Graham Hurley

Happy Days

Detective: Joe Faraday (Paul Winter) Jimmy Suttle
Time:        Present
Location:  Portsmouth
Genre:      British Police Procedural

This is the twelfth and last of the Joe Faraday novels with Faraday, disillusioned and facing retirement  after a likely reassignment from front line policing, being found dead from an overdose in the opening chapter.  the main course of the novel works to the conclusion of the underlying story ARC which has been the conflict between Faraday and the growing power and menace of Portsmouth's most powerful criminal Bazza McKenzie and to some extent also covers the rehabilitation of Paul Winter, the Faraday aid who went to the "dark side" and began working for McKenzie. 

Set against the background of the imminent 2010 General Election,  McKenzie, with the aid of a spin doctor and a cmputer guru is positioning himself to run as an Independent in Portsmouth North.  Winter, increasingly disillusioned with McKenzie is prepared to risk setting him up while the senior police establishment realise that the man's political ambitions must be stopped. The ne police officer who has ket a good reatioship with Winter, Jimmy Suttle, is Winter's handler on the covert operation, which leaves one wondering to the end whether the operation will see fate catch up with McKenzie and whether Winter will survive the plot.

Although Hurley has finished with Faraday, he is about to launch a new series picking up the career of Jimmy Suttle who has obtained a post outside Portsmouth.

Rating A

Graham Hurley's web site

Previously read in the series
Turnstone
The Take
Angels' Passing
Cut to Black
Blood and Honey
One Under
The price of Darkness
No Lovelier Death
Beyond Reach