The Diary of Alan Hunter

When a naked body is found on an English beach with multiple stab wounds, Inspector Gently is called in to unravel a mystery the local cops seem powerless to solve. With his usual perseverance and perspicacity, Gently gradually unravels the mystery behind the death, linking the killing to the activities of a very Cold War organisation of foreign spies and local accomplices.

Good quality mystery which is rather dated. A pleasure to read - Gently gradually unpicks the s Plot summary: A pleasure to read - Gently gradually unpicks the substance of a complex case. Vivid characters who are well drawn if a little stereotyped and dated. Hunter captures the nuances of different English accents based on class and region. Convincing evocation of an English seaside resort town in season.

I found it very readable. Read another by same author?

May 31, Leila Mota rated it really liked it. Once I've read the first book with the main character, I was hooked and ready to go to the second one. A good balance between the "hero" and everything else, from the secondary characters to the plot to the English background, which I do love.

Jun 04, Mirhanda rated it it was amazing. A beach, a resort town and George Gently. What more could one want? Jul 20, Lindahawkes added it.

Alan Hunter (author)

I loved starting this series. He has a quiet way about him and his humor is quite dry as you would expect of the British.

The mystery was gripping and keeps you on your toes trying to "solve" it right up close to the end, when Gently is about to reveal the culprit. He reminds me of Lt. Columbo, in that he acts as though he is not quite sure and appears to be a bit shy, but that is just his character and way. He really is acknowledgedly one I loved starting this series. He really is acknowledgedly one of the top inspectors for Scotland Yard. In this book Inspector Gently is on a much deserved vacation in a childhood summer vacation spot that produces some unpleasant feelings within him.

A body is found on the beach and there is absolutely no way to identify it. The local police have gotten no where. They know Gently is in town and ask if he could dig a little to find clues. As usual Gently gets to the heart of the matter and stirs up the town. I liked this book immensely. I felt I was there in this little beach town and could wholly identify with the various characters and was pulled in to the search for the murderer.

Dec 17, Irving rated it really liked it Shelves: Alan Hunter's Inspector Gently series is an interesting detective series that focuses more on the process of making a case against the perpetrator rather than identifying the criminal. Inspector Gently has some interesting passions that include chewing candy and a deep interest in food. The plot is interesting and while the identity of the criminal is apparent quickly but evidence is limited and hence the process of getting the case closed is intriguing.

Feb 14, Mumbler rated it really liked it Shelves: Like the first book, the background to everything is the world of popular entertainments. But his assistant Dutt was a new fun character. And Hunter has a great sense for the climax needing special locations. Jul 04, MrsCordial rated it liked it Shelves: I'm really enjoying the George Gently series. I liked the TV series and was intrigued that that the original books were set so differently and without Bacchus, so read the first one out of curiosity.

The character of Gently is recognisable but nothing else, but the book was still a good read. I particularly enjoyed Alan Hunter's writing. It can be very poignant in a way that reminded me of Philip Larkin at times. Dec 17, Dawn rated it liked it Shelves: A nice mid-century murder. Especially our Scottish sea captain. But I like Gently and I like these times too be because they resonate of my childhood spent on the south coast in faded genteel Worthington and the Kiss-me-quick Brighton pier.

May 14, Rich rated it really liked it. The second in the George Gently series. I found myself struggling to get in to this 'case' although that's not to say it isn't enjoyable. Hunter has done another good job in getting you to understand the importance of finding evidence etc back in that particular era. Gripping in parts and slow in others - this isn't to say it's not a good read and I'm sure to carry on with the series. Jul 20, Adrian Piazza rated it really liked it. A slower age and detective who wants to get it right.

If you want easy criminals, cardboard cut out baddies, find another series. Peopled by flawed, sad, corrupt individuals Gently mysteries draw you into a less cynical time, without sugary sweetness. May 07, Judith Paterson rated it liked it. The TV series is little like the books; the books have less bite but are still enjoyable. They also give an insight into policing without radios, mobiles, DNA etc, just observation, deduction and knowledge of human nature.

