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I think that Mr McCleave must have some inside police information because the jokes and police history are too well-chosen and plausible to be mere fictional inventions. They’re quite funny as well, but surely the anecdote about guarding the pm with a handbag must be true. 😊 When I thought ‘not another lesbian detective’ (haven’t we got enough of those already? Before long people think that it’s a requirement), I noticed that she wasn’t all that politically correct, at least she was still smoking. And she has a past: as a youngster, she smoked weed and took ecstasy at concerts. Apart from her past, she’s an excellent detective and an experienced SIO. She’s not all that eager in calling in the help of one of the larger CID’s outside of Wales as she finds out that her own team is competent enough, despite not having too much experience with murders. They do know the community. I thought the plot was great with tension running all the way through. I enjoyed reading about the police procedures and jargon like “Victim is an IC3 or M1 female”. Ah yes, you spot those codes and the ugly face of racism has it’s part to play too. I liked the advice DI Ruth Hunter shared with the reader about interview techniques. I loved the attitudes within the police force that were explained, for example… Starting a new life in Snowdonia was always DI Ruth Hunter’s dream. Until a twisted killer turned it into her worst nightmare.
Having been born in Liverpool, grown up in the Wirral, and spending many childhood weekends and holidays in North Wales with both my own parents and later my own kids, I found the mention of so many Welsh place names quite nostalgic. A small-town murder. A big city detective. Can she unravel the gruesome trail of clues before the killer strikes again? The team work through the evidence and their investigations uncover new details, and then a second murder occurs, they find their confidence that their focus is on the right suspect shaken time and time again. Do any of the characters tell the truth? There are plenty of lies and misdirection, along with a generous “supper “of red herrings. That will keep even the most astute reader from even suspecting, let alone deciding who the perpetrator is, until the final chapters. I am constantly on the lookout for authors to add to my list and I believe that I have found one in Simon McCleave. The Snowdonia Killings is far from perfect but it has a very good plot, some wonderful characters that McCleave has done a nice job of developing, a few red herrings (and maybe a blue one), and the obligatory twist at just the right time, mercifully cutting off what seemed like a rather choppy ending. Events conspire to thrust Ruth into a murder investigation almost as soon as she arrives in North Wales - Not exactly the slower pace that she had anticipated. A teacher at a local school has been killed just as Parent's Night was wrapping up. As it turns out, the teacher was an arrogant bitch so there was no shortage of potential suspects. Ruth plunges headlong into the case with her not-so-trusty DC who is resentful that a London DI has been sent to his hometown apparently to oversee his actions.I couldn't begin to pronounce some of those place names in an authentic way like the narrator did and I googled her details to see if she is Welsh. Surprisingly she is not. Detective Inspector Ruth Hunter lives with the pain of her partner’s mysterious and unsolved disappearance. About to hit 50, the veteran police officer trades in the crime-ridden streets of London for a more peaceful life in rural North Wales. But Ruth has barely settled into her new position in North Wales Police, when the body of a brutally murdered woman is discovered...with strange symbols carved into her skin. Teaming up with an obstinate deputy, Ruth struggles to eliminate anyone from a long line of suspects. When another slain victim is discovered with the same cryptic markings, she’s forced to re-think the investigation. Not long afterwards, another teacher is killed and the victim also has a spiral carved on their hand.
I loved Simon’s writing style and content. There is so much more to this book than basic crime scene investigation and the search to find the bad guy. This novel explores how alcoholics cope with daily life and how married mothers can move on to find love in a same sex relationship. Also the family lives of the police officers are skillfully woven into this story which adds perspective to this tale. Real past events like Operation Trident and the murder of Claire Tiltman in 1993 were mentioned to explain to the reader how certain things can happen.The sheer amount of ground McCleave attempts to cover is astonishing, and we haven’t even mentioned the setting. Throughout The Snowdonia Killings, the Welsh countryside, culture and heritage are brought out through a peppering of references. Legends of drowned princes, Owain Glyndwr’s war of independence, jokes about English incomers drinking sheep urine – plenty of Welsh flavour here. However, the book’s cover is a little deceiving – there’s no snow whatsoever. This debut novel is a wonderful introduction to what looks like being a great new series of murder mysteries. Set in Wales in the area around Mt Snowdon, the rugged and beautiful countryside is as much part of the novel as the characters. Any mistakes? Yes, of course, there are some, the main one is that the age of the teacher is first given as 53 by herself and later as 51 by the team. The reverse would be more likely unless she fibbed to the school. It may also be good to point out that acronyms as CPS have a completely different meaning in the UK than in the USA. DI Ruth Hunter has made the difficult decision to leave London and the Met for the much quieter life in the North Wales Police Force. Her last year in London has been made all the more difficult by the disappearance of her close friend and lover, Sarah, who, one day got on a train and never got off. She seems to have vanished.
After moving to Worthenbury, near Wrexham, he worked as a teacher before writing his debut novel, The Snowdonia Killings. A deal has been agreed to film the first of Simon McCleave’s “Killing” series in Snowdonia and north east Wales. After quitting teaching three years ago, Simon began work on the DI Ruth Hunter series, publishing three at the start of 2020, and four more since. With such a complex case, and all the red herrings the author sends your way, guessing who the killer is turns out to be very difficult. The ending is surprising, moving and hard hitting. However, after the reveal there’s a long section of exposition which didn’t quite fit the rest of the storytelling. Perhaps Simon McCleave wanted to tie up as many loose ends as possible, but he could easily have left some of them hanging.The arrogance of CID officers towards uniform was often a source of conflict. It had always been that way and Ruth remembered exactly what it was like when she was in uniform. Being treated as a glorified assistant, expected to take statements and other ‘menial’ tasks. Ruth had worked with police officers who, once they had transferred from uniform to CID and bought their Matalan suit, thought they were Inspector bloody Morse. Starting a new life in Snowdonia was always DI Ruth Hunter's dream. Until a twisted killer turned it into her worst nightmare.
Not kean on her attempt at Scouse accents though, but very few can get that spot on to a proper Scouser 😆Schedules have yet to be agreed, due to the Covid crisis, but there are hopes filming could take place next summer ready for a 2022 release. Netflix is among the distributors interested in the project and a “high profile” actress is being lined up to play the part of DI Ruth Hunter, the book’s main protagonist. Detective Inspector Ruth Hunter lives with the pain of her partner’s mysterious and unsolved disappearance. About to hit fifty, the veteran police officer trades in the crime-ridden streets of London for a more peaceful life in rural North Wales. But Ruth has barely settled into her new position in North Wales Police, when the body of a brutally murdered woman is discovered…with strange symbols carved into her skin. It’s remarkable how many plot twists and new directions crop up in this novel. The police procedural aspect is strong, but using a huge variety of characters the author manages to drive the story in various directions. It’s complex but very believable. There are secrets galore, and often the characters have attitudes and issues that complicate matters for Ruth. As well as hate crimes, mental health problems, suicide and autism play a role – affecting the characters, the investigation and how it’s handled. All the books were penned by London-born Simon, a former Hollywood scriptwriter who subsequently worked on TV shows in the UK such as Silent Witness, Midsomer Murders, EastEnders and The Bill.
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