The Raven's Eye

Readers invariably get more than just a taut mystery from author Barry Maitland; they get an education. The Marx Sisters served up a slice of Marxist history along with its roller-coaster ride of a mystery; The Chalon Heads brought the desiccated world of high-powered philately to life; The Verge Practice allowed Maitland, himself a noted architect, to deliver a valentine to modern architecture; No Trace revealed the sardonic, self-referential world of post-modern art. So it is with The Raven’s Eye, Maitland’s 12th novel in the Kathy Kolla-David Brock series, which explores the cutting edge of tracking technology and the grainy edges of medical ethics.

The novel also acquaints readers about the many narrowboats on the Regent’s show more Canal, which leads west to the Grand Union Canal and eastward to the Thames River. Indeed, the case begins with the death of a young woman aboard a narrowboat on the Regent’s Canal; the death is quickly attributed to carbon monoxide poisoning from a malfunctioning diesel stove and declared an accident, but it doesn’t quite smell right to Kathy. Due to budget cuts instituted by the new commander, Kathy; her boss, Brock, and the rest of Brock’s team are told not to waste time and resources on the young woman’s death; however, when it’s discovered that the woman was living under an assumed name, Kathy and Brock continue to look into the death of Gudrun Kite (her real name). What they find will have you reeling! Kathy has stumbled into dangerous situations before, but never like this!

The Raven’s Eye delivers a suspense-filled police procedural that you want to devour in one sitting. My one regret? That I’ll have to wait an entire year to find out about Kathy and Brock’s next adventure. show less

This was quite an engrossing read, although I had to break off a couple of times for a rest out of exasperation at Kathy putting herself into danger for the billionth time (just in this one novel). The plot was far-fetched (as is standard), but this was coupled with a sort of siege mentality where Kathy and Brock were deprived of all autonomy by the officers above them. It was like reading about people being bullied into colluding in their own destruction.

If I wasn't convinced of it before, this title firmly sets Barry Maitland in my mind as an Australian crime fiction author up there with the best. His writing is quietly assured, and although there are elements of the plot that strain the bounds of credibility, Maitland is very persuasive. Poor Kathy Kolla seems to be in the firing line in more ways than one in THE RAVEN'S EYE, and both she and David Brock are very plausible and likeable characters.

If you share my tastes, then you'll enjoy this thriller written by an Australian author but set mainly in London.If you haven't yet met this pair of sleuths then you have a manageable series of 12 titles to tackle. And you know what I will say: read them in order! Although to be honest there show more is not much overlap from title to title so you can read them as stand alones. show less

The Raven's Eye is a rare miss by Barry Maitland in his Brock & Kolla series. It's well-written and I still really like the lead characters, but there's too much going on in this novel, too many plot twists and things that are so unlikely to really happen that I had a suspicion about 2/3 of the way through that I wasn't going to like the conclusion. I don't want to spoil the plot so I won't go into any further detail, but suffice to say the number of things that were too far along the reasonableness continuum were excessive.

I've enjoyed the Brock & Kolla series quite a bit and look forward to a return to form by Mr. Maitland in the near future. If you're interested in diving into his work, I'd recommend starting from the beginning, not show more with this one. show less

I was surprised to learn I had overlooked this crime fiction series from Scottish born but Australian based author Barry Maitland. The Raven’s Eye is the 12th mystery to feature London police detective’s Kathy Kolla and David Brock but the first I have read and I have to wonder if my lack of history with the characters affected my enjoyment of this novel. The mystery centers around a woman whose death is dismissed as accidental but something about it doesn’t sit right with Kolla. Under pressure from the demanding new Commander to move on, Kolla decides to make some enquiries on her own time slowly unraveling a case which intersects in an unusual way with the force’s hunt for criminal kingpin ‘Butcher’ Jack Bragg. I was show more enjoying the novel quite a lot until about the half way point when Kolla chose to make decisions that I felt even a rookie wouldn’t make, and subsequently the plot began to fall apart eventually fizzling into an ending that barely made any sense. Overall I felt quite disappointed by the execution of The Raven’s Eye show less

I think I have read all of this series from the beginning and in order.

They are very good. I sense that we are coming towards the end, with Brock becoming more senior and more old fashioned ( not really, but in contrast with the new)

Given where I am in my career, I knoe what it feels like. Itust there are a few more books yet!

Big Ship
24 October 2015

Barry Maitland’s Brock and Kolla series is back for its 12th outing with The Raven’s Eye, set on the canals and houseboats of the Thames. Full Review at http://newtownreviewofbooks.com/2013/11/05/crime-scene-garry-disher-bitter-wash-...