Review of Murder in New Town

2 hours ago

3 min read

Murder in New Town

And here we have another gripping police procedural from Val Penny. Murder in New Town takes place just after the merger of all forces into Police Scotland. While some officers are grumpy that they now take second place to the Major Incident Team, on the whole they find it’s a good thing, when one of the suspects moves into what would have been another forces’ territory.

What happens?

An overseas student, studying at the University of Edinburgh, is murdered. Unfortunately, it happens in the flat where the son of DI Hunter Wilson is living. The young woman had moved to Edinburgh to escape from her father’s criminal choices. Her grieving father, a Ukrainian gangster, involved in people trafficking, turns up. He makes the police’s job more difficult as he tries to exact revenge for his daughter’s death.

There is a lot going on in this book. More than just the murder. All our favourite characters from the previous books are here, police and civilian. They live their lives. In fact, one man just released from prison actually hands the police vital information, which ultimately ends up with proving he had violated his parole. Even though he did the right thing, he ends up back inside.

How was the crime solved?

The young woman was murdered as revenge for her father’s misdeeds. In this book, there is less comment on the forensics than in the previous books. It’s more assumed than seen. There is the obligatory post mortem examination. The identity of the victim was uncovered by accident rather than hard work, but the accident was realistic. The crime is solved more by extensive sifting through the witness statements than any genius deduction from the detectives. And that is what makes these books realistic. That is how most crimes are solved, by plodding.

Was Justice served?

Justice is blind, it cannot look at motives, just actions. The bad guys get away with doing the bad things that provoked the murder in the first place. The murderer and accomplices get prison sentences, but everyone understands why they committed the crime. However, none of them believe that murder was the answer. The man who provided vital information to help solve this crime and others, ends up returning to prison. So, while the answer is ‘No’, the book as a whole has a satisfying conclusion. This crime was solved.

What did I like about it?

Lives go on. People just go on doing their thing with all the flaws of real life. The writing is what carries this book. It is clear, precise and engaging. The words pull you into the story, and you care about what is happening to the characters, from the teenage dad of twins to the silly men who go on holiday to Ibiza but end up in the wrong part of the island to find babes.

Would I recommend it?

Emphatically, yes. If you enjoy police procedurals, I can see no reason why you would not engage with these books by Val Penny. Maybe this one didn’t have enough forensics for me, but they are clear, witty and full of action. They are some of the best books going when it comes to police detective fiction.

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

Val Penny’s crime novels, form the bestselling series of DI Wilson Series set in Edinburgh.

She is an American author living in SW Scotland with her husband and their cat.