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Inspector Banks #11
Cold is the Grave
Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks' life is shaken to the core when he is unexpectedly pulled into the investigation of a young girl's disappearance in this shattering suspense novel from the hand of a modern master.
“Full of twists and surprises... Robinson shows he has only begun to dig into the personality of his tenacious, thoughtful inspector.”—Chicago Tribune
When the nude photo of a teenage runaway shows up on a website, the girl's father turns to Detective Chief Inspector Alan banks for help. But these aren't unusual circumstances, for the runaway is the daughter of a man who's determined to destroy the dedicated Yorkshire policeman's career and good name. Still, it’s a case that Banks—a father himself—dares not ignore as he follows its trail into teeming London. But when a series of gruesome murders follows soon after, Banks finds himself pulled into the past and private world of his most powerful enemy, Chief Constable Jimmy Riddle.
Peter Robinson is at the height of his storytelling skills in this twisting novel of suspense that proves one can never escape their pasts—especially when there are sordid secrets waiting to be revealed.
“Full of twists and surprises... Robinson shows he has only begun to dig into the personality of his tenacious, thoughtful inspector.”—Chicago Tribune
When the nude photo of a teenage runaway shows up on a website, the girl's father turns to Detective Chief Inspector Alan banks for help. But these aren't unusual circumstances, for the runaway is the daughter of a man who's determined to destroy the dedicated Yorkshire policeman's career and good name. Still, it’s a case that Banks—a father himself—dares not ignore as he follows its trail into teeming London. But when a series of gruesome murders follows soon after, Banks finds himself pulled into the past and private world of his most powerful enemy, Chief Constable Jimmy Riddle.
Peter Robinson is at the height of his storytelling skills in this twisting novel of suspense that proves one can never escape their pasts—especially when there are sordid secrets waiting to be revealed.
448 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published September 1, 2000
761 people are currently reading
1,828 people want to read
About the author
Peter Robinson
356 books2,248 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Peter Robinson was born in Yorkshire. After getting his BA Honours Degree in English Literature at the University of Leeds, he came to Canada and took his MA in English and Creative Writing at the University of Windsor, with Joyce Carol Oates as his tutor, then a PhD in English at York University. He has taught at a number of Toronto community colleges and universities and served as Writer-in-Residence at the University of Windsor, 1992-93.
Series:
* Inspector Banks
Awards:
* Winner of the 1992 Ellis Award for Best Novel.
* Winner of the 1997 Ellis Award for Best Novel.
* Winner of the 2000 Anthony Award for Best Novel.
* Winner of the 2000 Barry Award for Best Novel.
* Winner of the 2001 Ellis Award for Best Novel.
Peter Robinson was born in Yorkshire. After getting his BA Honours Degree in English Literature at the University of Leeds, he came to Canada and took his MA in English and Creative Writing at the University of Windsor, with Joyce Carol Oates as his tutor, then a PhD in English at York University. He has taught at a number of Toronto community colleges and universities and served as Writer-in-Residence at the University of Windsor, 1992-93.
Series:
* Inspector Banks
Awards:
* Winner of the 1992 Ellis Award for Best Novel.
* Winner of the 1997 Ellis Award for Best Novel.
* Winner of the 2000 Anthony Award for Best Novel.
* Winner of the 2000 Barry Award for Best Novel.
* Winner of the 2001 Ellis Award for Best Novel.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 325 reviews
September 21, 2019
”Any man’s death diminishes me, because I am Involved in Mankind,” as John Donne had said, and Banks knew exactly what he meant.”
Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks has never been the typical investigator. His unorthodox style has brought him in constant conflict with his superiors including Chief Constable Jeremiah Riddle. Banks has been assigned to the Eastvale Regional Headquarters, a bit different from his London assignment where any given street might give him a ”whiff of villainy”. To go with his quaint surroundings is his small, but adequate cottage with a ghost/spirit in the kitchen. His academic head doesn’t really believe in those sorts of things, but there is no denying the feelings of something there that raises the hair on the back of his neck.
”In the end, he accepted, even embraced, whatever the presence was, and came to believe it was some sort of spirit of the house, the way places are said to have spirits. He had read a little about the subject and named his spirit Haltia, after the Finnish, generally believed to be the spirit of the first person to lay claim to a site either by lighting a fire on it, by building a house on it, or even, in some cases, the first person to die there.”
The presence doesn’t in any way, shape, or form replace the wife he still carries a torch for. She has not only left him, but moved in with some other bloke. Banks drinks too much Laphroaig Scotch Whisky, a bit steep for his pocketbook, but it brings a slice of amber heaven into what could be a gloomy existence. His two children are grown, his son’s band is about to press their first CD, and his daughter, as he discovers, would rather go to Paris with her boyfriend than her father. *Sigh* they are most certainly getting on with their lives while his seems to be steadily sliding backwards.
Banks reads almost every evening, at least when work isn’t keeping him on a case. He is a big fan of Graham Greene which certainly gives me a point of reference with him. He also listens to Jazz from Duke Ellington to Miles Davis. The GG Jazz club of Banks and Keeten could be in the works.
He is more than a bit put off, after settled into a good book and pouring himself a few fingers of Scotch, when he gets the call from Riddle needing to see him right away. It is storming, Riddle is an acknowledge foe intent on ruining his career, but the detective in Banks is intrigued by Riddle, of all people, reaching out to him for help.
