Diamond Solitaire

When an alarm signalling an intruder sounds, a young Japanese girl is found hiding in the furniture section of Harrod’s. She has no identification, doesn’t speak and appears to be completely unaware of the world around her. Ex-Detective Superintendent Peter Diamond, now working as a security guard at Harrod’s, is fired for this breach, although everyone acknowledges that he is not at fault. His attention, however, is taken by the girl, dubbed Naomi; when no parent steps forward to claim her, she is sent to a live-in school for autistic children. Diamond befriends the girl and begins to achieve a certain amount of connection with her when she is abruptly removed from the school by someone claiming to be her mother. Thus begins show more Diamond’s quest to find the child before the worst happens, taking him from London to New York City to Tokyo and beyond…. There are several interesting things in this, the second Peter Diamond book, including a glimpse into sumo culture in Japan, the cut-throat pharmaceutical industry and the causes and treatment of autism - not to mention Peter Diamond’s single-minded focus on whatever catches his attention. A modern reader must remember that this book was published in 1992; I read it in 2026 and there are huge differences in the understanding and treatment of autism today as opposed to 34 years ago. If the reader can keep that in mind, this is an interesting story to read, as Diamond slowly unravels a very tangled web; recommended. show less

So far I have found this mystery series to be enjoyable. Peter Diamond is the last of the old-school English detective, a true gumshoe. In fact, he was fired from the police service and in this story is a security guard at Harrod's. He has taken up the investigation of a small mute child abandoned in the store while he was on duty. Unfortunately it's a bit too far-fetched to be completely satisfying.

I loved Lovesey's The Last Detective, which introduced the character Peter Diamond. This follow-up, while palpably more far-fetched, is even more entertaining. Fired (er, "resigned") from the cops, Diamond is reduced to working as a night security man at Harrods. One night the alarm goes off, and it's discovered an autistic Japanese toddler has been dumped in Diamond's area. Sacked for negligence, he decides to solve the mystery of where the little girl came from, a quest that takes him eventually to NYC and to Japan. There are plenty of laugh-out-loud moments (some to do with Diamond's non-prowess as a home handyman, others concerning this very British bobby's interaction with the NYPD), but what sticks more in the mind are the moments show more of genuine emotion. This is a gloriously fast read: get it and read it gloriously fast!

I have a confession to make. Many years ago I took a small daughter to an Author Event at the Exeter (UK) Waterstones. One of the authors was Peter Lovesey. He has the look of an English vicar whose tea parties are the scandal of the parish. He also has extraordinarily bushy eyebrows. He's got extraordinarily bushy eyebrows! said my daughter in one of those whispers that may one day reach Alpha Centauri. Lovesey looked across at us and, if ever eyebrows could be said to twinkle, his did. show less

Diamond Solitaire by Peter Lovesey is the second book in his Peter Diamond Mystery series. This book starts off with an alarm going off indicating an intruder on the 7th floor of Harrods Department Store, a search by police discovers a small Japanese girl. This event causes the 7th floor security guard to be sacked but all investigations into who this little girl is come to a dead end. She doesn’t speak and eventually is placed in a school for autistic children. The security guard who lost his job is none other than Peter Diamond, and he decides to find out who this child is and reunite her with her family if possible.

Curmudgeon Peter Diamond has met his match with this little girl, Naomi. They form a bond and he is devastated when he show more arrives at the school one morning to find she has been taken by someone posing as her mother. As he follows the trail to New York City his journey soon involves a pharmaceutical R&D ethics case and murder. Eventually the trail leads to Japan and an exciting conclusion.

Even though I have now only read two books of this series, it is fast becoming a favorite. The gruff but tender-hearted Peter Diamond is just one of the many interesting characters in this book. Some of the others include a group of autistic children, a sumo wrestler, and, after coming into contact with Diamond, some very frustrated cops. Diamond Solitaire was a fun read and I am looking forward to the next book. show less

Good readable storytelling, with a complex plot.
Disgraced police detective Peter Diamond travels the world to identify a young Japanese girl abandoned in Harrods department store in London. The story starts in Italy, moves to London, New York and finally to Yokohama in Japan. It's fast-moving and eventful, e.g. Diamond gets thrown into the Hudson River in New York! It's informative as well as entertaining. Readers get short courses on autism, the pharmaceutical industry, insider trading stock manipulation, and sumo wrestling. Peter stands out of course as a character. He's immersed in the story in a different role than before. He's no longer a police officer and needs to use his wits and intuition to solve the mystery.
Recommended.

Now, this is Peter Lovesey at his best. Some of the slick writing that appears in later books does not appear here. True, the Peter Diamon here is a much broader character not bogged down by the requirements of his job as Detective Superintendent, but this Peter Diamond is a more interesting character than usual.

After enjoying the first Peter Diamond mystery from Peter Lovesey, I was a little disappointed in the second novel in the series. Diamond has now "resigned" from the police force and is working as a security guard turned private detective in search of the family of an autistic Japanese girl abandoned in a department store.

The premise of the book is beyond far-fetched. After leaving the police force, there is NO WAY that Peter Diamond could possibly have access to the places and information he needs to help him in his search. To me, it would have worked better if his character would have been allowed to stay on with the police. It would have made things much more credible. If not for this, I would have given the novel a 4 star.