Welcome to my world. My name is Tony Berry, writer and editor (and lifelong pedant) with five crime fiction books and two memoirs to my name. Also running addict, failed chef, theatre 'luvvie' and dedicated cruciverbalist
MEMORIES never fade of taking the terrifying walk over the divide that once existed between East and West Germany . Trigger-ready guards at your back; trigger-ready guards ahead. One wrong move, however innocent or accidental, and . . . It didn’t bear thinking about. But, nevertheless, you did. Think about it. Every step of the way; and beyond, always looking for followers, watchers, anyone whose presence could be queried. The brain made a rapid recall of all those stories of would-be escapists from the East who failed to make it across the desolate divide. Those who had been dragged back,…
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Hold that ball and be set for life A double-take was needed. Are my weakening eyes truly failing me? Did I read that correctly? Surely it could not have been £370,000? A wage of £370,000 a week? In underpaid, impoverished, breadline Britain? Definitely has to be another typo. One not…
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Why would anyone want to risk living in the outwardly charming British village of Midsommer? The number of bizarre and sudden deaths that beset its residents must be an estate agent’s nightmare. The ultimate hard sell. Charming 18th century cottage for sale, all bloodstains removed, two previous owners shot, two…
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There has always been a leisurely air about Guido Brunetti’s approach to crime. In Give Unto Others his creator dips him even deeper into the realm of the soporfic. Better than a warming cup of camomile tea. More digestible than a tab or two of valerian. It’s dreamtime in Venice.
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There is a new game afoot among crime fiction afficionados. Especially those who believe there’s nothing to match the rapidly expanding sector known as tartan noir. It is called Spot the Join. Or Find the Seam. Even Detect the Author. Or any of the many possible similar phrases. My own…
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Author Adele Parks is a tease. Relentlessly so. At least, judging by One Last Secret (paperback, HQ/Harper Collins, 2022) it seems she simply can’t help herself. She never stops. Just when you think you know what is going on, she drops another bombshell and lures you into reading on . . . and on . . . and on. All of it in brilliant, sparkling prose and sharp obsrvations. And done with the lightest of touches. It is irresistable. She has fashioned One Last Secret into a tantalising page turner from its intriguing opening paragraphs to the very last lines.
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