It seems, Riddle needs the very skills he abhors in Banks to help him find his daughter.
Emily Riddle, sixteen going on thirty, ran away from home after leaving her parents in disarray. She made demands of them and then when they gave her what she wanted she loathed them all the more for it. Banks finds her living with a thug named Barry Clough, but he has had other names. Clough is a gangster with a rock star image of himself and a penchant for underage girls. Banks extracts the girl, dodges a rather embarrassing and potentially career ending temptation, and returns the girl to her parents.
”Tall and long-legged, she also had that anorexic, thoroughbred look of a professional model. Heroin-chic. She was wearing denim capris that came halfway up her calves, and a loose cable-knit sweater. She walked barefoot, he noticed, showing off her shapely ankles and slim feet, the toenails painted crimson. For some reason, Coleridge’s line from ‘Cristabel’ flashed through Banks’s mind: “...her blue-veined feet unsandalled were.” It had always seemed an improbable erotic image to him, ever since he first came across the poem at school, and now he knew why.”
Dusting of the hands, pour a glass of Laphroaig, put on some music, and open a good book...job well done and all that Banks.
Not quite.
Little does Banks know, but he is now entwined with the Riddle family and will find himself further drawn into the drama of that dysfunctional family.
Banks has another issue, an ongoing one, with the dynamic and sometimes enigmatic Annie Cabbot. She is a police officer working under (well not literally anymore) Banks. She broke off her relationship with Banks, but the snaring pheromones are still dancing the tango between the two of them. Because of their history they have difficulty being totally honest with each other that leads to misunderstandings which leads to a very unhappy investigating team.
The twist and turns of the plot are excellent. People seemingly without motive are revealed to be so much more than they seem to be. Bodies continue to be found, taking some much sought after truth to the grave, and adding more layers to an already complex web of deceit. Banks continues to doggedly sort out the truth from the lies and eventually makes some soul crushing revelations that leave all parties involved stunned and reeling from the implications. I didn’t need a great plot from Peter Robinson to enjoy this book. I was quite content to hang around with Alan Banks and watch him find missing cats or guard a watermelon patch, but a great character coupled with an interesting plot certainly makes it a book I can recommend to those that enjoy a great mystery and well drawn characters. A mystery that can be called literature.
”He realized with a shock that the loss of innocence never stopped happening, that he was still losing it, that it was like a wound that never healed, and he would probably go on losing it, drop by drop, until the day he died.”
Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks has never been the typical investigator. His unorthodox style has brought him in constant conflict with his superiors including Chief Constable Jeremiah Riddle. Banks has been assigned to the Eastvale Regional Headquarters, a bit different from his London assignment where any given street might give him a ”whiff of villainy”. To go with his quaint surroundings is his small, but adequate cottage with a ghost/spirit in the kitchen. His academic head doesn’t really believe in those sorts of things, but there is no denying the feelings of something there that raises the hair on the back of his neck.
”In the end, he accepted, even embraced, whatever the presence was, and came to believe it was some sort of spirit of the house, the way places are said to have spirits. He had read a little about the subject and named his spirit Haltia, after the Finnish, generally believed to be the spirit of the first person to lay claim to a site either by lighting a fire on it, by building a house on it, or even, in some cases, the first person to die there.”
The presence doesn’t in any way, shape, or form replace the wife he still carries a torch for. She has not only left him, but moved in with some other bloke. Banks drinks too much Laphroaig Scotch Whisky, a bit steep for his pocketbook, but it brings a slice of amber heaven into what could be a gloomy existence. His two children are grown, his son’s band is about to press their first CD, and his daughter, as he discovers, would rather go to Paris with her boyfriend than her father. *Sigh* they are most certainly getting on with their lives while his seems to be steadily sliding backwards.
Banks reads almost every evening, at least when work isn’t keeping him on a case. He is a big fan of Graham Greene which certainly gives me a point of reference with him. He also listens to Jazz from Duke Ellington to Miles Davis. The GG Jazz club of Banks and Keeten could be in the works.
He is more than a bit put off, after settled into a good book and pouring himself a few fingers of Scotch, when he gets the call from Riddle needing to see him right away. It is storming, Riddle is an acknowledge foe intent on ruining his career, but the detective in Banks is intrigued by Riddle, of all people, reaching out to him for help.
It seems, Riddle needs the very skills he abhors in Banks to help him find his daughter.
Emily Riddle, sixteen going on thirty, ran away from home after leaving her parents in disarray. She made demands of them and then when they gave her what she wanted she loathed them all the more for it. Banks finds her living with a thug named Barry Clough, but he has had other names. Clough is a gangster with a rock star image of himself and a penchant for underage girls. Banks extracts the girl, dodges a rather embarrassing and potentially career ending temptation, and returns the girl to her parents.
”Tall and long-legged, she also had that anorexic, thoroughbred look of a professional model. Heroin-chic. She was wearing denim capris that came halfway up her calves, and a loose cable-knit sweater. She walked barefoot, he noticed, showing off her shapely ankles and slim feet, the toenails painted crimson. For some reason, Coleridge’s line from ‘Cristabel’ flashed through Banks’s mind: “...her blue-veined feet unsandalled were.” It had always seemed an improbable erotic image to him, ever since he first came across the poem at school, and now he knew why.”
Dusting of the hands, pour a glass of Laphroaig, put on some music, and open a good book...job well done and all that Banks.
Not quite.
