Slow Horses by Mick Herron

(9. - 1298.) Slow Horses by Mick Herron - Slow Horses is a great name for the start of the Slough House novels, a series I wish I had started earlier.

The “slow horses” are the deemed misfits of MI5 exiled to a shabby office building, Slough House. The elite “dogs” reside at Regent’s Park in a sleek modern building. 

Becoming a slow horse appears more mischance than incompetence in the spy game. The consequences of mistakes are random depending almost on the whim of superiors.

In a gripping opening River Cartwright desperately attempts to stop a bomber on the London underground. He fails by seconds. Only after my heart had calmed abit did I find out it was a training exercise. He is sent to Slough House to analyze transcripts of surveillance tapes and phone calls. His frustration is high for he believes Spider Webb provided him with a wrong description of the bomber. He was not dismissed from the Service because his grandfather, the O.B. (Old Bastard), was a high ranking member and still has a degree of influence.

Herron is among the few writers I know who can create a plausible driving scenario with ever increasing tension and then equally credibly shatter a reader’s assumptions. 

He drives the narrative steadily.

The slow horses fill their days with tedious administrative tasks knowing the Service would be grateful if they would just resign.

Their morning tedium is interrupted by a video on the BBC showing a hooded young man holding up the day’s newspaper with an accompanying message;

we cut his head off forty-eight hours

Written in 2010 the book is close in time to the 2005 suicide bombings on the London Underground by Islamic terrorists.

Regent’s Park has no need for the slow horses as it pursues the terrorists holding the boy. At Regent’s Park, Dinah “Lady Di” Travener, confidently advises a high level meeting that they will save the boy.

At the same time River is caught up in the delivery of a copied memory stick to Regent’s Park. Another slow horse, Sidonie “Sid” Baker, has cleverly created a diversion in a coffee shop allowing her to copy journalist Robert Hobden’s memory stick.

Since no one can remember the last operation conducted by a slow horse, River is convinced there is a significance beyond spying on a journalist.

The ripples from that modest operation involve the slow horses more and more and more in the investigation of the terrorist operation.

The leader of the slow horses, Jackson Lamb, ultimately proves himself capable of being far more than a manager of the slow horses.

Initially, I thought the slow horses a sad lot whose depression over their dismal status had isolated them. Few have friends or family or community. At moments I thought they were consumed by self-pity.

Yet, when action is thrust upon them the slow horses prove ready.

Herron had more real surprises in this book than many purported twisty works of fiction. The twists were brilliantly timed and Herron did not feel the need for a twisty ending.

I do not know if it was an accurate depiction of the British intelligence agency but it felt very real to me.

I am going out to look for the next book in the series.

When Somebody Counts Sometimes

Few thrillers make me reflective. S.A. Cosby’s book, King of Ashes, left me thinking about the meaning of life.

Unlike many American thrillers where the bodies of the bad guys are strewn throughout the book with never a thought or comment that they were real people with families, Cosby addresses the issue through the good guy, Roman Carruthers.

On Roman’s scheme to free himself and his family from the Black Baron Boys:

He knew he couldn’t enact his plan against Torrent and Tranquil with no one getting hurt. Blood had already been spilled. But the only people who were missing Getty were the police. No one was shedding tears for Splodie except maybe a mother who lied to herself about who and what her son was, or a father who pretended he didn’t know his son was an orphan maker and a widow-creator.

Roman justifies their deaths because their lives were bad. He values lives by whether they lived bad lives and by who cared about them when they were alive.

Cosby is not willing to justify a good guy killing just by the character killed being bad. The character also needs to have no one who will miss the character. I do admire him for recognizing the bad characters are actually people.

It is a variation on Harry Bosch’s mantra:

Everybody counts or nobody counts.

Here it is:

Somebody counts sometimes.

Roman is driven to torture and kill to save the lives of himself and his family and their lifestyle.  He justifies his actions as needed to protect his family. I understand why he is unwilling to rely on corrupt local authorities. Still he chooses neither to go to federal authorities nor have himself and his family leave Jefferson Run.

When the killing and torture extend to someone who is collateral damage I struggled to accept Roman’s reasoning. How many non-bad people deaths are excessive? 

Roman knows he is rationalizing his evil actions.

I have written that every life has value.

In posts on Louise Penny’s book The Madness of Crowds I rejected the philosophy of statistician Abigail Robinson who valued “people” as a group but was willing to cull individuals who were not of value to the people because of disability, illness or age.

I disagree that the bad guys should forfeit life or be tortured for being bad and unmissable. They should be punished and removed from society to prison. 

On what to do when the Rule of Law has broken down is harder and I consider the situation different where self-defence requires taking life. 

