I wonder why these two books were chosen for an omnibus: they are both cracking tales, and have finally converted me to a DCI Banks fan. I shall be adding all the other titles in the series over the next few months. The odd thing is that they are in reverse chronological order and separated by several titles so, in the first story, Banks' marriage has irretrievably broken down, whilst in the second, it is showing strain.

I shall not spoil either plot, although, I recognised the second and had that pleasing felling of always being one step ahead of the detective, without remembering it clearly enough to be certain. I have either borrowed it from a library, or the story has been stolen, possibly by one of the TV detectives.

Thinking about what I particularly like about the DCI Banks books, I would say that it is the fact that we are not constantly bombarded with more and more obscure and sensational deaths through out the book. I am also enamoured of the way that Banks reaches a conclusion and the matter is tied up, but there may well be loose ends; life does not hand out neat conclusions.

The books are an easy read; I managed 850 pages in a few days, but never trite. To repeat an earlier observation, I shall be reading more of Mr Robinson's work. ( )