Lee Allen's Blog - Posts Tagged "death-in-paradise"

A Meditation on Murder by Robert Thorogood

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A delightful slice of 'Death in Paradise' from the creator of the TV series.

'A Meditation on Murder' is the first in the series of 'Death in Paradise' tie-in novels, starring DI Richard Poole, the original fish-out-of-water detective who featured in the first two series of the TV show. Robert Thorogood perfectly captures the setting, the characters, the humour and the mystery that he created for the screen.

The plot centres around the murder of Aslan Kennedy, a meditation and healing guru, who runs a spiritual retreat/hotel with his wife on the island of Saint-Marie. Every morning, he hosts a session known as Sunrise Healing with five guests, locked in a meditation space constructed of paper and wood, situated in the middle of the hotel lawn. On this particular morning, he is murdered during the session, and soon Richard, Camille, Dwayne and Fidel are called to the scene.

What originally appears to be a clear-cut case soon manifests into a complex investigation for Richard and the team. One of the five guests inside the meditation space with Aslan must be guilty, but which of them wielded the knife?

The novel features the many classic twists and turns that you expect during episodes of the TV series, with Richard showing his brilliance and his attention to apparently inconsequential details. As the story progressed, I could easily picture the lead cast in their roles and it was great to revisit the characters again, as they have, with the exception of the hilarious Dwayne, since left the show.

Thoroughly enjoyable from beginning to end, 'A Meditation on Murder' is a clever, locked-room mystery and the perfect escape from everyday life with the Saint-Marie police team.



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The Killing Of Polly Carter by Robert Thorogood

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


DI Richard Poole and the team return to solve another intriguing murder mystery on the island of Saint Marie, in the second novel from the creator of the BBC series ‘Death in Paradise’.

Richard is still stranded on Saint Marie, suffering its many discomforts and indignities. To make matters worse, his mother is due to visit and he is scheduled to pick her up from the airport. But he is soon thrown into a new case – ex-supermodel Polly Carter has fallen from a cliff, minutes after declaring she’s going to commit suicide and running down the cliff steps away from her disabled sister, the exchange overheard by her sister’s nurse. Richard becomes convinced she was murdered – but how could the murderer have committed their crime and escaped unseen? This is the first of many questions in a case that features many twists and turns.

In the same way as each episode of the TV series, the suspects are introduced to us early in the story, part of the joy for the reader found in theorising whodunit alongside the detectives. The team are as entertaining as they are on television, written with the same wit and humour with which they are portrayed by the actors. The suspects are well-written, their backstories explored to reveal their potential motives. ‘Death in Paradise’ has always done well in balancing drama and comedy, keeping the mood light-hearted while at the same time never detracting from the seriousness of the crimes. Much of the humour comes from the characters and their personal interactions – Richard’s dilemma arising from his mother’s visit playing alongside the case, giving us a rare insight into the emotion hidden behind the buttoned-up Englishman. The mystery concludes with a satisfying revelation of the murderer, showcasing Thorogood’s clever sleight-of-hand writing (to highlight particular scenes would spoil the ending).

‘The Killing of Polly Carter’ feels like a feature-length episode in written form; an enjoyable follow-up to ‘A Meditation on Murder’ and continuing addition to the TV series, currently in production of its ninth series, with a tenth also commissioned, featuring its third lead detective in DI Jack Mooney. Thorogood has also published two further novels – ‘Death Knocks Twice’ and ‘Murder in the Caribbean’ – so there's still plenty more mystery and intrigue to enjoy in the company of original series lead DI Richard Poole and the rest of the original team.



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Death Knocks Twice by Robert Thorogood

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


DI Richard Poole and the team return in the third 'Death in Paradise' novel, for yet another brilliant and entertaining mystery.

A woman arrives at the police station, anxious and on edge, reporting that she is being stalked by a mysterious vagrant who watches her at her home - a coffee plantation where she lives with her family, the Beaumonts. When Richard and Camille accompany her to the plantation, they are searching the jungle when they hear gunshots, leading to the discovery of the vagrant's body in a secluded shower room, locked from the inside. It is initially assumed that his death is suicide. But nothing is as it first appears and Richard soon becomes convinced that the man was murdered.

The Beaumont family have a long and controversial history on the island, while their recent family history and current feuds and misdeeds seem to have done little to improve their reputations. Uncovering secrets, lies and misdirection, Richard and the team are determined to uncover the truth. But can they solve the mystery before death knocks twice?

