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A Secret Killing: Zig Batten 5
Secrets.
That's the trouble with secrets - they come back to bite you.
Ex-Inspector 'Zig' Batten has 'gone private.' Alas, the first case of his new career drags him back to Wake Hall, the vast Somerset Estate he hoped never to see again - nor its equestrian owner, the imperious Lady Wake.
She and her crew are keepers of secrets, but when Wake Hall's horses are viciously attacked, Batten is left in the dark. If horses could talk, might they speak of vengeful Olly Rutter, Batten's old Northern adversary, or demonic schemer Luka Judd? And what of the missing 'Dipstick Dave'?
Worse, despite a fear of flying, Batten is dispatched to Spain - twice - in search of an absconded farrier, a money-hungry thief, and a killer-on-the-run.
Struggling with a half-finished house, a new partner, and the shifting sands of old CID friendships, Batten discovers how painful secrets can be.
And how dangerous.
That's the trouble with secrets - they come back to bite you.
Ex-Inspector 'Zig' Batten has 'gone private.' Alas, the first case of his new career drags him back to Wake Hall, the vast Somerset Estate he hoped never to see again - nor its equestrian owner, the imperious Lady Wake.
She and her crew are keepers of secrets, but when Wake Hall's horses are viciously attacked, Batten is left in the dark. If horses could talk, might they speak of vengeful Olly Rutter, Batten's old Northern adversary, or demonic schemer Luka Judd? And what of the missing 'Dipstick Dave'?
Worse, despite a fear of flying, Batten is dispatched to Spain - twice - in search of an absconded farrier, a money-hungry thief, and a killer-on-the-run.
Struggling with a half-finished house, a new partner, and the shifting sands of old CID friendships, Batten discovers how painful secrets can be.
And how dangerous.
275 pages, Paperback
Published September 12, 2023
About the author
Paul Toolan
8 books32 followersPaul Toolan is a bearded, left-handed, non-swimming Piscean who was born in Leeds, Yorkshire, quite a long time ago. He's now a Southern softie enjoying the green landscape of England's West Country. After a successful career in Colleges and Universities, he wrote book/lyrics for stage musicals before ‘turning to murder’.
His mystery novels feature Inspector ‘Zig’ Batten, an urban Northerner displaced to Somerset where, to his horror, he discovers they still have crime. Worse, despite a fear of flying, Zig must sometimes forsake cider-land to confront villains in foreign countries such as Greece and Spain.
Like Zig, Paul enjoys walking, fishing, gardens and the occasional whisky. Unlike him, he appreciates sport and mushrooms, and loves travelling to sunnier climes. His idea of bliss is a slow lunch at a beachside taverna after productively tapping a keyboard to the ebb and flow of the Mediterranean sea.
'A Killing Tree', 'A January Killing', 'An Easter Killing', 'The Killing of Queen Mab' and 'A Secret Killing' are rural noir crime mysteries with a fair slice of dark humour. Though largely set amid the apple-orchards of Somerset, escapades overseas bring added variety. The sixth book in the series, 'A Ring O'Bells Killing, is available on Amazon now, in Kindle, Kindle Unlimited and paperback formats
All can be read standalone.
Paul's first collection of "beautifully poignant and funny" stories, 'A View from Memory Hill', gives voice to the dilemmas of mostly older minds, whose common ground is the half-shaded landscape of memory.
His mystery novels feature Inspector ‘Zig’ Batten, an urban Northerner displaced to Somerset where, to his horror, he discovers they still have crime. Worse, despite a fear of flying, Zig must sometimes forsake cider-land to confront villains in foreign countries such as Greece and Spain.
Like Zig, Paul enjoys walking, fishing, gardens and the occasional whisky. Unlike him, he appreciates sport and mushrooms, and loves travelling to sunnier climes. His idea of bliss is a slow lunch at a beachside taverna after productively tapping a keyboard to the ebb and flow of the Mediterranean sea.