Killing prevents the possibility of redemption but forgiveness will never fit into a rationale for killing.

Torture is beyond self-defence.

What creeps up on Roman is that once you consider some lives meaningless, killing and then torturing for reasons other than actual self-defence gets easier and easier. For targets who are bad their lives become of no consequence. It matters less and less if they have families.

Roman loses his soul in the carnage and the vivid cover is emblematic of “everything burns”.

****

Cosby, S.A. - (2022) - Razorblade Tears and Who is S.A. Cosby?; (2024) - All the Sinners Bleed; (2026) King of Ashes

Return to Blood by Michael Bennett

(7. - 1296.) Return to Blood by Michael Bennett - In the opening a 17 year old girl who loves the Māori gods as genderless deities breaks up bitterly with 17 year old Dax - both are recovering addicts - and announces to the reader she will be dead within 7 days.

She adds to her story through the book. Her thoughts and current events make for an eerie combination of past and present.

Hana Westerman, who is Māori, resigned her position of detective senior sergeant in the Auckland Police Department 6 months ago and moved back home to Tātā Bay on the west coast. She runs and swims daily in the ocean and scrubs “her skin with the iron-laden sands” (the black sand is a natural ex-foliant). She is in her late 30’s.

Hana and her father, Eru, are teaching teenagers to drive at the local rugby field.

Hana’s 18 year old daughter, is at university in Auckland living with her “best buddy PLUS 1” (non-binary gender).

An ocean storm has damaged the black sand beach exposing the body of a young woman.

Hana reflects on a different young woman of her age, Paige Meadows, who was killed almost 20 years ago and buried on that beach in a shallow grave.

The current victim, Kiri Thomas, had been in the sand for four years. She was 17 and trying to free herself of an addiction to crack cocaine.

I was fascinated by Bennett’s description of Hana holding a pencil lightly so that as she drew images there was a direct connection between eyes and fingers not filtered by the mind. It helps her to see beneath the surface of objects and people. A real drawing that “reveals the truth”.

She applied that approach to investigations by drawing pictures of crime scenes through trying to see what had happened there. Hana has a talent for seeing patterns missed by others.

DSS Lorraine Delaney has replaced Hana and is leading the investigation.

Hana is in the awkward world of a former police detective who cannot give up detecting but misses the resources of the police department. 

She passes on information to former colleagues who reluctantly follow up.

Unlike most cold cases when investigators ask where someone was on the day of a murder and memories are dim it is different for Kiri’s death. She was killed on the day the New Zealand All-Blacks rugby team defeated the South African Springboks seven tries to none. Everyone knows where they were that evening.

Canadians of my generation have the same type of sporting recollection. All of us know exactly where we were when Canada defeated the U.S.S.R. in the 1972 Summit Series with the winning goal scored late in the third period of the eighth and final game.

The personal relationships of Hana, Addison and PLUS 1 are fittingly complex. All have been affected by murder.

I was dismayed that Hana, following standard American fictional sleuthing, is willing to break and enter. As in America she rationalizes her actions as for the greater good. 

Hana has the ability to solve the case without breaking the law. It would require more time and investigation. 

I was heartened by what she did after the break-in.

What happens to your mind if you find a buried body, especially if the body is of a person your age?

Bennett explores the minds of his characters. All are struggling to enjoy life and move forward. He goes deepest into the prospective killer.

Māori language, culture, heritage, beliefs and every day life are woven through the story. For the Māori characters, family and community are at the core of their lives.

As I read the book I thought of the two novels Canadian author Scott Young wrote about Matthew “Matteessie” Kitogitak, an Inuk RCMP Inspector. The mysteries set in the Canadian Arctic weave Inuit life, past and present, into the story.

There is drama but not American over the top action. It is a Māori form of drama especially in what happens after the climax. The Māori characters are looking to the traditions of their gods.

There is a clever twist to the ending I never saw coming.

I want to know more about Hana Westerman. She is a character worth knowing.

Bennett is a strong writer with a deep connection to his Māori heritage.

What are the memories and dreams of the deceased? In Return to Blood they are vivid.

Queen Elizabeth II and Hercule Poirot and Nero Wolfe Meet

After reading The Windsor Knot by S.J. Bennett I thought of a meeting of sleuths.

****

Hercule Poirot and Nero Wolfe are invited to meet with Queen Elizabeth at Windsor Castle. She is interested in discussing sleuthing with two of the giants of crime fiction.

Her Assistant Personal Secretary, Rozie Oshodi, ushers them to the Oak room.

Poirot loves the beauty of the rooms and Wolfe is grudgingly impressed by the grandeur of the Castle.

