Glynis Allen

I loved this book - one of the best I've read in ages. The opening gripped me immediately and then I couldn't put it down. The plot is amazing and kept me guessing to the last. I lost count of how many times I thought I knew who the killer was, only to be proved wrong by a twist in the story.

I really like the Slider books but 2 things really bug me, almost enough to make me give up reading them. Firstly the never-ending malapropisms of Porson. Surely no one can be that thick, especially not someone in his position. He sounds like Hilda Baker on a very bad day. In second place is know-it-all Joanna who is always ready with her opinions, though why a high-ranking police officer like Slider is discussing serious cases with his new wife is beyond me. Those irritations aside, the Slider books are a very enjoyable read.

I bought this book because I have read many of her books and enjoyed every one of them. This one, however, was a huge disappointment and, in spite of several attempts, I had to abandon it. I found the Egyptology sections, complete with illustrations, extremely boring and unnecessary - more like a text book than a novel. The quantum physics references were also very tedious. I tried skimming past all this, purely to find out what happened, but in the end I got to the point where I really didn't care. I hope her next book will be more entertaining and less educational.

Don't waste your time. Pretentious, baffling, confusing. The Man Booker Prize shortlist is really going downhill.