Status
Available
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Series
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Collection
Publication
St. Martin's Paperbacks (2005), 496 pages
Description
The Number One bestselling crime series featuring Dr Tony Hill, hero of TV's Wire in the Blood, written by the award-winning Val McDermid. The hunt for a serial killer leads from Britain through Europe in this terrifying psychological thriller. A twisted killer targeting psychologists has left a grisly trail across Europe. Dr Tony Hill, expert at mapping the minds of murderers, is reluctant to get involved. But then the next victim is much closer to home... Meanwhile, his former partner DCI Carol Jordan is working undercover in Berlin, on a dangerous operation to trap a millionaire trafficker. When the game turns nasty, Tony is the only person she can call on for help. Confronting a cruelty that has its roots in Nazi atrocities, Tony and Carol are thrown together in a world of violence and corruption, where they have no one to trust but each other.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member Bookmarque
The killer’s grandfather was sent to one masquerading as a psychiatric rehabilitation/treatment hospital. Really it was an excuse for some twisted people to perform psychological experiments (torture) on the less fortunate or retarded. At the end of the war, the places were covered up and the
The secondary plot about Carol’s undercover work was interesting, but it was also transparent. It was pretty obvious that the British authorities had Radecki’s lover killed just because she looked like Carol. It was cruel and enraged Radecki when he found out. Also, her mistake that caused her undoing was obvious. She should have gone straight to her apartment, turned on some lights and moved around, then gone down to Tony’s apartment 2 floors down. When she didn’t appear there, the tail that Darko had on her was alerted and then when he noticed her in Tony’s apartment window – she was all done. I knew it as soon as she did it and I thought that she should have known better. But if she hadn’t blown her cover, we wouldn’t have had the horrible rape scene and the torture of Tony scene. Petra and Marijke (Mar-eye-ka) saved the day.
One thing that was unsettling was the fact that German and Dutch people used very English idioms and slang.
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perpetrators were never punished. What this did to the grandfather was to make him unbelievably cruel and twisted in his own right. He abused his wife and drove her out. When his daughter got pregnant he kicked her out just after having the baby. He then raised this kid on his barge. No tolerance for human behavior at all – any weakness from being smaller or just plain being a child was met with torture. Any mistake from just being human or never being given a piece of information was met with torture. Instead of blaming his grandfather, the killer blamed the psychiatric community. He equated any experimental psychology with the events that took place in these Nazi hospitals and began his killing crusade. Because the killer’s own horrific childhood was detailed early in the book, I could never really see him as the bad guy. Sure, I wanted him stopped, but in the end when he shot himself rather than be taken in, I was sad that it had to end that way.The secondary plot about Carol’s undercover work was interesting, but it was also transparent. It was pretty obvious that the British authorities had Radecki’s lover killed just because she looked like Carol. It was cruel and enraged Radecki when he found out. Also, her mistake that caused her undoing was obvious. She should have gone straight to her apartment, turned on some lights and moved around, then gone down to Tony’s apartment 2 floors down. When she didn’t appear there, the tail that Darko had on her was alerted and then when he noticed her in Tony’s apartment window – she was all done. I knew it as soon as she did it and I thought that she should have known better. But if she hadn’t blown her cover, we wouldn’t have had the horrible rape scene and the torture of Tony scene. Petra and Marijke (Mar-eye-ka) saved the day.
One thing that was unsettling was the fact that German and Dutch people used very English idioms and slang.
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LibraryThing member wyvernfriend
Not quite as satisfying as previous instalments this is the story of Carol Jordan working undercover and Tony Hill trying to work out who killed some women close by. The two of them are a little too caught up in themselves to be believable as a working team and not as a pair of people bent on
I didn't get as caught by the story as by previous I think the two parallel stories fell a little flat occasionally.
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self-destruction.I didn't get as caught by the story as by previous I think the two parallel stories fell a little flat occasionally.
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LibraryThing member Darrol
Interesting look at post-unification Germany and EU Europe. For the most part, without excess plot twists.
LibraryThing member wispywillow
I seem to have a singular knack for grabbing an interesting book only to realize, near the end, that I've read the middle of a series. *le sigh* On a happy note, that means there are more of these to read!
This was a very interesting book. The characters were fun if maybe a wee bit flat. Lots of
Now time for me to start over with the first book.