Asked what he will have to drink, Poirot requests a herbal tisane. The Queen recommends Chamomile. Poirot smiles in appreciation.

Wolfe hesitates when asked. He has rarely consumed tea and has no real desire for tea but does not want to offend the Queen. Noticing his hesitation she smiles and says:

“How about Remmers for you Mr. Wolfe? We have some bottles cooling. My staff could get you two and a bottle opener with my Coat of Arms upon it. We know you like to open them yourself.”

Stunned, Wolfe replies:

“Er, er, er …. that would be wonderful but let me not impose upon your hospitality.”

The Queen says:

“One makes an effort to ensure the comfort of distinguished guests.”

She orders Twinings Earl Grey tea for herself.

When all have their beverages the Queen says:

“It is time to discuss sleuthing.” 

Poirot and Wolfe slightly nod.

The Queen commences:

“I am sure we can agree that all three of us are believers in using the little grey cells, not brawn, in solving murder.”

Poirot and Wolfe emphatically nod their heads.

The Queen carries on:

“I believe style is important in establishing standards of professionalism. I am always conscious of my appearance though sometimes I weary of the endless choices of jewels”.

Poirot responds:

“I agree with your Majesty. The fine custom suits and hats and shoes I wear give confidence to all that my appearance, dapper if I may be so bold, is professional”.

Wolfe adds:

“My brown suits and yellow shirts and the orchids I raise show the world I am a serious man of taste and refinement.”

All three spend a few minutes lamenting contemporary sleuths who pride themselves on looking like ordinary folk

The Queen says:

“I consider a personal secretary, a sidekick I believe is the word in America, essential. I would be lost without Ms. Oshodi. I could not remain in the shadows of an investigation but for her. It would be unseemly if One needed to conduct interviews. Your thoughts gentlemen.”

Poirot quickly says:

“The good Captain Hastings is useful. He is eager to participate and occasionally helpful.”

Wolfe says:

“I completely agree. Were it not for Archie I would have to leave the brownstone to observe crime sites and conduct interviews. That would be most unsatisfactory.”

The Queen notes:

“Having a sidekick, I like that word, with military training such as Hastings and Oshodie who were both army captains gives them respect in society and access to officialdom.”

Wolfe states:

“I admire how  you use suggestions, innuendoes, discreet inquiries and quiet words in an ear. You have the advantage of us, Your Majesty, with hundreds of devoted staff and a nation eager to help you.”

The Queen, a touch tartly:

“I may have the advantage in human resources but I have the disadvantage, as Philip reminds me, of being perceived as a ‘little old lady in a hat’. You gentlemen will never be underestimated. You each bear the title of genius somewhat lightly.”

Poirot quickly moves on:

“Ma’am, I admire that in successfully pursuing your investigations you received no glory for solving murder. Indeed, you avoid mention. You seek no recognition. Justice is what is important to yourself.”

Wolfe blunders on:

“Ma’am, I do believe you have a great advantage because of your stature. Who refuses the Queen’s invitation to a discussion at the Castle or Palace? Archie almost has to dragoon individuals to come to meetings at the brownstone.”

The Queen graciously nods and says:

 “One does use the allure of the throne and the invitation of helping the monarch of the realm.”

The Queen carries on:

“Mr. Wolfe, how exciting it must be to have meetings of murder suspects in your office with cocktails and beer as you reveal the killer.”

Wolfe acknowledges with a slight smile and replies:

“Such meetings are the only practical way to establish the killer without ever leaving the brownstone. I do acknowledge how satisfactory it is to confound the gathered with a precise reasoned analysis”.

The Queen says:

“I do have an ulterior motive to this meeting.”

Poirot and Wolfe lean forward, their interest piqued.

The Queen carries on:

“Would you be willing to combine our talents to solve murder? The internet makes world communication instant. We have trusted sidekicks to handle details and technical matters. My contacts around the world are unparalleled. M. Poirot is a master of the subtle interview. Mr. Wolfe has the determination of the English bulldog. For progress meetings I can invite the two of you for a dine and sleep.  For the climax of cases M. Poirot and myself could fly to New York City to sit in on the meetings at which Mr. Wolfe unveils the killers.”

Poirot sprightly arises and announces:

“Ma’am, it would be the highlight of my life to unravel murder with you and Nero.”

Wolfe heaves himself to his feet and says:

“Nothing would make me happier than to join you, Ma’am, and Hercule in solving murders.”

The Queen gracefully rises and proclaims:

“Killers beware! The most formidable team of sleuths the world has ever seen is on the case!”