It's always a joy to revisit the original team in the novels. I absolutely loved this book, my favourite of the three in the series so far, and read it in just one weekend. Some of its themes are also quite topical - weaved throughout the narrative are domestic abuse and racial prejudice, the societal injustices that have allowed male and/or white dominance and criminality, as present today as through history. Thorogood's characterisation of the four leads on the page is perfect - as you read, you can hear the voices and imagine the mannerisms of the cast, which is especially effective in the comedy elements. 'Death in Paradise' has always expertly balanced the crimes and comedy - the characters and some of their predicaments bring the humour, while the investigations and the nature of the crimes retain the necessary seriousness of their nature. A cleverly orchestrated locked-room mystery, packed with twists and turns and skulduggery, presents the perfect challenge for both the police team and the reader.

Something of interest to note: I regarded the first two novels as taking place between and around episodes of the first two series, prior to the first episode of series 3. However, assuming series 3 took place in the year it was broadcast in 2014, that sets this book as taking place after that date (in its year of publication, 2017) - thus the novels present an alternative narrative to the TV series, undoing what is perhaps the only slight misstep the show has made in almost ten years.

While I identified the murderer and their motives before the reveal, part of the fun of a whodunnit is trying to solve the mystery yourself and solving it takes nothing away from the enjoyment. Robert Thorogood's writing is very skilfully done, so, during Richard's summing-up, I still found myself questioning my theory right until the final moment. Much like the first two novels in the series, this feels like a feature-length episode in novel form, transporting you to the sandy beaches and locales of Saint Marie.

'Death Knocks Twice' is another entertaining and engrossing novel; I'm looking forward to soon reading the fourth, 'Murder in the Caribbean'.



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Murder in the Caribbean by Robert Thorogood

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A thrilling mystery under the tropical sun of Saint-Marie.

A boat explosion off the coast of the island initiates another investigation for the team, leading them to quickly identify a suspect in the crime.

Recently released from prison, Pierre Charpentier has waited twenty years to get his hands on his share of the proceeds from a jewellery robbery. But on release he discovers his money has been spent.

Now, his fellow armed robbers are being murdered one by one. But as the police pursue the killer, always one step behind, they discover there may be more to this revenge mission than first meets the eye.

‘Murder in the Caribbean’ is the fourth novel in the ‘Death in Paradise’ series, written by creator of the TV series Robert Thorogood. Part revenge thriller, part comic mystery, Thorogood has once again captured the magic of the series on the page, the story featuring the original cast of characters led by DI Richard Poole. Cleverly written and plotted, the narrative leads you into a warren of red herrings in the hunt for a relentless killer. There are also excerpts from a confession by the guilty party inserted into the narrative, allowing for a slightly different approach to the format.

For the first two thirds of the novel, the case appears very straightforward as the team hunt for a recently released ex-offender intent on revenge against his fellow armed robbers. This is interlaced with the comedic interplay between the lead characters – specifically Richard in his quest to catch Dwayne in the act of slacking with his new girlfriend during study time for his sergeant’s exams. All along, the mystery has been subtly woven, ready for the twist and the final conclusion, Richard revealing the truth in a gothic edge-of-your-seat twist on classic detective fiction’s 'drawing room summing-up'.

Part of the beauty of a whodunit is putting your own detective skills to the test. The clues present multiple theories to pursue, each of which is ultimately explored by the characters; it’s as equally satisfying to find your theory proven correct (as mine was) as it is to be surprised by the outcome. The true beauty of this series is of course the characters, with hilarious interactions and clever deductions – both Richard and Dwayne shone in this novel, as much as their portrayal by the actors did on screen.

For now, this is the last novel in the series, though I hope Robert Thorogood will return to this series in the future. In the meantime, he’s concentrating on his new cosy mystery series ‘The Marlow Murder Club’. On the screen, ‘Death in Paradise’ will soon air its third Christmas special ahead of its thirteenth series, while spin-off ‘Beyond Paradise’ began this year and will also be returning for a Christmas special and a second season next year, so there is still much to look forward to.

Another slice of pure escapism, ‘Murder in the Caribbean’ is an entertaining mystery that takes you to sun-kissed beaches, tropical jungles, and into the dark heart of paradise.



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