Brodie is a great character as well. I wish there was more info about her but you're revealed yummy carrots, enough to grow attach to her as well.

Only problem I had with this book was the fact it makes me want to read more! :)

And he doesn't know. Miraculously, he survives physically, and confronts his torturers. Miraculously, he unravels the mysteris surrounding kidnapping and death. And at the end, the truth is too destructive to be told. The last sentence of the book is Daniel's lie to the police inspector: "No," he lied. "She never knew, and I never told her."

This book is truly good writing. More than just a challenging read or a thriller, it contains a penetrating depth of thought which makes it intellectually satisfying as well.

The plot has already been reviewed rather well, and to discuss it any more would give away plot developments that could spoil things for those who haven't yet read this 'must read' novel. So, I'll stick to what I liked about "Echoes of Lies." The solution to the criminal act of who tortured Daniel Hood, and why is resolved a quarter way through the book. This leads private detective Brodie Farrell and Daniel to another crime and another innocent whose life is at stake. And the identity of the mastermind behind that crime was quite easy to guess as well. No, it's not the crimes or how Daniel and Brodie arrive at the solutions of these crimes that makes this book such compelling reading, but rather the manner in which Bannister makes the reader examine concepts such as punishment of the crime, justice, retribution and revenge. Daniel, the victim of torture, is a character that many will seldom come across, whether in fiction or in real life. The question that nagged at me while I read this book -- is Daniel doing the right thing? -- haunted me even after I had finished the book. This is a book that makes you think and question the accepted social mores about justice and retribution. And is what ultimately makes "Echoes of Lies" such compelling reading.

Bannister did an excellent job in the pacing and execution of the novel -- each new development in the mystery led to an even deeper one. And I liked the manner in which Bannister made each new incident development in the mystery result in the 'fleshing out' of characters as well as insights into their motives.

"Echoes in Lies" is an excellent read. I finished the book in one go -- I simply couldn't put it down. It's not quite the traditional mystery novel, but is a great read nonetheless. Here's my advice: run (don't walk) to your nearest library/bookstore and get this book!

This is one of the best British procedurals around. It is best to start with the first entry so you can see the characters develop over the years. Bannister is an excellent writer, the plots are complex without being obtuse, and Bannister has the reader present as each new piece of evidence is put into mix.

If the series has a flaw, it is the subplots featuring Donovan that the author has begun putting into each book. While the circumstances change, the result is the same - Donovan is the unwitting hero.

The supermarket occurrence involved the threat of poisoning yoghurt. The tampering of the high school showers follows the food incident. Though seemingly harmless pranks, the Castlemere police take it very seriously especially when a woman's hands are burned by baby powder. The supermarket head office sends Mitchell Tyler to help the police stop a devious criminal. The brass calls Donovan back to duty to assist with a town on the verge of uncontrollable panic and hysteria, but the law enforcement official apparently is dead.

CHANGELINGS is the seventh delightful appearance of the Castlemere trio. This book is an exciting police procedural that focuses on the conflict between "punish the guilty" vs. "protect the innocent." The story line provides a great understanding of the prime players so that series fans learn more about their heroes while new readers gain insight into the various character traits of the threesome. The plot succeeds because the maniacal thug feels genuine and his actions plausible (think the Tokyo subway a few years ago). Jo Bannister continues to expertly write tales that are some of the sub-genre's best novels.

Harriet Klausner

A desperate Fiona Morris turns to Rosie to help find her missing brother, a birdwatcher who seemingly vanished in the Hebrides. Rosie puts together a crack team consisting of a professional ornithologist, a gardener, and a professor with psychic powers. Once in Scotland, the group immediately goes in search of the missing sibling. The other team members would have dedinitely stayed behind if they understood Rosie's approach to problem solving. She constantly plunges right up the middle regardless of the danger that move might entail to herself and her peers.