****

Bennett, S.J. - (2025) - Her Majesty Investigates - A Three Dog Problem; (2026) - The Windsor Knot

The Windsor Knot by S.J. Bennett

(8. - 1297.) The Windsor Knot by S.J. Bennett - Queen Elizabeth II loves Windsor Castle. It is her favourite residence. She enjoys a delightful evening of dining and dancing. The next day she is enjoying a morning ride when she learns the young Russian pianist, Maksim Brodsky, who performed Rachmaninoff so brilliantly the night before and swept her around the ballroom, has died. She pries out of her reluctant private secretary, Sir Simon Holcroft, that the young man was found nude, hanging in his room closet, with feminine underwear and lipstick around. She is told it is “by the look of it, accidental” - autoerotic asphyxiation.

Prince Philip bluntly sets out the image many have of the 89 year old Queen in 2016:

“.... All they see is a little old lady in a hat.”

She is much more than her image as demonstrated in the book. 

Sir Simon is soon back to tell the Queen that Brodsky’s death was neither accidental or suicide. The weight of his body is not upon the knot on the doorknob.

The Queen’s assistant private secretary, Rozie Oshodi, arrives back from her cousin’s wedding in Nigeria to the public and private drama of another murder in the Royal Household.

The Queen is patronized by the head of MI-5, Gavin Humphreys, “a managerial technocrat”, who takes it upon himself to explain to the Queen that she underestimates Vladimir Putin. Humphreys advises her that Maksim, an anti-Putin blogger, was assassinated at her residence to send a message that Putin can attack his enemies anywhere. Humphrey thinks there is a mole, a long time Russian spy, among her hundreds of staff.

The Queen ignores the condescension but doubts his pompous conclusions. She has met and measured Putin. Humphreys is unaware of:

…. an unspoken accord among the ruling classes, among whom he (Putin) was so proud to count himself these days: princes did not tread directly on the patch of other princes. One might spy, certainly, if one could. One might seek to undermine one’s enemies in negotiations or elections. But you did not commit lesè-majesté and cause havoc in their palaces. If you did - who knew? - perhaps one day they might do the same in yours. Even dictators understood this.

She further muses, why would Putin kill “a very junior enemy” with a prized sleeper asset?

She might have responded more forthrightly had she not had a spy, Anthony Blunt, one of the Cambridge Five, previously  in her employ and never realized he was a spy.

She subtly sets off on her own investigation by having Rozie arrange for the Queen to be invited to a quiet private tea at the home of her friend, Fiona, Lady Hepburn. It will be so private Sir Simon will not know she is meeting at the tea a British military expert “on suspicious deaths of Russians on British soil”. 

Rozie is the Boss’s (Queen’s) personal secret agent following a line of women who have carried out investigations for the Queen who is unprepared to let the men who are certain they know best do what they consider best.

Also at Windsor for the “dine and sleep” was Russian billionaire, Yuri Peyrovskaya, and his much younger gorgeous wife, Masha.

While she muses, the Queen thinks in the third person. How “one” was treated by the staff. What could “one” ask Rozie to do for her? Should “one” visit the room where Maksim died?

In her investigation the Queen is a woman after my heart. She constantly asks “one” why.

Why would a murder be done in a Royal residence where security is all around?

Why would someone commit murder knowing there would be an intense investigation by the best detectives in the realm?

Why was the murder rather amateurish?

The Queen recognizes the importance of awards. Beyond the titles she can bestow she has instituted “the Elizabeth Cross, awarded to the next of kin of members of the armed forces killed in action or in a terrorist attack”.

For a short time the Queen must focus on the celebrations for her 90th birthday. There are great and small gatherings. She is driven around in her queen-mobile (think of the popemobile). She wants just a little fuss which means a banquet for 70. She lights a beacon, the first in over 1,000 in the U.K. The British have a grand style for pageantry.

Amidst the glitter and pomp and circumstance the Queen, a woman of faith, takes time to talk to God. She sits alone in her private chapel praying to the Lord about family and those gone as I do at night.

I sometimes forget that for over 70 years the Queen met with generations of world leaders. Based on the book she had real conversations with them.

As her private agents report the Queen grows apprehensive that conspiracy may be afoot. Her agents remind me of Queen Elizabeth I who used agents and spies to protect herself and the realm.

The danger level rises dramatically as the Queen’s agents are noticed.

At a meeting to discuss the investigation reaching a resolution the Queen expresses her feelings to Humphreys on early mis-steps in the investigation with a quiet remark:

“How unfortunate.”

The title and cover design of The Windsor Knot are brilliant. They are striking and reflective of the Queen and the book’s plot.

