Piece Of My Heart By Peter Robinson - Book Review

          This is my second time reading a novel by Peter Robinson and I have to say that after reading Piece Of My Heart, I’m more than hooked.  If there is anyone who can create a great story with so many memorable characters, it’s Peter Robinson. 

          In Piece of my heart, there are two murders.   One is Linda Lofthouse, who was found murdered in a sleeping bag during a rock and roll festival in September of 1969.  Then there was Nick Barber, who was found murdered in his home.  

          What made this novel more unique was that Robinson had two detectives investigating the murder.  Stanley Chadwick in 1969 and Alan Banks in the present. The point of views would switch throughout the book between Chadwick and Robinson, although there were times when other characters moved in to have their story told.  

           One of them was Yvonne Chadwick, the daughter of Stanley Chadwick.  I enjoyed this part of the book because since Yvonne was around in 1969 during a Rock Festival that included some of my favorite bands such as Led Zeppelin, Fleetwood Mac, and Pink Floyd.   Banks also brought in The Mad Hatters, a fictional band into the story which also led to some other references of other great names that included Jimi Hendrix, the Doors, and The Grateful Dead.   Being a fan of these groups only made this book more of a fun read for me. 

            The story moved along with the point of views switching, making me wonder what was the connection between the two murders since they took place over 30 years apart.  Of course, there were other suspects and Banks has a way of making the minor characters even more memorable whether it’s Annie Cabbot, or Winsome, or Banks’ supervisor.  

             The contrast between Chadwick and Banks really brings out the story even more, especially at the way it ended.  It’s the kind of story that really shows how Robinson is great at making a mystery like this into a work of art.  He is at the top of his game in this book.  Have to give credit to Robinson on this since writing a story like this that took place 30 years apart must have been a challenge but he makes it seem so easy in the story.  

             The real surprise is that there are only 63 reviews on kindle and 56 of them are either four or five stars.  For me, it’s no problem to say that this is one of my favorite books that I read this year and I would give this more than five stars.  

Ron Hummer