This one started out well, but then I lost interest a bit. Rafferty, the first victim's step-father, kept cropping up in the most unlikely connections, and the ultimate denouement was disappointing and seemed under-motivated.

As for the final paragraph - don't do it, Kathy! ( )

It was a pleasant surprise to get back into Barry Maitland's Brock & Kolla series with the Dark Mirror mystery. I'd read several while living in North Carolina and exhausted the supply at our local library. I neglected to check out the holdings in our Chicago suburb until recently, when I discovered a treasure trove of those I haven't read. Great!

Dark Mirror is kind of a typical police procedural. A murder occurs (or is it a suicide?), an investigation ensues, many suspects are looked at, the focus shifts between the suspects as more information comes in, and there's a surprise at the end. Novels in this genre need to have a hook, and Dark Mirror's is this: the murder is a poisoning with a rare substance, the victim is a poor grad student, and the suspects range from a blue collar knucklehead to a world-renowned university professor.

I'd forgotten how much I enjoy Maitland's writing. He's a sort of throwback- very Brit in feel, nothing spectacular, but more of a genteel tone and approach. There's a bit of rough action, but actually very little, and the investigatory work is first rate. The characters, especially the stars, detective Kathy Kolla and her boss, David Brock, are efficient, effective, smart, and likable. The author does a great job of character development. The plot isn't spectacularly tricky or anything, but I really enjoyed how the author peeled back the layers as the investigation proceeded, dropping well-disguised hints along the way.

A big 'welcome back', at least to me, to Brock & Kolla. I look forward to filling in the remainder of the series. ( )

Dark, foreboding & definitely mysterious.

Marion Summers is a graduate student writing a thesis on the Pre-Raphaelites & their use of arsenic. While doing research after lunch in the London Library Marion succumbs to poisoning....

Thus begins a dark & twisted tale of professional deceit, thuggery, smarmy business dealings, adultery, and family pride.... Before the poisoner can be caught, Marion's friend Tina Flowers who is piecing together clues of what might have been the impetus for Marion's murder is also dead from arsenic poisoning....

The range of characters is intriguing and it is as most all have a motive for wanting Marion & Tina dead.

This book kept me guessing and at the edge of my seat...there were parts that I skimmed for I find that many British Police Procedural mysteries tend to get a bit too involved with minor details. But the dialog was well written and believable. There were many twists & "red herrings" along the way, but those made for a good read.

The biographical snippets of; William Morris, his wife Jane (who was the mistress of), Dante Gabriel Rossetti, his wife Lizzie Siddal (whom was thought to have been murdered by her husband), and the famous Scot murderess Madeline Smith (whom was believed to have been Rossetti's favorite model) were very interesting and has made me want to know more about them. ( )

I always look forward to reading a Brock and Kolla mystery; Barry Maitland always has a well thought out plot with many twists and turns. By now, I’m familiar with the two main characters (DCI David Brock and DI Kathy Kolla) but the new characters are always a treat to read. Dark Mirror is no exception. Maitland has created some great characters – from the murdered Miriam, whose life we learn about after her death to the suspects in her murder, such as her university lecturer. Maitland also creates a more unusual form of murder than your standard ‘in the library with a dagger’ – this time the murder is in the library (the London Library to be exact) but Miriam is poisoned by arsenic. Who did it? Was it the fellow library goer who took surreptitious pictures of her with his phone, her lover or her lecturer, who she was planning to expose?

You may think that the plot and the suspects is starting to sound a bit convoluted, but Maitland is an expert at not confusing the reader, but not dumbing it down either. Each character is painted with so much attention to detail that you won’t forget them. This is true of Brock and Kolla’s colleagues in the police force too. I find that some detective series suffer from ‘faceless’ sidekicks- those who have no defining features to retain them in your mind – but this isn’t so in this series. From the junior staff to the forensics, each new and recurring character is memorable, whether it be for their never-ending eagerness or intimate knowledge of arsenic poisoning.

Maitland’s books are always a page turner and Dark Mirror is no exception. This is a mystery on a higher plane than others in the genre. It’s detailed and beautifully styled. I’m looking forward to reading the latest book in the series, Chelsea Mansions, soon.

http://samstillreading.wordpress.com ( )

Read for 4MA discussion. A very traditional mystery in the Brock and Kolla series (though featuring much more of Kolla than Brock) concerning the murder of a young scholar of the Pre-Raphaelites who seems to have lots of secrets; a bit anachronistic in its procedural details, but enjoyable.