In a Dry Season

Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks remains in the doghouse to which the jealous, stubborn, petty Chief Constable Jimmy Riddle confined him in the previous novel, Blood At The Root. In this novel, Banks investigates a decades’ old skeleton exposed when the Thornfield Reservoir dries out during a summer drought. With Hobb’s End already a dying village due to the closure of the flax mill, the remaining villagers were evacuated, resettled hither and yon, and the village flooded in 1953 to create the Thornfield Reservoir; however, before that, someone killed the gorgeous blonde Gloria and buried her under an outbuilding. Just as the victim couldn’t stay buried under the reservoir, neither can Hobb’s End’s many secrets. But which show more secret killed a twenty-something woman nearly 50 years earlier? And which secret has the power to kill in the here and now?

The narrative shifts from the current investigation to an account of Hobb’s End from 1939 until its ignominious end, but author Peter Robinson deftly ensures that they won’t be confused. Each step forward in the modern-day investigation illuminates the past, just as each revelation in the war account advances the modern-day narrative. In a Dry Season won the Anthony, Barry and Macavity awards and was nominated for Hammett Prize and Edgar Award, and it’s easy to see why: Chapter after chapter, the suspense builds and builds and builds right to the unexpected denouement. The book is the best yet in this series — which is saying a lot!

DCI Banks, when under pressure, lights one cigarette off the last Silk Cut. Like him, I began reading the tenth novel in this series just minutes after finishing the ninth, Blood at the Root, due to its cliffhanger ending. Figuratively lighting the new one on the last, so to speak. Banks is trying to cut down on smoking, but, with novels as exciting as these, I don’t see myself quitting any time soon. show less

This is #10 in the Inspector Banks series. I didn't discover this series until around #13 so I've been trying to read all the books I missed. Unfortunately, I skipped #9 somehow and that might have been the book where Banks family life imploded. At least, at the beginning of this book he is living on his own and his wife and daughter are in London. Obviously, I'll have to get my hands on #9 to find out the details.

The title gives a clue to what the case involves. It's been a very dry summer in Yorkshire and a reservoir that was filled in the 1950s, covering the village of Hobb's End, was dry, exposing the old buildings of the village. Young Adam Kelly was drawn to the abandoned village and decided to explore. He fell through the roof of show more an outbuilding, narrowly missing bodily harm but he did discover some human bones underneath the flooring. Naturally, the police were called and Chief Inspector Alan Banks was named by his superior to head up the investigation. He was told he would find DS Cabbot on the scene and he did. He didn't expect her to be a lovely young woman. Together and separately, the two talk to people who used to live in the village and they determined that the skeleton was that of Gloria Shackleton. Gloria had worked on a farm near to Hobb's End as a land girl during World War II when she met Mathew Shackleton, son of a local shop owner. The pair fell in love and married before Mathew was shipped overseas. Gloria lived in the little cottage next to the outbuilding where she was interred. As Banks and Cabbot investigate, they learn more about Gloria's life. Mathew was thought to have died in Asia but at the end of the war he was discovered in a POW camp. He returned home to Hobb's End a broken man and Gloria, who had been courted by an American serviceman, gave up her freedom to look after him. Did Mathew kill Gloria? You'll have to read the book to learn the full story.

Interspersed in the present day narrative are journal entries from Mathew's sister, Gwen, who is now a famous mystery writer. Gwen reveals many details about Gloria and Mathew and herself during the war and just after. These entries really lifted a police procedural above the common place. show less

A skeleton is found in a dried-up reservoir and the solution to the murder lies half a century in the past. This is a great installment in the series, partially because of the structure (we go back and forth in time) and partially because of the growth of the characters (DCI Banks dealing with his divorce as well as his new relationship with DS Cabbot). The mystery itself is well crafted, but the parts about life in Britain during WWII add an enormous amount of texture to the story which makes it particularly enjoyable.

