Unfortunately I don’t have a first draft Q&A for you this week, but don’t worry, it will be returning again next week and don’t forget, if you fancy doing, then please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
Today’s Recently Read post is a little different as it comprises two books by the same author. The Sad Man and The Ugly Man by P. D. Viner. They are short stories that are a part of his Dani Lancing Trilogy of which two books are now out. The good news is that you can pick up these two short free on the Amazon store.
You can find P. D. Viner’s particularly interesting first draft Q&A, that he did a few weeks ago, Here.
The Sad Man by P. D. Viner
Police officer Tom Bevans is nicknamed the Sad Man by his colleagues. As a Family Liaison Officer he is always the bearer of bad news – it is his job to tell the friends and family of victims the fate of their loved ones.
But Tom is weighted down by crimes both old and new – haunted by the death of his best friend Dani, whose murder has never been solved.
When a rare opportunity emerges for Tom to take the lead in a horrific murder investigation, he is determined to get justice for the victim. A young girl has been found in her own home, cut so badly – and so carefully – that she has bled to death, leaving a deliberate pool of blood in the shape of angel wings…
My Thoughts:
This is a prequel to The Last Winter of Dani Lancing but you don’t need to have read the novel to read this.
I loved this short story. It gives you a real insight into DS Tom Bevans and his past and bizarrely his current relationship with Dani Lancing. Through Tom the story explores grief and guilt and how it is dealt with.
The murders Tom investigates are serious but Viner manages to keep the integrity of a murder story within such a short space and the ending was heart racing stuff that left you wanting to read the next novel. A great short story.
The Ugly Man by P. D. Viner
The summer of 1976.
The whole country baking in a heatwave. And in a sleepy Derbyshire village a man, known locally as the Ugly Man, walks into his local with a claw hammer and in front of everyone brutally murders the young woman behind the bar.
For Patricia Lancing, juggling the demands of being a wife and mother alongside her desire to get recognition as an investigative journalist, this could be the case that makes her career.
If she survives it.
My Thoughts:
This, the second short story in the Dani Lancing series is very different to The Sad Man.
The Ugly Man is set in the 1970’s around Dani’s mum Patti and her time as a journalist. Viner captures the era well without overplaying the sexism that was clearly rife at that time in such career choices. Though it is there and is shown, you don’t feel as though it is being rammed down your throat.
The Ugly Man is a facially disfigured man and it is this that earned him the childish and nasty nickname that stuck.
I really enjoyed this. Lines were blurred. Knowing who was the victim and offender weren’t always clear cut and human nature was exposed for all its frailties.
The novella has an interesting voice and will keep you turning the pages. The story is cleverly woven with an interesting twist at the end that will likely leave you wanting to read more by Viner and with two books that link in with these, you have great opportunity.
A great series.
