Blood Sympathy [Paperback]

Reginald Hill (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1996

Private investigator Joe Sixsmith is up to his neck in trouble when he is hired by a black arts dabbler, approached by a man who has dreamed of killing his family, stalked by drug thugs, and set up by his matchmaking aunt. Reprint. K.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

It's no wonder Hill has been dubbed one of today's best British mystery writers. His knowledge of police procedure, his razor-edged wit, his right-on-target descriptions of life's little ironies, and his fine characterizations make every one of his books a unique and outstanding read. His latest features unlikely hero Joe Sixsmith, a balding, middle-aged, recently laid-off lathe operator from Luton, Bedfordshire, and Joe's partner, Whitey, a curmudgeonly feline that loves beer, pork rinds, and an occasional taste of champagne. Joe decides that if he can't make a living operating lathes, maybe his real calling is private investigation. Before he can have business cards printed, Joe is juggling a mysterious multiple murder, a cache of illicit drugs, his meddling, matchmaking Aunt Mirabelle, and two thugs whose sole aim in life seems to be inflicting pain on Joe. Although most detectives might rely on guns, tenacity, and toughness, Joe's qualifications for the job are a kind heart, compassion, and plain good luck. Oddly enough, that's exactly what he needs to solve the case. A wacky, witty story that's warm, charming, and highly entertaining. Emily Melton --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

Veteran Hill's spanking new (though already shop-soiled) hero, balding black PI Joe Sixsmith, has a meddlesome aunt; an imperious (and kidnap-prone) cat; a neighborhood (Luton, Bedfordshire) full of layabouts, petty crooks, and vigilantes; and the wildest client list this side of Jupiter. Stephen Andover consults Joe about a repeated dream of his family's death; though the exasperated police find the family alive and well, they've been murdered by the time of Joe's follow-up call. Voodoo maven Gwen Baker wants Joe to steal the locket her husband, Gerald Collister-Cook, gave her so she can release him from the clutches of Meg Merchison, the rival she insists is trying to kill her. Soumitra Bannerjee is in prison after being refused reentry to England on suspicion of carrying two kilos of heroin that a pair of hoodlums are intent on salvaging. And Joe's neighbor, a put-upon Pakistani shopkeeper, refuses to report a pair of shoplifters to the police until they return to burn down his store. Joe, whose methods are as unorthodox as his clients, deals with these problems by uncovering an adulterous affair between Andover and his secretary, going to bed with La Merchison, trying his own spot of voodoo on the hoodlums, and giving the shoplifters an alibi for the night of the fire. As sumptuously plotted as Hill's latest Dalziel and Pascoe adventure (Pictures of Perfection, p. 1026, etc.), but in a vein of unadulterated downscale farce, with the most enterprising new hero since Super Mario Brothers. -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 251 pages
• Publisher: Worldwide Library (July 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0373262108
• ISBN-13: 978-0373262106
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 4.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,284,159 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Reginald Hill has been widely published both in England and the United States. He received Britain's most coveted mystery writers award, the Cartier Diamond Dagger Award, as well as the Golden Dagger for his Dalziel/Pascoe series. He lives with his wife in Cumbria, England.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Unlikely hero, April 1, 2006

By 

Beverley Strong (Australia) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Blood Sympathy (Paperback)

This book is an introduction to author Reginald Hill's most unlikely hero, Joe Sixsmith. Joe is a former lathe operator in Luton, middle aged, balding and black, who has been made redundant when the factory in which he worked, closed. A sudden, spur of the moment thought made him invest his redundancy money in a small office and set up in business as a private investigator, without any experience except a love of P.I. movies, tv shows and books. Luck favours the innocent and Joe stumbles into a series of incidents, so bizarre, that they would seem to have been dreamed up in a nightmare. With the help of a new lady friend who was introduced to him by his Aunt Mirabelle as one in a series of likely marriage prospects, he fumbles and stumbles his way around bodies, unsympathetic police constables and gangsters who are determined to retrieve the large quantity of cocaine they are convinced he is hiding. Joe is just so out of his depth that sheer blind ignorance protects him. It's a light, funny read and a most enjoyable one.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Funny, with a very likable hero, December 3, 2004

By 

flanfan - See all my reviews

This review is from: Blood Sympathy (Paperback)

Blood Sympathy is nothing like Hill's Dalziel/Pascoe books, which are quite weighty and literary for thrillers (and which I enjoy, though they're not my favorites). Joe Sixsmith is extremely appealing, a bumbler of a detective who trusts to luck to keep him safe and on the trail, and the plot is entertainingly twisty. If you like your mysteries light and modern, this is one you should try.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful, funny book, November 15, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Blood Sympathy (Paperback)

This is no deep tome but I enjoyed it tremendously--laughed out loud again and again. Hill is so inventive with such wit and a good understanding of human nature. It's a mystery to me why lesser books and writers sell so much more. This is fine writing and great entertainment both, better than 99 percent of the mysteries out there. Lighter than his other series but worthwhile all the same.