Body Line

Bill Slider #13

by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles

The brand-new Bill Slider Mystery

David Rogers was a doctor, handsome, charming and rich. He lived the lifestyle of a consultant, expensive clothes, top restaurants, exclusive clubs, until someone killed him in the hallway of his lovely million-plus-pound house. But when Bill Slider and his firm are thrown into the mystery, they soon discover that nothing is as it seems, for though David's girlfriends are plenty, none of them can tell Slider anything about where he worked or what exactly he did . . .

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Procedural, Fiction, British Literature, Mystery Thriller, Contemporary

256 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 2011

About the author

Cynthia Harrod-Eagles (aka Emma Woodhouse, Elizabeth Bennett)

Cynthia Harrod-Eagles was born on 13 August 1948 in Shepherd's Bush, London, England, where was educated at Burlington School, a girls' charity school founded in 1699, and at the University of Edinburgh and University College London, where she studied English, history and philosophy.

She had a variety of jobs in the commercial world, starting as a junior cashier at Woolworth's and working her way down to Pensions Officer at the BBC.

She wrote her first novel while at university and in 1972 won the Young Writers' Award with The Waiting Game. The birth of the MORLAND DYNASTY series enabled Cynthia Harrod-Eagles to become a full-time writer in 1979. The series was originally intended to comprise twelve volumes, but it has proved so popular that it has now been extended to thirty-four.

In 1993 she won the Romantic Novelists' Association Romantic Novel of the Year Award with Emily, the third volume of her Kirov Saga, a trilogy set in nineteenth century Russia.

Reviews

[Bettie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Terry Wale 10 Hours 20 Mins

Description: David Rogers was a doctor, handsome, charming and rich. He lived the lifestyle of a consultant – expensive clothes, top restaurants, exclusive clubs – until someone killed him in the hallway of his lovely million-plus house. Was he killed for passion, professional jealousy, or plain old money? Bill Slider and his firm are thrown into the mystery, but they soon discover that nothing is as it seems, for though David’s girlfriends are plenty, none of them can tell Slider anything about where he worked or exactly what it was he did . . .

How about a return to the comfort-zone after some mind-scarring forays into Teh Crap (Toys by Patterson, and The Heart Goes Last by Atwood). This is a consistently solid series with some modest but pawky humour.

3* Orchestrated Death (1991)
3* Death Watch (1992)
3* Death to Go (1993)
3* Dead End (1994)
3* Blood Lines (1996)
3* Killing Time (1996)
3* Shallow Grave
3* Blood Sinister
2* Gone Tomorrow (2001)
3* Dear Departed (2004)
3* Game Over (2008)
3* Fell Purpose (2009)
3* Body Line

[Alexandra Daw · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy to read but intriguing at the same time. This author loves words and I enjoyed the mixed metaphors of Slider's boss, Porson. My favourite for the moment is "It's not rocket salad is it?" If you're after a mystery like a good British detective series on the telly, then this is for you.

[Terence M [on a brief semi-hiatus] · Rating 4 out of 5]

Over the past twenty or so years I have listened to fourteen of the current nineteen "Inspector Bill Slider" novels by Cynthia Harrold-Eagles and I have enjoyed every single one of them. This is a likeable series. Bill is a good, down-to-earth British detective supported by his friend and fellow detective, Atherton, plus a few other regulars, all working Homicide in London. The dialogue is uncomplicated for the police procedural genre, the characters and the criminal plots are credible and easy enough to follow without being boring or padded out.

I rarely ever read humorous books because each time I try to read a book that is promoted as "side-splittingly funny", or whatever, I am hopelessly disappointed. The only book I can remember reading and laughing out loud was "The Moon is a Balloon" by David Niven. That was in about 1970 and I haven't read a funny book since. I think my sense of humour is "normal" and the foregoing is by way of admitting that I find myself wryly smiling and even chuckling at times while listening to the British accents and the witty comments by the characters I have come to love.