Little does Banks know, but he is now entwined with the Riddle family and will find himself further drawn into the drama of that dysfunctional family.
Banks has another issue, an ongoing one, with the dynamic and sometimes enigmatic Annie Cabbot. She is a police officer working under (well not literally anymore) Banks. She broke off her relationship with Banks, but the snaring pheromones are still dancing the tango between the two of them. Because of their history they have difficulty being totally honest with each other that leads to misunderstandings which leads to a very unhappy investigating team.
The twist and turns of the plot are excellent. People seemingly without motive are revealed to be so much more than they seem to be. Bodies continue to be found, taking some much sought after truth to the grave, and adding more layers to an already complex web of deceit. Banks continues to doggedly sort out the truth from the lies and eventually makes some soul crushing revelations that leave all parties involved stunned and reeling from the implications. I didn’t need a great plot from Peter Robinson to enjoy this book. I was quite content to hang around with Alan Banks and watch him find missing cats or guard a watermelon patch, but a great character coupled with an interesting plot certainly makes it a book I can recommend to those that enjoy a great mystery and well drawn characters. A mystery that can be called literature.
”He realized with a shock that the loss of innocence never stopped happening, that he was still losing it, that it was like a wound that never healed, and he would probably go on losing it, drop by drop, until the day he died.”
September 14, 2022
“He still had time … for a cigarette and a finger or two of Laphroaig.”
It would be difficult to ask more of the 11th instalment in such a long-running detective and mystery series.
Chief Constable Jeremiah Riddle is DCI Banks’ greatest political enemy within the police force. He despises Banks for his disdain of proper procedure, required protocol and administration and for Banks’ infernal willingness to break the rules and work outside the system. But when he discovers some nude pictures of his sixteen year old black sheep ne’er-do-well daughter on a pornographic web site, he swallows his pride and begs Banks for his help. At heart, he knows that Banks is the man for the job and Banks’ willingness to do what it takes to solve a case is the only chance he has at recovering his daughter. In a clever twist on the usual plot line of this type of novel, Banks’ investigation leads him down a branching road that diverges into two only marginally related crimes.
Meanwhile (one might say, back at the ranch), Robinson continues to develop his characters and their underlying stories. Banks wrestles with the conflict between his inability to accept the finality of the end of his marriage and his desire to begin a relationship with his colleague, Annie Cabbot. In her own turn, Ms Cabbot struggles with the knowledge that, if they are to work together as an effective policing team, she and Banks should maintain a professional distance – a distance that she desperately wants to close!
The characters are fabulous! The story line is compelling and convincing! COLD IS THE GRAVE will please any reader who enjoys contemporary British police procedurals and mysteries. Definitely recommended.
Paul Weiss
It would be difficult to ask more of the 11th instalment in such a long-running detective and mystery series.
Chief Constable Jeremiah Riddle is DCI Banks’ greatest political enemy within the police force. He despises Banks for his disdain of proper procedure, required protocol and administration and for Banks’ infernal willingness to break the rules and work outside the system. But when he discovers some nude pictures of his sixteen year old black sheep ne’er-do-well daughter on a pornographic web site, he swallows his pride and begs Banks for his help. At heart, he knows that Banks is the man for the job and Banks’ willingness to do what it takes to solve a case is the only chance he has at recovering his daughter. In a clever twist on the usual plot line of this type of novel, Banks’ investigation leads him down a branching road that diverges into two only marginally related crimes.
Meanwhile (one might say, back at the ranch), Robinson continues to develop his characters and their underlying stories. Banks wrestles with the conflict between his inability to accept the finality of the end of his marriage and his desire to begin a relationship with his colleague, Annie Cabbot. In her own turn, Ms Cabbot struggles with the knowledge that, if they are to work together as an effective policing team, she and Banks should maintain a professional distance – a distance that she desperately wants to close!
The characters are fabulous! The story line is compelling and convincing! COLD IS THE GRAVE will please any reader who enjoys contemporary British police procedurals and mysteries. Definitely recommended.
Paul Weiss
July 20, 2016
My new favorite Banks. After a few very minor, but still annoying, illogical and odd things early on in the book (A minor one-> )
When that's all said and done though, we are treated to a great police mystery. I know I compared the top of the crop of these (and others...) with Sjöwall-Wahlöö's Novel about a crime-series, but this one lends itself very much to it. There is a lot happening both in the investigation and in Banks' life. He's become superior officer to the brilliant Annie Cabbott, who he has personal history with and that complicates their working relationship. His history with the Chief constable and with the daughter also very much so, of course.
What I liked best about the book was that situations arise that could presumably lead to great misunderstandings and complications and lots of times I found myself going "oh, now I know what's going to happen...", just to have it... not happen. Then, when you're part relaxed, part confused, something does happen and from a totally other and unforeseen direction! This, in combination with sometimes mundane routine work and sometimes pettiness in characters, makes the story life-like and the characters seem real. And both these things begs the Sjöwall-Wahlöö comparison.
Add a healthy dose of Britishness, atmosphere and nice musical references and you have a brilliant Banks' mystery as made for summer reading.
When that's all said and done though, we are treated to a great police mystery. I know I compared the top of the crop of these (and others...) with Sjöwall-Wahlöö's Novel about a crime-series, but this one lends itself very much to it. There is a lot happening both in the investigation and in Banks' life. He's become superior officer to the brilliant Annie Cabbott, who he has personal history with and that complicates their working relationship. His history with the Chief constable and with the daughter also very much so, of course.
