Review: THE CUTTING, Michael Campling

• 
  This edition read as an ebook on my Kindle (AmazonAU)
  
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0H199HCHD
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Shadowstone Books, Publication date ‏ : ‎ 2 June 2026
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 652 pages
• Book 2 of 2 ‏ : ‎ The DC Spiller Mysteries   

Synopsis (AmazonAU)

The body was in a mess. The victim, a young man, was found naked in the street, face and upper body slashed, fingertips shredded, teeth broken. And all while he was alive.

Detective Constable Spiller has seen nothing like it. Stranger still, the victim was found in a quiet residential street and nobody seems to know who he was.

But this young man was only the first victim to be found. The murderer hasn't stopped, and to make matters worse, the police can find no link between the victims.

Is this the work of a sociopathic murderer, a sadistic serial killer targeting victims at random?

It’s 1993 and DC Spiller has been in the job for a year. This is his toughest case yet, but along with the team at Exeter CID, he’ll stop at nothing to bring the killer in.

Even if it means putting his life on the line.

Venture into Exeter’s shadowy streets with DC Spiller on the hunt for a serial killer in The Cutting.

My Take

This story takes us back over 30 years when technologies that we take for granted were really just emerging. Police investigations took much longer and procedures were much emphasised. However DC Tim Spiller is inclined to bypass the procedures and to trust his intuition a little too much. This is only his second year in the job and he often needs restraint and yoking to a more experienced officer.

A body found on a street, naked, outside the house of a former policeman, appears to have been tortured, and DC Tim Spiller becomes part of the team of investigating officers.

This is a well constructed tale with a good plot. 

My rating: 4.5

I have also read the following by the same author

4.3, A STUDY IN STONE

Review: THREE BAGS FULL, Leonie Swann

• 
  This edition read on my Kindle (AmazonAU)
  
• aka THE SHEEP DETECTIVES
• Anthea Bell (Translator)
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0DT4QXTD9
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Allison & Busby, Publication date ‏ : ‎ 20 March 2025
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 347 pages 
• First published in 2005, English translation from German by Anthea Bell 2006, published Random House 2006, 351 pages, ISBN 978-0-385-60994-4
• Review written in 2009 

Synopsis (AmazonAU)

On a hillside near the quaint Irish village of Glennkill, the flock gathers around the dead body of their shepherd, George, who lies pinned to the ground with a spade. George cared deeply for the sheep, reading to them daily, and as a result they are far smarter than your average flock.

Led by Miss Maple, the sharpest sheep in Glennkill (and possibly the world), they set out to find George's killer. With an assortment of woolly investigators on the case, there are furtive missions into the village and a collection of two-legged suspects to chew over.

Dazzingly original, Three Bags Full introduces a band of detectives who are a breed apart.

My Take

Just recently the film THE SHEEP DETECTIVES starring Hugh Jackman has been recently released and The Chooser in our book group decided the book that the film was based on, THREE BAGS FULL,  would be on our list this month. For me this was a re-read as I originally read the book soon after it was released. My review from 2009 is here.

A word of warning for would-be readers. The film THE SHEEP DETECTIVES has a PG rating. The film really takes one or two themes out of the original book, the main one being the death of the shepherd and the attempts by his sheep to solve the problem of his murder. Various other cozy elements were then added to the story. The original book went well beyond that.

In fact after originally reading the book over 17 years ago I had forgotten most of the story, and began to feel a little bit duped because the plots were far from identical to that of the film.  

Once I had got over those feelings, I did enjoy the re-read, and the rather woolly sense of humour embedded in it. 

My rating: 4.4

Review: THE CURSED ROAD, Laura McCluskey

• 
  This edition, a paperback by QBD books
• ISBN 9781460765593 
  
• Published 24 / 02 / 2026
• Book 2 of 2: George Lennox and Richie Stewart 
• 352 pages 

Synopsis (publisher) 

The hauntingly atmospheric and gripping new novel from the author of The Wolf Tree

In a mountainous region of the Scottish Highlands, a young woman's body has been found on a remote stretch of road. Though the manner of her death suggests a terrible accident, a name carved into her arm hints at something more sinister. And when a personal connection to the name is revealed, DIs Georgina Lennox and Richard Stewart are sent to investigate. As George and Richie question locals, they discover that the road has a bloody history. 

Fearing that more women will be harmed, they track the killer through a rugged wilderness where ancient feuds, generational curses and the unforgiving elements fight for supremacy. But there are more secrets to the road than just its history - and the people living along it will do whatever it takes to stop those secrets from coming out.

My Take

Recently I came across a review which described a book as a "chiller" and that strikes me as an apt adjective for this one too.

George and Richie have not been in touch much recently, both in fact trying in their own ways get over the impact of their recent case together. George regards Richie as her mentor but is not sure that she can work with him again. After their last case she became drug dependent and, although she is now clean, she is sure he will be disapproving. 

Their boss is keen to get them working together again, she can't afford to have her two best detectives sidelined. 

