Not My Valentine by Tony Bassett

 

Not My Valentine

 by Tony Bassett

Synopsis

The most romantic day of the year turns into a nightmare…

Having returned from a date with her new boyfriend, Lydia is fatally attacked in her home. A burglary gone wrong or a planned assault?

Detectives from Heart of England Police investigate and try to find out more about the victim. She was much loved by family and colleagues. But maybe someone loved her too much.

Attention turns to Lydia’s boyfriend, Roman, when it transpires that he is the son of a local crime boss known to associate with the feared West Side Gang.

DS Sunita Roy believes he is hiding something, but will have to tread carefully – the criminals have connections in the force.

Despite having strong intuition, Roy is struggling. There is something missing from the picture and it could be a secret taken to the grave.

 My Thoughts

This is the first book I have read by Tony Bassett and although it is the seventh book in the Roy and Roscoe crime series it is definitely written as a  standalone book. 

As a huge fan of Detective stories I found this one more on the “easy reading “ end of the spectrum and read it in one sitting due to it being only 236 pages in length making it an ideal read on a wet , rainy afternoon when you don’t want anything too strenuous to get your teeth into.

For me it is missing the depth of plot and substance that I like and at times I feel that it skims the surface rather than taking us deeper into the characters . However , there are a wide variety of characters that appear and, in some cases, disappear as the story unfurls to keep the interest and the momentum moving at a fair pace throughout the book in order to keep the reader engaged from the beginning to the end. 

I personally would have liked  more time to have been spent on how DS Roy actually came up with her theory as to what had happened at the end of the book in order to build up suspense and intrigue before proving her case.

Overall my feelings are that this is a perfectly  enjoyable read for those readers who prefer an easy detective story that will not take too long to read and is not too taxing. 

About Tony

Tony Bassett is a former journalist who worked on regional and national newspapers in Britain for more than 40 years. He mainly reported on crime, show business, human interest and consumer topics. Now retired, he writes crime fiction.

Tony is best known for his series of novels set in the West Midlands featuring Detective Chief Inspector Gavin Roscoe, an experienced detective and family man, and his sergeant, law graduate and resourceful problem-solver Sunita Roy.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0F1YTLKNV/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0F1YTLKNV/