Lazybones - Mark Billingham

Those of you who may have read my reviews of earlier Billingham novels may wonder why exactly I figured I'd give his third novel a go but in all honesty I felt as though I needed to give him a fair crack of the whip. Once again D.I Thorne is teamed up with D.C Holland as they investigate a series of murders occurring in hotel rooms. When it turns out the victims are ex-offenders, suddenly the case becomes a little more complicated and the lines between right and wrong begin to blur round the edges. Pressure comes down from above and their cheif suspect begins to be another ex-offender recently released from prison. But is he responsible or could he be the next ...  Read the complete review

The press love a vigilante now and again. What's so wrong about a person hurting bad people? Lots of things to be honest. For one, were to do draw the line between who is good and who is bad? I am afraid that the editor of 'The Sun' is unlikely to have a copy of Father Christmas' naughty or nice list. It's up to the Police to keep clear headed in the situation and tackle the crimes in the same way that they would do any other; it is not their job to interpret the law - just protect it. But would they really try that hard if someone was murdering convicted and released rapists? Mark Billingham explores this is 'Lazy Bones'. A convicted rapist sits in his ...  Read the complete review

Lazy Bones is the third book by Billingham featuring Tom Thorne a DI in the Serious Crime Squad. Before reviewing the book a bit of background about the author. Mark Billingham is actually a stand up comedian and a TV writer although there is no evidence of the former in his literary endeavours. This book is a reasonably formulaic serial killer piece of crime fiction however it does have a slight twist with all of the victims being convicted rapists and therefore there is the opportunity to explore the morals of seeking to track down a killer who is removing from society people who have committed violent crimes. Both police and civilians within the book ...  Read the complete review

Can killing ever be justified? Or alternatively, should all murder cases be treated the same way? How should prisoners be treated? These are just some of the questions Detective Inspector Tom Thorne and his colleagues face in their latest case. A series of brutal murders in hotel rooms turns out to be connected by the victims? past as convicted rapists. While Thorne feels obliged to maintain the line that this must be treated as a serial killer investigation like any other, it is one of his hardest cases given his lack of sympathy for the dead men. He is also finding this case a bit of a slog going through all the ...  Read the complete review

About Mark Billingham Mark Billingham was born in Birmingham. Before publishing his 1st crime novel in 2001, Mark worked as an actor and also a stand up comedian. Although Mark Billingham still occasionally works as a stand up comedian, he now concentrates on writing crime novels featuring Detective Tom Thorne. Lazy bones is the 3rd in the series of Mark Billingham books and follows the same success as his previous books Sleepyhead and Scaredy Cat. The main character of Billingham’s book is Tom Thorne. A middle-aged copper who cannot seem to leave his work at work. He has trouble keeping a relationship running alongside his work and finds it ...  Read the complete review