Whoa! What a find!
Usually when there is a woman detective in fiction, she is thirty-something, fit, healthy, beautiful. It is always - ALWAYS - refreshing to find someone who does not fit that mold. Vera Stanhope, created by author Ann Cleeves, is a middle-aged, chunky woman who doesn't care how she dresses but does care about getting at the heart of any mystery. Enter now another elderly detective, Hazel Micallef. Hazel has even more bad habits than Vera and cares so much about getting her man that she is willing to destroy her career in the process.
Hazel is interim commanding officer of a small police force in Canada. She has to fight just to keep the force in existence, rather than be absorbed by larger big-city forces that detect from afar. Very little happens, as a rule, in her bailiwick, but that doesn't mean Hazel's powers have diminished from disuse.
A friend of Hazel's mother's, Delia Chandler, is found dead, her throat slashed and much blood surrounding it. But there is something strange about the scene. Delia is very pale. There are other indications that this is not simply the act of a person in a rage. In fact, Hazel believes, it is carefully planned to look more reckless than it is.
When she learns that Delia was drained of her blood Hazel and her small team know they are looking for an unusual killer. When a second death turns up that is equally suspicious but that takes place in another jurisdiction, Hazel doesn't hesitate to take it on, approved or not.
Hazel is in her sixties, overweight, and given to drinking too much. She is divorced but maintains a reasonable relationship with her ex. She lives with her elderly mother, who is determined that Hazel develop healthier habits. Thus she plies her with egg white omelets and similar treats. Hazel is not interested, and finds her way to other sources of food once she is out of the house.
Hazel can also be prickly and difficult, but she's capable of appreciating talent when she sees it. Thus she has a few loyal team members, including the "new guy".
The team sets to finding out what this killer is after and where he might be going next. The investigation is on shaky ground from the standpoint of the higher-ups, but that does not stop it. There is something particularly disturbing about this killer and Hazel is determined to find him.
Meanwhile, we do get to meet the killer. Unlike in other novels where the killer's thoughts are exposed and we know him to be a first-class nutcase, this one is described in third-person, rather than first, and there are no italics. I found that refreshing even though I find this type of organized killer way more organized than any in the real world would be. I was more than willing to suspend disbelief as the suspense built up to quite the climax. I worried that I might not get to meet Hazel again but lo! There are three more books in this series - so far.
Usually when there is a woman detective in fiction, she is thirty-something, fit, healthy, beautiful. It is always - ALWAYS - refreshing to find someone who does not fit that mold. Vera Stanhope, created by author Ann Cleeves, is a middle-aged, chunky woman who doesn't care how she dresses but does care about getting at the heart of any mystery. Enter now another elderly detective, Hazel Micallef. Hazel has even more bad habits than Vera and cares so much about getting her man that she is willing to destroy her career in the process.
Hazel is interim commanding officer of a small police force in Canada. She has to fight just to keep the force in existence, rather than be absorbed by larger big-city forces that detect from afar. Very little happens, as a rule, in her bailiwick, but that doesn't mean Hazel's powers have diminished from disuse.
A friend of Hazel's mother's, Delia Chandler, is found dead, her throat slashed and much blood surrounding it. But there is something strange about the scene. Delia is very pale. There are other indications that this is not simply the act of a person in a rage. In fact, Hazel believes, it is carefully planned to look more reckless than it is.
When she learns that Delia was drained of her blood Hazel and her small team know they are looking for an unusual killer. When a second death turns up that is equally suspicious but that takes place in another jurisdiction, Hazel doesn't hesitate to take it on, approved or not.
Hazel is in her sixties, overweight, and given to drinking too much. She is divorced but maintains a reasonable relationship with her ex. She lives with her elderly mother, who is determined that Hazel develop healthier habits. Thus she plies her with egg white omelets and similar treats. Hazel is not interested, and finds her way to other sources of food once she is out of the house.
Hazel can also be prickly and difficult, but she's capable of appreciating talent when she sees it. Thus she has a few loyal team members, including the "new guy".
The team sets to finding out what this killer is after and where he might be going next. The investigation is on shaky ground from the standpoint of the higher-ups, but that does not stop it. There is something particularly disturbing about this killer and Hazel is determined to find him.
Meanwhile, we do get to meet the killer. Unlike in other novels where the killer's thoughts are exposed and we know him to be a first-class nutcase, this one is described in third-person, rather than first, and there are no italics. I found that refreshing even though I find this type of organized killer way more organized than any in the real world would be. I was more than willing to suspend disbelief as the suspense built up to quite the climax. I worried that I might not get to meet Hazel again but lo! There are three more books in this series - so far.
