Exit Lines (Mass Market Paperback)

by Reginald Hill (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Three old men die violently in separate incidents one stormy November night. Because one of them is run over by Andy Dalziel, he comes under suspicion, and it is up to his partner, Peter Pascoe, and Sergeant Wield to investigate and clear his name. PW called this mystery "topnotch," with "beautifully drawn characters who excel at clever sleuthing."
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review
'Few writers in the genre today have Hill's gifts: formidable intelligence, quick humour, compassion and a prose style that blends elegance and grace' Donna Leon, Sunday Times 'The finest male English contemporary crime writer' Val McDermid 'Reginald Hill's novels are really dances to the music of time, his heroes and villains interconnecting, their stories intertwining' Ian Rankin 'One of Britain's most consistently excellent crime novelists' The Times 'These novels last, like a grand malt whisky -- rounded, rich, intoxicating! Here is an author at his formidable best' Frances Fyfield, Mail on Sunday 'So far out in front that he need not bother looking over his shoulder' Sunday Telegraph 'He is probably the best living male crime writer in the English-speaking world' Andrew Taylor, Independent 'Reginald Hill stands head and shoulders above any other writer of homebred crime fiction' Tom Hiney, Observer

Yorkshire's unlikely cop-team, fat boor Dalziel and wry smoothie Pascoe, make a welcome return - though this time the two never work together and there are three separate cases involved. All three involve elderly folk: Robert Deeks, 73, has been murdered in his bathtub; "Tap" Parrinder, 71, is found dead on a muddy night road; and Philip Westerman, 70, is accidentally hit by a car - a car that might have been driven, it seems, by drunken Superintendent Dalziel himself! Furthermore, Dalziel has been seen in some shady company lately. So, while his boss is quasi-suspended, Pascoe oversees the multiple sleuthings: the Deeks case focuses on the murder-victim's edgy family; the Parrinder case involves the local old-folks' home and some bets on a horse race. And all three cases are brought to satisfactory (if uncompelling) conclusions - as Dalziel is cleared (of course) and the largely pathetic culprits are unmasked. The talented Mr. Hill (Deadheads, The Spy's Wife) in solid if not top form - with fine character-sketching throughout, a unifying theme of senility (Pascoe's father-in-law is also failing), and a wry, droll manner that never goes overboard. (Kirkus Reviews)

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Ltd (1987)
• ISBN-10: 0586072535
• ISBN-13: 978-0586072530
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #216,309 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

• This item is part of The Dalziel and Pascoe Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Review, December 6, 2001

By	hacklehorn - See all my reviews

EXIT LINES (Reginald Hill, 1984) is a particularly good book, even by Reginald Hill's particularly high standards. It tackles the themes of death and ageing in both a humorous and a tragic way, showing the keen intelligence and humanity of the author.

The book opens with the deaths of three old men on a November night: as Detective Inspector Pascoe remarks, decidedly "not a good night for the old". One was murdered in his bathtub, his daughter arriving just in time to hear him gasp "Charley" and die; one died of exposure on playing fields, the discoverer of the body hearing him cry "Polly"; and the third murmured "Paradise! Driver... fat bastard...pissed!"-understandably so, for Superintendent Dalziel was in the car which hit him. The dying messages serve as clues as enigmatic as death itself, reinforced by the choice of dying words as chapter headings (great fun for those quotation spotters and spouters out there!). Police work uncovers connections between the supposedly separate cases-and police corruption hovering in the air, with Dalziel going on a shooting spree (of pheasants, that is)-"grand".

Reginald Hill shows himself as a keen observer of humanity, fascinated by the human race-but not becoming bogged down in Ruth Rendell's social conscience or P.D. James' bleak pessimism, but instead remembering that the writer's first duty is to the reader, to entertain. Take, for example, Ellie Pascoe's father's senility as an example of how to handle family background problems without intrusion: it is secondary to the plot, but is there as a play on the book's theme of ageing, and also serves to provide a vital clue. Characterisation is superlative, the reader really feeling sympathy for the characters, or despising those who view the old as a burden. Hill achieves this through a remarkable mixture of humour and genuine emotion, contrasting-but never clashing-humour with grief in succeeding paragraphs. Old age is really brought home to the reader by the senile dementia of Mrs. Escott, a genuinely pathetic and well-drawn character.

The whole-detective story, novel elements-culminates in a particularly neat and moving ending in which all the loose ends tied up, with both good clues and affecting murderers. This book shows Reginald Hill at the height of his powers-without any doubt the best of the modern writers of detective stories who are still writing.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Dalziel's motives may be suspect? ! **** A lighter mystery., September 16, 2002

By	"lynkfri13" (Waltham, MA United States) - See all my reviews

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Reginald Hill's Dalziel/Pascoe stories are unique, in that they vary from very light hearted (Pictures of Perfection) to grim and haunting, and even to the paranormal! This story is on the lighter side. The unusual twist is that Pascoe himself is forced to wonder whether, by driving under the influence, Dalziel has corrupted the investigation. The story ties together the threads of 3 different deaths on the same night. A newer character, Detective-Constable Seymour, assists Pascoe and Sgt Wield in the investigation. The completely clueless and luckless Constable Hector manages to hinder most of the help Seymour is providing. The story has some very funny moments despite the tragedy of the deaths of the three elderly victims. As always it is great when Mrs. Ellie Pascoe is a part of the story. And she is "present" in this one, although she's physically away, taking care of her own elderly father. The mystery is satisfying and the reader's natural suspicion of Dalziel's motives, and maybe even his integrity, actually enhances the plot. Well done.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

(For a sampling of the haunting, deeper side of Reginald Hill's Dalziel/Pascoe stories try "On Beulah Height: or "The Wood Beyond".)

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hey out there! This is a great series!, November 27, 2006

By	S. Schwartz "romonko" (alberta canada) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

The Dalziel and Pascoe series is a great series, and Reginald Hill is a smart and intelligent writer. This is the eighth or ninth book in this series, and it's probably one of the better ones in my opinion. The book starts with the death of three elderly gentlemen, and two looked like accidents, while one was definitely a murder. While Pascoe is trying to solve his murder, he begins to wonder whether or not one or both of the other deaths is related somehow. Hill's characters are wonderful, and he outdoes himself with this one with Pascoe's heart-rending search for the truth. And the end of the book is a total shock! What a wonderful story. It kept me guessing, and I was wondering about Andy all the way throug too.