the series. Wonderfully atmospheric, grittier than Christie but no less philosophically insightful, without Rendell's darkness or Martha Grimes' often-intrusive humor or Elizabeth George's excessive atttention to the private lives of some boring principals, I believe Caroline Graham's books are the most completely satisfying English mysteries I've ever read--and I've read more than a few. Barnaby & Troy are a delightfully unlikely duo, and it's from their cultural clash that most of the delicious subtle humor comes. "Talisa Leanne's dictionary" cracks me up every time. All I could wish is that Graham were more prolific. It's a long wait between books.