Flesh wounds: Return to the Chateau (edition 1979)

Very slow beginning. Lawton has replaced finesse with violence and sex. ( )

This is one of the most fascinating series of books I've ever read, and I recommend it highly. The setting is London, mostly from 1940 until 1960, but little in the series is chronological. Books overlap, and sometimes leapfrog the timelines of subsequently published books, resulting in several teasers, and even enhancing books you've already read. So a reference may be made to a famous arrest following a gunbattle that happened prior to the storyline of a book, but the details may not happen, in "real" time until a subsequent book. And it works ! I have to refrain from reading the remaining books in the series to see how everything plays out. Before engaging this series, I would often complain about books relying on flashbacks, back and forth, back and forth - seemed gimmicky, but lawton's storytelling takes timelines to a whole new levels. The ultimate is reading a subsequent book and having a character introduced who you know is going to die. And the writing is just excellent. Lots of atmosphere, complex plots mixing, politics, history, sex, and crime. And some of the most incredible scenes take place in a cemetery. My next read, which will be my third, is the first book. Got it? Not easy to get, ordered it secondhand.... ( )