Wednesday 21 September 2011

My Review: X and Y by David Owen

X and Y is the third book in Australian author David Owen's Pufferfish police procedural series. Set in Hobart Australia, the main character is Tasmanian Police Detective Inspector Franz Heineken. He is nicknamed 'Pufferfish' for his prickly and sometimes poisonous manner. He is loyal to his mates, but openly despises his boss and many of his offsiders.

The plot is kick-started with a violent death in a Chinese restaurant, which in turn links cleverly to a series a robberies and an impending drug shipment to Tasmania. When surveillance of the narcotics shipment goes pear-shaped, it becomes obvious the bad guys are one step ahead of the police due to insider information. With a bent copper or two in the midst, fingers start pointing at the Pufferfish.

From there the story becomes a battle for Pufferfish Heineken to stay alive and clear his name. And by eventually taking into account the unknown X and Y factors (you will understand at the end), Heineken exposes the police moles and in turn solves the crimes.

David Owen has again come up with a clever plot. Evidence is exposed at the right pace and the story cascades with each piece of new information, before cleverly tying together at the end - with of course, Pufferfish Heineken at the core. The Pufferfish is a meaty character. As the reader you are privy to his personal thoughts, and you get a feel for the sexual tension between himself and Sergeant Hedda Andover. He is cunning, enigmatic, funny, and is the kind of person you definitely want to be on the right side of.

This book continues an enjoyable and intriguing series by David Owen. I once again enjoyed the pace, the Tasmanian Police Force characters and the setting, and I recommend it to police procedural buffs, particularly those with a penchant for Australian crime fiction.

No comments:

Post a Comment