My Book Notes: A Deadly Thaw, 2016 (Bampton series #2) by Sarah Ward

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Faber & Faber, 2016. Format: Kindle Edition. File Size: 646 KB. Print Length: 384 pages. ASIN: B01GQSTMLM. ISBN: 978-0-571-32105-6.

First Paragraph: Sunday, 19 September 2004
Lena felt his emotional withdrawal before the physical. He rolled away from her and reached for his phone. ‘You could’ve waited at least five minutes before checking that thing.’ She kept her voice light but could feel his irritation. He kept his face turned away from her, and, in the gloom, she could only see the curls of his too-long hair reflected in the meagre moonlight in through the window.

About the Book: Bampton, Derbyshire, in Autumn 2004 Lena Fisher is arrested for suffocating her husband, Andrew. Spring 2016, a year after Lena’s release from prison, Andrew is found dead in a disused mortuary. Who was the man Lena killed twelve years ago, and who committed the second murder? When Lena disappears, her sister, Kat, sets out to follow a trail of clues delivered by a mysterious teenage boy. Kat must uncover the truth – before there’s another death . . . A Deadly Thaw confirms Sarah Ward’s place as one of the most exciting new crime writers.

My take: A Deadly Paw is Sarah Ward’s second instalment in her police procedural series, featuring DI Sadler, DS Palmer and DC Childs. The story unfolds in 2016. Lena Grey has just been released from prison, after serving her sentence for murdering her husband in 2004. But, when a man’s body is found, shot to death, in an abandoned mortuary, police feels completely disoriented. The dead body turns out to be, beyond any doubt, that of Lena’s husband. Then, who was the original victim? Why did Lena killed him? Why did she said it was her husband? And, who has killed Lena’s husband, twelve years after his supposed death? DI Francis Sadler and his team of the Derbyshire Constabulary, are entrusted to search for answers, but Lena has disappeared without a trace and, after all these years, there are virtually no leads that can help to find out what has really happened. At the same time, Lena’s sister, Kat, has begin to receive strange gifts, whose meaning she fails to decipher.

I feel as having arrived late to the party, after looking at the long list of blogs and bloggers that have praised this novel. The fact is that it has been waiting among my pile of books to be read much too long. Finally I got a chance to read it at the end of last year and it has not disappointed me in the slightest. The plot is solidly crafted, intertwining past and present events, and combining the perspective of the narration with that of the different characters that are present in the novel, what, in my view, enriches the story in an innovative way. Besides, the events described are truly interesting and very much timely nowadays. In a nutshell, with this her second novel, Sarah Ward confirms herself as a very solid writer, to whom I wish a bright future ahead. Now, I trust not to wait that much long in reading her two last novels, that are already among my TBR pile. Highly recommended.

My rating: A (I loved it)

My review of In Bitter Chill is available here.

About the Author: Sarah Ward is the author of four crime novels In Bitter Chill, A Deadly Thaw, A Patient Fury and The Shrouded Path which are set in the Derbyshire Peak District. She is an online book reviewer whose blog, Crimepieces (www.crimepieces.com), reviews the best of current crime fiction published around the world. She has also reviewed at the Los Angeles Review of Books, Crime Time, crimesquad.com and Eurocrime. Articles and short stories have appeared in the The Guardian, Sunday Express magazine, Metro, Red Online, Big Issue, Traveller and other publications. Sarah is also one of the judges for The Petrona Award for the Best Scandinavian Crime Novel and she particularly loves reading translated crime fiction. In addition to writing and reviewing she also teaches crime fiction workshops, moderates book events and gives talks on Nordic Noir, Golden Age Crime and other aspects of the crime novels. She can be contacted about any of these areas via her contact page. Sarah Ward is represented by Kirsty McLachlan at DGA. She lives in Derbyshire. Follow Sarah on Twitter @sarahrward1

A Deadly Thaw has been reviewed at Crime Watch, Reactions to Reading, In Search of the Classic Mystery Novel, Mrs. Peabody Investigates, Cleopatra Loves Books, Raven Crime Reads, Bitter Tea and Mystery, Crime Fiction Lover, Clothes in Books, Euro Crime, The View from the Blue House, Goodreads Alison Gray’s Review, For winter nights, and Cafe thinking among others.

