The Dead of Winter

I fell in love with Rennie Airth’s writing when I read River of Darkness, which was such a dark, clever story that I began to recommend it to library patrons constantly. The horrifyingly good writing continued in The Blood-Dimmed Tide and now returns in Dead of Winter, which picks up the story of John Madden 20 years after we got to know him in Airth’s first book.

Old friends abound in Dead of Winter – Madden, his engaging wife Helen (who I always picture as Helen Mirren for some reason…), and his old cronies from the Yard, Angus Sinclair and Billy Styles. Madden has been retired and enjoying life as a farmer for two decades, when he is pulled back into the world of murder and mayhem by the murder of his “land girl,” Rosa show more Nowak.

Rosa, a Polish refugee who narrowly escaped the Nazi occupation and certain death, is found brutally murdered in a London alley while on the way to visit her only remaining relative, an aunt. The murder lands in the laps of Angus Sinclair and Billy Styles, who are stymied by the randomness and brutality of the murder. Once they discover the girl’s relationship to Madden, his involvement in the crime becomes inevitable, leading up to a tense and well-laid climax.

Airth’s writing is, as usual, eloquent and evocative without being overbearing. His treatment of the aging detectives and the changing face of London at the end of World War II is poignant — you can feel the tiredness and dejection of these men and women left to keep peace on the home front in the midst of aerial bomb attacks.

There are some new characters here who I hope Airth plans to write about again, especially Lily Poole, a female street cop who was first on the scene of Rosa Nowak’s murder. Poole gets pulled into the detective work required to track down the slippery killer and earns the admiration and respect of the brass with her plucky, clever ways.

The plot unfolds at a somewhat gentle pace, which some might find predictable and boring but which totally appeals to me. I had time to think about what was going to happen next and didn’t feel the urgency some mysteries evoke that makes me want to read the end first. Dead of Winter is a treat to be savored slowly. You’ll be glad you did. show less

The Dead of Winter was a pick for my mystery book club, and it is the first book that I have read by Airth. Airth does a good job at creating World War II England providing the reader with the experience of this war torn country. During one of the blackouts, a young woman is murdered. Rosa's murder probably wouldn't receive much attention except for the fact that her employer is none other than former police investigator John Madden. Madden refuses to let the case go, and several other police officers become just as involved in solving this crime which ends up leading to an international criminal. Other than Madden, my favorite character was Lily, a young woman beginning her career as a detective. Airth does a good job with character show more development and the reader gets a real feel for all of the characters and their relationships to each other both personal and professional. The mystery was very good and kept the reader guessing. Overall this was a great read, and I would like to read Madden's other adventures. show less

This is the third book in Airth's John Madden series but the first one that I have read. I don't think that one needed to read the first two to understand the third - it seemed to stand on its own.

When I first started this book, I really enjoyed it. It seemed to be an interesting mystery. However, about half way through the book, the identity of the murderer had been determined, as well as why the murders took place. The only thing left for the second half of the book was to actually catch the murderer. To me, having this take the entire second half of the book was too long to keep my interest.

This is the third John Madden historical mystery, set in England near the end of World War II. The first two books established a pattern that this book also follows. A murder victim is discovered and as the investigation goes on, the author shows other characters who will play into the resolution even if there's no obvious reason how or why. In the first book, we saw the killer's pov; in the next two, the killer's identity becomes known early on. This isn't a traditional mystery as much as a look at crime detection at the time, how the local police and Scotland Yard handled unusual criminals whose motives aren't clear. And as with the other books, it's the characters that make the story worth reading. I enjoyed it a lot, but not as much show more as the first two because of that pattern. Things fell into place as I was expecting and therefore, there weren't any surprises or real suspense this time, despite how well the book is written. And there is a wonderful woman cop who gets a chance to help out the detective squad at the Yard, and I'd love to see a book featuring her. show less

I love the John Madden series. In this one we've skipped ahead about 20 years since the last one. World War II is winding down. It's November 1944 when the book opens. The actions takes place in London and also near John Madden's home in Surrey. John is a happy man. He's happily married to his doctor wife Helen and their two children are grown. Rob is serving on a British merchant seaman and Lucy is working with the army in London. On the cold, black streets of London a particularly ruthless killer is wreaking havoc. John gets drawn in when his young Polish Land girl is brutally married on a London street. John just can't let it go, so he starts digging while working with his former co-workers in the CID. The clues lead the team to show more wartime Paris, and other European cities as this nasty killer's crimes start to be discovered. There's lots of tension and Rennie Airth's characters are very well-drawn I highly recommend this series. show less

On reflection this is a troubled book that isn't quite as good as it should be. The core problem is the question as to whether the criminal is really believable? Layers of complexity are piled on, yet strangely it's unsatisfying, and slowly, steadily elements of credibility are easily unpicked in the readers' mind, ultimately leaving you somewhat flat. This means you're relying a lot on Airth's ability to portray the distant world of 1940s England, and here there's not quite enough.

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The Dead of Winter. A John Madden Mystery set in World War II England. Rennie Airth. 2009. The first two of he novels in this series were excellent. I didn’t enjoy this one as much. There was less John Madden in the plot than in the others. Rather than being set in the country-side it was set in London. Madden’s former colleagues
at Scotland Yard did more “detecting” than Madden did. A young Polish woman, a refugee who was working for the Maddens is murdered in London; the plot revolves around the search for her murderer. I sort of bogged down in the middle and got the characters confused, the conclusion was exciting. Turns out there are 2 more books in the series. I really enjoy reading about every day life in England during WWII.