There is a lot of pressure on them to solve this case quickly but it is difficult to identify the victim and something is not quite right with the information locals are giving. This book hooks you, and you have to keep reading! 

My rating: 4.6

I've also read

4.8, THE WOLF TREE  

Review: LORD EDGWARE DIES, Agatha Christie

• 
  This edition read as an e-book on my Kindle
  
• originally published 1933 as LORD EDGWARE DIES in the UK, aka THIRTEEN AT DINNER for the American release
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0046A9MP4
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ HarperCollins, Publication date ‏ : ‎ 14 October 2010
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 290 pages
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0007422432
• Book 9 of 38: Hercule Poirot  

Synopsis (AmazonAU)

Agatha Christie’s famous murder mystery, reissued with a striking cover designed to appeal to the latest generation of Agatha Christie fans and book lovers.

Poirot had been present when Jane bragged of her plan to ‘get rid of’ her estranged husband. Now the monstrous man was dead. And yet the great Belgian detective couldn’t help feeling that he was being taken for a ride.

After all, how could Jane have stabbed Lord Edgware to death in his library at exactly the same time she was seen dining with friends? And what could be her motive now that the aristocrat had finally granted her a divorce?

My Take - apologies for possible spoilers

I have read this several times over the last 60 years; this re-read is for discussion with my U3A Agatha Christie Reading group.  My first review on this blog can be found here. 

This novel is narrated by Poirot's companion Captain Arthur Hastings whose approach to solving any crime provides a foil to Poirot's "brilliance". He tells us to start with that Poirot regards this case as one of his failures mainly because initially he followed a number of red herrings, because he was duped by the murderer and also because he failed to prevent the murders. 

Some readers have a very adverse reaction to the racism and anti-Semitism that Christie expresses. In 1933, when she was writing the novel, many of her readers would have concurred with these sentiments. Poirot tells Hastings for example that Carlotta Adams is obviously a Jewess, as is that is obvious from her face, and others support that later by telling Poirot that making money is at the centre of her character. 

Once the first murder is committed, that of Lord Edgware, Inspector Japp of Scotland Yard become involved. He thinks it is pretty obvious that Lady Edgware has committed the murder - after all she told Poirot she wanted to get rid of her husband - but Poirot is adamant that she is innocent. However Japp does not then arrest her, but the man who has inherited the title. Later he has to let him go.

Japp gives Poirot a lot of leeway as Poirot suggests various solutions. Poirot does most of his "investigation" from the comfort of his armchair, using his little "grey cells", while Hastings becomes frustrated as he thinks Poirot should be more active. Poirot is content to send Hastings on errands, and to let Japp do the physical stuff. Japp is getting the evidence together and Poirot will have no hesitation in using what suits him. Hastings tells Poirot he is getting lazy.

Memorable quote: Why keep a dog and bark yourself? 

In the long run it is Poirot who gets the credit for solving the case although for most of the time he was wrong. Poirot says he wants to get the answers to 5 questions and until he knows those answers he will not be satisfied.

1. Why did Lord Edgware change his mind on the subject of divorce?
2. What happened to the letter that Edgware sent telling his wife she could have her divorce?
3. What was the meaning of the expression that Hastings had seen on Lord Edgware's face?
4. Why was there a pince-nez in Carlotta Adam's bag?
5. Why did someone phone to find out if Jane Wilkinson was at the dinner party that established her alibi? 

After he establishes the answers to those questions we get the full explanation of what happened, and who did what. 

My rating: 4.5 

I have read all the Agatha Christie novels as part of a challenge I set myself to read them in order of publication. My reviews can be found here. 

Review: THE BOY IN THE HEADLIGHTS, Samuel Bjork

• 
  This edition read as an e-book on Libby courtesy of my local library
• Published: 21 March 2019
• ISBN: 9781473508651 
  
• Imprint: Transworld Digital
• Format: EBook
• Pages: 384
• (The third book in the Holger Munch & Mia Kruger series) 
• Translated by Charlotte Barslund 

Synopsis (publisher) 

Winter 1996. An old man is driving home when his headlights catch an animal on the empty road up ahead. He stamps hard on the brakes. But it is not an animal at all. It is a young boy, frightened and alone, with a set of deer antlers strapped firmly to his head.

Fourteen years later, a body is found in a mountain lake. Within weeks, three people have died. Each time, the killer has left a clue, inviting Special Investigations Detectives Munch and Krüger to play a deadly game - a game they cannot possibly win. Against the most dangerous and terrifying kind of serial killer. One who chooses their victims completely at random.

To find the killer they must look deep within their own dark pasts, but how can you stop a murderer when you cannot begin to predict their next move?

How can you stop a murderer when you cannot predict their next move? A serial killer is choosing his victims at random, it is a detective's worst nightmare and the ultimate challenge for Munch and Kruger.

Mindless killer? Or do they know exactly what they're doing?

