Probably a 3.75 really. Typical John Harvey/Resnick. Gritty, very evocative, unglamorous and compelling. ( )

Easy Meat by John Harvey is the eighth book in his Charlie Resnick series and in this outing Charlie and his team have arrested a young offender who is charged with viciously beating an older couple during the course of a robbery. When this young offender is found dead of an apparent suicide while in the custody of social services no one is too concerned but when a senior officer who is investigating this incident is found murdered, alarm bells go off.

More than a simple police procedural, John Harvey paints a vivid picture of the dark side of life, a hopelessly damaged family and a society that cares more about covering their tracks than in exposing the evilness that can prey on the helpless. The story unfolds with a hard edged reality that makes this a page turner. After eight books I feel that I know these characters and can appreciate the growth that the author is allowing them. ( )

I will definately be reading this author again.

A fifteen year old boy has committed suicide while in secure accomodation following his attack on an elderly couple. Nobody except DI Charlie Resnick seems to care until the investigating officer (Bill Aston) is brutally murdered. Resnick takes over the case which leads to him meeting and falling for Hannah Campbell. ( )

http://www.austcrimefiction.org/node/3266 ( )