I feel very attached to the Bill Slider character and his bosses, friends and foes all contribute to my enjoyment of the series. In fact I deferred listening to "Body Line" for almost a year because I am running out of Bill Slider books to listen to/read and I know that if I get on one of my "read three books in a row by the same author" jags I will have no choice but to start at the beginning again, which would be an enjoyable task anyway.

"Body Line" was generally up to standard although I think the plot and characters seemed to get a little muddled near the end and I lost track of the solving of the mystery. This may have been because I kept falling asleep and having to rewind and listen to the end again ... and again ... and again.

I awarded 3.5 stars rounded up to four due to the excellent narration by Terry Wale.

One thing I would say to anyone planning to read a Bill Slider novel is that there is a line of continuity running through all the books and while one could read any book and pretty quickly work out who was up who and who was paying the rent, the characters of both Slider and Atherton go through the usual changes of life, meeting, falling in love, falling out of love, getting married, having babies, etc., and while the events by no means intrude on the stories, reading the novels in order makes the whole experience more enjoyable - in my opinion.

[Les Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book but I felt the Protagonist was identifiable very early in the book.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love Cynthia Harrod-Eagles' Morland Dynasty and I always feel I should enjoy the Bill Slider books but somehow always feel they're a bit of a letdown. The characters are great but somehow I feel the storyline is slightly lacking.

This book sees Slider and Atherton trying to solve the murder of David Rogers, a doctor about whom nobody truly seems to know. His ex-wife seems to be his closest kin but then a whole range of women come forward who he was involved with. This book seemed to have too many people sleeping with each other, having affairs etc. and the crime itself didn't seem to get a great deal of attention. There were a couple of twists in the story, one of which I saw coming from very early on. Ultimately it was all very nicely tied up, maybe a bit too much so!

A pleasant read but not compelling for me

[Johanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Bill Slider!

[Marianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Been a while since I read a book from this Slider series. Very interesting plot line about a timely subject.
Quote: from p 237
Megalomania. Slider thought, though he didn’t say it aloud. When power allows you to sidestep the rules and decide for yourself what’s right and what isn’t, the logical end is defending that right to decide. If you are right,anyone who stands in your way is obviously wrong, and must be removed from the path of the greater good. [end of quote]
Found this a profound statement. There’s a LOT of that very thinking going on right now in the halls of government. Hopefully, that house of cards comes tumbling down before it’s too late.

[Nolan · Rating 2 out of 5]

David Rogers has never experienced a girlfriend shortage. He’s a 40-something year old plastic surgeon, and he can snag women as readily as the rest of us can breathe. Just ask his ex-wife, Amanda, who operates a not-for-profit company. But if you collect too many girlfriends at once, and if at least one of them is ever-so-slightly unstable, you can die. And he does. And it isn’t one of the girlfriends who murders him. In fact David’s killer offs one of the lovely ladies, a loquacious stripper.

Bill Slider and his crew are frantic to figure out who killed David and the stripper, and before this ends, others will die.

[Dan Bailes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Her work is so fun to read. It's not just about the whodunit but about the personalities and foibles of the Shepherd Bush crew of detectives led by Bill Slider. This story, like others of hers I've read, lets you hang out with the detective crew as they struggle to find the killer of a wealthy doctor. But not only do they not know who or why he was killed, they know almost nothing about the doctor, other than his name. So there are many mysteries to solve. Her work is also full of a dry wit that leaves you smiling as you turn the page to find out what will happen next. If you like British mysteries, you'll love this one.

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

I ended up liking this book though there were several times in the first 50 pages I almost gave up. The beginning felt confusing; many of the characters were not described & there were too many of them. This was definitely written as though the reader had read the series--I hadn't, so I was lost. Also, the slang was hard to make out even though I read (and watch) a lot of British mysteries.