Faber & Faber UK publicity page

MacMillan publishers US publicity page 

This Deadly Thaw is chilling – Q&A with Sarah Ward 

Sarah Ward – The Author Of A Deadly Thaw On Music To Write Books By

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A Deadly Thaw (Relajación mortal), de Sarah Ward

Primer párrafo: Domingo 19 de septiembre de 2004
Lena sintió su indiferencia emocional antes que la física. Se retiró de ella y alcanzó su teléfono. “Podrías haber esperado al menos cinco minutos antes de comprobar eso”. Ella mantuvo su voz suave pero pudo sentir su irritación. El mantuvo su cara apartada de ella y, en la penumbra, solo podía ver los rizos de su pelo demasiado largo reflejado en la exigua luz de la luna que entraba por la ventana.

Acerca del libro: Bampton, Derbyshire, en otoño de 2004, Lena Fisher es arrestada por asfixiar a su esposo, Andrew. Primavera de 2016, un año después de que Lena ha salido de la cárcel, Andrew es encontrado muerto en un depósito de cadáveres en desuso. ¿Quién fue el hombre al que Lena mató hace doce años y quién cometió este segundo asesinato? Cuando Lena desaparece, su hermana, Kat, se dispone a seguir un rastro de pistas que le entrega un misterioso adolescente. Kat debe descubrir la verdad, antes de que haya otra muerte. . . A Deadly Thaw confirma el lugar de Sarah Ward como una de las nuevas autoras de ficción criminal más interesantes.

Mi opinión: A Deadly Paw es la segunda entrega de Sarah Ward en su serie de procedimientos policiales, portagonizada por el DI Sadler, el DS Palmer y la DC Childs. La historia se desarrolla en el 2016. Lena Gray acaba de salir de la cárcel, tras cumplir condena por asesinar a su marido en el 2004. Pero, cuando aparece el cadáver de un hombre, muerto a tiros, en un depósito de cadáveres abandonado, la policía se encuentra completamente desorientada. El cadáver resulta ser, sin lugar a dudas, el del marido de Lena. Entonces, ¿quién fue la víctima original? ¿Por qué lo mató Lena? ¿Por qué dijo que era su marido? Y, ¿quién ha matado al marido de Lena, doce años después de su supuesta muerte? El DI Francis Sadler y su equipo de la Policía de Derbyshire están encargados de buscar respuestas, pero Lena ha desaparecido sin dejar rastro y, después de todos estos años, prácticamente no hay pistas que puedan ayudar a descubrir qué ha sucedido realmente. Al mismo tiempo, la hermana de Lena, Kat, ha comenzado a recibir extraños regalos, cuyo significado no logra descifrar.

Siento que he llegado tarde a la fiesta, después de mirar la larga lista de blogs y blogueros que han elogiado esta novela. El hecho es que ha estado esperando entre mi pila de libros por leer durante demasiado tiempo. Finalmente, tuve la oportunidad de leerlo a finales del año pasado y no me ha decepcionado en lo más mínimo. La trama está sólidamente construida, entrelazando eventos pasados y presentes, y combinando la perspectiva de la narración con la de los diferentes personajes que están presentes en la novela, lo que, en mi opinión, enriquece la historia de una manera innovadora. Además, los eventos descritos son realmente interesantes y muy oportunos hoy en día. En pocas palabras, con esta su segunda novela, Sarah Ward se confirma como una escritora muy sólida, a quien le deseo un futuro brillante por delante.  Ahora, confío en no esperar tanto tiempo en leer sus dos últimas novelas, que ya están entre mi montón de libros por leer. Muy recomendable.

Mi valoración: A (Me encantó)

Mi reseña de In Bitter Chill está disponible aquí.