What I liked best about the book was that situations arise that could presumably lead to great misunderstandings and complications and lots of times I found myself going "oh, now I know what's going to happen...", just to have it... not happen. Then, when you're part relaxed, part confused, something does happen and from a totally other and unforeseen direction! This, in combination with sometimes mundane routine work and sometimes pettiness in characters, makes the story life-like and the characters seem real. And both these things begs the Sjöwall-Wahlöö comparison.
Add a healthy dose of Britishness, atmosphere and nice musical references and you have a brilliant Banks' mystery as made for summer reading.
September 21, 2019
A complex multilayered plot which is far more personal than the previous instalments in the series..The crime seems straightforward but as per Robinson’s usual style there is so much more occurring. So glad to be working my way through the Banks series!
September 22, 2020
Cold is the Grave is the eleventh book in the DCI Alan Banks series set in the fictional town of Eastvale, Yorkshire. I’m gradually working my way through the series but somehow only manage one a year, so am still twenty years behind! These are stand-alone mysteries but there is an evolving backstory about Banks’ family, colleagues and relationships, so I think it is worth reading them in order.
This one occurs four or five months after the events of In a Dry Season. Banks is still living alone in his cottage, faintly hoping he can get back together with his estranged wife Sandra, and trying to figure out how to work with his attractive DS Annie Cabott after their fling. Receiving a summons to the home of his former nemesis, he is shocked to be asked to go to London to track down ACC Riddle’s wayward teenage daughter. Meanwhile the team investigate the execution of a local troublemaker who was supposed to have gone straight.
This one started slowly - Banks moping about feeling sorry for himself and self-medicating with Laphroiag and music isn’t very interesting, (although I laughed when he muses about whether he should buy a Discman as he’s fed up with transferring CDs to cassette - no Alan - hold out a couple of years for an iPod!) His pursuit of flighty precocious teenager Emily also takes a while, leading to a deeply awkward scene where she attempts to seduce him. Meanwhile the unenthusiastic murder investigation plods on - until a shocking new death jumpstarts the plot.
The strength of this series is the atmospheric writing - the terrible British weather plays it’s part as ever. Robinson’s characters and their dilemmas may be unlikeable, but they are recognisably real. Banks’ bemusement as to why the women he meets keep throwing themselves at him - except the ones he actually wants - was quite sweet. I was relieved that he manages to resist, or I would’ve gone right off him. The mystery was well executed and the eventual reveals pretty sad. Another solid 4 star read.
This one occurs four or five months after the events of In a Dry Season. Banks is still living alone in his cottage, faintly hoping he can get back together with his estranged wife Sandra, and trying to figure out how to work with his attractive DS Annie Cabott after their fling. Receiving a summons to the home of his former nemesis, he is shocked to be asked to go to London to track down ACC Riddle’s wayward teenage daughter. Meanwhile the team investigate the execution of a local troublemaker who was supposed to have gone straight.
This one started slowly - Banks moping about feeling sorry for himself and self-medicating with Laphroiag and music isn’t very interesting, (although I laughed when he muses about whether he should buy a Discman as he’s fed up with transferring CDs to cassette - no Alan - hold out a couple of years for an iPod!) His pursuit of flighty precocious teenager Emily also takes a while, leading to a deeply awkward scene where she attempts to seduce him. Meanwhile the unenthusiastic murder investigation plods on - until a shocking new death jumpstarts the plot.
The strength of this series is the atmospheric writing - the terrible British weather plays it’s part as ever. Robinson’s characters and their dilemmas may be unlikeable, but they are recognisably real. Banks’ bemusement as to why the women he meets keep throwing themselves at him - except the ones he actually wants - was quite sweet. I was relieved that he manages to resist, or I would’ve gone right off him. The mystery was well executed and the eventual reveals pretty sad. Another solid 4 star read.
December 17, 2018
DCI Alan Banks has never got on well with Chief Constable Riddle, but when Riddle asks him to find his missing daughter Banks agrees to help.
There are plenty of unsavoury characters in Cold Is The Grave, but Robinson still slips in some nice moments of humour. The plot is as tight & well constructed as ever and Neil Pearson, a regular narrator of Robinson's books, sets the perfect tone for another great novel.
There are plenty of unsavoury characters in Cold Is The Grave, but Robinson still slips in some nice moments of humour. The plot is as tight & well constructed as ever and Neil Pearson, a regular narrator of Robinson's books, sets the perfect tone for another great novel.
May 5, 2020
Inspector Banks, book No. 11: Banks finds himself involved in the life of his arch nemesis Chief Inspector Jimmy Riddle as his family is shocked to find their 16 year old daughter on the internet. There is also the murder of a local petty criminal miles away from Yorkshire. A chain of events conspire to keep Banks and Cabot busy. This period for Banks was set three months after the last book, with divorce, new loves and children at university playing a part in his private life. Quite a clever episode as Robinson manages to embed a 'roots of who we are, is in a our past' and 'innocence lost' themes throughout the book. 6 out of 12
May 9, 2021
This one was a little slow sometimes but I was still hooked to find out about all the answers.
Cold is the grave by Peter Robinson get a 8/10 stars.
Cold is the grave by Peter Robinson get a 8/10 stars.
