A Perfect Execution - Hardcover

Binding, Tim

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0330345648 ISBN 13: 9780330345644

Publisher: Picador, 1996

Synopsis

Jem and Will are cousins, whose divergent paths are followed from before World War II to the 1960s. Extrovert Will becomes a famous entertainer, while in time, Jem becomes the most feared state executioner. Soon Jem faces a loyalty-stretching situation, on finding he may have hung the wrong man.

About this title

Review

'A brilliant, terrifying and haunting novel . . . it has an almost Dickensian moral clarity . . . It combines all the packed action of a thriller with a vision remarkable for its breadth and for its humanity' Evening Standard

From the Publisher

Brilliant and compelling murder-mystery
Jeremiah Bembo lives quietly growing fruit and vegetables which his wife Judith sells at the local market. In secret, under the name of Solomon Straw, he travels the country as England's executioner, carrying out the hangings required by law. In a post-war provincial Britain seamed with commonplace corruption, he strives to maintain a balance of compassion and justice, until a murder is committed, bringing his two lives into an inevitable collision. "All human life is there, in a mesmerizing world of its own" Guardian; "A brilliant, terrifying and haunting novel...it has an almost Dickensian moral clarity...a wholly impressive work. It combines all the packed action of a thriller with a vision remarkable for its breadth and for its humanity" Evening Standard; "A compelling mixture of murder-mystery, Greek tragedy and love story...Set in the post-war period of travelling salesmen and Ruth Ellis look-alikes it asks the enormous, eternal questions in language that is both lyrical and barbaric" Sunday Telegraph

Edition details

• Publisher: Picador
• Publication date: 1996
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0330345648
• ISBN 13: 9780330345644
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 352