Closer Still: A Brodie Farrell Mystery (Brodie Farrell Mysteries) [Hardcover]

Jo Bannister (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 5, 2008 | Series: Brodie Farrell Mysteries

“Bannister is one of the undersung treasures of the mystery genre.” ---Chicago Tribune

Although she has been trying to put her work, running a one-woman detective agency, on hold while she cares for her new baby, Jonathan, Brodie soon learns that taking time off is not as easy as it sounds. Not only does Jonathan have a rare disease that may leave him blind, his father, Detective Superintendent Jack Deacon, is going after the nastiest crook in town, Joe Loomis, who quickly retaliates by threatening Brodie and little Jonathan. 

When Loomis bleeds to death while trying to utter a name that begins with the letter “D,” Brodie isn’t quite sure it is just a coincidence and worries Deacon may have become entangled in yet another crime. But Loomis had plenty of enemies and Deacon isn't the only one who had reason to do him harm. When Dev Stretton, another suspect, turns out to be linked to Brodie’s best friend, Daniel Hood, she has no choice but to take up the search for the killer. As events spiral out of control and entanglements weave together in complex patterns, Brodie must learn to keep her friends close, and her enemies closer still.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In British author Bannister's absorbing eighth Brodie Farrell mystery (after 2007's Flawed), Farrell continues to juggle the two men in her life: Det. Supt. Jack Deacon of the Dimmock police, who's the father of her young son, and Daniel Hood, the lovelorn math teacher who helps run Looking for Something? Farrell's finding agency. The murder of Joe Loomis—pimp, drug dealer, racketeer—is almost cause for celebration until the victim's dying utterance results in Deacon's removal from the case. When the investigation uncovers a suspected terrorist plot with Dimmock as the unlikely target, the focus shifts to preventing panic by foiling the terrorists. Farrell also becomes embroiled in the hunt for Loomis's killer. Bannister's portrayal of the town's response to a possible attack shows how easily mistrust can mushroom into violence. Readers will relish Bannister's well-plotted solution and the revelation of unexpected depths and facets in her series characters. (Aug.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Brodie Farrell’s business is finding things—missing tea sets, rare books, lost dogs. But this time, she finds a dead body. London gangster Joe Loomis lands on her doorstep one night, bleeding to death from a knife wound. Before he dies, he mutters one syllable: “D.” Could this be a clue to the identity of his murderer? Brodie’s partner, cop Jack Deacon, is keen to investigate, but he is soon distracted by something much bigger—a terrorist threat to blow up their charming English village. As stress levels rise, Jack is desperate to find the bomber before thousands of local citizens die in a massive explosion, which leaves the always curious Brodie to find Joe Loomis’ killer. Who could guess that the two cases are interlinked in the most bizarre way? Bannister delivers a compelling plot, a likably feisty heroine, an intriguing supporting cast, and enough suspense to keep readers burning the midnight oil. --Emily Melton

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Minotaur Books; First Edition edition (August 5, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312383673
• ISBN-13: 978-0312383671
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,813,125 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great thriller, August 9, 2008

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Closer Still: A Brodie Farrell Mystery (Brodie Farrell Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Owner of the Dimmock based private detective agency "Looking for Something?", Brodie Farrell is looking for a respite as her six month old son Jonathan has spent a lot of his young life with doctors having been born with rare condition retinoblastoma. His doctors have no idea how much the infant can see; if he has any sight at all. Math teacher Daniel Hood helps at the shop, but would like to help more in her personal life because he loves Brodie.

Jonathan's father Dimmock Police Detective Superintendent Jack Deacon is investigating the activities of nasty hoodlum Joe Loomis, who threatens to harm his son and his son's mother. When Loomis is shot to death, the brass removes Deacon from the search for the hood's killer as the DS had a motive and opportunity. However, the investigation turns frightening when it leads to a terrorist plot aimed at Dimmock.

This meritorious mystery series reaches new heights of excellence with this great thriller. Besides the Jonathan health issue and the two men in the heroine's life competing for her affection, the story line focuses on the townsfolk as reactions to a potential terrorist plot varies with the cops hoping to contain the panic while distrust grows until vigilante violence occurs even before the absolute confirmation of Dimmock being the target. The strong support cast makes this Brodie Farrell tale a flawless winner.

Harriet Klausner

1.0 out of 5 stars Terrorism Meets Political Correctness. It's a tie., January 11, 2010

By 

MyTwoCents (AZ USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Closer Still: A Brodie Farrell Mystery (Brodie Farrell Mysteries) (Hardcover)

I'm a mystery buff; this is my first (and last) Jo Bannister book. I plowed through twenty chapters of mediocre writing about a self-absorbed feminist protagonist (private detective Brodie Farrell), her (male) business partner who becomes nanny to her infant out of unrequited love for the heroine, and her sperm donor (Detective Superintendent Jack Deacon). I cried uncle and tossed the paperback in the dustbin when the British citizens of the town of Dimmock panic after the possible involvement of Al Qaeda in a police shooting is bruited in the local press. Previously law-abiding citizens begin bashing Asians in broad daylight while simultaneously creating gridlock for miles in all directions as they seek to flee the town. Sorry, but I am unable to suspend my disbelief to the degree required by Ms. Bannister's political orientation, which fosters the meme that UK citizens of Anglo-Saxon descent, like all pale people, are but closet racists waiting for an excuse to act out their brutality toward people of pigment. I regret spending $1.49 (USD) for the paperback at a thrift store for this waste of ink and paper.

4.0 out of 5 stars Another contribution in the Jack Deacon-Brodie Farrell series- good but not great, October 28, 2009

By 

M. C. Crammer (Decatur, GA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Closer Still: A Brodie Farrell Mystery (Brodie Farrell Mysteries) (Hardcover)

I don't really know why this series is called the Brodie Farrell series, since Brodie never really seems real for me. Two other characters, Jack Deacon and Daniel Hood, both of whom are in love with Brodie, seem more well-developed. I found myself not even liking Brodie, which is a real problem and which probably kept me from giving this book a higher rating. Daniel is kind of pathetic (although he is qualified to teach mathematics, he rejects that job in order to run Brodie's business for a short maternity leave) -- he loves her passionately and she loves him as a buddy and he knows it. Jack Deacon also loves Brodie -- he's a police detective, kind of tough and rugged. Deacon and Farrell have had a baby together. For reasons that escape me, the author has given this baby tumors in the eyes, which form a backdrop for much of the story. Is it asking too much of a mystery series to spare us the sorrow of having a baby with cancer? It darkens the story without doing anything for the plot.

The plot involves a gangster, Joe Loomis, who is threatening Brodie and the baby because he's trying to get back at Jack Deacon (not clear exactly what he hopes to accomplish, but he's a nasty guy). Loomis is killed, and it looks like Deacon may have done it, because as he died, his last word was D-D-D-D... Presumably he's trying to name the killer but can't get the words out. The book is filled with a ridiculous number of characters whose name (first or last) begins with D. Did Deacon do it? Daniel? or one of the other D characters?

The chief investigator of the crime is Jack Deacon, but towards the end, Brodie decides she's going to find Loomis's killer (why?????). The pace of the book is fairly quick, and the plotting was pretty good. It's other problems that kept me from giving the book five stars.