Bennett continues to be very clever at showing how shrewd a sleuth is Queen Elizabeth. She is so subtle it is rare anyone realizes she is pulling strings in the background. I was most impressed at how she created a vital, involved, bright 90 year old woman solving complex mysteries.

****

Bennett, S.J. - (2025) - Her Majesty Investigates - A Three Dog Problem

King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby

(6. - 1295.) King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby - I was drawn to read King of Ashes for several reasons. I enjoyed Razorblade Tears and All the Sinners Bleed despite the ferocious violence. King of Ashes was on the New York Times hardcover bestseller list for several weeks last summer. Most important, on George Easters compilation of 89 lists of favourite crime fiction in 2025 in Deadly Pleasures Mystery Magazine it was on 32 lists. The next highest total was 27 lists for Richard Osman’s book The Impossible Fortune. I try not to read a book with high expectations lest I be disappointed by the book not reaching lofty expectations. King of Ashes came with such praise it was impossible not to anticipate a great book. 

From the opening pages Cosby drew me into the story. Roman Carruthers, Rome to some, is a very successful financial adviser at Carruthers & Associates in Atlanta. His savings are “nearly forty million dollars”. His clients are equally successful in the worlds of entertainment and business. Beautiful women enjoy time with him. 

At the same time he has a monthly appointment with Miss Delicate, a dominatrix, who serves his need to be punished. After being phoned that his father is in a coma and urged to come home, he goes to see Miss Delicate before heading to Virginia. It has been five years since his last visit home.

Cosby is a philosopher of pessimism. A former girlfriend of Roman talks about the universe:

“I used to be afraid the universe was evil. Now I almost wish it was. Because evil can be bargained with, evil has a purpose, no matter how horrible it may be. But what I’ve come to realize is the universe is indifferent, and that is so much more terrifying,” she had said.

His mother, Bonita, has been missing for 19 years.

Roman grew up in Jefferson Run, an industrial city which has endured decades of decay. Carruthers Cremation Services continues to do well.

His sister Neveah operates the crematory with their father, Keith. Their brother, Dante, is of little assistance.

Roman agrees to help his sister the next day as she has “six bodies that gotta go in the oven” but he “has no desire to be the King of Ashes”. 

Cosby has Michael Connelly’s talent for creating memorable descriptions of people through their work such as the Lincoln Lawyer. 

Cosby is equally adept at evocative phrases.

He is very skilled at writing violence.

When their mother vanished after an evening shift as a hospital tech the family lost their “guiding light”. They are all still haunted. Grieving cannot end with no explanation for her disappearance.

Speculaion still swirls around Jefferson Run about her disappearance.

Roman makes a painful mistake while addressing a business problem of Dante with Torrent and Tranquil Gilchrist, the leaders of the Black Baron Boys. He acts to address his error.

The family troubles lead to an ugly situation beyond my imagination. It made me reflect on what I would do in an impossible situation. Roman will need more than a dominatrix to punish himself for his actions.

Roman quickly fits back into the routine of the crematory. He offers to close up one day. Neveah reminds him to turn off the gas valves and leave the exhaust on. She repeats her father’s mantra that “he don’t want the flames to turn against him”. 

They grew up on their father’s maxims. Some are chillingly frank:

“A body is just the meat and bones. By the time they get to us, the person they used to be is long gone.”

As his stress level rises and rises, Rome craves some BDSM. He needs the pain.

Roman is a master of making money. He is not averse to investing beyond the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission. He is ready to play upon the greed of the Black Baron Boys. They have a lot of cash coming in from their ventures.

Roman has negotiated with hard men and women but negotiations have a different level of intensity when the investors have guns and an eagerness to use them.

The BBB continually use fear to achieve their goals. Fear is a powerful but short term strategy.

Khalil says:

“Love may not endure, but fear fails when a man’s had enough.”

Roman meets Jealousy “Jae” Evers, a gorgeous assistant in the Mayor’s office. She is the half-sister of Torrent and Tranquil. Both Roman and Jae are bright and well educated. They understand each other on multiple levels.  It is an unusual relationship for a thriller. 

As Roman strives to solve the BBB problem, family relationships swirl. Roman does not want to hear about his parents’ relationship 19 years ago. How many people cannot accept the truth about parents?

As the end nears chaos builds and bodies fall. Roman tries to keep Neveah safe. Physically she is protected. The consequences of family secrets are immense.

The ending is bloody plausible though it left me saddened for other reasons.

Roman becomes a different man. His father’s favourite phrase sums up the book:

“Everything burns.”

****

Cosby, S.A. - (2022) - Razorblade Tears and Who is S.A. Cosby?; (2024) - All the Sinners Bleed