Review: Great new series!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 02 26, 2014
"Brass in Pocket" is the first book in a new crime/mystery series by author Stephen Puleston.In the beginning I was a little concerned about whether this would be a book I could get into. The writing seemed very formal and procedural and I was thinking someone may have seen one too many "cop programmes" before deciding to write a novel. Soon after he proved me wrong. As the pages went on, the story began to feel comfortable and you could see the author hit a stride with his pace, plot and characters.Right away there is a mystery to be solved, and the author did a good thing by creating a flawed and interesting main character to work out the details with. The issues that Drake has complicate his life and make his ability to solve the crimes before him that much more difficult. The supporting characters were interesting and his previously established relationships with them added a lot of background and a feeling of reality to the novel.The author did an excellent job of portraying a character struggling with OCD. I thought Drake's quirks and repeat behaviours made the story more complex and interesting. He was methodical, as you want your main character in a mystery novel to be.Whilst the repeat usage of some actions, as in the main character moving around a biro or rearranging his desk may be slightly annoying to some, I found it purposeful, as we are dealing with a character obsessing over random things the rest of us would ignore.Speaking of mystery, this isn't an easy one to solve. By combining the elements he chose to combine, Mr. Puleston made this one a difficult puzzle for even the best sleuth to solve.The ending was a bit abrupt, but still worked for the style of writing. I enjoyed this book. If you are looking for an interesting mystery, this one may invite you into an series you will greatly enjoy.This review is based on a digital copy from the author for the express purpose of an honest review. All opinions are my own and no other compensation was received.