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A review by ellelainey
Dead Man Walking: A Country House Murder Mystery with a Supernatural Twist by Simon R. Green
4.0
Dead Man Walking, by Simon R. Green
Ishmael Jones, 02
★★★★☆
208 Pages
1st person, single character POV
Themes: murder, science fiction, aliens, secret organisations, forced proximity
Triggers: mentions of gore, violence and supernatural beings
Genre: Contemporary, Murder Mystery, Science Fiction, Crime
~
Dead Man Walking is the second book in the Ishmael Jones series and takes place a year after the events of Book 1. This time, we have a locked room mystery, more forced proximity as a building goes into lockdown, and more new highly suspicious characters.
Ishmael and Penny are back, working as a team this time. Penny apparently did some training in weapons and self-defence, so she's more than just a pretty face, add that onto her strong resolve in a crisis, her romantic partnership with Ishmael and the fact she's a highly sensible quick thinker and she's more than proven her place in the series. I'm so glad she's more than just his girlfriend or a pretty face to distract people, as I worried she might be. I've lost faith in women “sidekicks” – for want of a better term – being showcased appropriately, but Green does a great job making the most of the strong woman she is and making sure she's always got a part to play.
As well as the recurring characters – and the new Colonel too – we have a host of new characters. The plot is basically what the blurb says and picks up exactly there: Ishmael is brought in to speak to Frank Parker, a notorious ex agent who went away to work for the opposition many years ago and who has now handed himself in for interrogation, for reasons no one understands. He claims to have information about traitors within the Organisation, and Ishmael is sent to join an interrogation team, to find out if that's true or not. There's also the complication of Frank having had repeated plastic surgery to disguise himself while on the run from the Organisation, so they need Ishmael to confirm if he really is Frank Parker, after all.
It makes for an interesting story. Combining the high stakes of what Parker might know, whether he really is who he claims or the opposition trying to get into the Organisation's stronghold, with a locked-room mystery, the forced proximity of lockdown, and a high-tech atmosphere allows for a story full of interest, intrigue and wrong turns. Everyone is suspicious, everyone a suspect, and the only people Ishmael and Penny can trust are each other.
The new characters are:
MacKay – an ex-military man who is in charge of the facility
Martin – a young tech genius who oversees the intense security of the facility
Hayley and Doyle – two psychoanalysts brought in to interrogate Parker
Redd and Baxter – two security personnel
and Parker himself – an ex-agent under investigation
All other members of the facility were sent away when Frank Parker arrived, to keep the secret of his arrival and anything he might say or be overheard. Surprisingly the facility is an intense stronghold that makes Ishmael nervous, due to its high tech security and the unknown things that go on there. The building has a history of being haunted, but Ishmael also knows that many people who go in there for interrogation might never be seen again and that there are too many people who would like to find out exactly what he is and what he's capable of and the best place to catch him is in that facility. From the start, he's on his guard and never quite settles, which means that he's often distracted from the case.
There was also some great representation within the story: both with a gay couple, and an age gap couple who were also inter-racial. I love a good, strong diversity rep in mainstream stories, so this was nice to see and done sensitively.
~
Overall, again this was a strong murder mystery wrapped up in Ishmael's personal life. I liked the blend of both, as it was a stronger story than Book 1 and much better paced. I do feel like the 40% first death and forced proximity may be a pattern or blueprint for the series, but that's not always a bad thing in a murder mystery.
I loved the new characters, as well as Penny and Ishmael's character growth. It was great to see that neither were as helpless as the previous book, though there were still moments that felt dragged out beyond need.
~
Favourite Quote
“See? Isn't this fun? Paranoia, a game the whole family can play.”
Ishmael Jones, 02
★★★★☆
208 Pages
1st person, single character POV
Themes: murder, science fiction, aliens, secret organisations, forced proximity
Triggers: mentions of gore, violence and supernatural beings
Genre: Contemporary, Murder Mystery, Science Fiction, Crime
~
Dead Man Walking is the second book in the Ishmael Jones series and takes place a year after the events of Book 1. This time, we have a locked room mystery, more forced proximity as a building goes into lockdown, and more new highly suspicious characters.
Ishmael and Penny are back, working as a team this time. Penny apparently did some training in weapons and self-defence, so she's more than just a pretty face, add that onto her strong resolve in a crisis, her romantic partnership with Ishmael and the fact she's a highly sensible quick thinker and she's more than proven her place in the series. I'm so glad she's more than just his girlfriend or a pretty face to distract people, as I worried she might be. I've lost faith in women “sidekicks” – for want of a better term – being showcased appropriately, but Green does a great job making the most of the strong woman she is and making sure she's always got a part to play.
As well as the recurring characters – and the new Colonel too – we have a host of new characters. The plot is basically what the blurb says and picks up exactly there: Ishmael is brought in to speak to Frank Parker, a notorious ex agent who went away to work for the opposition many years ago and who has now handed himself in for interrogation, for reasons no one understands. He claims to have information about traitors within the Organisation, and Ishmael is sent to join an interrogation team, to find out if that's true or not. There's also the complication of Frank having had repeated plastic surgery to disguise himself while on the run from the Organisation, so they need Ishmael to confirm if he really is Frank Parker, after all.
It makes for an interesting story. Combining the high stakes of what Parker might know, whether he really is who he claims or the opposition trying to get into the Organisation's stronghold, with a locked-room mystery, the forced proximity of lockdown, and a high-tech atmosphere allows for a story full of interest, intrigue and wrong turns. Everyone is suspicious, everyone a suspect, and the only people Ishmael and Penny can trust are each other.
The new characters are:
MacKay – an ex-military man who is in charge of the facility
Martin – a young tech genius who oversees the intense security of the facility
Hayley and Doyle – two psychoanalysts brought in to interrogate Parker
Redd and Baxter – two security personnel
and Parker himself – an ex-agent under investigation
All other members of the facility were sent away when Frank Parker arrived, to keep the secret of his arrival and anything he might say or be overheard. Surprisingly the facility is an intense stronghold that makes Ishmael nervous, due to its high tech security and the unknown things that go on there. The building has a history of being haunted, but Ishmael also knows that many people who go in there for interrogation might never be seen again and that there are too many people who would like to find out exactly what he is and what he's capable of and the best place to catch him is in that facility. From the start, he's on his guard and never quite settles, which means that he's often distracted from the case.
There was also some great representation within the story: both with a gay couple, and an age gap couple who were also inter-racial. I love a good, strong diversity rep in mainstream stories, so this was nice to see and done sensitively.
~
Overall, again this was a strong murder mystery wrapped up in Ishmael's personal life. I liked the blend of both, as it was a stronger story than Book 1 and much better paced. I do feel like the 40% first death and forced proximity may be a pattern or blueprint for the series, but that's not always a bad thing in a murder mystery.
I loved the new characters, as well as Penny and Ishmael's character growth. It was great to see that neither were as helpless as the previous book, though there were still moments that felt dragged out beyond need.
~
Favourite Quote
“See? Isn't this fun? Paranoia, a game the whole family can play.”