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I would have been in love with Peter Robinson's STRANGE AFFAIR by virtue of the
title alone. Anyone who names a novel after a Richard Thompson song is deserving
of accolades. But it becomes quickly evident that Robinson is not showing off,
in some hipper-than-you'll-ever-be sense, by name-dropping a somewhat obscure
song by an artist who, in his own words, has a small enough following that he
doesn't have to worry about catching a helicopter to his next gig. No. Listen
to the song on the First Light CD, by Richard and Linda Thompson, as you begin
reading this novel, and you'll find that the music and book fit perfectly together
from first note and page to last.
Indeed, STRANGE AFFAIR, after a brief vignette, begins with British police inspector
Alan Banks hearing the song by happenstance in a pub, an incident that remarkably
enough has ties to his past. Banks also has no way of knowing that within a few
minutes he will receive a telephone message that will irrevocably change his life.
Again.
Robinson, if I may take a moment to say so, is absolutely brilliant. STRANGE AFFAIR
is his fifteenth Banks novel. Though the books in the series are connected sequentially,
they also are written so that one can jump into the series at any point and be
brought up to speed fairly quickly and painlessly. This is a difficult task for
a writer, particularly with a character such as Banks, who has, to put it delicately,
a history. So it is that, if you are reading Robinson for the first time here,
you will learn that Banks is still in a bit of shock after having his home burnt
down by Detective Annie Cabbot, Banks's professional partner and former lover.
The fiend is still on the loose (and no, they don't catch her in this installment).
Banks is trying to cope with his myriad losses and is going through the motions
of life when he receives a cryptic call for assistance from Roy, his younger and
wealthier brother. When Banks arrives in London pursuant to his brother's summons,
he finds Roy's fashionable home to be deserted. While nothing immediately appears
to be amiss, Banks discovers that his brother is more, and less, than he ever
suspected.
Meanwhile, Annie Cabbot is investigating the mysterious shooting death of a young
woman on a highway. Her death is made all the more puzzling by the fact that a
clue discovered at the scene of the crime seems to link her directly to Banks.
While Banks is looking for his brother, Cabbot is searching for Banks, and each
of them is carrying potential keys to the puzzle of a larger mystery.
Robinson's narrative pace is steady but not rushed, thus building an internal
urgency that is almost excruciating by the time Cabbot and Banks finally do connect.
As the pieces of the story slowly fit together, the reader learns more about Banks,
a bit about Cabbot, and some more about how the world works. The climax is redemptive
of sorts but uncomfortable, and all the more real for it. It is illustrative of
Robinson's genius --- yes, genius --- that he can introduce a character central
to the impetus of STRANGE AFFAIR within the last twenty pages and do it without
a bit of strain or feeling of overreaching, simultaneously making the character
--- who we barely get to meet --- the most memorable in the book. That, I would
submit, is superior writing.
This is a work, and an author, that simply cannot be missed.
--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
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