One thing I have to mention is that the reader of the audio version hasn't quite understood who DCI Banks is and gives him a strong Yorkshire dialect, which makes him sound like a life-time Dales farmer rather than a show more London police officer, so it sounds like he's making fun of whoever he's talking to. So, read a paper version of this one rather than listen to it unless you want Banks to sound like he's mocking everyone. show less

The best of the Inspector Banks novels, and most of them are pretty good. This one shines because a lot of the narrative takes place in a WWII-era provincial village. Robinson does a good job of recreating the feel of that time & place. Our time spent with Banks is relatively limited and the arc of his story isn't really advanced very far through this story. One feels this could well have been a stand-alone, but it works very well in any case.

I agree with a number of people that this is a great series and that this book is where the series steps over to be a serious contender in the great mystery series genre. I have enjoyed the books up to now, but they did not really prepare me for the complexity of this novel. Robinson's Chief Inspector Banks is a wonderful creation. This is a book that blends the past and the present and Robinson does this seamlessly. We flit back and forth from present-day England to England during the Second World War. The book is definitely more than an exciting murder mystery. It is an exploration of human behaviour and it is very provocatively written. Banks is currently suffering a bit both in his career and in his personal life, so when a skeleton show more is discovered buried under a reservoir that has dried up due to drought, he knows that this case will be one that will reshape his career and hopefully add some meaning to his life as he has been trying to get used to be separated from his wife of 20 years. Even he doesn't anticipate where pursuit of the solution of this case will take him. For anyone who loves to read intelligently written British police procedural mysteries, do not miss Peter Robinson. show less

Reading Peter Robinson’s series about DCI Alan Banks has me wanting to drink more gin and tonics, eat more pub style food and wanting to visit Yorkshire. This is book # 10 in the DCI Banks series and I am already tucked into the next book. More on that one later. I am absolutely addicted to these police procedurals and will be at a loss when I have caught up with Robinson’s latest books.

In a Dry Season starts with skeletal remains being discovered under an old outbuilding. A boy is exploring village structures which had been underwater for over 50 years. The village had been flooded to create a reservoir long ago but with drought conditions, the reservoir dried out, this old town emerges. It’s mostly preserved and as you can show more imagine, a child would love to snoop around in such a magical looking place. The boy falls through the roof of a structure and discovers the human bones.

The mystery starts with DCI Banks being assigned to this remote little corner, teaming up with DC Annie Cabot. They have to determine if the remains are from an accident or a covered up murder. How can they possibly know who this was or what happened since the place has been underwater for so many years. The side story features a mystery novelist who is clearly upset when she views the emerging story on television news. Obviously she knows something, you can tell that from the first few pages of her storyline, but how much involvement or information does she have? The story moves back and forth between present day and 1941 in the war era.

This book and Final Account have been my favorites so far. I love how Alan Banks’ character continues to develop and hearing about his personal life interjected into the investigation.

I am already reading Cold is the Grave, book #11. Totally addicted! show less

This is No. 10 in the Inspector Alan Banks series. I have not read any of the others, but this was handed to me with a recommendation by a friend who borrows a lot of books from me, so I felt I should give it a go.

In the late 20th century, a Yorkshire village that had been flooded to create a reservoir in the 1950's re-emerges during a dry spell, and a young boy playing among the ruins discovers the skeletal remains of a murder victim. Who was she? How long has she been there? Did no one ever miss her when she disappeared? Who killed her? Why? All the usual questions. The investigation takes us back to World War II, as DI Banks searches for the answers.

I found the story premise intriguing, but it needed to be tightened up a bit in the show more telling. And probably because I hadn't read any of the earlier books and didn't have an attachment for the main character, his personal story line just got in the way for me. Even though elements of that personal story were left unresolved at the end, I don't feel much inclined to explore this series further. I have been told by others who have read more of it that this installment is one of the best. 3 stars is all I can give it.
Read and reviewed in 2011
Note for 2023: Other respected readers have recently encouraged me to read this series, and I mean to begin at the beginning very soon. show less