February 25, 2016
Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks and jealous, stubborn, petty Chief Constable Jimmy Riddle have been at odds since they first met a few books back. But despite their enmity, a desperate Riddle comes to Banks and begs him to help him find his daughter, who has run away from home and disappeared into London.
Banks hates Riddle, but he thinks of his own daughter Tracy, and his fatherly feelings persuade him to take up the task of finding the willful wild child, 16-year-old Emily Riddle. Readers will be best served by going into this roller coaster of a book — the eleventh in Peter Robinson’s wonderful series — with as little foreknowledge as possible.
While not as wonderful as the immediately previous novel, the award-winning In A Dry Season, that would be asking too much. I really enjoyed Cold Is the Grave although I was a bit disappointed in the ending. I’ll be getting to No. 12, Aftermath, as soon as I can.
As to narrators, I didn’t like Ron Keith as much as I liked James Langton, who has narrated the previous books, Keith did a good enough job to make me glad that I read an audiobook.
Banks hates Riddle, but he thinks of his own daughter Tracy, and his fatherly feelings persuade him to take up the task of finding the willful wild child, 16-year-old Emily Riddle. Readers will be best served by going into this roller coaster of a book — the eleventh in Peter Robinson’s wonderful series — with as little foreknowledge as possible.
While not as wonderful as the immediately previous novel, the award-winning In A Dry Season, that would be asking too much. I really enjoyed Cold Is the Grave although I was a bit disappointed in the ending. I’ll be getting to No. 12, Aftermath, as soon as I can.
As to narrators, I didn’t like Ron Keith as much as I liked James Langton, who has narrated the previous books, Keith did a good enough job to make me glad that I read an audiobook.
February 25, 2013
Robinson's Alan Banks series is getting better and better. Each book is complex and the mystery is never straight-forward and easy to figure out. I had seen this particular one done for television before I read the book. As usual though, the book was much, much better because there's more time to develop a storyline and a plot. And Robinson's writing is wondefully easy to read while being intricate and detailed at the same time. Banks is a very realistic character and after reading eleven of Robinson's Banks books now I feel that I'm really getting to know this character and I can't believe how multi-facted he is. In this book, Banks is asked by his supervisor to find his sixteeen year old daughter who has run away to London. He is asked to do it off the books, and Banks being Banks, is very thorough in his search. He finds young Emily but he uncovers a real rat's nest of intrigue that she has become enmeshed in. Almost ineveitably the web of lies, deceit and crime follow Banks and Emily all the way back to Yorkshire when he brings her home. I can tell you that if I ever found myself "in a spot of trouble", I would dearly love to have Alan Banks in my corner. I can't recommend this series enough.
June 2, 2024
Cold is the Grave (Inspector Banks, #11) by Peter Robinson.
Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive. You will understand this saying towards the end of the story.
Inspector Banks is called to the home of Chief Constable Jeremiah Riddle. One of his least favorite people. So why besides receiving a tongue lashing would the Chief Constable want to speak to him now?
Well, it seems the Chief's son, Benjamin, happened upon nude photos online of his older sister. The Chief informs Banks that his daughter has flown the coop and gone missing for a while now. He knows Inspector Banks' success rate at tracking down people-criminals and otherwise. So he wants Banks to find his daughter and bring her home if possible.
This is a story of secrets that had been buried for a long time. One of which relates to a painful incident in the life of DS Annie Cabbot. A secret that has been thrown in her face without warning. And there are more secrets to come. The relationship between these Banks and Cabbot are renewed at a perfect time in their lives. Just as a long time relationship ends in Banks' life.
The unraveling of murders as well as secrets all come to light with the help of Inspector Banks. Loved this book and the Inspector Banks series.
Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive. You will understand this saying towards the end of the story.
Inspector Banks is called to the home of Chief Constable Jeremiah Riddle. One of his least favorite people. So why besides receiving a tongue lashing would the Chief Constable want to speak to him now?
Well, it seems the Chief's son, Benjamin, happened upon nude photos online of his older sister. The Chief informs Banks that his daughter has flown the coop and gone missing for a while now. He knows Inspector Banks' success rate at tracking down people-criminals and otherwise. So he wants Banks to find his daughter and bring her home if possible.
This is a story of secrets that had been buried for a long time. One of which relates to a painful incident in the life of DS Annie Cabbot. A secret that has been thrown in her face without warning. And there are more secrets to come. The relationship between these Banks and Cabbot are renewed at a perfect time in their lives. Just as a long time relationship ends in Banks' life.
The unraveling of murders as well as secrets all come to light with the help of Inspector Banks. Loved this book and the Inspector Banks series.
November 2, 2008
Chief Constable and Alan Banks nemesis Jeremiah Riddle’s wild run-away daughter is spotted nude in a porn web site by Riddle’s young son. Eating crow, Riddle asks CI banks to look into it, unofficially of course. Banks does indeed find the missing Emily, and learns, ultimately more than he bargains for of the Riddle family. Emily winds up dead. Was her London acquaintance, Ruth, a friend or something more? Is there more to the gangster Clough than meets the eye. Why does Emily’s mother, Rosalind, seem less than eager for her to return? Why did a local small time hood, Courage, wind up dead? What about the other deaths that have sprung up like mushrooms after a rain. The usual good stuff from Robinson. We learn that copying CD’s and games has become a large criminal enterprise.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 21, 2017
This has turned into one of my favorite series. I love the Yorkshire setting, and Detective Banks has become a very intriguing character. He's now separated from his wife, and he's in a dead end position at work. It's usually a good move to put your main character through the ringer every now and then, and Robinson does a deft job of it. The mystery involves the disappearance of Riddle's daughter. She's a great character - the kind you almost can't look away from. From there on out, it's a great read. The only thing I really didn't care for was how things were tied up so nicely in the conclusion. Life tends to be messy, so when it's too cute of an ending, it takes away from an otherwise great novel.