'A Killing Tree', 'A January Killing', 'An Easter Killing', 'The Killing of Queen Mab' and 'A Secret Killing' are rural noir crime mysteries with a fair slice of dark humour. Though largely set amid the apple-orchards of Somerset, escapades overseas bring added variety. The sixth book in the series, 'A Ring O'Bells Killing, is available on Amazon now, in Kindle, Kindle Unlimited and paperback formats
All can be read standalone.
Paul's first collection of "beautifully poignant and funny" stories, 'A View from Memory Hill', gives voice to the dilemmas of mostly older minds, whose common ground is the half-shaded landscape of memory.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
September 14, 2023
I would like to thank Netgalley and Books Go Social for an advance copy of A Secret Killing, the fifth novel to feature the now former DI Zig Batten, set in Somerset and Spain.
After injury forced him retire Zig has set up as a private investigator, although his first case is giving him doubts. Lady Wake, owner of Wake Hall, its vast estates and equestrian centre, wants Zig to go to Spain and retrieve an errant employee. The problem is that Wake Hall was the scene of Zig’s first case in Somerset so he knows their secretiveness of old and it seems that nothing has changed. Unfortunately these secrets include malicious harm to the horses and as the threat grows so does the scope of the job.
I thoroughly enjoyed A Secret Killing, which is an unflashy look at Zig’s transition from police detective to civilian and a rather more flashy plot which, it should be noted for some readers, has some brutal cruelty against animals. There are a few human bodies as well, but, somehow, they don’t feel as visceral as the animal cruelty.
I am always pleased to read a new Zig Batten novel as the series suits my taste and this, in that sense, is no different, but I’m not quite as enthusiastic about him being in the private sector as I like a police procedural with the resources and body count it brings. A one man band offers different challenges, not least some hostility from his former colleagues. Still, the novel is an absorbing read as it widens from the strange disappearance of Pavel Ducek to horse mutilation and death. There is quite a story behind it all, with both past and present events playing their part in a larger than expected whole. It held my attention throughout, especially as enough characters get their just deserts to make it satisfying.
Zig Batten brings the novel to life with his cynicism and sarcasm. The cynicism is part of the job description and the sarcasm brings some humour to the dark deeds he is dealing with. He is more than the hard face this would suggest as he has a sense of justice and isn’t prepared to compromise on it.
A Secret Killing is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.
After injury forced him retire Zig has set up as a private investigator, although his first case is giving him doubts. Lady Wake, owner of Wake Hall, its vast estates and equestrian centre, wants Zig to go to Spain and retrieve an errant employee. The problem is that Wake Hall was the scene of Zig’s first case in Somerset so he knows their secretiveness of old and it seems that nothing has changed. Unfortunately these secrets include malicious harm to the horses and as the threat grows so does the scope of the job.
I thoroughly enjoyed A Secret Killing, which is an unflashy look at Zig’s transition from police detective to civilian and a rather more flashy plot which, it should be noted for some readers, has some brutal cruelty against animals. There are a few human bodies as well, but, somehow, they don’t feel as visceral as the animal cruelty.
I am always pleased to read a new Zig Batten novel as the series suits my taste and this, in that sense, is no different, but I’m not quite as enthusiastic about him being in the private sector as I like a police procedural with the resources and body count it brings. A one man band offers different challenges, not least some hostility from his former colleagues. Still, the novel is an absorbing read as it widens from the strange disappearance of Pavel Ducek to horse mutilation and death. There is quite a story behind it all, with both past and present events playing their part in a larger than expected whole. It held my attention throughout, especially as enough characters get their just deserts to make it satisfying.
Zig Batten brings the novel to life with his cynicism and sarcasm. The cynicism is part of the job description and the sarcasm brings some humour to the dark deeds he is dealing with. He is more than the hard face this would suggest as he has a sense of justice and isn’t prepared to compromise on it.
A Secret Killing is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.
Displaying 1 of 1 review