A review of 'Poet in the Guttter' by John Baker

This is a novel that has been around for a while, but I have just read it this summer. It is an unsettling novel, while not exactly a mystery, it still packs a bit of a punch when we finally realize what is the full nature of what has been going on. Sam Turner, philanderer turned PI, is soon onto something very disturbing and faces a series of serial killings on his doorstep and beyond. Who are these characters he meets? Some are just plain loopy, notably Frances, who wields a very sharp knife. And what of her husband? Baker often speaks to us in a voice that is unsettlingly sinister, a sort of insane rambling that is somehow sometimes strangely disembodied. But this creates atmosphere and although we know who the killer is, we do not know the full ramifications till the end. It is a novel of character too, peopled by attractive people as well as creeps. Geordie is homeless and Sam gives him a job and help in setting himself up. He is one of the more attractive characters, as is Celia, another helper in his burgeoning business. Wanda is a girlfriend Sam is half in and half out of love with. The drama takes queer turns and Frances seems to be speaking to the dead, but all becomes clear at the end and the case is solved after a shooting and a disappearance. John Baker is an elegant writer who writes with an easy style, that is laid back and to the point. His detective is immensely human and likeable and this proved to be the start of a series of books involving Sam Turner and his private detective agency. Good summer reading!