John Madden's

The Dead of Winter: A John Madden Mystery
$25.95
"The Dead of Winter," by Rennie Airth, focuses on a series of grisly murders that take place in different countries across the span of many years. Following a prologue set in Paris just before the German occupation, Airth jumps to a bitterly cold London in 1944. The British hope that the "Luftwaffe had finally shot its bolt." Unfortunately, while the danger of flying bombs and V-2 rockets still exists, air raid wardens continue to make their rounds and blackout curtains remain in place.

On a pitch dark night, one warden stumbles upon the body of a female homicide victim. Overseeing the investigation is Chief Inspector Angus Sinclair, who is seventy, suffers from gout, and was ready to retire when the assistant commissioner convinced him to stay on in a supervisory capacity. Sinclair eventually learns that the victim had worked for an old friend of his, a former detective named John Madden. Angus invites John, a creative thinker who sees connections that others miss, to offer whatever insights he can to help solve the case. As the inquiries proceed and the bodies pile up, it becomes clear that the murderer, who is still at large, is a vicious and clever sociopath who plans his crimes carefully and eludes capture with ease. Can he be caught before he takes even more lives?

Airth's strength is his vivid depiction of wartime England as a place where food is scarce; wives worry themselves sick over their absent husbands; and those who remain at home try to help their families, friends, and neighbors survive from day to day. The author's large cast of characters includes the aforementioned Angus, who wants to close out his career on a high note; John Madden, a gentleman farmer who cannot resist the temptation to track down a felon who considers himself above the law; Bess Brigstock, a tough old bird with a soft spot for those is need; and Lily Poole, an ambitious young constable who will do anything to impress her superiors. The villain of the piece is sketchily drawn. He is depicted as a master of disguise who changes his identity at will, and executes his victims quickly, stealthily, and without remorse.

The plot of "The Dead of Winter" is so complex that it requires a scorecard to make sense of its byzantine trajectory. The author has a tendency to digress, and although his tangents can be engrossing, they slow down the action considerably. To his credit, however, Airth beautifully captures the atmosphere of London during the Second World War, when challenging times brought out the worst in some individuals but the best in others.

River of Darkness: A John Madden Mystery
$15.00
Among the best I've read in a long time, "River of Darkness" is well conceived and equally well written. The characters and plot are successfully drawn and largely plausible. And the time and place of the story are quite attractive.

A few problems:

There's some occasional contrivance, excess drama, and the story is somewhat drawn out.

Dr. Helen Blackwell, while more likeable than not, is that most tiresome of characters -- "a woman ahead of her time". The implication is that what's considered a typical woman of our current era is, by definition, a distinct improvement over a woman of an earlier time. This is "presentism", the groundless and knee-jerk belief that the present is inherently superior to the past.

Also, I like that Rennie Airth introduces psychological profiling as a new (in 1921) technique in criminal investigations. He doesn't note, however, that profiling is no longer perceived as the be-all and end-all in investigating serial murders. Though still a tool, it's increasingly viewed as a most imperfect and trendy one. It won't have the staying power of, say, fingerprints. And at the time of "River of Darkness", such profiling (if it had existed) would have been wholly Freudian (as Airth recognizes). Well, Freudian theory was wrong then and has been almost completely discarded today. I don't believe that Inspector John Madden would have found it truly helpful in finding the killer. Indeed, it might well have sent him down the wrong path.

Still, this is a most original, imaginative, entertaining, and diverting read. Strongly recommended.

NFL Super Bowl Collection - Oakland Raiders
$19.98
I bought this for my 16 year old brother and he is obsessed with the Raiders. It is an excellent idea for your favorite Raider fan!

The Blood-Dimmed Tide: A John Madden Mystery (Penguin Mysteries)
$14.00
Airth does a fantastic job of ensuring readers understand and empathize with all characters with the exception of the bad guy. This second John Madden historical thriller follows River of Darkness. It sets Madden, Sinclair, and others against a very slippery killer approximately a decade later as the Nazi's were coming to power. The Blood-Dimmed Tide (I remember the W.B. Yeats poem) does a great job of integrating Madden but not necessarily as the lead character as the action follows many of the characters with equal weight and respect. The serial killer / historical thriller is a great genre and it takes a fine author to ensure it does not turn cartoonish. Airth never lets it stray. The thriller portion keeps the pace, the historical a fine depiction of the era and the gathering storm, and the serial killer...well I won't give anything away. Bottom-line - read it (it can be consumed even if you have not read the first one). I am looking forward to The Dead of Winter!