Michael Robotham Omnibus : The Drowning Man; Bombproof

by Michael Robotham

Two fast-paced London-based thrillers in one volume.

The Drowning Man 390 pages

Bombproof 393 pages

Genres: Thriller, Mystery, Fiction

783 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Two-times Gold Dagger winner (2015 and 2020), twice Edgar best novel finalist (2016 and 2020) and winner of the Ian Fleming Steel Dagger (2021), Michael Robotham was born in Australia in November 1960 and grew up in small country towns that had more dogs than people and more flies than dogs. He escaped became a cadet journalist on an afternoon newspaper in Sydney.

For the next fourteen years he worked for newspapers and magazines in Australia, Europe, Africa and America. As a senior feature writer for the UK’s Mail on Sunday he was among the first people to view the letters and diaries of Czar Nicholas II and his wife Empress Alexandra, unearthed in the Moscow State Archives in 1991. He also gained access to Stalin’s Hitler files, which had been missing for nearly fifty years until a cleaner stumbled upon a cardboard box that had been misplaced and misfiled.

In 1993 he quit journalism to become a ghostwriter, collaborating with politicians, pop stars, psychologists, adventurers and showbusiness personalities to write their autobiographies. Twelve of these non-fiction titles have been bestsellers with combined sales of more than 2 million copies.

His first novel 'THE SUSPECT', a psychological thriller, was chosen by the world’s largest consortium of book clubs as only the fifth “International Book of the Month”, making it the top recommendation to 28 million book club members in fifteen countries.

Since then, Michael's psychological thrillers have been translated into twenty-five languages and his Joe O'Loughlin series is are currently in development for TV by World Productions. A six-part TV series based upon his standalone novel THE SECRETS SHE KEEPS was aired on BBC1 in 2020, and a second series begins filming in 2021.

Michael lives in Sydney with his wife and a diminishing number of dependent daughters.

Reviews

[Barbara Elsborg]

Two very good stories. I feel compelled to read everything he's written. I liked hearing more about Ruiz in The Drowning Man - I should have read this book first! And Sami in Bombproof was just fantastic - how many bad things can happen to one guy? I'm glad it ended the way it did, even though it never could in million years but it was a great read. I find his writing style very smooth with just the right balance of detail and plot and characters. The stories were exciting and intense, I was biting my nails at quite a few points!

[Dhanvi]

The 2nd installment in the Professor Joseph O'Laughlin series. The 1st twist in the book comes at the end of chapter 1. This is because we find out that unlike most book series, where the storyteller remains the same, here the storyteller is not the Professor but rather Detective Inspector Ruiz who we see a lot in the 1st book. Here we get to see a lot more about him, and the reasons why he comes out as so diligent, and stuck-up. We get to see the softer side of him in more detail which was only briefly seen in the 1st book.

Ruiz is someone who prides himself on his infallible memory, and as he goes about trying to remember what happened on one dreadful night, we get to see a character who is battling the fact that he can no longer rely on his greatest strength, yet he is willing to push through to get to the truth.

[Joan Campbell]

This was a great Robotham read, slightly different to the previous ones I've read because it was written from the point of view of Detective Ruiz as opposed to his usual main POV psychologist. He unfolds the criminal mystery in a very interesting way because Ruiz is not only trying to solve the mystery of a missing girl, he's also battling his temporary amnesia and what happened to him before he was shot and left for dead in the Thames river.

[Robert Craven]

Excellent books - both books feature strong openings that propel the stories - in The Drowning Man, Vincent Ruiz is found shot and clinging to flotsam in The Thames,

In Bombproof, the Protagonist, Sam is on release from prison and the train he is travelling on is blown up.

Robotham is one of those fine writers that immerses you into high-octane plots and authentic dialogue.

a great read.

[Helen Katz]

The book was somewhat disappointing. The characters were sometimes difficult to differentiate - particularly the policeman - Detective Inspector and the psychologist professor Joe O’Laughlin. I couldn’t tell whether the narrator was the policeman or the psychologist. Quite confusing. But Robotham’s stories are always enthralling, as this one proved to be as well.

[Wanda Hartzenberg]

You cannot go wrong with this author. The books are both brilliant.

[Gayle]

Ruiz is convinced a missing girl who disappeared, never died, but everything else points against it. Especially when you suffer amnesia!

[Emma Francois]

Good ending. All loose ties were knotted. Bit of a slow start for me personally, but the end was worth the wait!

[Dajuroka Reads]

He is just a great storyteller. Is it literature? I have no idea what literature is and isn't but he is a writer! Enjoy.

[Kath Dorrans]

Love his books but this wasnt as good to me, maybe i just like the joe side of the story

[Kanna]

Good

[Nancy]

Wow what a great plot with lots of twists !
Love the way Michael writes !
Recommend this !

[Sue]

Just completed the Drowning Man, which focussed of DI Riaz rather than Joe. A really good read, a complex plot with twists and turns right to the end.

[Stephanie]

3.75⭐️

[John Swim]

Really liked the book, the ending is still something I think about. Only thing keeping it from a scoring higher was the sewers... lost me a little bit there

[Nkuna_sr]

Boss

[Miriam]

As the previous one, is a well developed narrative. Keeps the reader engaged. But it is so little credible.

[Michael O'Donnell]

The Drowning Man a good read

the ending was brief and contrived

fast action crime in London and underneath it

street directions and sewer detail. an underworld.

Bombproof was a better read.

[Sally]

"The Drowning Man" in Australia. "Lost" in the UK. Another brilliant book by a superb Australian writer. This is a unique and intriguing angle on a crime novel. Taking a background character out of his first book, Robotham has made DI Ruiz the main character in his second book, and has him investigating his own role in a crime. DI Ruiz has been seriously wounded while involved in something off the books, and he can't remember a thing about it. Chasing the truth, while being chased, and with the police force believing he's faking amnesia to cover for being a bent cop... This guy has serious talent, and is every bit worth the read even if crime is not your thing.

[Laura Bowlby]

I discovered this crime author with his first book, The Suspect which I really enjoyed, so I'll be working my way through his books in sequence. Although this book is not one of his "Joseph O'laughlin" series (sleuth protagonist introduced in The Suspect), he uses the main police detective from the first book as one of the main characters in this book. FYI, some of his books have dual titles (e.g. this book is also published under "The Drowning Man") - possibly different titles for U.S. and ex-U.S. publishers - odd.

[Debbie Spooner]

The second book had slightly simple story that I seem to have read or watched on the TV but Mr Robotham's style is superb. His characters are fully rounded and not 2 dimensional. Story cracked on at a great pace describing every situation fully that I felt that I was there. I loved the banter and tongue in cheek humour. I would recommend these books if you needed a cracking good thriller to read. I enjoyed it and it didn't take me long to finish.

[Bob]

Not a bad read but certainly not one of great police thrillers.

[June Jones]

Another very good read, not quite as exciting as some of his other books, but still thrilling.

[Sheryl Mountenay]

So many twists and turns. Keeps you guessing. Fills many of the "gaps" is you haven't read the series in order.

[Tuesday's Child]

Great thriller! This writer never disappoints. It is well written , and keeps you on the edge of your seat.

[Sharon]

1st book by this author I've ever read, really enjoyed it. Going straight into the second one.

[Pratyaksh]

It was boring at times....

[Birgit]

My favourite crime author. Characters are fantastic. Lots of dark humour as well as suspense.