Many Rivers to Cross – Peter Robinson
Monday 7 October is the First Monday of the month and readers who can easily get to London will have the chance to hear Peter Robinson join a fabulous panel of authors at
Peter will (I assume) be discussing his latest DCI Banks novel: Many Rivers to Cross
You can see Peter along with Nicci French (both of them) and the terrific Marnie Riches (there’s only one Marnie Riches) if you follow this link: https://www.firstmondaycrime.com/
Want to know a little more about Many Rivers to Cross? Read on…
Many Rivers to Cross
A skinny young boy is found dead – his body carelessly stuffed into wheelie bin.
Detective Superintendent Alan Banks and his team are called to investigate. Who is the boy, and where did he come from? Was he discarded as rubbish, or left as a warning to someone? He looks Middle Eastern, but no one on the East Side Estate has seen him before.
As the local press seize upon an illegal immigrant angle, and the national media the story of another stabbing, the police are called to investigate a less newsworthy death: a middle-aged heroin addict found dead of an overdose in another estate, scheduled for redevelopment.
Banks finds the threads of each case seem to be connected to the other, and to the dark side of organised crime in Eastvale. Does another thread link to his friend Zelda, who is facing her own dark side?
The truth may be more complex – or much simpler – than it seems . . .
My thanks to the publishers for my review copy.
Many Rivers To Cross is the 26th volume in the hugely successful DCI Banks series. 26th!!! I have been reading this series for more years than I can keep track of and it is always a treat to return to characters I feel I know well.
In this outing Banks and his colleagues are investigating the murder of a young boy who has been found stuffed into a bin. The callous dumping of this child’s body adds further frustration for Banks and team who are struggling to identify their victim. He appears to be of Middle Eastern origin and, as is pointed out in the story, should be more likely to be noticed in Yorkshire. Yet despite this the police will struggle to trace him to a family.
Running alongside this investigation is a story about Banks’s friend Zelda. She is helping authorities identify criminals from old CCTV footage as she has the rare ability (or curse) of never forgetting a face. Zelda has previously been forced to work as a prostitute and knows more than she would ever want about the abuse of vulnerable children and women by gangs of traffickers and organised criminals.
Zelda arrives at her workplace and is shocked to be met by the police who are investigating the sudden death of her boss in what appears to be an unfortunate household accident. Zelda is not convinced and starts to ask questions – a dangerous path to take as she will potentially put herself into harms way in order to uncover the truth.
In a novel which reflects ongoing social issues and real-life issues it is inevitable that the UK’s political turmoil will also get a few mentions. The author makes a few pointed comments about the current political travails which are sure to upset readers who take an opposing viewpoint. I agreed with the comments made and am encouraged that authors are not shirking away and ignoring an issue which has dominated discussion in this country for the last 3 years (and more).
Fans of the series will enjoy this latest Banks adventure. Peter Robinson can tell a good story and keep the readers guessing. Many Rivers To Cross was slightly slower paced than some of my recent reads but perhaps that reflects my own reading choices. More Banks will be very welcome, I do love these characters.
Many Rivers To Cross is published by Hodder and Stoughton and is available in Hardback, Digital and Audiobook format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Many-Rivers-Cross-Peter-Robinson/dp/1444787047/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=peter+robinson&qid=1570312301&sr=8-2