This was a very interesting book. The characters were fun if maybe a wee bit flat. Lots of
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suspense. I don't get to read many books about the police processes in the EU, so I found this very interesting. Now time for me to start over with the first book.
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LibraryThing member the.ken.petersen
May I begin by tempering this review with the information that this is the first Val McDermid book that I have read; consequently,my views may need a little more work.
At 530 pages, this is a big crime story but, it flows well and I never got that awful 'only three hundred pages to go' feeling. The
Characters are sketchily drawn and even the main storyline of a police lookalike for a master criminals dead girlfriend is hardly new but the tale rattles along at just the right pace to make these defects insignificant. This would be a cracking book to take upon a long flight: hours would pass seemingly in the blink of an eye whilst engrossed in the story.
My main criticism of this work is one that I would aim at the entire genre of crime fiction: namely, the need to continually 'up the crime'. Sherlock Holmes could chase a jewel thief, Hercules Poirot needed a murder but only one and with very few details of the body. Taggart, Daziel and Pascoe et al use multiple deaths but still of the clean variety. Then, along comes the Messiah TV programmes and the murders become gory and now every crime book and film tries to outdo its rivals for sickening violence. The culmination of this book, The Last Temptation, involves the brutal rape of our heroine, DCI Carol Jordan. I am not convinced that, in a book which is essentially entertainment, that this is necessary but, even leaving that aside, the manner in which this was relegated to an unfortunate occurrence within a dozen pages seemed even more gratuitous.
At 530 pages, this is a big crime story but, it flows well and I never got that awful 'only three hundred pages to go' feeling. The
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book uses the three, or even four, different stories running side by side technique with each chapter split into three sub sections. I am not a great fan of this style but, MacDermid does it better than most and, after a few chapters, I settled into the book's rhythm.Characters are sketchily drawn and even the main storyline of a police lookalike for a master criminals dead girlfriend is hardly new but the tale rattles along at just the right pace to make these defects insignificant. This would be a cracking book to take upon a long flight: hours would pass seemingly in the blink of an eye whilst engrossed in the story.
My main criticism of this work is one that I would aim at the entire genre of crime fiction: namely, the need to continually 'up the crime'. Sherlock Holmes could chase a jewel thief, Hercules Poirot needed a murder but only one and with very few details of the body. Taggart, Daziel and Pascoe et al use multiple deaths but still of the clean variety. Then, along comes the Messiah TV programmes and the murders become gory and now every crime book and film tries to outdo its rivals for sickening violence. The culmination of this book, The Last Temptation, involves the brutal rape of our heroine, DCI Carol Jordan. I am not convinced that, in a book which is essentially entertainment, that this is necessary but, even leaving that aside, the manner in which this was relegated to an unfortunate occurrence within a dozen pages seemed even more gratuitous.
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LibraryThing member cmwilson101
This book is one of a series of books by Val McDermid about the neurotic, socially inept but brilliant criminal profiler, Tony Hill, and assertive, maverick detective Carol Jordan, and the odd, dependent relationship that develops between them as they solve crimes together.
This story (the third in
This story (the third in
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the series), puts Carol in harm's way as part of an undercover sting operation. Tony is in danger himself. There is a good cast of supporting characters, all of whom are realistically multi-faceted and interesting. Show Less
LibraryThing member Shelen
Not quite as gripping as "Wire in The Blood" but still a wonderful serial killer/police procedural novel. It made me want to see a map of the water shipping routes of Europe and a picture of a Rhine Boat, the large cargo ships. The two novels I've read with Tony Hill have left me wanting to know
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more about him and his history. Show Less
LibraryThing member verenka
This Serial Killer mystery didn't work for me. First of all it appears to be the third in a series and keeps referencing to other books I don't know. And secondly I read it in a German translation. And for the most part of the book there are Germans, British and Dutch people speaking to each other.
