Search

Search only in certain items:

Old Friends and New Enemies (Charlie Cameron #2)
Old Friends and New Enemies (Charlie Cameron #2)
Owen Mullen | 2016 | Contemporary, Crime, Fiction & Poetry
9
8.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Glasgow private detective Charlie Cameron finds himself out of his depth when he finds out that an old friend has been killed. Getting on the wrong side of an organised crime family would be bad enough but just when he needs hits wits about him the personal nature of the case clouds his judgement. And things aren't made easier by a police detective with a grudge who thinks he is guilty.

This is a terrifically gritty crime novel. Glasgow is a good setting for this kind of work and Mullen does a great job of describing the city and the surroundings. Cameron is a very likeable character and seems very believable. The rest of the cast are just as well defined, from Cameron's slightly dodgy friend to the Rafferty family who are nasty but with a solid basis on why they are.

As the plot unfolds the reader knows more than Cameron which makes some of his mis-steps in dealing with the case agonising to read when he puts himself in more danger when he is trying to extricate himself. The ending ties everything up neatly but don't expect a fairy tale ending.

Overall this is a terrific crime novel and if the other Cameron books are anything like this then it will be a series to get hold of.
  
Knives Out (2019)
Knives Out (2019)
2019 | Comedy, Crime, Drama
Bravura Agatha Christie pastiche from Rian Johnson. A successful writer turns up dead in suspicious circumstances, and a renowned private detective finds himself retained to investigate the situation. There are various unpleasant and scheming relatives and an implausibly convoluted plot unfolds before the denouement: the film is almost self-consciously modern in many ways, but hits all the right beats for a whodunnit in the classic style.

It mainly manages this thanks to Johnson's mastery of tone - this is a sly, playful movie, full of big performances as comically grotesque characters. Daniel Craig is clearly having rather too much fun as the Poirot-proxy and I can imagine him wanting to play this fellow again once he's finished with that other well-known role of his. An impressive performance from Ana de Armas as well. Pure entertainment, superbly done: lots and lots of fun.