July 21, 2016
My parents have been raving about this author for ages. I never really saw any of the TV series but had a handful on my shelf and this was the earliest.
Now, this was published in 2001 but reads as if much earlier. It is such a load of mysogynistic, paternalistic claptrap. Every single woman's physical attributes (or lack of) are detailed but we have no idea of what the blokes look like.if it matters at all.
Oh, and why on earth would a DCI in the 21st century not have a mobile phone? I'd had one for years by then and I was just a nurse.
Upshot is I gave up on it at page 90. I didn't even make the proscribed 100 I try to give a book.
Now, this was published in 2001 but reads as if much earlier. It is such a load of mysogynistic, paternalistic claptrap. Every single woman's physical attributes (or lack of) are detailed but we have no idea of what the blokes look like.if it matters at all.
Oh, and why on earth would a DCI in the 21st century not have a mobile phone? I'd had one for years by then and I was just a nurse.
Upshot is I gave up on it at page 90. I didn't even make the proscribed 100 I try to give a book.
September 22, 2022
This one isn’t as good as the previous one, so maybe a 3.5 - but it is still a great read. The difference in Robinson’s detective novels is that the murderer is discovered and apprehended, usually within the first 200 pages - BUT have they really got the right perp? It seems not, the rest of the book is following up leads and inconsistencies and ruling out more and more suspects, but the actual killer is a big surprise!
December 27, 2014
I found this a harrowing read and had huge sympathy not just with DCI Alan Banks but also with Chief Constable 'Jimmy' Riddle. Banks and Riddle just haven't ever seen eye to eye so Banks is surprised when Riddle asks him to find his daughter Emily who left home just after her sixteenth birthday. The only thing Banks has to go on is the girl's name and a nude photograph of her with a web address. Riddle says he just wants to know that she is all right and he's not asking Banks to bring her home. Everything is off the record but Banks is willing to do and starts to feel a sneaking sympathy with his unlikeable boss.
If he could have foreseen what happened he might not have been as willing to help as his weekend in London led to a complex chain of events from which no one escaped unscathed or unchanged. Banks shows himself to be a much more complex character than he might have appeared from some of the previous books in the series and Riddle himself shows a more human side.
This is a very well written crime story in which family relationships are shown to be much more complex and fraught than they at first appear to be. Relationships between the police characters involved in the various crime investigations is somewhat fraught and adds to the stresses and strains experienced by everyone involved. This is an uncomfortable but gripping read and I recommend it to anyone who likes crime novels with more depth.
If he could have foreseen what happened he might not have been as willing to help as his weekend in London led to a complex chain of events from which no one escaped unscathed or unchanged. Banks shows himself to be a much more complex character than he might have appeared from some of the previous books in the series and Riddle himself shows a more human side.
This is a very well written crime story in which family relationships are shown to be much more complex and fraught than they at first appear to be. Relationships between the police characters involved in the various crime investigations is somewhat fraught and adds to the stresses and strains experienced by everyone involved. This is an uncomfortable but gripping read and I recommend it to anyone who likes crime novels with more depth.
November 12, 2010
Cold Is The Grave is a fascinating book about the death of a very beautiful, very troubled young woman. She's the 16 year old daughter of a very senior police official and he personally asks Inspector Banks to conduct the investigation. The senior police official has been the main nemesis of Banks throughout the series and Banks is shocked that he is picked to lead the investigation. The victim dies in a most horrible way and Banks vows to find the killer. He's somewhat conflicted about the young victim. He knew her before she was killed and his feelings for her runs from liking her to desiring her to being angry with her for her life style choices. He has to keep reminding himself that she's only 16. The case reveals much about the victim, her father and her mother. It also reveals much about Banks and his dealings with the victim and his dealings with his own daughter. There is always a lot going on in a Peter Robinson novel and Cold In The Grave is very much a Peter Robinson novel.
February 15, 2022
I really wanted to like this book but for some reason it just dragged a bit for me. I ended up not really feeling invested in the case which is a shame because I usually love these kind of books. There were quite a lot of times when the focus switched to Banks and his personal life which I found killed the momentum of reading about the investigation. However I think if I was reading the whole series those sections would have been more interesting to me, as it was I ended up skimming those parts.
September 2, 2011
Goodbye Jimmy Riddle
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 20, 2018
'm going to be really really sad when Peter Robinson is no longer writing. DI Alan Banks is one of the most complex characters in the crime fiction genre in my opinion. There's always so much going on, but he always inspires me to try some new music.
This book had, as always, so much going with competing investigations that come together in unusual ways.
Banks is surprised when Chief Constable Riddle who has made it his goal to get rid of Banks asks him to find his daughter who has run off to London. She had left home months ago at the age of 16 and, at first, they weren't worried and were, to be honest, relieved. Banks is shocked and surprised by their attitude. The only reason Riddle has asked him to find her is because her younger brother stumbled upon nude photos of her on the internet.
