publication order of john madden’s books
The “John Madden” series follows Detective Inspector John Madden, who works for the Scotland Yard and solves crimes from the early 1920s to the mid-1940s. he was a veteran of the first world war and developed shell shock as a result of serving him.
rennie airth was inspired to write the series when she found a scrapbook containing pictures of an uncle who died during the first world war.
You are reading: John madden books in order
“River of Darkness” by Rennie Airth is the first novel in the “John Madden” series and was published in 1999. The sleepy English country town of Surrey is shattered when five brutally murdered victims are found; the woman is almost naked and her throat was cut with a knife. the other four were killed with what appears to be military efficiency. it looks like a bayonet was used to kill them. there are two things that puzzle the investigators, a small child under the bed and the lack of sexual abuse of the woman. The local police think it’s just a robbery gone wrong, but Madden knows there’s more to it than that and that it was something more sinister. he goes to dr. Helen Blackwell, and she knows someone who can get her a psychological profile of the killer. he cannot investigate the case without being reminded of everything that happened in the war. dr Blackwell tells him that he must face the problems head-on.
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Fans of the novel liked that Rennie could be transported back to the time of 1921, and the vivid descriptions help make the novel great. some felt that characters experiencing loss and trying to put their lives back together again made readers feel sympathy for these people. it’s amazing how many people were affected by a war, or you fought in the war and came back with war shock or you know or are related to someone who died in the war. some found the novel to be a work of art. the novel features characters that you feel you know very well and the plot of the novel is plausible with great research. everything that makes this series one to follow for the next novels.
Some didn’t like the way the novel feels like watching grass grow and it’s like a cup of warm water. the story has been there made to feel weak characters. readers felt that sometimes there were gaps where there should be more information about something, but instead it was skipped over. some thought the novel might have wasted a hundred pages and would have made the novel that much better for them to read.
“the tide dimmed by blood” by rennie airth is the second novel in the “john madden” series and was published in 2003. this novel is set in 1932. the mutilated corpse of a girl near john’s house Madden brings Madden back into the fold of investigating crimes after he has retired. he comes back, although his wife doesn’t like it, and has some problems with it. He sees him hunting down a murderer that will have far-reaching implications, at a time when Hitler is becoming a great figure in the world.
fans of the novel found that the novel was just as good, if not better, than the first and that the novel features characters that have been fleshed out and make you feel like the author knows them very well. readers thought the plot added to things, finding that when you find out who the killer is, that’s when things really get interesting and the suspense sets in. perceptions, psychologically speaking. Some like the way airth lets things unfold and isn’t in a hurry to tell his story, and setting the novel in the thirties really helps capture the mood, which makes this procedural even better. .
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some people didn’t like this novel and found out that helen is just a bitch who made john give up his true vocation of being a policeman and do whatever he wanted. readers thought the novel bogs down in parts as well. Some felt that the novel, unlike the first, barely featured John Madden and that he should be the star. not just a background player. some felt that the novel has a lot of writing in the past tense with too many flashbacks and little editing in parts. some felt the novel was slow and laborious due to the fact that madden is no longer a cop.
“the dead of winter” by rennie airth is the third novel in the “john madden” series which was published in 2009. the novel is set in 1944. a young polish woman, named rosa novak, is found murdered during the la second world war in london and john must go on the hunt for a hitman considered ruthless. however, the police investigating things think that she was just a victim of a random attack. the only thing that prevents them from abandoning the case is that the young woman worked for madden. Scotland Yard investigates and takes them to war-torn Europe, which brings their investigation to a halt rather quickly. Madden feels that she owes it to Rosa to find her killer, and she finds a murdered furrier, some diamonds, and someone with a resistance.
Fans of the novel enjoy the way airth recreates london during the war and all aspects of the area at the time. some found themselves finishing this novel and wanting more of the series. all the characters in the novel are well drawn, even those who are not in the novel for a long time feel complete. there are strong relationships that the characters have with each other, which make things feel even more real.
Some did not like the whole exposition of the novel, and feel that the author was quick to take a shortcut.
The novel, “River of Darkness” won the award for Best International Crime Novel at the 2000 Grand Prix de Litterature Policiere. The novel also garnered nominations from Macavity, Anthony and Edgar.
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