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And in the German translation they all seem to default to an accent from Berlin. I hate that in translations, all the subtleties of direct speech are lost in a Standard German that's not my German. It all sounds too stilted. Show Less
LibraryThing member neddludd
A decent page-turner focusing on two elements: the legacy of Nazi medical experimentation and a complex undercover assignment in Berlin that leads to the tracking of a major criminal empire, and its suave, capable, and sadistic leader. Readers are introduced to a disturbed killer who is bumping off
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experimental psychologists. The book is intelligent, and also discusses the cracks in Europe's police capabilities when a single criminal commits crimes in more than one country. Also: do the ends justify the disturbing means? For this reader, the only weak element was the Epilogue, which ostensibly tied a few loose plot elements together. It was unnecessary and uneffective, and didn't match the quality of the 99% of the book preceeding it. Show Less
LibraryThing member judithrs
The Last Temptation. Val McDermid. 2003. Profiler Tony Hill becomes involved with a serial murderer who is killing experimental psychologists in Holland and Germany. His former partner is undercover trying trap a notorious criminal who deals in drugs and illegal aliens in Germany. The cases collide
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in an exciting climax. This is the second Tony Hill novel I have read and I found it suspenseful and interesting. McDermid is a good writer and I plan to read the other Tony Hill novels. Show Less
LibraryThing member JFHilborne
This dark and twisted thriller is not an easy read. Two in-depth plot lines play out side by side, both of which are good and would perhaps be better written as two separate books. The subplot is as involved as the main plot and, at times, the switch between them is jarring for the reader.
In one
In another plot, a psychotic serial killer is targeting professionals for reasons that tie back to his ancestry. Though this is a work of fiction, some of the most appalling historical facts are embedded within the story.
Criminal profiler, Dr. Tony Hill, is the link between the two plot lines. Tony and Carol are drawn together from the beginning of the book and their separate cases are intertwined all the way to the end. The duo's undoing is also questionable and a little disappointing, given the depth of intelligence and strength the author has assigned to each character.
There are a lot of characters, a few of whom appear unnecessary as the plots advance. However, the writing is strong and the book is sufficiently interesting to make it to the end, though two individual attempts were required to get through it. The main characters are not easily likable, and the combination of two strong and separate plot lines resulted in an awkward and somewhat flat ending.
In one
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of the plots, Chief Inspector Carol Jordan undertakes a dangerous covert mission to bring down a European crime boss known for trafficking drugs and illegal immigrants. The fact she bears such a striking resemblance to someone in his past and hopes to use it to her advantage without her true motives being detected is a bit of a stretch at this level of criminal operation.In another plot, a psychotic serial killer is targeting professionals for reasons that tie back to his ancestry. Though this is a work of fiction, some of the most appalling historical facts are embedded within the story.
Criminal profiler, Dr. Tony Hill, is the link between the two plot lines. Tony and Carol are drawn together from the beginning of the book and their separate cases are intertwined all the way to the end. The duo's undoing is also questionable and a little disappointing, given the depth of intelligence and strength the author has assigned to each character.
There are a lot of characters, a few of whom appear unnecessary as the plots advance. However, the writing is strong and the book is sufficiently interesting to make it to the end, though two individual attempts were required to get through it. The main characters are not easily likable, and the combination of two strong and separate plot lines resulted in an awkward and somewhat flat ending.
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LibraryThing member Ma_Washigeri
Only finished this because I was away on holiday and didn't have anything else to read. Val McDermid has been on the radio quite a lot recently and she is just fantastic. Also I heard a few minutes of a radio drama she wrote called 'Deadheading' which was wonderful. If anyone is going to get rich
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writing pot boilers then I am glad it is her. However the main characters in this book - Carol and Tony - are just so awful I can't bear to think back on it too clearly. Show Less
LibraryThing member fothpaul
I've listened to a couple of the Tony Hill and Carol Jordan books now. This one was a bit different form the previous ones, with Carol set on an undercover mission in Germany. The books flow well and I really like the characters which McDermid creates are well rounded and imperfectly believable.
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The story wasn't the best of the series, with a harrowing finale leaving the main characters in a bad state. Show Less
LibraryThing member Ma_Washigeri
Only finished this because I was away on holiday and didn't have anything else to read. Val McDermid has been on the radio quite a lot recently and she is just fantastic. Also I heard a few minutes of a radio drama she wrote called 'Deadheading' which was wonderful. If anyone is going to get rich
Show More
writing pot boilers then I am glad it is her. However the main characters in this book - Carol and Tony - are just so awful I can't bear to think back on it too clearly. Show Less
Subjects
Original language
English
Original publication date
2002
Physical description
496 p.; 4.08 inches
ISBN
0312936915 / 9780312936914