He finds her living with a wealthy man of dubious reputation who is surrounded by thugs. He has rock roots, but his present business is shady and unknown. He's only been told to find her and let her know that her parents would like her to come home. He does that and is ready to go home the next day when she shows up at his hotel room with a torn dress. She is frightened and wants to go home.
She is home for a while, but is still out partying although she has decided to take the A Levels she should have taken when she left school and go to college. Then she is found dead in a toilet stall after having ingested cocaine laced with strychnine.
What a twisted tale this is! The bodies start to mount up including the body of a small time criminal known to the police in the area.
The book ends not only with death but also incredible revelations that bring the book to a really shocking end.
This book had, as always, so much going with competing investigations that come together in unusual ways.
Banks is surprised when Chief Constable Riddle who has made it his goal to get rid of Banks asks him to find his daughter who has run off to London. She had left home months ago at the age of 16 and, at first, they weren't worried and were, to be honest, relieved. Banks is shocked and surprised by their attitude. The only reason Riddle has asked him to find her is because her younger brother stumbled upon nude photos of her on the internet.
He finds her living with a wealthy man of dubious reputation who is surrounded by thugs. He has rock roots, but his present business is shady and unknown. He's only been told to find her and let her know that her parents would like her to come home. He does that and is ready to go home the next day when she shows up at his hotel room with a torn dress. She is frightened and wants to go home.
She is home for a while, but is still out partying although she has decided to take the A Levels she should have taken when she left school and go to college. Then she is found dead in a toilet stall after having ingested cocaine laced with strychnine.
What a twisted tale this is! The bodies start to mount up including the body of a small time criminal known to the police in the area.
The book ends not only with death but also incredible revelations that bring the book to a really shocking end.
June 24, 2020
In this, DCI banks is asked by the Chief Constable to go to London and bring the runaway Emily back home to her father Chief Constable Riddle. I found it odd why he would be asked to do this and wasn't convinced of Banks's motivation to agree to it.
That said this sets off a series of events which introduce us to a gangster type in Barry Clough.
Robinson neatly plots the story as Banks investigates a number of murders with Yorkshire connections.
One thing annoying is how Robinson continually describes what various characters are wearing. Unless it moves the story forward I don't care.
In the end Robinson neatly brings all the strands in the book together including a jaw dropping reveal involving Clough I didn't see coming.
That said this sets off a series of events which introduce us to a gangster type in Barry Clough.
Robinson neatly plots the story as Banks investigates a number of murders with Yorkshire connections.
One thing annoying is how Robinson continually describes what various characters are wearing. Unless it moves the story forward I don't care.
In the end Robinson neatly brings all the strands in the book together including a jaw dropping reveal involving Clough I didn't see coming.
February 15, 2023
Banks now begins to realise that Sandra has gone and that he is alone. Can he salvage a relationship with Tracy and Brian? He then gets a surprise call from the Chief Constable, "Jimmy" Riddle, a man that has put Banks into the backwater of the CID, will Banks do him a favour? Then the matter escalates into murder and suicide and lots more. A good storyline but the personal relationship issues take over rather too much for me and make the plot become drawn out. Fast enough pace and quite enjoyable.
3-star read possibly 3.5 for me.
3-star read possibly 3.5 for me.
June 18, 2021
If you follow me then you know the drill - these are my 'go to' comfort reads and I think have all merited 4 stars so far! We've actually watched the TV series episode of this book with Stephen Tompkinson in the lead role - he's pretty perfect as Banks, although the Banks in my head looks like my (now adult) children's head teacher, as I started the books first! The book differed... quite significantly in places, but both were enjoyable. I shall look forward to the next in the series.
November 19, 2020
Very good
February 23, 2010
#11 Chief Inspector Alan Banks British police series set in the Yorkshire Dales. Alan is contacted privately by his arch nemesis, his boss, Chief Constable Jimmy Riddle to locate his teenage daughter Emily. Emily is sixteen (going on thirty!) and had debunked to London several months previously. The family wasn't overly worried as Emily had always been older than her years and knew how to survive) but when Riddle's young son spots a pornographic photo of Emily in a pop-up on the computer, he becomes worried and wants Emily located--but due to his political aspirations, he can't do this publicly since he fears scandal. Although Riddle hates Banks, he knows he's the best man for the job and promises Alan he'll get off his back if he's successful in locating Emily.
Banks does the job, finding Emily posing under the name Louisa Gamine and living with a much older gangster type fellow. Eventually he brings Emily back to Eastvale and delivers her safely home, only to have her turn up dead in the toilet of a local dance club a month or so later, dead of strychnine, the poison having been laced in her cocaine. Banks' attention immediately goes to the gangster--whom he's also investigating in possible connection with another murder case involving smuggling--but did he really care enough about Emily to kill her in such a brutal way? Or was this something more personal?
I enjoy this series a lot, and have really enjoyed these last couple in audio format with a great reader (Ron Keith) so will likely continue on listening as long as they are available from my library. I didn't take the red herring that Robinson threw out for this one, but guessing the baddie didn't in any way diminish the enjoyment.
Banks does the job, finding Emily posing under the name Louisa Gamine and living with a much older gangster type fellow. Eventually he brings Emily back to Eastvale and delivers her safely home, only to have her turn up dead in the toilet of a local dance club a month or so later, dead of strychnine, the poison having been laced in her cocaine. Banks' attention immediately goes to the gangster--whom he's also investigating in possible connection with another murder case involving smuggling--but did he really care enough about Emily to kill her in such a brutal way? Or was this something more personal?