Sobre el autor: Sarah Ward es autora de cuatro novelas de ficción criminal, In Bitter Chill, A Deadly Thaw, A Patient Fury y The Shrouded Path, que se desarrollan en Derbyshire, Peak District. Hace reseñas de libros online en su blog, Crimepieces (www.crimepieces.com), en donde reseña las mejores novelas de ficción criminal publicadas actualmente en todo el mundo. Ha hecho critica de libros para Los Angeles Review of Books, Crime Time, crimesquad.com y Eurocrime. También ha publicado artículos e historias cortas en The Guardian, Sunday Express magazine, Metro, Red Online, Big Issue, Traveler y otras publicaciones. Sarah también forma parte del jurado del Premio Petrona a la Mejor Novela Escandinava de ficción criminal y le gusta particularmente leer ficción criminal traducida. Además de escribir y reseñar libros, también imparte talleres de ficción criminal, modera eventos de libros y da charlas sobre la novela negra nórdica, la Edad de Oro de la ficción criminal y otros aspectos de las novelas policíacas. Se puede contactar con ella, sobre cualquiera de estas áreas, a través de su página destinada a este efecto. Sarah Ward está representada por Kirsty McLachlan en DGA. Vive en Derbyshire. Y puedes segurla en Twitter @sarahrward1.

TV–series: Trapped Season Two

Last evening Begoña and I begun watching Trapped Season Two. Iceland Review wrote on 9 May 2018: “Viewers can expect a series like the previous one, but in many ways very different,” director Baltasar Kormákur told RÚV when discussing the next season of hit TV series Trapped (Ice. Ófærð), to premiere in Iceland this fall. While the show’s first season centered on a murder mystery in a remote Icelandic town physically isolated by a raging blizzard, the second series deals with more psychological forms of entrapment. As an Icelandic government minister enters the parliament building, she is attacked by a man who sets fire to both of them. Investigation of the incident then takes unexpected turns.

Those unexpected plot twists will touch on hot topic issues in Iceland and around the world, such as imported labour and heavy industry. “Within that comes nationalism, its goals, and the situation of people who live in the remote countryside,” says Baltasar. “I think thrillers work best when they discuss society and serious issues in an interesting way,” he remarks.

Crime novel writer Yrsa Sigurðardóttir joined the screenwriting team for Trapped’s second season. Her education as an engineer came in handy when writing about power plants in the Icelandic highlands. “She gave us insight into various issues regarding power plants and their impact on the environment,” says Baltasar.

A Couple of TV (series) Am looking forward to

Yesterday, Begoña and I started to see the first episode of The Little Drummer Girl, a British-American television series based on the novel of the same name by John le Carré and first aired on BBC One in the United Kingdom on 28 October 2018 and in the United States during November 2018. In Spain was first aired on Movistar+ on 11 January 2019.

The Wikipedia summary reads:   In Germany, the Palestinian terrorist Michel and his Swedish accomplice and girlfriend Anna Witgen kill the eight year old son of an Israeli diplomat with a pipe bomb. Senior Mossad spy Martin Kurtz is dispatched to Europe to hunt down and eliminate the Palestinian terror cell, which is led by Michel’s wily older brother Khalil. Under Kurtz’s orders, a Mossad team including Rachel kidnap Michel on the Greek-Turkish border while he is smuggling semtex in his red Mercedes-Benz 450SEL 6.9. Meanwhile, left-wing English stage actress Charmian “Charlie” Ross and her troupe tour Greece as part of a corporate “charity job.” While Charlie and her fellow actors are visiting a beach, she takes an interest in a mysterious handsome gentleman, who is actually an undercover Mossad agent called Gadi Becker. After treating Charlie for a date at the Parthenon, Gadi introduces Charlie to his Mossad team including Martin.

The third season of True Detective, an American anthology crime drama television series created by Nic Pizzolatto, was confirmed by HBO on August 31, 2017, and premiered in Spain on the early minutes of 14 January 2019 on Movistar+. Given the inopportune of its hour, Begoña and I decided to start watching it further on.