My Take

This novel is set some 15 years after Mia Kruger first joined the Special Investigations Unit on Holger Munch's initiative. Since then the unit has had a chequered history, although uniquely successful, and Mia has suffered some mental health and drug issues. But Mia still has special skills to bring to the cases that the unit takes on. She is not entirely trusted by her colleagues which adds complexity to their cases.

Each of the incidents that make up this case do not at first appear to be connected but pathology reports reveal features in common. They need Mia to work out the other links. This case in particular is very complicated but draws the reader in so that you want to resolve it.

My rating: 4.5

I have also read

4.4, I'M TRAVELLING ALONE #1

4.7, THE WOLF #4

Review: MAD MABEL, Sally Hepworth

• 
  This edition read on Libby, through my local library
  
• Published by St. Martin's Publishing Group, released 21 April 2026 

Synopsis (Overdrive)

From New York Times bestselling author Sally Hepworth comes a twisty tale of justice, redemption, and one irrepressible woman who's not done breaking the rules just yet.

Meet Elsie Mabel Fitzpatrick: eighty-one years old, gloriously grumpy, fiercely independent, and never without a hot cup of tea—or a cutting remark. She minds her own business in her quiet Melbourne suburb, until a neighbor turns up dead and the whispers start flying.

Because Elsie hasn't always been Elsie. Once upon a headline, she was Mad Mabel Waller—Australia's youngest convicted murderer. But was she really mad, or just misunderstood? Either way, she's kept her secret buried for decades.

Enter seven-year-old Persephone, a relentless little chatterbox who has just moved in across the road (armed with stickers, questions, and no sense of personal boundaries); Joan, who appears to have it in for Elsie; and a healthy dose of public interest—the cops are sniffing around, and the media is circling like seagulls at a picnic.

So Mabel does what she's always done best—she takes matters into her own hands.

Is she a cantankerous old lady with a shady past? A cold-blooded killer with arthritis? Or just someone who's finally ready to tell her side of the story?

Sharp, surprising, and wickedly funny, this is the unforgettable story of a woman who's spent a lifetime being underestimated—and is about to prove everyone wrong. Again.

My Take:

Another exceptional story from Sally Hepworth. 

Mabel has always wondered why it has been so difficult to acquire friends, why her father seems to dislike her so much, and what she has done to deserve the nickname of "Mad Mabel". 

Looking back, Mabel has seemed to be followed around by death, and to be honest, she has been Australia's youngest convicted killer - of two people, not just one. But there have been at least two other deaths at her door, and now there appears to be a fifth. But, hang on, Mabel knows she at least she hasn't been responsible for the recent death of her elderly neighbour. This account reveals how the other four were linked to her.

It makes you think about how often unkindness was her lot.  A story written with touches of humour and empathy. And if it hadn't been for Mabel's bosom buddy Daphne, and her latest "friend" Persephone....

My rating: 4.7

I've also read

4.5, THE MOTHER IN LAW

4.7, THE YOUNGER WIFE 

4.7, THE SOULMATE

4.8, DARLING GIRLS

4.7, THE YOUNGER WIFE 

4.7, THE GOOD SISTER

Review: THE LAST STRAW, Paul Gitsham

• 
  This edition read on Libby (Overdrive) through my local library
  
• Published by Harper Collins 2014
• DCI Collins #1  

Synopsis (Overdrive)

When Professor Alan Tunbridge is discovered in his office with his throat slashed, the suspects start queuing up. The brilliant but unpleasant microbiologist had a genius for making enemies.

 For Warren Jones, newly appointed Detective Chief Inspector to the Middlesbury force, a high-profile murder is the ideal opportunity. He's determined to run a thorough and professional investigation but political pressure to resolve the case quickly and tensions in the office and at home make life anything but easy. 

Everything seems to point to one vengeful man but the financial potential of the professor's pioneering research takes the inquiry in an intriguing and, for Jones and his team, dangerous direction. 

My Take

This title was published 12 years ago, the first in a series, and the author is now well established.

The central character is a newly appointed Detective Chief Inspector, trying to establish himself with a new team. The victim is a high profile professor at the local university. Early investigation reveals that he was extremely unpopular, but who would want to kill him? Which of his actions was the final straw?

This does have the signs of a "first book".  However the characters are well drawn and attractive. One of the drawbacks was the amount of technical/scientific information for the reader to absorb.

But I do intend to read the next in the series. 

My rating: 4.5

About the author
Paul Gitsham started his career as a biologist, working in such exotic locales as Manchester and Toronto. After stints as the world's most over-qualified receptionist and a spell making sure that international terrorists and other ne'er do wells hadn't opened a Junior Savings Account at a major UK bank (a job even less exciting than being a receptionist) he retrained as a Science Teacher. He now spends his time passing on his bad habits and sloppy lab-skills to the next generation of enquiring minds.

Paul has always wanted to be a writer and his final report on leaving primary school predicted he'd be the next Roald Dahl! For the sake of balance it should be pointed out that it also said "he'll never get anywhere in life if his handwriting doesn't improve". Twenty five years later and his handwriting is worse than ever but millions of children around the world love him.*