Playing With Fire: The 14th novel in the number one bestselling Inspector Alan Banks crime series (The Inspector Banks series) - Softcover

Robinson, Peter

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1509810781 ISBN 13: 9781509810789

Publisher: Pan, 2016

Synopsis

Playing With Fire is the fourteenth novel in Peter Robinson's Inspector Banks series, following on from The Summer That Never Was.

In the early hours of a cold January morning, two narrow boats catch fire on the dead-end stretch of the Eastvale canal. When signs of accelerant are found at the scene, DCI Banks and DI Annie Cabbot are summoned. But by the time they arrive, only the smouldering wreckage is left, and human remains have been found on both boats.

The evidence points towards a deliberate attack. But who was the intended victim? Was it Tina, the sixteen-year-old who had been living a drug-fuelled existence with her boyfriend? Or was it Tom, the mysterious, lonely artist?

As Banks makes his enquiries, it appears that a number of people are acting suspiciously: the interfering 'lock-keeper', Tina's cold-hearted step-father, the wily local art dealer, even Tina's boyfriend . . .

Then the arsonist strikes again, and Banks's powers of investigation are tested to the limit . . .

About this title

Review:

Playing with Fire is a typical Peter Robinson book. And if that sounds like damning with faint praise, it's anything but. Since Gallows View in 1987, Robinson has been turning out one of the most assured and entertaining series of crime novels in the genre, with his doughty Inspector Alan Banks one of the most solidly drawn of protagonists.

But perhaps the real reason behind the considerable success of the books is that unerring combination of brilliantly turned plots and wonderfully evoked locales: the Yorkshire Dales have proved a very fertile stamping ground for Robinson's irresistible brand of restrained mayhem.

Banks is handed his most piquant problem in Playing with Fire, and the rural backdrop is once again a key player in the action. On a chill winter's morning, a fire is found to have consumed two narrow boats on the Eastvale canal. Banks and his associate DI Annie Cabbot find themselves examining some grisly remnants: charred bodies found on the remains of the two boats. But who are the victims of what appears to be a calculated act of murder? An enigmatic artist with few friends? A young couple who spent most of their time stoned on illegal substances? Banks and Cabbot quickly find themselves with a host of possible perpetrators on their hands, from the father of the young girl who died in the attack to a duplicitous art dealer. But the heat is turned on for Banks--literally--when the murderous arsonist gets to work again.

As in the seminal In a Dry Season, Robinson doesn't shirk from tackling some pretty convoluted plotting, but any confusion the reader is plunged into is very satisfyingly resolved, and Robinson's already strong reputation will grow with this book. --Barry Forshaw

Review:

A writer at the very height of his powers (Ian Rankin)

An award-winning writer with ideas that are imaginative and plots that are refreshingly cliché-free (Time Out)

About this edition

• Publisher: Pan
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 1509810781
• ISBN 13: 9781509810789
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 464