Summary: Arkansas state police detectives Wayne Hays (Mahershala Ali) and Roland West (Stephen Dorff) seek to solve the mystery of a disturbing crime that took place years ago in the Ozarks.

2019, A Great Simenonian Year

Murielle Wenger reminds us here that this years marks the 30th anniversary of the death of Georges Simenon. However, to turn it around into a merrier celebration, simenonians and maigretphiles alike decided to join up to commemorate the 90th anniversary of Maigret’s literary birth.  

We do know how difficult is to precise the exact day of the birth of our character. Really, Simenon doesn’t invented him in a precise moment. The Chief Inspector was the result of many tests and searches of the young novelist, and chosen in a crucial point of his career, when he decided to made the transition from his popular novels, written under pseudonyms, towards those he was aspiring to write.

We know that, when Simenon begun to write Pietr le Letton, he had already written, under different pseudonyms, the four stories known today as ‘proto-Maigrets’. Moreoever, Pietr le Letton was in fact the fifth title to be published by Fayard, even though Simenon himself always stated, on a number of occasions, that this was his first Maigret. An issue that, for a number of years, has been subject to debate among Maigret scholars. Anyhow, today it’s simply accepted that Simenon wrote Pietr le Letton at Delfzijl (The Netherlands), in September 1929, aboard L’Ostrogoth. And, in serialised form, it was the subject of a pre-publication in the weekly Ric and Rac, No. 71-83 from 19 July to 11 October 1930. Read more here.

The attached photograph shows the statue of Maigret at Delfzijl. (Source: Philippe Brossard-Lotz, Le Reporter sablais)

SIMENON SIMENON. ECHANDENS, IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE? Six years living and writing in a Vaud canton chateau

Murielle Wenger wrote an article under this title at the blog site Simenon Simenon, here. Among other things, we learned that Georges Simenon, upon his return to Europe in 1955, spent a family holiday at Villars-sur-Ollon on the Swiss Alps, in the summer of 1956, devoted to one of his passions, golfing. And in an interview he declared he has weakness for la viande séchée des Grisons (the Grisons dry meat) and Vaud’s white wine. He’s enchanted with the markets of Laussane and Vevey and, particularly, he would like to find an 18th century house, in one of Vevey’s quiet and small streets, or a beautiful estate, not so far from the lake.

Finally, in January 1957, when he settled in Switzerland with his family, he ended up renting le château d’Echandens, a commune (city) near Lausanne, a few kilometres from the lake. Following some reconditioning works, Simenon moved to the castle in July 1957, where he will remain six years. Simenon will write there 12 Maigret, 13  “romans durs” and the first notebooks of Quand j’étais vieux. It is curious to note that the novels written there are not dated in Echandens, but in “Noland”. This detail has intrigued much Simenon’s scholars, and the answer to this question can be found here.

Briefly, Simenon had chosen Switzerland because it was a tax haven. In fact, in those first years of residence, the writer would have enjoyed a particular tax regime, obviously very favourable and this was the reason why he chose the name of “Noland” to indicate the name of the place in which he wrote those novels. In any case, as I have already mentioned before, I believe that the Maigret stories written there are among the very best in the saga. Coincidentally, this are the twelve titles published this year by Penguin UK with new translations. See my book notes clicking on the book titles: Maigret Travels (Inspector Maigret #51), Maigret`s Doubts (Inspector Maigret #52), Maigret and the Reluctant Witnesses(Inspector Maigret #53), Maigret’s Secret (Inspector Maigret #54), Maigret in Court (Inspector Maigret #55), Maigret and the Old People (Inspector Maigret #56), Maigret and the Lazy Burglar (Inspector Maigret #57), Maigret and the Good People of Montparnasse (Inspector Maigret #58), Maigret and the Saturday Caller (Inspector Maigret #59), Maigret and the Tramp (Inspector Maigret #60), Maigret’s Anger (Inspector Maigret #61), and Maigret And The Ghost (Inspector Maigret #62).

The attached picture shows Simenon in his car, leaving his new residence, the chateau at Echandens. (Source: Is Georges Simenon a writer? by M. M. Brumagne)