A while ago I was walking to the bus stop with a spring in my step because I had decided to not leave my book at home. The suspense wouldn’t kill me but even if I only get to read a little bit while in transit, it’s a win. I both love and hate it when substantial effort is needed to physically wrench myself from the book I am knee deep in, and go forth into the real world looking like I belong. (Nose buried in books looks good only when reading in safe places, sigh).
I’m steadily making my way though Val McDermid’s Karen Pirie books, and boy do these books pack a wallop. The Skeleton Road ended on a cliffhanger so of course I had to break my online book buying ban and get the next one which is Out of Bounds. Each book has a strong sense of history (since she heads the cold cases unit) which is seamlessly integrated with the present. I am not a fan of history, and usually get bored, but I found myself looking up stuff she mentioned in her books.
I think now I have got a sense of who Karen is, and I really like the sharp no nonsense persona she exudes. Far from simpering or flattering to be in her superiors’ good books I like how Karen isn’t intimidated by them and makes them eat crow if they are patronizing idiots. For her it’s the case which takes precedence, and not doing things by the book. In Out of Bounds, she takes it a step further and pursues a case which isn’t hers. She has a biting sense of humour which includes poking fun at herself but which fails to endear herself to her superiors because more often than not they are the butt of her jokes. I guess it’s her way of dealing with the office politics, and the the world.
“Karen thought about the past year. Things lost, things found. And in the thick of it, an unimagined way forward.”
Though she has friends she can count on, Karen goes about solving cases in this one without a partner. She does have a faithful sidekick in Jason “the Mint” Murray but she’s his boss. I liked how their relationship has changed over the books. He’s a bit gullible and easily intimidated, everything she’s not but he stands up for her, and is loyal. She looks out for him like a friend would. We don’t see enough workplace camaraderie like this between a man and a woman, it just remaining so without it leading to anything else. I can’t wait to read the rest of the series, and watch the much acclaimed adaption of The Distant Echo. I love how we are never too old to find something new to love 🙂
eternal oxymoron 