However, once I got into it, I enjoyed the story and the characters and will look for earlier books so I'll better understand them.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading the first of the WW1 series, I felt I had to get back to the "real" Harrod-Eagles. At least, it feels that way to me. This Slider sees HE up to her usual form: smart characters, bad puns, and just fun in the whole situation, even with a murder.

This series is consistently interesting and well plotted, and it moves along very swiftly. It's hard to write prose that reads this quickly. Well done, HE.

[Jon · Rating 4 out of 5]

My reviews of these Bill Slider police procedurals are pretty uniform, because the series is uniformly good. As usual, the mystery had me fooled, and the punning and malapropisms made me laugh out loud. One chapter title: "They Tuck You Up, Your Mum and Dad." (Apologies to Philip Larkin.) And the guvnor who repeatedly loses his way in the English language: "I don't want you jumping to collusions."

[Pgchuis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good one. I enjoyed the slow discovery of the murder victim's various secrets, and the plot was convoluted but coherent. Joanna has become a bit saintly and now seems to spend all her time looking after Slider's older children uncomplainingly, with the help of his even more saintly father.

[Shirley Hartman-Rozee · Rating 5 out of 5]

So many murders! So many lives lost! A huge money-making business done in the name of saving lives. When all is explained in the end, it makes you sick to your stomach to think there are people in this world who actually believe that the end justifies the means. In this episode of Slider vs the bad guys, he took out more than one really vicious, evil, bloodsucking crooks.

[Ellen Dark · Rating 3 out of 5]

A handsome doctor is murdered in his own home. Bill Slider and company investigate. Chapter headings full of puns, and more quiet humour take the edge off the seriousness of the crimes investigated. It had been a while since I had read this series.

[Nancy · Rating 2 out of 5]

The layers of mystery that Slider peels back to discover who-done-it almost all involved people being unfaithful to spouses and lovers. I suppose I wasn't meant to like many of the0se characters, but with all the cheating going on I didn't find the story much fun.

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another solid entry in a good police procedural.

[Kaye · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5*** rounded up

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this one randomly... Wasn't bad, but I will probably not pursue the 12 books prior to this one.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book

[Barb · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not her best!

[Maggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great series

[Martha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting plot that unfolded logically, nicely written characters--especially the detective/police team--and flashes of humor.

[Booksingarden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent police procedural. I will reading more of this series.

[Susan W · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read

[Gary Van Cott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good book by this clever writer.

[Priscilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very tightly plotted and lots of red herrings. The gang is back and this one was very engaging. Well crafted and kept me guessing.

[LJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

First Sentence: “You look terrible,” Slider said as Atherton slid into the car.

Inspector Bill Slider and his team are investigating the murder of David Rogers, shot in his home at point blank range by someone with a silencer. Everything about him indicates he has considerable money, except his bank statement. Yet, the crime doesn’t appear to be one of passion or of robbery. With very little evidence, few clues, and no obvious motive, the police are having a difficult time finding the killer. Does the answer lie with one of the many women in Roger’s life, with his past or with his shadowy job? The deeper they go into the investigation, the bigger and more complex the case becomes

Reading Cynthia Harrod-Eagles is pure joy. Her love of language is evident on every page as exemplified by her dialogue, wry humor and evocative descriptions...”a well-dressed elderly couple, so tiny and immaculate they could have earned spare cash standing around on wedding cakes.” There are hunger-inspiring descriptions of food, from the grab-and-go to a particularly delicious dinner.

Each of the characters is fully-fleshed out and the relationships realistic. It is so refreshing that the protagonists have normal, stable lives and aren’t angst-driven or alcoholic, yet there is nothing cloying about the way in which they are presented.

American readers may not be familiar with some of the terms or expressions, yet these are British police who use British vernacular. The meaning of those expressions that may not be known to the American audience can easily be gleaned for their context and add to the veracity of the story.

