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In 2013, it was reported that Hill had left her husband and moved in with Barbara Machin, creator of Waking The Dead, who adapted Hill's crime fiction novels featuring detective Simon Serrailler and Hill's The Small Hand. [12] However, she said that she was 'still married' to Wells in 2015. [14] In 2016, Machin left Hill for comedian Rhona Cameron. [ citation needed] Works [ edit ] Novels [ edit ] Freeman, Hadley (18 October 2003). "Cotswold chameleon". The Guardian (UK). Guardian News and Media Ltd . Retrieved 20 March 2008. Sorry, but this was a disappointment. I had quite enjoyed the previous book in the series, The Various Haunts of Men, which I suspect was written as a stand-alone novel but then developed into a series. I suppose I had expected a quality PD James/Ruth Rendell style crime novel and found something different - which didn't quite work, unless we find the issues are resolved in later volumes... As in the previous book, Hill tampers with various "givens" in detective fiction. In that book, a key character died. In this one, there is no resolution to the central plot and very little clue as to the story behind it. I suspect that Hill is trying to mirror what might happen in true life and the difficulties of a crime never being solved, the impact that that has both on the family and the investigating police. But I'm not sure that it quite worked. This was very disappointing to me in a lot of ways. We see a lot more of Simon Serrailler in this second book in the series but he is not very likable other than his love for his sister Martha.
Begun in 2004, well known British author Susan Hill embarked on her series featuring the popular protagonist Simon Serrailler. Working from Lafferton in England, Serrailler is the police Chief Inspector for the region there. Having produced over seven books, with an eighth one to follow shortly, this particular series shows no signs of stopping anytime soon. Using the crime novel genre as their basis, they have proven to be popular with both their commercial and critical acclaim. The only saving grace MIGHT have been the Richard/Judith story. The reader finally gets some insight into what is going on in their relationship. It didn't sit right with me though. I'm guessing it will be explored further in the next book because I think it's really a bit weak as it stands in this book. The second in the Simon Serrailler series, this particular novel from Susan Hill follows on directly from the last. First published in 2005 on the 2nd of June, it continues the story of the Chief Inspector and his many cases. Developing his character further, it establishes more of the traits that his audience have come to recognize and love over time.
Simon Serrailler: The Various Haunts of Men
Cut to present day and DCI Simon Serrailler, who works in Lafferton, an English town not far from London. And a new murder to investigate - an elderly woman has been killed in her home - strangled with a length of electrical cord........ Hill revisits old characters from her previous outing, The Betrayal of Trust, but briefly. Jocelyn Forbes, the woman living with motor neurone disease, or MND, is still alive, but barely, and Hill seems to have a keen interest in MND and its debilitating affects on a person's body. Also, Rachel Wyatt and Simon Serrailler's rendezvous continues in the latest mystery, and though the relationship adds nothing to the meat of the main story, Hill creates interesting characters that her readers care about and hope to revisit in future stories. Conjuring up a new foe, author Susan Hill displays something altogether more frightening than ever before with this second installment in the Simon Serrailler franchise. Creating characters that are so intensely relatable as well makes it far more terrifying as the monster seems a lot more real and close to home than it would be otherwise. As Serrailler gets more involved with the community, so to does the reader becoming more immersed in this every evolving world she has created. Featuring an in-depth look at the psychology of evil, it takes a very complex set of themes and makes them highly accessible to a wide ranging audience. Will Simon Serrailler manage to find whoever is committing these crimes throughout the community before it’s too late? Can he manage whilst avoiding any danger that might potentially befall him during his investigation? What will become of him as he attempts to find out who is the pure in heart? The Simon Serrailler Series In Lafferton Simon Serailler is dealing with the aftermath and emotional fall-out of the events of The Various Haunts of Men when a schoolboy is abducted from outside his home. At the same time, Simon's disabled sister is hovering between life and death; and a recently-released criminal is looking for a way to create a decent life for himself after prison. Disclaimer: If this book ever gets published, (during my lifetime) I will happily read it and retract this 'review' for a real one.
This was suggested to me by my local public librarian and now I have a writer to play catch-up with. I love nothing better than a brooding , intelligent mystery and being set in the UK is a big bonus.This book has all of that. Working in and around Lafferton, Serrailler works to get to the bottom of the case in these intricate and intelligent mystery stories. There is also talk of a television adaptation in what could potentially become a long-running series to rival that of previous popular shows such as Inspector Morse. This all builds towards Simon Serrailler becoming one of the best known fictional detectives, in a franchise that has plenty of life left in it yet. Simon Serrailler: The Various Haunts of Men This is listed as a mystery, but it's more of a domestic slice of life book about Simon and his family, and Brookie and his family, and Cat and all the DCs, and poor Mr Lionel, and the Chinese herbalist, and the junkie found dead of an OD/contaminated batch of heroin and a couple of animals and Olivia and whether Simon is going to get with Rachel and ugh. I thought the Gunter subplot was interesting. However, it did not at all interact with the main story - even the characters scarcely did. If this was supposed to be a red herring for the police officers, then it didn't work at all. As one officer pointed out pretty early on 'nothing suspicious here in relation to the kidnapping'. It is so obviously not linked, I can only conclude that it wasn't intended to be. I mean, did you need to hit a word count, Ms. Hill? What on earth is this subplot for? As far as I know, the character does not make an appearance again, which is even more bizarre. So I can't even blame it on irritating soap opera antics (ie. you have to read the next book to see the point).And let’s not even start on the fact that once again, the sleepy little cathedral town of Lafferton has a serial killer—although, to be fair, that’s just the way life is in a murder mystery series. You have to suspend your sense of the absurd and go with the flow at some point.
Cat, who seems to be working herself to the bone just as much as she did when she was an NHS GP, handily has a poor 'deserving' private client to focus on, whose care is funded by an anonymous donor. As ever, she is the only competent, caring doctor in the book and is surprised when the overworked worn down nurses at the hospital don't appreciate her pointing out all the things they are doing wrong. Then there's Simon (the author is clearly in love with him, despite the faults she gives him), who should be disciplined for his treatment of Fern (in this book - I can no longer recall what happened in the last one). If I were Rachel I would run a mile. Finally, the author credits her proof-reader, but between them they seem to share the view that any number of ideas and phrases can be joined together in a single sentence with the use of commas.
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Susan Hill has a writing style that feels different. It’s softer, kinder, gentler. It soothes and relaxes me and I sink into the story. I first 'discovered' Susan Hill about this time last year when I read The Betrayal of Trust - the sixth in her Simon Serrailler Crime novels. (my review). I was really looking forward to her latest - A Question of Identity - and I wasn't disappointed!
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