The eighth entry in the popular Inspector Banks series is a bit of a departure from a regular whodunit and more of a character study. That's not a bad thing necessarily but it is different from the other books in the beginning of the series.
When Deborah Harrison, a local schoolgirl, is found murdered in a church graveyard, Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks must sift through the clues and potential murder suspects and along the way he uncovers a lot of lies and deceptions. Was it the vicar who has been accused of sexual advances towards a church sexton? Or perhaps the vicar's wife who has taken up with one of the teachers from St. Mary's?
Police officers Barry Stott and Jim Hatchley are also working on the case and they seem to latch on to one suspect even if DCI Banks may have some reservations. For those of you who read this series, police officer Susan Gay also makes a welcome appearance.
I was a bit taken aback by the fact that this seemed to be more about the other officers and the man arrested and less about DCI Banks. Plus, the ending as I mentioned is much more about the aftermath of a crime and not so much about just finding out who committed the crime.
As usual though, Peter Robinson creates a very believable world of crime solving where there is a lot of room for gray areas. I look forward to the next installment in the series.
Added 05/07