The plot is developed bit-by-bit from a single murder to something unexpected. This is a serious crime which becomes more serious as the story progresses. At the same time, it is presented in the manner of a traditional mystery in that overt violence is left off-stage. The case is investigated by a team using procedure and following the clues; no tricks but a few very effective red herrings, no sudden revelations. At the same time, it was interesting to learn that, in Britain, one can rent a gun from a dealer for a day. It’s that information and attention to detail which greatly enhance the story.

Most of all, I come back to the use of language. There are subtle puns, visual similes and metaphors, and the most wonderful malaprops which are attributable to one of the characters. The cleverest part is that the other characters are so accustomed to them, they are commented on only once and you feel that is more for the sake of the reader.

“Body Line” is an excellent, traditional police procedural with wonderful characters and a very well-constructed plot that is pure pleasure to read.

BODY LINE (Pol Proc-Insp. Bill Slider-England-Cont) - Ex
Harrod-Eagles, Cynthia – 13th in series
Severn House, ©2010, US Hardcover – ISBN: 9780727869579

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

BODY LINE is the thirteenth book in the Bill Slider series. Slider is an inspector in the homicide division in London and, as usual, he is surrounded by his loyal team, Jim Atherton and Norma Swilley, and is supported by his boss, Superintendent Porson. Life at home is good, as well, with Joanna and their baby son.

Slider and his team are sent to a home in a very expensive section of London to investigate the execution-style murder of David Rogers, a doctor who is clearly doing well for himself. Rogers girlfriend tells the police that the doctor received a phone call early in the morning, she assumes from the hospital. The door bell rang, she heard him invite someone into the house, and then she heard a gun shot. She realizes that the shooter is searching the house and she escapes by hanging from a balcony. She sees the assailant leave but all she can tell police is that he had dark hair.

Neither she nor the ex-wife know what type of medicine the doctor practices or what hospital with which he is affiliated. Financial records show that he gets monthly payments from a Swiss-based group but it isn’t enough to support the doctor in his life style. In fact, the doctor seems to have had unending piles of cash. Before the police can discover who killed David Rogers they have to figure out who David Rogers was.

The Bill Slider mysteries, straightforward police procedurals, are consistently good. The author provides the clues and leads the reader along until the trail goes off in a different direction and the resolution sneaks up.

The books offer very funny lines. Chapter titles are frequently puns but the best lines are saved for Superintendent Porson who provides an unending stream of malapropisms. Some examples: ” I don’t like to see you jumping to collusions”, “Isn’t there any light at the end of the funnel?”, and “The press would have a picnic day if we went after a pillow of society like her.

[Jerry B · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Body Line" is the 13th in the author's Detective Inspector Bill Slider mysteries - we've read them all and look forward to each new entry, especially since the characters age and evolve over time. Bill is now married to musician Joanna; they have a toddler running around, and Bill's father is a (separate quarters) live-in cook and babysitter. Slider's colleagues at work, especially Atherton, a former playboy now "steady" with girlfriend Emily, are also part of the familiar cast and crew, so the whole gang makes each book seem similar to a family reunion. While the stories are police procedurals for sure, it's usually just good old-fashioned detective work, rather than forensic hoopla or other strokes of luck or brilliance, that solve the cases. Other than the murder per se, usually violence and bad language are at a minimum, another endearing quality of this charming set.

In the plot, a doctor is found murdered by his girlfriend, with virtually no clues but a male intruder to go on. It even becomes difficult to determine just who the doctor works for, even what kind of doctor he was – so the police are forced to work backwards to learn about his life to gain any foothold over the case at all. The doctor’s ex-wife is located, and reflects suspicion immediately through several attempts to lie to the police. Her new boyfriend might also be involved, but it takes quite a while to zero in on the culprits and villains – but after a well-crafted, suspenseful exposure of clues and developments, the denouement had quite a nice little twist to it.

Harrod-Eagles is a prolific author with nearly 70 novels to her credit !! Thus the Slider stories appear only once every two or three years. Our only wish is that they would happen faster, as they all appeal, entertain, and amuse!