An April Shroud (1975)

Finally seeing some of Dalziel's personal side unfortunately with very little Pascoe in the mix. I found the numerous characters a bit confusing but I was reading multiple books at the same time so I can't put it all on the book. Overall I'm enjoying the series and look forward to further developments. ( )

Fourth in the Dalziel and Pascoe series. The previous book focused on Peter Pascoe and his involvement as a witness rather than a policeman, after finding his friends murdered. This one focuses on Andy Dalziel finding himself in a similar situation. The difference here is that Dalziel finds himself amongst strangers, and it's not entirely clear for some time whether there is a crime at all, and if so what it is.

Dalziel is supposed to be going on holiday after attending Pascoe's wedding, but finds himself stranded by a flood, and invites himself to stay with the funeral party who rescue him. The newly widowed Bonnie Fielding has more troubles on her mind than the loss of her husband -- their fledgling Banqueting Hall business needs to be up and running soon, or the business, and the family, will be bankrupt. Dalziel gets entangled in what at first seems like an entertaining diversion, but when more corpses appear, he has unpleasant choices to make.

A good read in its own right, but I found it even better when I read it in sequence. This book develops Dalziel as a character, showing him as off-duty as he gets, and telling us something about him as a person as well as a policeman. ( )

Definitely, one of the superior series. Dalziel on vacation gets semi-human. ( )