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I love the TV series but the books have a charm and fascination as well. Well I did finally finish it It was an "okay" book and the character himself I quite liked but I only finished it to find out "who dunnit". I don't think I will rush back to read any more unless perhaps I can find some of the TV episodes then I may change my mind Aug 28, Jc rated it really liked it. The second of the original George Gently mysteries. This one I think is even better than the first, with great characters and interesting scenery.

I look forward to reading more of these. This one was first published in , just a year after Hunter introduced us to Gently. Jan 16, Janice rated it liked it Shelves: Didn't like this book as much as book 1 in the Inspector Gently mystery series. It felt cumbersome and difficult to read.

One bright spot in the story was the Cafe luncheon scene with the waiter, and I thought it had a good ending. Aug 22, Nigel rated it really liked it. May 30, Christine rated it really liked it Shelves: Nov 07, David Highton rated it really liked it. Jul 21, Shirley Evans added it. Didn't finish this book.

It was quite dull and I expected more after watching the excellent TV series. Sep 28, Alan rated it really liked it. A nice and easy read. No swearing , no real violence and no sex. And I learnt a lot of new words. Apr 10, Nancy rated it liked it. I like this detective. Not great depth to this series, but fun anyway. Lt Earle has an interest in both the tapestry workshop based at Merely, and in the youn Fourth in the Inspector George Gently series, and the first that I've read.

Lt Earle has an interest in both the tapestry workshop based at Merely, and in the young woman who runs the workshop. Gently likes the man, and isn't happy to hear that he's been found dead at the bottom of the grand staircase on Christmas morning. At first glance it looks like an accident, but Gently isn't satisfied with first appearances. He soon shows that it's not an accident, and then isn't satisfied with the suspect preferred by his hosts.

For a short novel, there are a surprising number of red herrings and plot twists. The clues are there, but neatly buried in competently written distractions. I'm inclined to find some more of this police procedural series. May 09, stormhawk rated it liked it Shelves: Nice mystery, should have known detectives never get vacation, especially George Gently.

I dislike having to puzzle out written representations of English Dialect, and I don't think Mr Hunter ever spoke with an American, even if it was the s. They both sounded like poorly educated cowpokes, but with less use of spittoons. Oct 21, Katrina rated it really liked it. If you like s crime fiction and your looking for one set around Christmas then this would be a good choice to read. Nov 18, Phil Clymer rated it really liked it. Quality writing with a twist at the end. Truly British and with a wry smile.

Alan Hunter places his Chief Inspector in a crime scene while on vacation. Once again, using diligence and luck, Gently solves the mystery. Dec 12, Alton Motobu rated it did not like it Shelves: Secluded English countryside mansion - assorted guests spend the Christmas holidays there, including Chief Inspector Gently of London.

One of the guests is found dead at the foot of a stairway. All guests are suspects. Agatha Christie formula, but poorly executed.

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Some sections contains long rambling narrative with nonsensical descriptive passages of everything. Other sections are just monotonous stilted dialogue. This is the author's attempt at dialogue for an American military colonel: But don't nobody think they're going to get away with the murder of a United States citizen - don't let them think it for one teeny-weeny little moment - because you want to know something? Have you known any American, much less a high-ranking military officer, to speak like this? The solving of the mystery is meaningless and anti-climatic since who cares?

Jul 14, Marilyn Saul rated it it was ok Shelves: This one was published in , so I'll give it a little lee-way for having a constantly fainting, hysterical, mindless woman in the cast. Also annoying was the long-winded, unnecessay dialogues that lent nothing to the plot. I'm not going to explore any other Hunter books. Not quite what I expected, but I suppose that's TV adaptations for you. Very stereotyped cast of highly unlikely characters. Unbelievable front cover, which I cannot believe wasn't stopped! Jan 05, Jerry King rated it it was ok.

Aug 11, Raypor rated it really liked it.

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It was different from the show but interesting from the 's style of detective fiction. This is the fourth of a very long series featuring the genial but persistent detective, George Gently. As the terrible pun of the title suggests, this episode sees Our Hero staying with the great and the good or at least the rich and titled over Christmas, where the festivities are inevitably interrupted by a murder.

