The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths

The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths is the 4th entry in Harry Bingham’s police procedural series featuring Detective Fiona Griffiths. In this outing Fiona goes undercover trying to expose a high level computer scam that is in the process of siphoning off millions from various companies and is also leaving behind a number of dead bodies.

It’s the excellently developed characters that make this story special and unique. In particular it is Fiona herself who holds the reader’s attention and although the story is told from her perspective, we don’t always perceive or understand her mindset. Fiona is still suffering the after-effects of a mental illness called Cotard’s Syndrome and she has difficulty understanding the nuances and show more complexities of human conversation and interactions. Developing a new personality for her undercover work is particularly dangerous for her as she begins to have trouble separating her new self from her old and this escalates to an even higher level when a third identity is needed. This brave and feisty character is fascinating and ever changing. The other character that stood out for me was Vic, who at times is threatening and scary while at others shows a caring humanity.

The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths is an excellent addition to this series, the intricate plot is clever and explained in easily understood ways, the writing helps to set the rapid fire pace and although Fiona throws herself into dangerous situations without fully thinking about consequences, the author keeps the story plausible and leaves the reader eager for more. show less

Warning: this review contains spoilers

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The life of an undercover cop is dangerous: isolation from family and friends, stress from having to maintain your "legend", and severe consequences if you blow your cover. Fiona Griffiths, never one to resist a challenge, takes a course on how to be an undercover cop and passes with flying colours. Next comes an opportunity to put her skills into practice: a payroll fraud scheme with national and international implications. Can she get the goods, crack the case, and above all, maintain her sense of self? Sometimes it's difficult to figure out who she is as Fiona Griffiths. Will her legend take over her life?

This was a nail-biter of a book, especially because the reader is in Fiona's head as she show more inserts herself ever deeper into the scheme to get the information her colleagues need. She possesses great reserves of determination and grit, going deeper and risking more than she probably should, but you can't help but admire her for it.

Fiona also wrestles with questions of identity and the self: she already difficulty naming her emotions and feeling things, and with another identity to maintain on top of her own, there is the risk that she might become subsumed into that identity and lose touch with Fiona Griffiths. Watching her interact with "Fiona Grey" as another person is an interesting exercise. Most people have multiple versions of themselves inside them; however, most of us don't need to bring them to life as a cover story for an undercover operation.

Some more romantic readers may be disappointed to see that Fiona breaks up with Buzz, but it is a sign of how much she's learned about herself, and how strong she has become, that she is able to make this decision. (Confession: I was a bit teary during the scene where she breaks up with him.)

I've immediately requested the next book in the series, which very few series make me do. Another job well done by Harry Bingham. show less

Quite simply put, I love this series. Three books featuring Fiona Griffiths have been published so far. I've read all three, and I've given all three the highest rating possible. I've never done that before, and it will probably be a long time before I do it again.

My passion for this series has everything to do with the marvelous character Harry Bingham has created. Fiona Griffiths has Cotard's syndrome, a rare mental illness in which the afflicted person is deluded into thinking that they are dead, either figuratively or literally. This affects everything about her. Her behavior. What she eats. If she eats. The way she views the world. What she thinks of other people. Everything. What Fiona wants most in the world is to be a citizen of show more the planet Normal, and she has to work hard at it. She has to remember to say the things that her boyfriend expects to hear, for instance.

She's a by-the-book supervisor's nightmare. On the Cardiff police force, she's usually given work that's performed alone because she works best that way-- even if she has grown tired of it. If you begin reading the series from the beginning (Talking to the Dead)-- which I recommend you do-- Fiona's going to seem downright weird. But there's something appealing about her. Perhaps it's because she tries so hard to be normal. Before you know it, you realize that Fiona's stopped being weird; you've actually grown to care about her and to want her to succeed.

The plot of The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths is guaranteed to tie you into knots. The absolute worst thing a person with Cotard's syndrome can do is to work undercover, but that's exactly what Fiona does-- for months at a time. As I watched her begin to melt into her undercover persona, I actually became worried. This book-- and the entire series-- is something that you can easily lose yourself inside, just like Fiona Griffiths is losing herself in Fiona Grey.

The gang she finds herself working for puts her through incredible security measures, and her isolation grows steadily since the only person she has any real contact with is Vic, the extremely violent security specialist for the villains. Fiona's own unpredictability adds to the suspense and to a very real feeling of danger. You never know what she's going to do. Has she just done something incredibly stupid that's ultimately going to get her killed? Or has she just done something brilliant that will convince the bad guys that she's completely under their thumb?

Yes... you can read this book as a standalone if you must, but I don't recommend it. If you're looking for an excellent characterization and tightly woven, exciting plots, you deserve to read every single Fiona Griffith book. Fiona deserves it, too. She's brilliant. show less

The third book in a police procedural series featuring one of the most unusual detectives I've come cross: Fiona Griffiths was stricken in adolescence with Cotard's Syndrome, a belief that she was already dead or did not exist. She's somewhat recovered but still struggles to make connections with her own feelings and with the "regular humans" who surround her. In some ways, her illness makes her an ideal candidate for undercover police work, infiltrating a white-collar fraud that is larger than anyone suspects. It's jarring but evocative when as the first-person narrator, Fiona casually refers to herself as "we" while undercover, blurring the line between Fiona Griffiths and her alter-ego, Fiona Grey, who in many ways is a more show more comfortable persona for her. Beyond the interest of the characters, the plot here is also first-rate and kept me turning pages to see how it would all end up. Ongoing storylines involving Fiona's father and her boyfriend also get a jolt. show less

If you haven't read the first two books don't read this review - go find those books and read them first. You'll need them to understand some of this story. Plus you'll enjoy two more really great reads.

Fiona Griffiths is masterfully written, and I don't say that often. Fiona pulls you and drags you into things you really don't want to know, especially what's in her head. But with all that crazy mess Bingham writes a story where you sometimes wonder if YOU, the reader is a bit crazy because you can feel yourself connecting with this very disturbed individual.

This time around Fiona has a lot going on in her life; she's going on a holiday, her boyfriend wants to get more serious and she's scheduled to take a course about undercover work. show more She also is wondering if her dad is still involved in crime and is still hoping to figure out what happened to her when she was two. So when she excels in the uncover course and is assigned for some short-term work she's stretched a bit thin. But as always, Fiona goes above and beyond. I was as frustrated with the ending as Fiona was - but then I realized this could just lead to more stories so I'll wait for more books. show less

Solid thriller, though the least in the series thus far. Split personality was handled well. Decent read, kept my interest albeit fell a bit short of truly compelling.

This is not really a review, more of a directive: read this series!! If you like murder mysteries and detectives who are a bit off the beaten path, then this is the book for you. Fiona, a quirky individual, goes undercover in this, the third in the series. Fi has some of her own identity issues, so having to navigate who she is and who she is supposed to be and remembering the difference was fascinating. Several of the regular characters have smallish parts, but it didn't dampen my love for this book. I don't want to say much more or give anything away. Just know that this is my favorite one so far!