I enjoy this series a lot, and have really enjoyed these last couple in audio format with a great reader (Ron Keith) so will likely continue on listening as long as they are available from my library. I didn't take the red herring that Robinson threw out for this one, but guessing the baddie didn't in any way diminish the enjoyment.
July 19, 2021
DCI Alan Banks is unexpectedly asked for an unusual favour by his boss and nemesis Chief Constable Jimmy Riddle. The favour takes him to London on an unofficial mission involving bringing Riddle’s 16 year old runaway daughter back home. It isn’t a simple rescue though and Banks goes into it with mixed feelings. Several gruesome murders follow in the wake of his success and there are the many twists and turns that one comes to expect in one of these police procedurals.
Peter Robinson is one of the best writers in this genre (IMHO) and this book begins in the most intriguing way. Riddle’s young son finds a nude photo of his older sister while playing on the computer. It is this that gives rise to the unusual request and sends Banks into the sordid and secret histories of both the murderer and Riddle himself. Unfortunately the book slowly starts to disappoint.
The writing is good as always and the various complications work out pretty seamlessly, with relatively few holes and improbabilities but I wasn't as impressed with this book as I have been with others. The things that spoiled this book a bit are two. The final inquisition at the police station is pretty far-fetched and difficult to swallow. There is also far too much of one character, who I have never particularly liked: Annie Cabot. She’s never seemed real and is almost always deeply unpleasant. She’s like a bad smell, ruining the air of every chapter she’s in. Apart from these cavils, it’s a decent book but not as good as many of his others.
Peter Robinson is one of the best writers in this genre (IMHO) and this book begins in the most intriguing way. Riddle’s young son finds a nude photo of his older sister while playing on the computer. It is this that gives rise to the unusual request and sends Banks into the sordid and secret histories of both the murderer and Riddle himself. Unfortunately the book slowly starts to disappoint.
The writing is good as always and the various complications work out pretty seamlessly, with relatively few holes and improbabilities but I wasn't as impressed with this book as I have been with others. The things that spoiled this book a bit are two. The final inquisition at the police station is pretty far-fetched and difficult to swallow. There is also far too much of one character, who I have never particularly liked: Annie Cabot. She’s never seemed real and is almost always deeply unpleasant. She’s like a bad smell, ruining the air of every chapter she’s in. Apart from these cavils, it’s a decent book but not as good as many of his others.
October 30, 2015
Peter Robinson har hittills aldrig gjort mig besviken. I den här boken får Alan Banks i uppdrag av polismästare Jimmy Riddle att hitta hans dotter. Detta efter att polismästarens yngre son har sett en porrbild av sin syster på nätet. Banks får inte gå de vanliga vägarna, eftersom polismästaren är rädd att det ska komma ut vad hans dotter håller på med.
Banks har själv en ung dotter och vet vad polismästaren går igenom. Men samtidigt är Jimmy Riddle hans fiende och den man som en gång sagt sig vara fast besluten att sätta punkt för Banks karriär inom polisen.
För flickans skull åtar sig Banks uppdraget, något som han snart kommer att ångra, eftersom spåren leder honom till London, till knarkkarteller, prostitution och kriminalitet. Den ena hemligheten efter den andra i polismästare Riddles liv nystas upp och katastrofen är nära.
Mycket fängslande bok med många vändningar innan allt får en upplösning på ett oväntat sätt. Rekommenderas varmt!
Banks har själv en ung dotter och vet vad polismästaren går igenom. Men samtidigt är Jimmy Riddle hans fiende och den man som en gång sagt sig vara fast besluten att sätta punkt för Banks karriär inom polisen.
För flickans skull åtar sig Banks uppdraget, något som han snart kommer att ångra, eftersom spåren leder honom till London, till knarkkarteller, prostitution och kriminalitet. Den ena hemligheten efter den andra i polismästare Riddles liv nystas upp och katastrofen är nära.
Mycket fängslande bok med många vändningar innan allt får en upplösning på ett oväntat sätt. Rekommenderas varmt!
January 21, 2017
I think I'm missing something cause I thoroughly disliked this book. One reviewer did land on some of what bothered me about it: "misogynistic and paternalistic claptrap," which it most certainly was. And coupled with this sense of it being written much more than 15 years ago. There is an unsettling return to sex between a man in his 40s and a 16-year-old girl; the narrator (or maybe the author?) defends this with "it's not illegal" and calling her both innocent *and* a seductress. Female characters have as much of a problem with women as the men do, so I am left to think our author has some issues with women. I even detected some homophobia. Also, the writing is meh, the characters all sound/talk the same, there's no sense of consequence. And I can't forget the topic here (separate from what I mentioned above). Trigger alert for that for sure. Dealt with in a highly insensitive way. Did the writer do any research??
October 10, 2017
It's a very engaging, dark mystery. Through the foolishness of the teenage daughter of his nemesis, Chief Constable Riddle, the recurring protagonist...CI Alan Banks gets caught up in the drug world in and beyond London. It seems that Chief Constable "Jimmy" Riddle may be becoming "a more likable human being"...if that is even possible... as he overcomes his extreme dislike for Alan Banks and has to ask for his help.
All of the characters in Peter Robinson's Alan Banks series seem real and believable. Alan Banks is heroism personified...Cabot is tough and vulnerable. Together they are a force to be reckoned with. The plot is complicated enough to keep you guessing to the very end.
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