Dead Simple (Roy Grace series Book 1) (alkuperäinen julkaisuvuosi 2005; vuoden 2008 painos)

Dead Simple is the first Peter James novel I have ever read and I found it very entertaining and enjoyable. His central character is the very determined and strong willed police officer, Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, whom I found to be quite unorthodox and a very likeable character. The book starts out with a bachelor party gone wrong. Michael Harrison, who is about to get married, is on his way to the bachelor party hosted by his five best friends. They have designed something unusual and potentially highly dangerous. Because they suffered Michael's often tasteless pranks they have decided to pay him back by burying him alive in a coffin for a few hours. But when the deed is done the four of them (one friend has been delayed and is supposed to join them later) will lose their lives in a car crash, leaving Michael in a very dangerous position.

This is the just the first of many twists in this story. Mark, the one who missed the fun and knows exactly where his friend is, has an agenda of his own and prefers not to say anything to the police. All this raises your anticipation of what will be coming next. It's all the things a good thriller should be. It locks you in right from the start with lots of twists and turns and is written in short, electrifying chapters.

I think the crucial ingredient you have to have to make a good detective novel is a main character that you can empathize with. The author has done an excellent job with his creation of the fallible Roy Grace. He comes with a load of baggage but he gets things done (not necessarily in the right fashion every time).

The one part of the story I'm not sure I loved was where Roy, who is a believer in the supernatural, often visits mediums to help him with the case. I would be interested in how that story line progresses in the future books.

I just couldn 19t put it down and can't wait to pick up the next one (Looking Good Dead). ( )

See my Bookcrossing review here: http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/3168135 ( )

This has been on my TBR shelf for quite a while - needing a break from a fantasy series I picked it up. I really enjoyed it. It starts off relatively slowly but then there are a lot of unexpected twists and turns. Would be happy to pick up another one. ( )

El inspector Grace de Brighton se encarga de un caso complicado mueren cuatro amigos volviendo de una despedida de solteros y el novio no aparece. Bien introducido el personaje ( bastante normal y lejos de los psicópatas policias escandinavos) tal vez demasiadas vueltas de tuerca ( )

After seeing rave reviews of Peter James novels on THE Book Club on Facebook, I picked up a few copies in one of the church fayres I visited recently. When I recorded them on Goodreads I realised that I had purchased numbers 9, 10 and 11 in the Roy Grace series. I couldn't possibly start a series at this stage, however unrelated each book is, so I bought a pack of the first three novels from The Book People for the bargain price of £4.99. In the spirit of full disclosure, I then wrapped them up and gave them to my Mam for her birthday - even more of a bargain! (She loved them, by the way!)

Dead Simple is a fantastic start to a series and has perhaps the best chapter 1 of all time. Michael Harrison, who has been known to pull a prank or two himself, is on his stag night with four friends. His friends decide to pay him back for all the pranks he pulled on them by placing him in a coffin and burying him in a shallow grave. Before screwing down the lid of the coffin, they leave Michael with a torch, porn magazine, bottle of whiskey, walkie talkie and a breathing tube. Their plan is to drive away for a few drinks then go back to collect Michael, but on their way to the next pub they are involved in a road traffic accident and there are no survivors. How long can Michael survive when nobody knows where he is?

As Michael's wedding day looms, and the police look at the option of a runaway groom, his distraught fiancée, Ashley, can't believe what is happening. Ashley is determined that the wedding will go ahead, so she turns up at the church with her last shred of hope that Michael will appear. As the police hunt for any clues, it soon becomes apparent that some people know more about Michael's whereabouts than they are prepared to reveal. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer, is all I'm prepared to say!

As Detective Superintendent Roy Grace investigates Michael's disappearance, he's prepared to use any means available to him, however unconventional, to find out what happened to Michael. As the clock ticks and the plot thickens, I thought my heart was going to beat out of my chest. I simply couldn't turn the pages fast enough.

Dead Simple is an edge of your seat, race against time thriller and a cracking start to a series. ( )