Fran Varady in action!! (Keeping Bad Company - Ann Granger)

Member Name: CPTDANIELS

Product:	Keeping Bad Company - Ann Granger
Date:	14/02/09 (317 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Super story wih splendid characters

Disadvantages: Bit of a slow start

Background:

I bought this book several years ago and read it soon after that. The other day I was cleaning my book shelves and I noticed the book again and thought I would re-read it as I couldn't remember much about. I thought it would be a good read as I usually enjoy Ann Granger's novels.


About the author:

Patricia Ann Granger was born in England in 1939. She is an accomplished and in my view very under rated crime author. She has written for three totally separate series. The first features Alan Markby as a Detective Inspector in the Cotswolds, she has written 15 novels in this series. The second features Lizzie Martin and she has written two. The last entails seven books and features Fran Vardy; it is one if these I am reviewing here.


Synopsis of the book:

Fran Varady is a determined and caring 23 year old lady. She has lost all her family in what has been a challenging and often sad life. Finally she has found a flat she can afford to rent having lived rough and in squats. She is an unemployed actress who will to make ends meets embark on private investigations.

She is waiting for her friend Ganish at Marylebone Station, when a 'down and out' called 'Alkie' Albie sits next to her. After buying him a coffee this stranger starts to tell her about him witnessing a young lady being kidnapped. He is unwilling to report this to the Police, so Fran does it on his behalf. They laugh at this story seeing him as a drunk who has either made up the story or imagined it.

As a result Fran decides she will try and resolve the mystery. No sooner has she done this but Albie's body is recovered from the river. The Police think he fell in while drunk but Fran doesn't think he would do that. She must now try and resolve both cases as no one else seems remotely interested in them. But where will it lead her? And what is the truth?


My thoughts on the book:

This was a very satisfying and highly enjoyable crime novel. As I said I originally read this book a few years ago and at times I remembered various parts of it, but it did not spoil the plot for me. It was well written throughout, with an exciting story and great conclusion to it.

I have read several of Ann Granger's novels in the past and enjoyed them all. Her writing in clear, descriptive and easy for follow her thought pattern. The Fran Varady series really appeal to me as Fran is such a down to earth character. She doesn't have money and what she does have she is generous with as she is with her belief in helping out people less fortunate than herself.

What surprises me is the way the author a lady in her sixties can write and really get to grips with a challenging, young and strong character as Fran. I think sleeping rough, in squats must be very difficult to write about and express properly if you have never done it. But for her credit the author seems to have completely understood her and is able to relate and demonstrate the problems this character has.

When I picked the novel up, I was immediately drawn to the image on the front cover and the title which I thought held lots of possibilities. This done I read the short introduction to the book, which was long enough to capture my interest. I liked the concept of Fran trying to help someone out because the Police were not interested.

As soon as I had completed the first page my interest was aroused. From that point my interest never strayed from it as I became wrapped up in the story. It was not a dynamic book not what I could describe as a real page turner, just a fascinating and well written story with a good and lively plot.

What I like about the Fran Varady series is they are not simply a crime novel. There is far more going on and your getting to know more about this characters life and her trials and tribulations. In this book she is looking for work and accepted a position as a model in a local exhibition. This is written in a way that was both interesting and funny and added a different dimension to the book.

In truth the book started off quite slowly, by introducing the reader to Fran and her current situation and how she had got there. This was interesting and important in understanding Fran's character and helped you see why she was the way she was and why she was desperate to help a man she barely knew, just because no one else would.

However the pace does not remain the same as Fran is a very busy and lively character. The speed increases as the level of mystery and suspense grows. Until the final few exciting chapters, which included an excellent conclusion, which I could understand, relate to and finished the book in a very satisfactory way. Quite often I find novels concluding chapters are disappointing and do not answer all my questions and I feel a little cheated by them.

I have dealt with the main character Fran is some detail already. All I will add about her is the book for me is a winner because of her character. It is her warmth for her fellow man that makes her so engaging. The author really seems to understand her and is able to get inside her head to describe both her thoughts and feelings in a superb and realistic way.

In these series of books Fran is always well supported by two key characters. Ganish her friend is the first of these, he is the opposite of Fran and whereas she acts on impulse and is a steadying rock who thinks problems logically through. I find their friendship interesting and I like the way the author brings his concerns and worries into the novel as well making it realistic.

The other character is Sergeant Perry. They have a love/hate relationship, he gets annoyed and frustrated when she interferes with Police business. Yet at the same time he is very protective towards her, which she does not appreciate, as she believes he fancies her and only taking an interest to gain favour with her. I like the dynamics between the two and the fact Fran needs his help but does not like him.

I have found this book difficult to fault, so for once I won't. That said when I came to investigate the author I was frustrated that she did not have her own web site. All I could find was several sites selling her books.

The length of the novel was perfect for telling this story effectively and left me with a warm satisfied feeling after completing it. As I always reflect at the end of the book how it could have been improved, in this case I did not feel it needed improving.

The chapters were all about 18 pages each. This made them long enough to get into and describe each scene effectively but not too long as to become boring.

A feature that I found unusual and quite an interesting was at the end of the novel. Here there were two introductions into new novels. This is not unusual I here you cry but one of the reviews there was from a different author, this I think is unusual. If I'm cynical I could say this was done because both authors are supported by this publisher. Although I think this was a good aspect as it introduced a new author's work to me.

Conclusion:

I really enjoyed this crime novel. It was a very good story improved by an excellent leading character that was written for superbly. I would certainly recommend this novel as a fascinating read for anyone who likes a griping thriller. I will continue to try and find and review other books written by this talented author.


Pages: 311
Publisher: Headline
Year: 1997
Price: £0.79 on Amazon
ISBN: 0-7472-5576-8
About the author: www.fantasticfiction/co.uk/g/ann-granger


Thank you for reading my review. This is published under my user name on both Ciao and Dooyoo.


@CPTDANIELS February 2009

Summary: Great and gripping suspense novel