Blue Rondo

John Lawton

Editions

Review

Although not a sequel in the strict sense, this first-rate thriller sees the past come back to haunt the life of our hero, Inspector Troy – and those of you who have read the earlier Blitz story Black Out pbk £5.99 will see why.  Luckily, previous knowledge of this likeable and unconventional detective is far from necessary to the enjoyment of this tale of murder, corruption and sex in 1959 London.  If Troy devoted as much energy to police work as he does to sex and the many women in his life, perhaps the mystery would be cleared up more quickly, but who cares about that?

The story begins with a dismembered body, and body parts being posted to the police. Then a colleague of Troy’s is blown up in his car, and it looks as though Troy and his circle are caught up in the middle of a gangland war.  With a plot which captures the atmosphere of the Krays’ heyday, and appearances by real characters (Tom Driberg and Ike are two that spring to mind), this is an impeccably researched book which also manages to be highly entertaining.  I read it on holiday - with a cool drink close to hand - and thoroughly enjoyed both the drink and the book. - review by Dan Fenton