The TV Detective By Simon Hall ** Review**

It is my turn on the blog tour today to celebrate the publication of The TV Detective by Simon Hall.

The TV Detective is the first book in a classic crime series from Simon Hall, who until recently was the BBC Crime Correspondent for the Devon and Cornwall area.

Dan Groves is a television reporter newly assigned to the crime beat and not at all happy about it.

Dan knows next nothing about police work or how to report on it so when he persuades Detective Chief Inspector Adam Breen to allow him to shadow a high-profile murder inquiry it seems like the perfect solution though it soon becomes clear some members of the police force have no intention of playing nice with the new boy.

With his first case Dan is dropped in at the deep-end. A man is killed in a lay-by with a blast through the heart from a shotgun. The victim is a notorious local businessman, Edward Bray, a man with so many enemies there are almost too many suspects for the police to eliminate.

As tensions rise between Dan and the police he comes close to being thrown off the case until the detectives realise that far from being a liability, Dan might actually be the key to tempting the murderer into a trap.

                                                                                My Thoughts

The most interesting part of this book for me is the relationship which develops between Dan and Detective Chief Inspector Adam Breen. The introduction of a crime reporter shadowing a police investigation adds interest as opposed to a traditional police procedural. There is plenty of humour in Dan's observations and in the conversations between the two men. I can see that there is plenty of mileage here for future stories and indeed there are several in the series. Much of the action takes place through the talking through of possible scenarios between Dan and the police and you feel that there is a case for many of the so-called suspects. For most of the time, it is unclear where the investigation will settle.

    The character of Dan drives the story forward. Learning as he goes, he is unsure about being plunged into the role of crime correspondent and especially at the beginning, he feels he is playing catch-up. We are not given the finished article with him but get to see his interest in police investigations grow. The story is structured around the puzzle of what has happened to the most disliked Edward Bray and there is a conventional feel to the working out of this mystery and eventual reveal.

In short: an investigation full of twists and turns.
 

                                                                             About the Author

Simon Hall is an author and journalist.

He has been a broadcaster for twenty five years, mostly as a BBC Television and Radio News Correspondent, covering some of the biggest stories Britain has seen.

His books - the tvdetective series - are about a television reporter who covers crimes and gets so involved in the cases he helps the police to solve them. Seven have been published.

Simon has also contributed articles and short stories to a range of newspapers and magazines, written plays, and even a pantomime.

Alongside his novels and stories, Simon is a tutor in media skills and creative writing, teaching at popular Writers’ Summer Schools such as Swanwick and Winchester, on cruise ships and overseas.

Simon has also become sought after as a speaker, appearing at a variety of prestigious literary festivals. His talks combine an insight into his writing work, along with some extraordinary anecdotes from the life of a television reporter, including the now notorious story of What to do when you really need a dead otter.

Now 49 years old, he began a broadcasting career as a DJ on the radio and in nightclubs, then moved into radio and TV news. He worked in Europe, London, Ireland, and the south west of England, before settling in Cambridge.

Simon is married to Jess, Director of Libraries at the University of Cambridge, and has an adopted daughter, Niamh. She’s an army officer, which makes her father both very proud and very nervous.

Simon lectures on careers in the media at Cambridge University, and in schools and colleges. Amongst his proudest achievements, he includes the number of young people he has helped into jobs in broadcasting, and aspiring writers into publication.

As for his likes, Simon lists beer – he judges at real ale festivals – cycling the countryside, solving cryptic crosswords, composing curious Tweets (find him @thetvdetective ) and studying pop lyrics.

For more on Simon, see his website www.thetvdetective.com

 
You can follow Simon here: Twitter  |  Amazon Author Page

Book links: Amazon UK   |  Fahrenheit Press

Thanks to Simon Hall, Fahrenheit Press and Emma Welton for a copy of the book and a place on the tour.  

Do take a look at these other blogs!