THE PRIMROSE CONVENTION is a welcome addition to the amateur sleuth sub-universe due to the myriad of interesting and eccentric characters, especially Rosie. However, the story line starts exceedingly slow, though once in gear, it goes non-stop to the climax. Jo Bannister has introduced a new series that will please her myriad of fans, but, the debut novel is not quite on a par with her Castlemere mysteries.

Harriet Klausner

This book was a treat. It expertly depicts rough-edged but likable characters struggling with evolving relationships. Each character is in some way alone, yet that solitude renders them better able to detect and appreciate kindred souls. Independent characters yearning for interdependence form the heart of PRIMROSE. Most of the characterizations are top-notch, but several secondary characters are fleshed-out more fully than Fiona. She's the only character who felt underdrawn. The plot unfolds nicely, but it's the characters and their relationships that are the most absorbing part of the book. It reminded me of Margaret Moseley's BONITA FAYE; the books are infused with a similar warm-hearted, hopeful feeling. It is unfortunate that the next book in the series, THE PRIMROSE SWITCHBACK, replaces that warm-hearted quality with bleakness and hopelessness.

In the rural back roads outside Castlemere, Detective Sergeant Cal Donovan rides his motorcycle before stopping for gas. However, Cal steps into the middle of an armed robbery at the gas station. The culprit slams a gun into Cal's face before driving away from the scene of the crime. Cal pursues only to watch the culprit crash into another vehicle. The crash shakes up the other car's occupant, but she turns out all right. Cal rescues the robbery suspect from the burning wreck.

The armed robber turns out to be Mikey Dickens, the youngest son of the local crime family. The sure shot case unravels because of Mikey's clever solicitor and the sudden loss of substantial evidence. When Mikey turns up nearly dead, all the physical evidence points towards an avenging Cal as the suspect. This leaves it up to other members of the police force to prove his innocence before Cal's reputation and that of the department is destroyed forever.

Many fans of police procedurals hold Jo Bannister in high esteem for her charming Castlemere series. Books like A TASTE FOR BURNING and CHARISMA are some of the sub-genre's top novels. Her current Castlemere tale, BROKEN LINES, may be her best novel to date. The author cleverly employs an elaborate who-done-it filled with suspense. She then fills that story line with an in-depth look at the various connections between the characters, leaving readers to ponder the meaning of relationships. Ms. Bannister provides the audience with a unique story that will cause a mass desire for the next book in this series to appear quickly.

Harriet Klausner

The series features Rosie Holland, an ex- pathologist and current agony aunt for the Skipley Chronicle. She's famous (or infamous depending on your point of view) for her 'shoot-from-the-hip" advice. This novel opens with the television show "You've Been Had" deciding to ambush Rosie with a fake crisis. "You've Been Had" is a show that manufactures a crisis, gives you a mini heart attack and then passes the whole affair off as a joke. Of course Rosie doesn't see the 'joke' and slugs the host of the programme while the cameras are rolling. The next thing to hit Rosie however is not news that the programme is suing Rosie for assault but that Shad Lewis, Rosie' s gardener, has been found concussed and bleeding next to a body of a young woman-- a researcher for that same infamous show.

At first Rosie is merely concerned for Shad's physical welfare, but then it begins to look as if he could have committed the crime. Shad is a very fragile young man with the unhappy gift of being able to psychically sense pain, fear and death; he has also suffered a nervous breakdown becasue of his'gift'. And being set up by such a show as "You've Been Had" is exactly the sort of thing that could just send him over the edge completely into madness and murder. And when it looks as if he is coming apart at the seams mentally, Rosie with the help of retired schoolteacher Alfred Prufrock tries to discover what really happened, esp since in spite of the evidence, she instinctively feels that Shad is innocent.

Rosie may not be everyone's cup of tea. She's loud, brash and domineering, but she's utterly charming as well. This mystery was alot more tautly written, and I enjoyed it alot more than the first, "The Primrose Convention". I think that this series deserves alot more consideration than it is currently getting, and recommend it as an enjoyable read.