A wonderful read…the satisfying climax weaves together the strands of past and present.…A poised telling of a complex tale.”— Publishers Weekly

Past Caring By Robert Goddard | Used | 9780552162951 | World Past Caring By Robert Goddard | Used | 9780552162951 | World

Bouchercon World Mystery Convention: Anthony Awards Nominees". Bouchercon.info. 2 October 2003 . Retrieved 1 March 2012. Into the Blue (May 1990), ISBN 0-593-01808-7. (Harry Barnett, Book 1) (adapted as a TV film in 1996 starring John Thaw) I have something to tell you. It is a life and death matter and it concerns the central question of your life that you have spent years slowly destroying yourself over. Also, this involves the Prime Minister and his family and I think someone is following me."

The novel is pervaded with a sense of unease. It's clear no one is what they seem to be and they all have hidden motives. This serves to keep the reader on her toes and kept me questioning most of the conclusions Martin draws about people. The one main character in the book that is exactly what he seems to be, is Edwin Stafford. Even his nephew Ambrose is more than the curmudgeonly drunk he seems when we meet him. The leading ladies in this book are one of its strengths; Elizabeth is awesome, such a strong and gentle woman, and Eve is such a delicious villain, living up to all the historical connotations of her name. Goddard's characters are well drawn and come to life, both the good and the bad; they all are coloured in shades of grey, only coming into full focus and shading at the end of the story. And even then, after I'd closed the covers, I found myself wondering about some of them. In a suspenseful, classy narrative that affords first-rate entertainment, a young English schoolteacher, Heather Mallender, vanishes on the Greek island of Rhodes. With her at the time was Harry Continue reading »

Past Caring - Robert Goddard - Google Books Past Caring - Robert Goddard - Google Books

Condition: Near Fine. Fine in light blue wraps printed with dark blue lettering. The Advance Reading Copy of the first U.S. pbk. printing of this, the British author's scarce first book. Blurb comparisons to John Fowles. Tight, clean, unread copy. Edwin’s memoir covers his time as a politician and his experiences of the women’s suffrage movement. I found this to be very interesting reading, though as it’s a time of history I don’t know much about I couldn’t comment on it’s historical accuracy. This 1986 Booker prize-nominated novel is a rewarding reading experience. It’s Goddard’s first published novel, which makes the Booker feat even more impressive. The expert suspense-manipulation skills of a Daphne du Maurier romance meets a John le Carre thriller is how the New York Times reviewer put it. Past Caring is lengthy, but that is because it has to fit in the diaries of a long dead British minister as well as the historical research of the less than ideal Martin Radford. Radford is a failed academic and teacher who seems to enjoy drink more than books. A chance visit to Madeira leads him to hunt down the story of Edwin Strafford, a rising political star in 1910 who disappeared from politics for mysterious reasons. As he digs deeper, Radford finds that there are those who wish to keep the story buried along with Strafford. This breathless and unending case takes Max to London from far North of Scotland and all the way to Paris, where the world’s government are still but bartering over the spoils right in the aftermath of the Great war. The stakes here are so high and it is a matter of life and death to everyone involved.I have read a few Goddard's novels now and have enjoyed them all and this is no exception. There is a reason though for the three stars rather than four. Let me explain. Condition: Near Fine. A first edition, first printing published by Hale in 1986. A near fine book without inscription in a very good unclipped wrapper with one small closed tear to the top corner of the front panel A lovely copy. I thoroughly enjoyed this long, convoluted, unpredictable and clever novel! It does not clearly fit into any genre as it includes elements of political wheeling and dealing, crime, war and romance. Birthday Buoy (Harry Barnett). Included in First Edition: Celebrating 21 Years of Goldsboro Books (Dome Press, 2020)