Her writing is sophisticated and her suspense taut.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Crombie is very talented at putting together a richly atmospheric whodunit.... [A]s a creator, she energetically inhabits the many strange worlds she shows her readers....
No Mark Upon Her is again deserving of fans’ devotion due largely to her intelligent, subtle wit and above all, her meticulous attention to detail, from sculling equipment and competitive jealousy to a 3-year-old’s birthday party meltdown to the deep bond between a man and his dog.
This is a lovely, satisfying British police procedural with many relationship subplots that lend texture.
This is a lovely, satisfying British police procedural with many relationship subplots that lend texture.
...[R]eaders who savor excellent writing will find that Ms. Crombie delivers it again.
New York Journal of Books
Ms. Crombie again has turned out a gripping and nicely tailored mystery and added another chapter to her chronicle of Kincaid and Jones.
Crombie is very talented at putting together a richly atmospheric whodunit.... [A]s a creator, she energetically inhabits the many strange worlds she shows her readers....
…Crombie is very talented at putting together a richly atmospheric whodunit. Her speciality…is picking slices of society that most of us overlook and exploiting them for all their dramatic potential, and her latest, No Mark Upon Her, centers on the world of competitive rowing…[Crombie] energetically inhabits the many strange worlds she shows her readers, and that kind of enthusiasm covers a good many sins. Her characters routinely explain too much, but they care about what they're saying, and so we do too.
Macavity Award–winner Crombie examines the corrupting nature of power in her riveting 14th novel featuring Scotland Yard Supt. Duncan Kincaid and Det. Insp. Gemma James (after 2009’s Necessary as Blood). When Rebecca Meredith, a detective chief inspector with the Metropolitan Police and an Olympic rowing hopeful, drowns under suspicious circumstances during an evening training session on the Thames in historic Henley, the newly married Kincaid and James investigate what turns into a homicide case. Suspects include Meredith’s overly friendly ex-husband, a K9 search and rescue volunteer who was in love with her, her old rowing coach, and even a police officer. Meredith had accused Deputy Asst. Commissioner Angus Craig of rape, and hers was not the only accusation. Crombie gives an insightful look into British police procedures as well as a vivid view of the vagaries of London neighborhoods. Kincaid and James’s chaotic, happy home sharply contrasts with the often messy police business. Agent: Nancy Yost. (Feb.)
Macavity Award-winner Crombie examines the corrupting nature of power in her riveting 14th novel featuring Scotland Yard Supt. Duncan Kincaid and Det. Insp. Gemma James.... Crombie gives an insightful look into British police procedures as well as a vivid view of the vagaries of London neighborhoods.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
...[R]eaders who savor excellent writing will find that Ms. Crombie delivers it again. — New York Journal of Books
“Crombie is very talented at putting together a richly atmospheric whodunit.... [A]s a creator, she energetically inhabits the many strange worlds she shows her readers....” — Washington Post
“Ms. Crombie again has turned out a gripping and nicely tailored mystery and added another chapter to her chronicle of Kincaid and Jones.” — Washington Times
“No Mark Upon Her is again deserving of fans’ devotion due largely to her intelligent, subtle wit and above all, her meticulous attention to detail, from sculling equipment and competitive jealousy to a 3-year-old’s birthday party meltdown to the deep bond between a man and his dog.” — Miami Herald
“Her writing is sophisticated and her suspense taut.” — Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
[A] psychological thrill-ride that explores the allure of power, the pull of jealousy, and the seduction of greed. — The Tuscon Citizen
This is a lovely, satisfying British police procedural with many relationship subplots that lend texture. — Suspense magazine
No Mark Upon Her is again deserving of fans’ devotion due largely to her intelligent, subtle wit and above all, her meticulous attention to detail, from sculling equipment and competitive jealousy to a 3-year-old’s birthday party meltdown to the deep bond between a man and his dog.
Crombie's 14th police procedural (after Necessary as Blood) featuring Scotland Yard detectives Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James further develops their personal and professional relationship. Rebecca Meredith, their colleague and an avid rower with Olympic potential, drowns while practicing along a familiar route on the Thames. Because of Rebecca's competitive and abrasive personality, the list of potential suspects becomes lengthy and complicated as Kincaid interviews her fellow athletes and detectives. Through their relentless efforts, Kincaid and James uncover a politically astute suspect who could permanently damage the reputations of numerous professional associates. VERDICT Those familiar with Crombie's works will welcome another episode deepening the ongoing Kincaid-James relationship and enjoy the lengthy discussions about family happenings. Newcomers, however, will find that such details distract from the central plot. Although Crombie's novels have garnered her international acclaim, particularly in Germany, her multilayered and heavily textured style dampens the fluidity of a thrilling detective tale. [See Prepub Alert, 8/21/11.]—Jerry P. Miller, Cambridge, MA
With its focus on the world of competitive rowing, Deborah Crombie presents the fourteenth in her Duncan Kincaid/Gemma James series. The day after a solo training session in her high-tech scull, CID officer and Olympics hopeful Rebecca Meredith is found dead by search-and- rescue canines. Jennie Sterlin’s lovely voice delivers the moody ambiance of the river, the deeply felt connection between the dogs and their trainers, and the seething rivalries between rowers. Sterlin finds just the right sound for each character, never resorting to stereotypical voices. As Crombie develops the domestic end of the Kincaid/James relationship, the plotting becomes more intricate, the suspects more plentiful, and the suspense more compelling. Sterlin, always wonderful, adds just the right touches to this satisfying mystery. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine
With its focus on the world of competitive rowing, Deborah Crombie presents the fourteenth in her Duncan Kincaid/Gemma James series. The day after a solo training session in her high-tech scull, CID officer and Olympics hopeful Rebecca Meredith is found dead by search-and- rescue canines. Jennie Sterlin’s lovely voice delivers the moody ambiance of the river, the deeply felt connection between the dogs and their trainers, and the seething rivalries between rowers. Sterlin finds just the right sound for each character, never resorting to stereotypical voices. As Crombie develops the domestic end of the Kincaid/James relationship, the plotting becomes more intricate, the suspects more plentiful, and the suspense more compelling. Sterlin, always wonderful, adds just the right touches to this satisfying mystery. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine
A Met officer loses her scull. Becca Meredith could have been an Olympic contender in rowing before she snapped her wrist in an accident. Leaving the university, she eventually joined the Met and worked her way up the ranks to DCI, West London Major Crimes. Along the way she married, divorced, fell out with a uni friend who later joined the Met, began an affair with Kieran, an emotionally overwrought war veteran doing canine search-and-rescue work, and became known as rather solitary—and a bitch. When her body is found trapped in Thames weeds and her scull some distance away, it becomes apparent that she was rowing again, secretly training for another go at the Olympics, and that her death was no accident. The Yard's Det. Supt. Duncan Kincaid is asked to investigate and concentrate on Becca's ex, Freddie Atterton. Unwilling to focus his queries on Freddie alone, Kincaid—aided by colleagues Cullen and Bell, and with input from his wife, Det. Insp. Gemma James, now on leave to settle 3-year-old Charlotte into their household—uncovers a series of rapes that lead to a now retired Met bigwig. A petrol bomb is lobbed into Kieran's boatshed and his rescue dog Finn goes ballistic at the scent of a former uni rower. Is Becca's assailant one of these two men? More will die before matters are resolved and the beautiful scull hand-built for Becca can be taken out for a memorial row. To the customary pleasures of the Kincaid/ James ménage (Necessary as Blood, 2009, etc.), Crombie adds the interest generated by the history of the Henley Regatta pitting Oxford against Cambridge and the relationship between canine search-and-rescue handlers and their animals.
