Cold is the Grave

“... he realized with a shock that the loss of innocence never stopped happening, that he was still losing it, that it was like a wound that never healed, and he would probably go on losing it, drop by drop, until the day he died.” — Peter Robinson, “Cold Is the Grave”

That Peter Robinson closes “Cold Is the Grave” (2000) with the words above tells us something not just about this particular novel but about his entire series of Inspector Banks novels: This is serious stuff. This is quality stuff. Here is a fictional detective hero who actually feels something about his cases, about the victims and the families of the victims and even about the villains whose actions cause so much suffering. So many fictional crime solvers show more seem to forget one case when they start another. Banks remembers, and so innocence drips out of him like blood from a wound.
Chief Constable Jimmy Riddle doesn't like Banks, but when his 16-year-old daughter runs away to London and subsequently appears on a porn site, he asks Banks to bring her back, but in an unofficial capacity rather than as a police officer. Riddle may not like Banks, but he knows he can do the job.

Banks does find Emily Riddle — in the company of a suspected mobster — and takes her home. Days later Emily dies in a pub after taking cocaine laced with poison. Banks takes her death hard, both because he thought he had just rescued her from danger but also because she is close in age to his own daughter.

Meanwhile, told by his wife that she wants a divorce, he reignites his affair with Annie Cabot, the officer who serves under him in this always-interesting series of crime novels, yet Annie wrestles with her own demons when a cop who had once participated in a gang rape of her shows up to assist in another case.

This novel may be longer than most of those in the series, but it never slows down and never seems too long. show less

Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks' life is shaken to the core when he is unexpectedly pulled into the investigation of a young girl's disappearance in this shattering suspense novel from the hand of a modern master. When the nude photo of a teenage runaway shows up on a website, the girl's father turns to Detective Chief Inspector Alan banks for help. But these aren’t unusual circumstances, for the runaway is the daughter of a man who's determined to destroy the dedicated Yorkshire policeman's career and good name. Still, it’s a case that Banks—a father himself—dares not ignore as he follows its trail into teeming London. But when a series of gruesome murders follows soon after, Banks finds himself pulled into the past and show more private world of his most powerful enemy, Chief Constable Jimmy Riddle. One can never escape their pasts—especially when there are sordid secrets waiting to be revealed.

It's a very engaging, dark mystery. Through the foolishness of the teenage daughter of his nemesis, Chief Constable Riddle, the recurring protagonist...CI Alan Banks gets caught up in the drug world in and beyond London. It seems that Chief Constable "Jimmy" Riddle may be becoming "a more likable human being"...if that is even possible... as he overcomes his extreme dislike for Alan Banks and has to ask for his help.

All of the characters in Peter Robinson's Alan Banks series seem real and believable. Alan Banks is heroism personified...Cabot is tough and vulnerable. Together they are a force to be reckoned with. The plot is complicated enough to keep you guessing to the very end. show less

Robinson's Alan Banks series is getting better and better. Each book is complex and the mystery is never straight-forward and easy to figure out. I had seen this particular one done for television before I read the book. As usual though, the book was much, much better because there's more time to develop a storyline and a plot. And Robinson's writing is wondefully easy to read while being intricate and detailed at the same time. Banks is a very realistic character and after reading eleven of Robinson's Banks books now I feel that I'm really getting to know this character and I can't believe how multi-facted he is. In this book, Banks is asked by his supervisor to find his sixteeen year old daughter who has run away to London. He is show more asked to do it off the books, and Banks being Banks, is very thorough in his search. He finds young Emily but he uncovers a real rat's nest of intrigue that she has become enmeshed in. Almost ineveitably the web of lies, deceit and crime follow Banks and Emily all the way back to Yorkshire when he brings her home. I can tell you that if I ever found myself "in a spot of trouble", I would dearly love to have Alan Banks in my corner. I can't recommend this series enough. show less

I thoroughly enjoyed my return to DCI Banks. I think that the series is just too big to be satisfied by a sprint through the entire oeuvre.

Banks has his personal issues but, they are kept in their proper place: subservient to the plot.

What I particularly admire about Mr Robinson's books is that they have the expected plot twist but, it never appears contrived. In this particular tale, it seems to be immediately apparent who committed the crimes and that all that is needed is the proof. As the investigation continues, however, inconvenient facts start to emerge which leads to a vault face in the last few pages.

Once the details of the real criminal are exposed, the reader has to admit that, not only does the new solution make perfect show more sense, but that the clues were there to be found.

An excellent book. show less

I've not been too impressed with Robinson up to now, but this one does have a bit more to offer in terms of complexity of characters and plot. Still, the language is a bit flat and the dialogue never really comes to life. And there is far too much reliance on some of the more tired clichés of the genre. Someone ought to tell Robinson that it's not compulsory for female characters to have long shapely legs and cross them at the ankle. Or for detectives to spend more time deciding what to drink next than they do on solving crimes...

Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks and jealous, stubborn, petty Chief Constable Jimmy Riddle have been at odds since they first met a few books back. But despite their enmity, a desperate Riddle comes to Banks and begs him to help him find his daughter, who has run away from home and disappeared into London.

Banks hates Riddle, but he thinks of his own daughter Tracy, and his fatherly feelings persuade him to take up the task of finding the willful wild child, 16-year-old Emily Riddle. Readers will be best served by going into this roller coaster of a book — the eleventh in Peter Robinson’s wonderful series — with as little foreknowledge as possible.

While not as wonderful as the immediately previous novel, the award-winning In A show more Dry Season, that would be asking too much. I really enjoyed Cold Is the Grave although I was a bit disappointed in the ending. I’ll be getting to No. 12, Aftermath, as soon as I can.

As to narrators, I didn’t like Ron Keith as much as I liked James Langton, who has narrated the previous books, Keith did a good enough job to make me glad that I read an audiobook. show less

After a reorganization, Annie Cabbot is now assigned to work out of Eastvale with DCI Banks. It is no secret that Chief Constable Jimmy Riddle dislikes Banks, so when Banks is summoned to the man's home, he is surprised. Riddle wants Banks to track down his missing daughter in an unofficial capacity. Banks locates the girl hanging with the wrong crowd in London, but things take some interesting turns from there. I'll leave it at that so I don't spoil the plot for anyone. Shortly after Banks returns, a night watchman with a criminal past ends up dead. Banks sends Cabot to do the initial interviews but with other things happening of more importance, he ends up passing that one off to DS Hatchley. Banks calls on his old friend "Dirty Dick" show more Burgess to help with some aspects of the major crime. I thought a few things might be left unresolved to come back in a future episode, but they ended up being resolved at the very end. I enjoyed this one, and I can't wait to see who the new chief constable will be. I listened to the audiobook. show less