The 17th instalment of the Inspector Banks books but the first to be televised, Friend of the Devil delves deeply into Banks’ and Cabbot’s past and memories and is best read as part of the series, particularly as it regularly references events in one of the older books, Aftermath. DI Annie Cabbot is on secondment but when it becomes clear that the murder she’s investigating is mysteriously linked to a rape and murder Banks is investigating they have to delve deep into their pasts to identify the killers and stop them striking again. Full of suspense, Robinson also pleasingly teases out more and more of his stars’ complicated relationship. Riveting, enjoyable and hugely satisfying.
Friend of the Devil The 17th DCI Banks Mystery Synopsis
When Karen Drew is found sitting in her wheelchair staring out to sea with her throat cut one chilly morning, DI Annie Cabbot, on loan to Eastern Area, gets lumbered with the case. Back in Eastvale, that same Sunday morning, 19-year-old Hayley Daniels is found raped and strangled in the Maze, a tangle of narrow alleys behind Eastvale's market square, after a drunken night on the town with a group of friends, and DCI Alan Banks is called in. Banks finds suspects galore, while Annie seems to hit a brick wall - until she reaches a breakthrough that spins her case in a shocking and surprising new direction, one that also involves Banks. Then another incident occurs in the Maze which seems to link the two cases in a bizarre and mysterious way. As Banks and Annie dig into the past to uncover the deeper connections, they find themselves also dealing with the emotional baggage and personal demons of their own relationship. And it soon becomes clear that there are two killers in their midst, and that at any moment either one might strike again.
'If you haven't encountered Chief Inspector Alan Banks before, prepare for a crash course in taut, clean writing and subtle psychology' -- Ian Rankin
'It's neither the setting nor even the characters that makes Robinson's work so satisfying, but the plotting of Swiss-watch precision' Independent
Author
About Peter Robinson
Peter Robinson grew up in Yorkshire, and now divides his time between Richmond and Canada. There are twenty-two books in the bestselling DCI Banks series – the critically acclaimed crime novels have won numerous awards in Britain, the United States, Canada and Europe, and are published in translation all over the world.
Peter Robinson's DCI Banks is now a major ITV1 drama by Left Bank productions. Stephen Tompkinson (Wild at Heart, Ballykissangel) plays Inspector Banks, and Andrea Lowe (The Bill, Murphy's Law) plays DI Annie Cabbot. Peter's recent standalone novel BEFORE THE POISON won the IMBA's 2013 Dilys Award as well as the 2012 Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel by the Crime Writers of Canada. This was Peter's sixth Arthur Ellis award.
