A series that is simply brilliant. In the 5th instalment, Jane Tennison becomes a member of the Flying Squad during her early years. Just like before, she confronts sexism from colleagues and a superior who undermines her efforts and fails to acknowledge her success in detecting and uncovering leads. An added complication is that she discovers she is there as an experiment to see if a woman can tone down the rampant behaviour exemplified by the unit’s styling themselves as the characters from the bloc’. The stakes are set high for her as she seeks to prove herself.
In The Dirty Dozen, the Flying Squad investigates an armed robbery, but Jane is left with unimportant tasks assigned by her boss. Jane's good fortune lies in her determination to take on the challenge alongside her colleague Dabs, as they uncover information that reveals new aspects of the case. The investigation takes a different direction when Jane discovers the true worth of the information after being sent on a wild goose chase to interview a potential witness. Despite her superiors' lack of interest, Tennison's determination to trust her instincts was commendable.
In line with the previous books, the author smoothly involves you in the story and then releases Tennison into action. The characters are vividly portrayed, the attitudes are on point for the era, and the narrative keeps you hooked. Whether it's villains, her boss and colleagues, or her family, danger follows Tennison with each step she takes.
Another great addition to the series, highly recommended!!
Many thanks to Lynda LaPlante, Zaffre Books, Bonnier Books UK & CompulsiveReaders for a spot on the tour.
About the Author
Lynda La Plante (born Lynda Titchmarsh) is a British author, screenwriter, and erstwhile actress (her performances in Rentaghost and other programmes were under her stage name of Lynda Marchal), best known for writing the Prime Suspect television crime series.
Her first TV series as a scriptwriter was the six part robbery series Widows, in 1983, in which the widows of four armed robbers carry out a heist planned by their deceased husbands.
In 1991 ITV released Prime Suspect which has now run to seven series and stars Helen Mirren as DCI Jane Tennison. (In the United States Prime Suspect airs on PBS as part of the anthology program Mystery!) In 1993 La Plante won an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for her work on the series. In 1992 she wrote at TV movie called Seekers, starring Brenda Fricker and Josette Simon, produced by Sarah Lawson.
She formed her own television production company, La Plante Productions, in 1994 and as La Plante Productions she wrote and produced the sequel to Widows, the equally gutsy She's Out (ITV, 1995). The name "La Plante" comes from her marriage to writer Richard La Plante, author of the book Mantis and Hog Fever. La Plante divorced Lynda in the early 1990s.
Her output continued with The Governor (ITV 1995-96), a series focusing on the female governor of a high security prison, and was followed by a string of ratings pulling miniseries: the psycho killer nightmare events of Trial & Retribution (ITV 1997-), the widows' revenge of the murders of their husbands & children Bella Mafia (1997) (starring Vanessa Redgrave), the undercover police unit operations of Supply and Demand (ITV 1998), videogame/internet murder mystery Killer Net (Channel 4 1998) and the female criminal profiler cases of Mind Games (ITV 2001).
Two additions to the Trial and Retribution miniseries were broadcast during 2006.
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