Smoke and Whispers [Hardcover]

Mick Herron (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 26, 2009

When a body is hauled from the River Tyne, Sarah Tucker heads North for a closer look. She identifies the dead woman as private detective Zoe Boehm, but putting a name to the corpse only raises further questions. Did Zoe kill herself, or did one of her old cases come looking for her? Why was she wearing a jacket a murderer had stolen years before? And what's brought Sarah's former sparring partner Gerard Inchon to the same broken-down hotel? Coincidence is an excuse that soon looks pretty unconvincing. From derelict shipyards to its glitzy new quayside, Newcastle shows a different face everywhere Sarah looks. But then so do all the people she encounters,gangster, barman, scientist, cop - Sarah can't trust anyone. Nor can she leave until she's found the answer, however dangerous that discovery might turn out to be...

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this assured mystery from British author Herron (Reconstruction), Sarah Tucker, a freelance publisher who also raises ostriches, identifies a body dredged from the River Tyne in Newcastle as her friend Zoë Boehm, an apparent suicide. Tucker, however, doubts Boehm, who worked as a private investigator, took her own life, as the police believe. Instead, Tucker suspects that Boehm's demise was connected with her probes into Alan Talmadge, a creep who targeted middle-aged women and killed them in a way that looked like accident or suicide. Relying on her wits, Tucker takes over the search for Talmadge. She looks into a number of people of interest who were in Newcastle at the time of Boehm's death, including a gangster's son and a prominent businessman. While the climax won't surprise every reader, Herron does a nice job of planting red herrings and making his heroine's amateur sleuthing plausible. (Apr.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

About the Author

Mick Herron was born in Newcastle upon Tyne and was educated there and at Balliol College, Oxford. He still lives in Oxford today and commutes daily to London, where he works.His short fiction has appeared in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, where his first published story (Lost Luggage) was voted one of the top ten readers' favourites for 2006.In addition to writing fiction Mick reviews regularly for Geographical and Bookdealer magazines.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Constable (March 26, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1845299205
• ISBN-13: 978-1845299200
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,940,545 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars superb investigative thriller, March 31, 2009

By 

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

This review is from: Smoke and Whispers (Hardcover)

In Newcastle, England, a corpse is fished out of the River Tyne. Freelance publisher and Ostrich farmer Sarah Tucker identifies the corpse as her friend private investigator Zoe Boehm.

The police assume Zoe committed suicide, but Sarah takes exception to that conclusion as the woman had a zest for life. Instead she believes Zoe was murdered in a way to make it look like she took her life. With the police seemingly contented with their conclusion, Sarah considers her late friend's inquiry into Alan Talmadge, who murdered middle-aged women but made their death appear to be an accident or a suicide. With the premise too coincidental, Sarah investigates who Talmadge is and if he killed ZoeThis probe makes her a target for suicide.

The key to this superb investigative thriller is the ostrich farmer who comes across as a rare legitimate amateur sleuth as Mick Herron "sells" Sarah as a detective with a motive. The story line is fast-paced from the moment that Sarah identifies the corpse and never slows down as she makes inquiries into her late buddy's last case, which puts a bulls-eye on her head. Although the climax can be seen clear across the Channel, SMOKE & WHISPERS is a fantastic English amateur sleuth.

Harriet Klausner

4.0 out of 5 stars Very well done!, March 29, 2011

By 

Wendy L. Hines "MindingSpot" (Warsaw, IN) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Smoke and Whispers (Hardcover)

Sarah Tucker is devastated to read about her friend's death on the web. Zoe Boehm didn't keep normal contact with her close friend Sarah. She'd occasionally pick up the phone and call, or more times than not, send a postcard to let Sarah know she was doing ok. Sarah knows Zoe leads a dangerous life, so from time to time, she googles Zoe on the internet to see if anything bad has happened. But the day it does appear, Sarah denies it is Zoe until she identifies the body herself.

After Sarah confirms that the body is indeed her friend Zoe, Sarah starts a little investigation of her own. There is no way that Zoe would commit suicide and jump into the River Tyne, a conclusion the police have come to. Zoe loved life too much to throw it all away. Zoe was a private investigator, and Sarah feels it may have something to do with the case Zoe had been working on. Alan Talmadge made the deaths of middle-aged women appear as an accident or self-inflicted, when he himself murdered them. Sarah believes its too much to be coincidence and investigates further. But when Sarah gets too close to the truth, the target paints a big bull-eye on her.

Mick Herron draws the reader in from page one and does not let go until the final clue in the mystery unfolds. Set in England, he paints a backdrop worthy of a museum. So real, you can almost touch it. Sarah is a worthy opponent in any setting, being an argument, fancy dinner, or the morgue. A very versatile heroine that you just can't help but like. The plot in this mystery was well-spun. Just when I thought I knew the answer to one question, another arrived. Very well done!

5.0 out of 5 stars Subplots and subtext, May 12, 2009

By 

Lady J of CA - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Smoke and Whispers (Kindle Edition)

His writing shows great improvement. The style is tighter. His story is more direct without losing its subtleties. His characters are more likable. It is a more seamless read than his first novel, Down Cemetery Road. Smoke and Mirrors has made me a fan. Lady J of CA