Paul Smith

I was late the this series, this being the fifth installment on Hawthorne. Whether this influenced me or not I'm unsure, but I found this a rather sprawling tale with lots of filling. The first 300 or so pages were spent introducing a rather long list of characters (suspects) only thereafter did it start to resemble anything like a page turner as the plot started show itself. Pleasant enough book but nothing remarkable for me I'm afraid.

Years ahead of its time. As relevant now as it was in 79. Quite simply a masterpiece.