The setting, a large country house of some antiquity, gives the book the atmosphere of Agatha Christie fanfic. I usually enjoy the period details of these books, written in the fi This is the fourth of a very long series featuring the genial but persistent detective, George Gently. I usually enjoy the period details of these books, written in the fifties, but this is ground that has been covered a thousand times before - the creepy attics and winding stairs, the secret passages, billiard rooms and libraries, the butler and housemaids, the dressing for dinner and stuffy formality.

There are some details of the meals which would interest foodies, but otherwise I found it a little ordinary. The characters never quite seem to work in these books. Gently himself is almost too self-effacing, allowing others to take the lead in the investigation and then mildly asking the one crucial question that reveals the significant little detail.

But this is better, perhaps, than the over-the-top buffoonery of his superior, who blusters and expostulates his way through the interrogations, completely confident in the innocence of the aristocracy and insistently looking for the murderer amongst the obviously less trustworthy lower classes.

Then there is the lady of the house, who lies outright to the police and, when pressed, has hysterics or falls into a swoon at Gently's feet. Did women ever fall into swoons under stress? Perhaps Victorians struggling for breath in their tightly-laced stays, but certainly not normal, healthy women in the more accommodating fashions of the nineteen fifties. The ending was slightly melodramatic, but not a huge surprise, on the whole.

The murderer was apprehended, justice was done and so on and so forth, according to the conventions of such books, and no tricks were employed by the author to deceive the diligent reader keeping track of the likely suspects, so a satisfactory conclusion all round. Feb 05, Ann rated it really liked it Recommends it for: Chief Inspector Gently is invited to a country manor for an old-fashioned Christmas, with some pike fishing thrown in for good measure.

Alas, the festivities are disrupted when a body is found at the bottom of the stairs in a neighboring manor, the Great Hall. Gently recognizes the body as that of Bill Earle, a American lieutenant stationed at a nearby base, and an irrepressible, boyish charmer. The Great Hall is inhabited by a motley cast of characters: It turns out that Bill Earle's attentions to the the attractive Mrs. Page had not passed unnoticed by the others.

Gently has to tread, well, gently pun intended among eccentric aristocrats, irritable police officers and various artistic types. The book is a competent police procedural set in a bygone era. The identity of the murderer is pretty easy to guess - this is not a puzzler a la Agatha Christie.

Alan Hunter (author) - Wikipedia

I enjoyed it as a period piece it was published in Women still worried about their "virtue". Television was a luxury, as was central heating. The American are depicted as "oversexed, overpaid and over here". They speak in groan-inducing stereotypes "Yes, sirree" and "gee" and "mighty fine" abound , but it struck me as affectionate mockery, not sarcasm.

1. Landed Gently?
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An enjoyable read for those who like the classic British police procedurals. Jul 04, Dorothy rated it liked it Shelves: One of the better books in the Gently series of mysteries. Gently is aptly named as he is a gentle man but is steely enough to manage the criminals who cross his path. He may seem quiet an unagressive but both police colleagues and the criminals tend to underestimate him and so not realise that his brain is working overtime to solve the case.

In this book, Gently is invited to spend Christmas with the Chief Constable so they can get some fishing in. They are invited over to the mansion owned by One of the better books in the Gently series of mysteries. They are invited over to the mansion owned by a local earl who has converted part of his home into a workshop for high quality and artistic weavers. Thus Gently is on hand when someone is murdered A classic who-dunnit set in an old stately home with lords, foreign nationals, the innocence female protagonist and the sly and relentless chief inspector.

Unfortunately Landed Gently was a bit too predictable as to who did it with the twist not twisting enough. It was an enjoyable read however and if you're a fan of crime mystery novels for journey rather than the destination you'll get on well with it. I've got a couple more of the Gently series so expect I'll get round to these in due course j A classic who-dunnit set in an old stately home with lords, foreign nationals, the innocence female protagonist and the sly and relentless chief inspector.

I've got a couple more of the Gently series so expect I'll get round to these in due course just with a slightly different expectation.