Standing in the Shadows: The last novel in the number one bestselling Alan Banks crime series

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The late Peter Robinson penned another brilliant entry into the Inspector Banks series in his latest, and last, book in the series.

One of the finest police procedural writers around... [ Standing in the Shadows] is as narratively rich and surprising as Robinson's best work. Knowing it's his last makes the reading bittersweet." — New York Times Book Review Engrossing... Those who enjoy methodical police procedurals that build to a logical, satisfying conclusion will be amply rewarded.”— Publishers Weekly on Careless Love Robinson’s artistry lies in his dexterous placement of clues, whispered secrets lying dormant or boldly paraded in plain sight. The seamless choreography of police procedure, rendered with an authenticity that underscores the writer’s mastery, unveils a police force willing to bend the rules in the pursuit of justice. Such is the precision of Robinson’s depiction that one could be forgiven for assuming he himself once walked a beat. “Final enigma”This book is a bit unusual in that it focuses on a "cold case," a homicide that comes to Banks' desk when a body is unearthed by chance on a remote Yorkshire farm. Banks and his team have to start from zero; the body, though only a few years in the ground, is not identifiable and doesn't match anyone who was ever reported missing. Through painstaking detective work, they eventually link the body to scandals involving undercover policing during a period of political turmoil in England more than 30 years earlier that are only now (in 2019) coming to light. It's an interesting, if not terribly suspenseful, story. People who enjoy the British television series 'Unforgotten' will definitely like this. Like some of Robinson's previous novels this one is set across different time periods. In 2019 Banks & his team investigate the discovery of a skull by archaeologists & in 1980-81 the author mixes fact with fiction with the hunt for the real life Yorkshire Ripper. The book itself was a 4 Star but I give 5 stars for the whole series, now sadly ended as the author passed away last year. It will always be my favorite police procedural series with the best dialogue in that genre. The characters always felt like real people, even the tertiary ones. At one point I might even reread the series just to spend time with those characters again ( I might skip Zelda chapters though…) Peter Robinson was the creator of the immensely popular Inspector Alan Banks crime series, set in Yorkshire – the books sold almost 9m copies in 19 languages and spawned a successful television series (DCI Banks, 2010-16) starring Stephen Tompkinson as Banks.

RIP Peter Robinson. No, I haven't read the book yet, but so sad at his passing. I'm sure I'll love this one as much as the others. Will really miss these stories and characters.

That’s right. 2008. ‘Lost their moral compass,’ according to one of them. As if they ever had one.” O]ne of the finest police procedural writers around... [ Standing in the Shadows] is as narratively rich and surprising as Robinson's best work' NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW

Eventually, the two story lines converge. The solution to the mystery, while not completely unexpected, still managed to surprise me in many of its details. This is a fast-paced police procedural that held my interest to the end. Eventually the two cases intersect and the outcome was a surprise to me ... I thought I had it figured out! What I find incredible is that after 28 novels featuring Banks we still learn new things about him. The supporting characters are well developed & there are some nice touches of humour amidst the drama.Complicated, unexpected and startling, the story is all that, but Robinson brings all the disparate parts together so cleverly that the result on finishing the novel is a satisfaction that all readers want at the end of a good book * On-Magazine * I've thoroughly enjoyed Peter Robinson's police procedural novels featuring DCI (now DS) Alan Banks & it's with great sadness that after the author's death this will be his final story. Standing in the Shadows is a worthy addition to the Banks canon... Robinson was an author at the top of his game, and Banks a detective at the top of his. Both will be sorely missed by their readers." — The Guardian